Hello from Fort Worth, TX/Newb 1st shave
Hi all,
Just got my first straight razor, a Dovo Ebony "Silver Steel" 5/8. Well I avoided the advice on this website and shaved my whole face WTG on the 1st pass and then some ATG on the 2nd pass. No blood! Well a little, but not from a nick. I got a little razor burn under my nose. Even with pulling my nose out of the way so I could lower the angle of the blade it still kind of grabbed. Also, shaving my neck was a little akward. My throat sticks out when I tilt my head up to stretch the skin and there is an inward curve on either side if that makes sense. I had trouble finding a comfortable way to hold the blade and decide whether to use the toe or heel of the blade to get that area. All in all I was happy with the results and wasn't too nervous, all though you couldn't tell by the beads of sweat on my forehead!
So I have two questions and one might sound dumb. First, do you lather the soap right on top of the soap puck in the mug and then just rinse out the lather afterwards on top of the puck? Most videos I've watched I couldn't tell and most used bowls and just built the lather in there. I just built the lather in the mug on top of the puck and when I was finished just rinsed the lather out with the puck still in there and then just wiped off the sides of the mug. Second, I know there will be a lot of different opinions on aftershaves and balms, but in regards to razor burn specifically what would anyone recommend for that?
Sorry for the long post. I was excited to get my first straight razor and after shaving with it I will definitely be using it again and again if all goes well. Hope I don't get RAD because one of the reasons I told my wife I was getting one was to save money on razor cartridges and save waste. I do think I will be getting a good DE razor also though for times when I'm in a hurry.
P.S. I did skip shaving around a mole I have on my cheek. I went over that with a cartridge. I have nicked it on occasion with a bad cartridge. It sticks up a bit.
