Romancing the Shave

Gentlemen,

Every few years, with new members joining us, I resurrect a favorite topic of mine: If you were to spend a year on a favorite project in your favorite place around world, what shaving tools and products would you pack? Everything should be from your current collection — what you have and use in the shave den.

Here is the caveat, and it is a must:

Place
Project

2 straight razors
1 strop
1 honing stone
1 safety razor with appropriate blade
1 shave brush
1 soap
1 cream
1 aftershave set up: any or all that you use together.
1 preferred drink: for medicinal purposes, of course.

Some considerations: If you are a strictly straight razor shaver, ignore the safety razor. If you are a strictly safety razor shaver, ignore the straight. If you are a predominantly straight razor shaver but occasionally use the safety razor, mention both. I would take two straight for myself. If you would prefer to take only one straight, that's your choice. No more than two straight, though.

The place and the project of your choice. For instance, I would love to spend a year in Province, France, writing the great novel.


And finally, for fair play and clarity, please stay within the rules and follow the format. Otherwise I will unleash my Assyrian war chariots. OY!

So here is my Romancing the Shave set up:

Place: Province, in the south of France
Project: Writing the great novel
Straight razors: Filarmonica 14 Novodur; Le Grelot 6/8
Strop: Mastro Livi travel loom
Hone: Barber
Safety razor: ATT SE1, Feather Professional blades
Brush: shavemac 167 25mm silvertip
Soap: Martin de Candre
Cream: Castle Forbes
Aftershave: Alum, witch hazel, Castle Forbes balm, Spanish Leather by Truefitt & Hill
Drink: Cognac

Gentlemen, what is your Romancing the Shave set up?

Some may find this strang, but as a truck driver I'm already living a good dream. Seeing the country, US & Canada, and carrying most of my shave gear with me. But here's my attempt.

Place: Australian outback
Project: Driving a great truck train in the Outback for one year. Picture at end.
Straight razors: 1) Wacker 7/8 Old Sheffield with barbers notch, 2) Thiers Issard 6/8 Spartacus with festoon spine.
Strop: 3" red latigo
Hone: 8x3 Belgian coticule
Brush: VP Leon Hardy 700050 30mm silvertip
Cream: Poraso green in a tube. Actually anything Poraso.
Aftershave: Osma alum block, Old Spice.
Drink: My wife's sweet ice tea with lemon.

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This is a fantastic idea Obie.

I've always loved woodworking and glue-less/fastener-less constructions of wood. I've also favored working with my hands, but have always pursued more lucrative roles. As for the location, my best friend and I went to a lake house with a bunch of friends in New Hampshire a few years ago for the 4th of July. Sitting back, drinking some scotch and watching the milkyway was probably one of the best experiences of my life. If I could do that every night and work with my hands during the day, I can think of little else that would be as wonderful.

Place: New Hampshire
Project: Carpentry, maybe built cabinets
Straight razors: Boker 386 & Case Bros. razors
Strop: Kanayama 30k
Hone: Coticule
Safety razor: N/A
Brush: AoS Badger
Soap: Martin de Candre Fougere
Cream: ToBS Cedarwood
Aftershave: Alum, Nivea Balm, Pinaud Special Reserve
Drink: A nice single malt scotch, smoky but hold the peat.

Traveling would be the project I believe I would enjoy most. Edwardian age traveling where each destination may be a two or three month stay. Paris, London, Venice, wherever the mood might strike.

Straights: Wacker Jungmeister, Ralph Aust 6/8
Strop: Scrupleworks only for fear of ruining my Kanayama or Neil Miller
Hone: Coticule
Brush: Paladin PK-47
Soap: Martin de Candre Fougere
Cream: Truefitt and Hill Grafton
Aftershave: ...hate playing by the rules here... Alt Innsbruck
Drink: Lagavulin

Travel would be my project also. I'd like to do round the world by ship and train taking as long as I want. I do not take straight razors when travelling so....

DE - WR-1 OC head/Ikon Bulldog handle
Blades - Feather and/or Gillette Silver Blues
Soap - Tabac shave stick/sticks
Brush - Muhle synthetic travel brush
Post Shave - Alum, Tabac AS and Tabc EdC
Libation - Any local tipple that takes my fancy

Bout it

Bob

I like dinosaurs.

Place: The Flaming Cliffs, southwest Mongolia
Project: Finding egg nests and identifying the dino that laid them while looking for the next feathered dino.

Bruno 02 Steel, Bluesman7-Geezer razors
Neil Miller English Bridle Strop
16K Shapton
Moss Shave-Mac Brush
Martin de Candre Soap
Castle Forbes Lavender Cream
Floid Blue AS
Thayer's Witch Hazel
Stella Artois Beer

I love cycling and would to go on a big cycle tour. Unfortunately commitments will not let me Swan off for extended periods. But if I could :
Place - Asia
Project - Cycle tour of the continent
Straights- w&B wedge, Homemade wedge
Strop - English Bridle 3"
Hone- Cuticle
Brush- Dense badger, in stone
Soap- Valobra
Cream- phoenix and beau Albino
Aftershave - moisturiser and penhaligons juniper sling (nice I'm the heat)
Drink- Laphroaig single malt (good any time)

