Thread: First straight shave

Did my first straight shave today and really enjoyed it. Left my skin feeling a bit dry afterwards so I will probably include cream or a aftershave into my post shave to help with that. Areas that I could shave with my dominate hand I did really good and feels like there is no whiskers there at all. Left side of my face not so much as I could not find a good angle with my hand to get in with so it got sloppy and unfortunately I made the rookie mistake and moved the blade while it was still near my face. Got a nice cut just above my upper lip but I had a styptic pen so I managed to stop it from bleeding and now I gotta clean the cut better. Overall I am happy with the results and glad I bought and impressed I did so well with only youtube videos to show me what I am doing. Cant wait till I actually get good at straight shaving and have some after shave.

It took me 3 months to get my first bbs. Now I get it anytime I want. Read lots here, listen to the great advice here and somehow you will definitely find your way. In the end you will get IMO the best shave you can get and a velvety skin after that I never got from de, cartridge or( dare I say) electric.

Its a nice shave just gotta get it down and well be less nervous which comes with time shaving. I would say I managed to get a bbs on my right side but that was wtg, xtg, and atg but I do have one question is should I be going over a area I just shaved without lather? Like do one stroke and then go back for another stroke or wait till I re lather?

Originally Posted by SovietHawk

Its a nice shave just gotta get it down and well be less nervous which comes with time shaving. I would say I managed to get a bbs on my right side but that was wtg, xtg, and atg but I do have one question is should I be going over a area I just shaved without lather? Like do one stroke and then go back for another stroke or wait till I re lather?

Sure, you can make another stroke without re-lathering. Sounds like a very successful first shave. My learning curve was a long one. It took me two years for me to really say I mastered it, and now three years into it I'm so much better at it than I was last year. Those cartridges and electric razors were so miserable to use that I was really determined to find a better way. The amount of time it takes to master straight shaving can vary a lot from person to person.

I am probably still going to use cartridges only for the neck area as I don't feel comfortable with a razor sharp blade next to vital organs but jaw line and up I love the shave it gives. Man the cuts sting though >.<

If it stings something is wrong. Too much pressure or blade not sharp or angle is off. Go easy you dont need to push the blade hard and the angle should be imo the lowest that still cuts. 30 degrees is the maximum.Learn the strop which will make or break the shave.

It cut because I made the mistake of moving the blade sideways to shave a new spot. I do think the blade needs a better hone as it the blade seemed to pull but I am no expert on shaving so it could have been the wrong angle.