Thread: Anticipation

First of all welcome to SRP, you will and probably are finding that the people here are very giving of time and knowledge and it is truly a great experience for us new comers.

I am not sure if you omited some detail in describing your first trial pass for brevity or maybe I missed something. But I would like to chime in on face prep as it is as important a part of the process as anything. Unlike your disposable blades you really can not just wet, lather and go. Well at least I can't. My most comfortable shaves have come when I take the time to properly prep and prepare. This is where shaving with a straight becomes a culture or way of life rather than the 1 up 1 down and done of cartridge shaving. So for preshave prep give this a try

fill by bowl with hot hot water and soak brush
put some hot hot water in/on soap
Grab a hot shower and give face a good washing to rid beard of dirt and oils
Some use a conditioner on there beard to soften it a bit, personally I do not
step out of shower and just pat face dry
Drain water from bowl and soap
shake excess water from brush and load brush on the soap
For the soap/brush I am using I need about 1/2-3/4 tsp of water in bowl and find the hotter the water the more water I need, you will need to experiment
start whipping your lather, should start with big clear bubbles and then start to work up to whipped cream type
lather face with circles all over and it should be thick enough that you are not seeing black whiskers through it
Now take a hot hot towel (I put damp towel in microwave for a minute) and wrap face in it. Wait 2-3 minutes then remove
now relather

your now ready to shave

This is what I consider my Full Monty Shave prep. most days (monday to Friday) I skip a step or two, but on weekends when I have the time this seems to cover all the most recomended steps from the SR Members. You might as well start out with doing everything as right as possible then adjust for your beard and skin type. You may find with experience that you can skip the hot towel and just let lather sit... This just comes from playing around

Have you ever had a hot towel shave at the barber? This can be a great learning experience and you get a chance to experience the shave and how a person who has shaved 1000's does it.