Love it when it all comes together

What a glorious way to start the day.
I've been using a DE for the past few days due to travel and work schedules and have been getting less than stelar shaves. A little bit of razor burn ...etc.
Last night I opened my tub of Arco and covered the puck with hot water, and added 3 drops of Lavender essential oil. I then left it open to dry over night.
This morning's shave. Hot shower and face lathered the Arco, using a TAOS turn back Silver tip brush -- the lavender scent is nice! Then I shaved with a no name straight and focused on light pressure to avoid waking up the razor rash on my neck and checks. After three passes (WTG, CTG and ATG) a splash of witch hazel followed by Pinaud Clubman. Neither burned at all and I have total BBS.
I need to focus more on using a light touch. I'm usually more aggressive with the blade. Today I leaned - Less is definitely more. The lighter touch, with good prep produced a much closer and enjoyable shave.

Nothing like a nice relaxing straight razor shave to put you in a great frame of mind for the day ahead.
Just curious about the lavender oil... Do you feel that it adds conditioning to the lather or just scent?

Pete <:-}

Try the same lightness approach when using your DE and those shaves should improve also.

Bob

Bob, gonna give it another go tomorrow with a EJ Kelvin I purchased. I'm sure pressure contributed, but I was having issues getting the angle right and being rushed to get out the door. I haven't used a DE for months and being in a hurry wasn't the best time to pick one back up.
Pete, I didn't notice any real changes in the building of the lather or the lather it's self. Arco is always a good lather, and very slick, for me. I did notice the puck had a different sheen to it. The smell was awesome though. Lavender blended really well with the strong soap smell of Arco. So it wasn't too flowery, but I actually like the smell of Arco by it's self.

Yea, being in a hurry when shaving with anything does not help any. To get a good starting point for angle on a DE, put the head flat on your face with the handle straight out parallel to the floor. Then rotate the handle downwards till you just start to feel the blade and you should good to go. I'll have to try that lavender trick with Arko as I like that soap very much and don't mind the scent either. Good luck with the DE.

Bob