Ordering First Shave Soaps

so ive read a bunch here and other places, and i think im gonna go with mamma bear soaps, i really like that they have many scents to choose from. i already have a small pure bristle ( im 99% sure boar) shaving brush, i have good face soaps from dove for a good prewash.
i bought this nivea all in one kit, i doubt itll be up to par, even though i have had good experiences with nivea, but itlll be a good youtube review. ( 4 step kit , face wash, shaving cream, after balm, and face lotion).........
ive yet to order a strop, polish, and hones though. anything else im forgetting?


*sorry, i somehow got in the wrong topic, i meant to be in newbs

Assuming you already have a good, shave ready straight, it sounds like the first priority would be a strop. With this, you can keep your straight up to snuff for several months before it needs to be touched up on a hone. I would recommend that you pick up a "practice" razor if you are going to begin honing yourself as it can be a bit tricky, speaking purely from my own experience, some take to it immediately. Good strops can be had here at Straight Razor Designs or several other places such as The Well Shaved Gentleman (Tony Miller), Ruprazor's, etc... You might also find a good one in the classifieds. Believe Gugi, a member here has one along with a STR8 and soap in there now.

Enjoy.

Joe:gl:

Sorry I have to do this .......LOL

:OT:OT:OT:OT

This should probably be in the Newbie section...

Get your strop first like was said above...dont worry about the hones yet ... you wont need that for a while...a good strop will hold your razor shaving sharp for a while if using good stropping technique.

If you are looking at Mama bear soaps...PM me I may be able to send you a chunk to try...or email me at

erictski@gmail.com

ok im gonna order a strop first.
the ones that say leather/canvas, do you use the canvas in place of linen? or is that just a reinforcement for the leather?

Yes, canvas and then leather.

Joe

canvas, linen, cloth component, these are all basically different words for the same thing. A fabric strop on the back of the leather that you use first...most guys do like 20 to 30 laps and then go to leather for usually double what they did for linen. When you see a guy say he did 20/40 no his strop he did 20 on the cloth(linen, cotten, canvas) and then 40 on leather.

Octopus

Do you have a brush already? If not you can pick one up at walgreens or walmart ... a cheap boar brush to start off with ... you will need one with the shave soap.

Or you can get this one pretty cheap that alot of guys say is a good starter Badger brush

Amazon.com: Tweezerman Men's Shaving Brush: Health & Personal Care

yea for now i have asmall boar one i found at alocal beauty supply shop, it was only 4 bucks and seems amazingly sturdy

that should work fine and if you decided you want something better try out the cheap tweezerman i linked above

For your first soaps, I'd recommend getting some mama bear soaps and/or some SRD soaps. Both have excellent scent and performance, and are reasonably priced. If you are looking to try a few more scents for a little less money, and a little less performance (IMO), you might try some honeybee spa shave soaps. You can get a 3 or 6 pack for cheap.

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Originally Posted by pjrage

For your first soaps, I'd recommend getting some mama bear soaps and/or some SRD soaps. Both have excellent scent and performance, and are reasonably priced. If you are looking to try a few more scents for a little less money, and a little less performance (IMO), you might try some honeybee spa shave soaps. You can get a 3 or 6 pack for cheap.

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I agree...its nice using the glycerin soaps to learn to lather before moving to hard soaps...

again Octopus...that MB sample will be in the mail in the next day or so.

Moved to Newbie's forum as requested....

Octopus what scent would you like to try...

Awakenings, Spellbound woods, Lavender vanilla, Barbershoppe

So far I have only tried 4 soaps. Two from SRD (sweet patchouli and sandalwood), a free sample I got from Cedarfurnitureman on Ebay, and the cheap puck of Williams I bought at the local drugstore. I was totally satisfied with all of them. They all gave me a nice lather and a good shave. The most noticable difference of course, is the fragrance. All but th patchouli are subtle. Some days subtle is what I prefer. I have to say that my all time hands down favorite is the SRD sweet patchouli. Both times that I used it when my girlfriend was over, just as I finished my shave, she nuzzled my neck then jumped my bones. Coincidence? I think not. I will be continuing the experiment, and I will report future findings. :tu

lol sounds good moon howl.
Can u clarify SRD brand for me please?

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you might try some honeybee spa shave soaps.

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yea ill have to check those multi-packs out