I opened a present...or several, a little early this year. My favorite mother got me a Thiers-Issard carbon full hollow 5/8 razor in buffalo horn (picture to come soon, too lazy to get my camera put together), along with a strop and some soap in a walnut bowl. The kit also came with a boar brush, but I already have a badger that I got with my safety razor, so it went under the sink never to be seen again.

Shave started off a little rocky. I messed up the lather and didn't get it wet enough, so it was drying out on my face, causing the razor to grab. I also didn't shower and my prep was awful. Once I got the lather straightened out it went relatively great. I read to take your time, learn one part of the face per day, for a month.....That's not how I learn. Not only did I do my entire face, I made 3-4.5 passes: WtG, XtG, AtG, XtG. The AtG pass was by far the most terrifying, but I survived the whole endeavor with 1 microscopic cut and the only spots I missed were around the corners of my jaw on the neck side and the chin/neck transition (which I've always had trouble with).

In conclusion, started rocky, ended better than anticipated. I have never sweat so much doing such a minor activity. It's all uphill and an empty bank account from here.