I just had a really bad shave and I'd love some feedback.
Yesterday my Classic Shaving brand Sandalwood soap arrived. This morning I did my new routine:
hot water and brush in the mug (full to the brim),
lots of hot water on my face, rubbed in really well,
100 strokes on my 3" red Latigo practice strop (I'm going to upgrade to a Tony Miller or SRD Latigo/fabric when I can afford it),
more hot water on my face,
dump the mug,
squeeze the brush,
start whipping up lather,
when it forms peaks, I put it on my face with light circular motions,
one pass WTG on my cheeks/sideburns, upper lip, and neck, (I wear a "chin curtain" beard and the hair on my neck below the beard grows upward, toward my chin, so WTG is actually south to north)
Almost immediately I started to feel the burn. Not like a rough shave burn, it wasn't any rougher than before. More like a bad sun burn; really dry, sharp, prickly, anywhere the lather was. I rinsed with lots of ice cold water and after about ten minutes, I was starting to feel better. I tried an experiment and re-lathered. The pain came back almost immediately. More ice-cold water and lotion helped.
Three questions:
1.) How is my routine?
2.) The Classic Soap is supposed to be good. Could it be the sandalwood oil that irritates?
3.) This is the second soap I've tried, the first was a gift from some gift shop. I can't seem to get good lather no matter how much or little water I use. It always ends up like the foam on top of a pint of beer. Just like the beer, it looks thick, but quickly disappears. When I use the CT&E cream, it looks like whipped cream or yogurt: shinny and think, lasts all the way to the end of the shave. Is this the best I can get from soap? does the quality of my brush matter? Any other tips on creamy lather?
Thanks,
-- Aubrey