I definitely consider it a success! One day later my face is irritation free which is more than I can say for my old shaving technique. It wasn't totally wound free as I managed to nick a couple of the bumps leftover from my last shave with a cartridge razor over a week ago. I'm really looking forward to those going away for good! All and all it was a good time.
After diving into some more information on this site I managed to correct it with information in the wiki. I just wet my hands and rubbed the strop a bit then did the stropping motion with a beer bottle and pressure. It seems to have done the trick but new information is always appreciated so I'll give that a try if it ever loses its flat shape again.