Place: Stanley, Idaho
Project: Working on a novel
Straight Razors: Ali's Blade Chopper 65, Filarmonica Especial
Strop: Neil Miller Shell Cordovan
Hone: Suehiro Gokumyo 20k
Safety Razor: Cobra Classic + Feather Pro blade
Brush: Shavemac Americana XL 28mm 2-Band Silvertip
Soap: La Savonnière du Moulin
Cream: Acqua Di Parma
Aftershaves: Floid Blue AS, Acqua Di Parma balm, Acqua Di Parma Colonia EdT
Drink: Chivas and soda

Place : The Caribbean
Project : Wreck diving
Razors : Wade Butcher Celebrated fbu, Koraat
Strop : Tony Miller Heirloom fast bridle
Hone : Shapton glass 16k
Brush : Shavemac custom 2 band
Soap : Mickey Lee Reunion
Aftershave : Razor Rock Alum, Sampson's Natural Aftershave
Drink : Ice Cold Beer

Pete <:-}

I'll throw my cards in...

Place: Kuwait, Camp Arifjan (All my friends are there) :(
Project: Logistics Supply and EMR support for the Army
Straight razors: I only have one...my Classic Samurai Shavette
Strop: N/A
Hone: N/A
Safety razor: Gillette butterfly, 70's with Astra blades
Brush: Vintage Boar bristle
Soap: Henry Cavendish - Himalaya
Cream: coconut oil
Aftershave: Alum, Nautica Blue
Drink: Jack Daniels Honey

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Wonderful subject, and something that would be fantastic to actually accomplish....who knows, maybe one day.

Place: Rome, Italy
Project: The Museums (actually spending all the time I wanted in the Vatican Museum and other museums and art Galleries, Churches etc.,), and touring historical sites. To see Julius Caesar's haunts, and other Roman Emperors, and to visit ancient battlefields - all Classical History. Learn some Italian.

Straight razors: Wade & Butcher 9/8, Celebrated FBU, Palmera #14 8/8
Strop: Kanayama #3
Hone: Escher
Safety razor: Mongoose, Feather ProGuard blades
Brush: Morris & Forndran L7
Soap: Martin de Candre Fougere
Cream: Castle Forbes Lavender
Aftershave: Esjberg Aftershave Oil, Givenchy Pour Homme's Aftershave
Drink: Coffee Americano

Gentlemen,

Such fabulous dreams for all of us. I love the responses. Please keep them coming.

Place: Old farm house. Tuscany, Italy

Attachment 247680

Project: spending time with my young uns, making wine and attempt to make a straight razor.

Straights: Iwasaki Tamahagane kamisori, Wade and butcher FBU

Strop: Neil Miller shell Cordovan

Hone: Escher

DE: Merkur slant, Astra platinum blades

Brush: Duke 3 Manchurian

Soap: Martin de Candre

Cream: Penhaligons Endymion

Aftershave: my homemade balm

Drink : As I have a number of ailments just one tipple would not suffice for my recovery process.
So in the name of health; a nice ale, not too dark and heavy, so probably Fullers London Pride. Laphroaig with just a hint of mineral water and finally my wine making efforts. Cheers!7

Great thread idea, Obie-We wouldn't want to feel the wrath of any Assyrian war chariots; I've read too many scary stories about them from the Old Testament. So I'll play

Place: Glencoe, Scotland (right in the middle of the Highlands, Braveheart country, and the prettiest place I've ever been).
Project:Exploring the Highlands (the people and their language and culture, the lovely farms, all the "stoonin' vestas" as the locals call their beautiful scenery), exploring all the distilleries and their offerings, flyfishing the beautiful rivers and lochs, writing about it all in some non-fiction travel essays (something I've done quite a bit of).
disclaimer: Though I've got dozens of pics of the Glencoe Pass area, including "The Sisters" portrayed here, you guys know I am not a real photographer, unlike the person who took this!
Attachment 247693
2 straight razors: Frederick Reynolds humpback smiling edge in a "rattler" grind, and maybe my Wade and Butcher Celebrated Fine India Steel "Diamond Edge."
1 strop-My custom English bridle strop made by Kevin Adams aka "Hidestoart"
1 honing stone-Norton 4/8 combo stone if I can only have one, as it does almost everything you need a razor hone to do, really
1 safety razor with appropriate blade-Gillette SuperSpeed, not used often enough to be a blade connoisseur, I just use the local drugstore brand
1 shave brush-My acrylic and brass custom made for me by Ray aka "Walleyeman"
1 soap-Mitchell's Wool Fat since we're in Scotland. I'll sometimes put a drop of patchouli and one of vetiver EO before I use it to jazz up its faint scent a little.
1 cream-Godrej Menthol Mist
1 aftershave set up: Splash of generic witch-hazel followed up by one of my custom bay rums made with a "secret recipe."
1 preferred drink: Scotch of course (or "molt weske" as real Scots say)-Aberlour A'bunadh, Laphroiag Quarter Cask, Ardbeg Uigedail. I love the Islay peat-monsters, so I'll have to take a trip over to the Western Isles for a visit there too!

Place--Alaska
Project--My old job in the mines on a D-8 Caterpillar dozer.
2 straights--My W.J. Donovan and my John Doe no name.
Strop--SRD Premium 1.
Stone--My vintage coticule.
Brush--Semoque 830 boar.
Soap--Kirk's Castile.
Cream--Creamo.
Aftershave--Aqua-Velva Musk.
Drink--Just about any Kentucky bourbon will be fine.