First str8 shave today!

My package arrived from Whipped Dog yesterday so today was my first straigh razor shave. Hot shower (skipped the Bond shower, just kept it hot today), resplashed hot water on my face, Omega shave soap worked into a nice lather and applied with my Omega brush. Right cheek first, razor seemed to be skipping so with some readjustment for angle got a better glide. Right cheek went well, so moved to left cheek. Again here, learning the proper angle. One tiny nick, passable WTG shave on my cheeks, finished my neck, chin and upper lip with my DE Futur. WWR / CWR followed by witch hazel splash and Ogalla Bay Rum AS. All in all, not too bad. My strop that came with my purchase recomended NOT stroping for a few shaves to get a feel for the gradual dulling of the razor. It also mentioned prepping the strop with mink oil perhaps and smoothing it by rubbing a coffee mug or similar rounded object on it. What say you to this strop prep? Should I strop before my next shave? Any suggestions or information is welcomed!! Thanks for listening!!

at first Congratulations with your first shave.
this is good news that you are moving slowly.
just keep it going and on your next shave
please go head strop the razor.
don't use too much pressure and don't hurry up. just take your time. you should be fine.
gl

Looks like you are enjoying it already. Yes, strop before your next shave. I also strop in the middle of my shave routine. Works for me.

Welcome to the right way to shave. As already recommended, take your time in learning technques. Your face will thank you for it. Also, despite what you see in the movies, you don't need to whip the razor up and down the strop. Speed is not important, technique is. Put just enough pressure on the blade to hold it flat on the strop, and no more. I do 20 laps on the linen side and 60 laps on the leather. I also do my stropping prior to my shave, not after the shave. That is my preference and it works for me... :beer1:

Definitely gets easier. I've been straight shaving for about 3 months now. Can't recall the last time i used my safety razor. The key seems to be correct blade angle, no pressure and go slow........you should be fine and enjoy!

Congratulations and welcome to the world of straight shaving!

+1 on the advice you've gotten so far. Just relaxed yet attentive and you'll find that the shaves improve. I started about 2 1/2-3 months ago and haven't touched anything but a straight since the first stroke.

Good luck and keep us posted on your learning process!

I think oiling most strops is a good idea, but rubbing them down is only really necessary if the strop has a slight warp in it.

Congrats on your first shave!

You are so wise to start slowly. My first shave was with a new razor out of the box, said to be "Factory sharpened" but which wasn't shave-ready. I attempted to shave my whole face, and ended up feeling very foolish, with nicks and cuts to boot.

You're obviously way smarter than that!

Second shave today, no nicks. stroped first (yep, good thing its a training strop lol) In making an X like pattern, should the razor slide off the strop at the end of the stroke? It also makes a singing sound. Is this a problem? If I am correct there should be no angle when I strop? I think with me its all about figuring out the shaving angle. Any advice for getting that "perfect" 30 degree angle (read in a wiki last night about 1-1.5 spine widths off my face is close)? Thanks for any and all advice. Shave was wtg smooth. Chin with my DE, went over mustache area with DE. Felt good about both sides today. Noticed when shave was over how tense I was. Note for tomorrow, need to relax my posture a bit. WH splash with CLubman Pinaud AS. Not too bad. The journey continues......

Congrats!

In terms of stropping, definately do it before each shave, and ideally after as well just to make sure that theres no microgunk on the edge that wiping the blade down missed.

I do 30 fabric and 60 leather before each shave then 15 fabric and 30 leather after and this really keeps my edges in good nick.

Just enjoy the whole process though, take your time and it'll just keep getting better and better..! :tu

Fourth shave today and what a diffrence! Made a concious decision to pay ultra close attention to finding the right angle. I also did much more face stretching and face making. Wow what a diffrence! 1 WTG and 1 XTG pass, little bit of touch up work and just wow! N-S on my cheeks, moustache, neck and under my chin are aaaaalmost BBS!! S-N not bad at all either. A little more burn today, mabey pressure related?! All in all, I feel I'm making decent noob progress!! Thanks for all the tips and advice I've gotten from SRP!!!