Well, I thought it was time for another one of thebigspendurs pearls of wisdom about shaving and this is addressed not only to newbees but seasoned veterans too.

All of us here to some extent or another have taken up this noble thing called straight razor shaving and to many of us it has become a hobby and there are many discussions about out vast collections of fancy razors and strops and hones and fancy english soaps and aftershaves and restorations and expensive brushes and what not.

I would like to remind everyone here to look back to a time when straight shaving was the only way to shave and it was a cursed thing by many men. Think of the averge working stiff in his flat using a second hand razor which was probably improperly honed and stropped on his leather belt. He probably shaved using the same bar of soap he used to wash his hands and if he was lucky he had the cheapest brush manufactured. He may have even shaved with just water (yes you can shave with just water and get the same quality shave as with the best of creme's and soaps, try it some day but just keep you skin well wetted). He probably finished his shave with a splash of cold water and that was it. With the exception of the paper over the cuts in his face from all of the microchips in his blade.

And so the is the history from which we have taken this simple daily routine and elevated it to a highfalutin procedure that will drive many of us to financial ruin.

So as we continue our discussions here and buy our luxury products think back about that poor guy in the 1800s and what he would think if he knew about us and this forum. Probably just a bunch of spoiled rich guys. I'd write more but I have to tend to some snipping on Eboy!