Thread: Chreees's Shaving Journey

Today I had shave número uno. It went okay I guess. Spent over an hour. Didn't get near as close as I was expecting to. I completed my entire face twice, WTG. Finished up with my electric and then slapped some Proraso pre-shave cream on my face and called it a night.

I only had a few days growth, but the razor was very tuggy/pully. It came honed from Larry at Whipped Dog, so I know it's honed. Lather seemed good as well. I did a hot towel to the face twice before applying lather. Held blade angle at about 30 degrees and made short strokes.

Any ideas what I'm doing wrong? My chin and upper lip were the most difficult. Razor didn't cut close at all on my chin and neck it seemed like (looks like I'll have to shave across on my neck, sigh).

My wife is still laughing at me. But I'm determined to get this right. I'll revisit in a couple days.

You're not doing anything wrong. You're new at this, and anyone who expects it to work easily and immediately just hasn't done his homework. You've done one thing right: you started straight shaving, but you have to give it time. It took me two months to gain any level of competence and one month before I was getting the hang of it at all.

Be patient, read the Library, stay with it, use NO pressure, keep your angles low and give yourself time for your technique and experience to build. They will. It just takes some time.

Good luck!

Originally Posted by ace

You're not doing anything wrong. You're new at this, and anyone who expects it to work easily and immediately just hasn't done his homework. You've done one thing right: you started straight shaving, but you have to give it time. It took me two months to gain any level of competence and one month before I was getting the hang of it at all.

Be patient, read the Library, stay with it, use NO pressure, keep your angles low and give yourself time for your technique and experience to build. They will. It just takes some time.

Good luck!

Thanks for the advice. I have been reading the forums and other internet sources for a couple weeks now, so I felt confident going into this... Now I realize just how much of a learning curve there is when you're ACTUALLY doing it. I'm definitely sticking with it. To me this is a challenge and I love a good challenge.

Now I can tell my grandparents that I didn't slice my throat open! I had told my grandpa thinking he would be proud but his reaction was the total opposite- "Are you stupid? You'll cut your throat. Those things are dangerous." I asked him what he used back in the day and he replied, "I used a safety razor. My dad used a straight." I asked him if his dad ever cut his throat. He admitted that no, he didn't ever recall him cutting his throat. I told him I don't plan to either.

Now I did get a few nicks on my face, but a styptic pencil quickly took care of that. Nothing serious, thank god.

Originally Posted by Chreees

Thanks for the advice. I have been reading the forums and other internet sources for a couple weeks now, so I felt confident going into this... Now I realize just how much of a learning curve there is when you're ACTUALLY doing it. I'm definitely sticking with it. To me this is a challenge and I love a good challenge. only had a few days growth, but the razor was very tuggy/pully.

Any ideas what I'm doing wrong? My chin and upper lip were the most difficult. Razor didn't cut close at all on my chin and neck it seemed like (looks like I'll have to shave across on my neck, sigh).

And in all that reading you missed the part about "For your first shave simply shave the easy parts like from Sideburn to Jaw line and slowly expand out as your skill grows, using you old shaving system to finish up"

And that part about that SR shaving is about beard reduction..

Not trying to be facitious here but all that stuff is really in all the beginner shaving guides.. Slow down take your time, honest there isn't a prize for the guy that gets there fastest...

Originally Posted by gssixgun

And in all that reading you missed the part about "For your first shave simply shave the easy parts like from Sideburn to Jaw line and slowly expand out as your skill grows, using you old shaving system to finish up"

And that part about that SR shaving is about beard reduction..

Not trying to be facitious here but all that stuff is really in all the beginner shaving guides.. Slow down take your time, honest there isn't a prize for the guy that gets there fastest...

Oh I saw all that. I just got brave and went ahead and went for it, haha. I guess I wasn't supposed to?

Been doing this for about 2 and a half months and I am still learning. I was where you are now. It does get better. Shaves get easier, safer and closer every time. The lip and chin area are still difficult spots but I now am able to shave them to the point they are BBS. Trust me, it does take time. Stick to your guns and be patient.

Originally Posted by Razorthin

Been doing this for about 2 and a half months and I am still learning. I was where you are now. It does get better. Shaves get easier, safer and closer every time. The lip and chin area are still difficult spots but I now am able to shave them to the point they are BBS. Trust me, it does take time. Stick to your guns and be patient.

Thanks for the reassurance. I think I needed it. I guess I just felt like with how much research I had done, I had a lot more confidence than I probably should have had going into this. I just had way too high of expectations for the first shave. I definitely know now to not expect so much and to just take my time.

Originally Posted by Chreees

Oh I saw all that. I just got brave and went ahead and went for it, haha. I guess I wasn't supposed to?

Nope - you weren't "supposed to".

I think the point is to set your expectations appropriately. You are of course free to be as aggressive as you wish. But the advice in the beginner's guides are there for a reason and intended to make your experience a pleasant one with realistic expectations.

I can read alot about how to play tennis but I'm not a tennis player until I've put alot of time on the courts. Take your time! This isn't a race...

Originally Posted by EggSuckingLeech

Nope - you weren't "supposed to".

I think the point is to set your expectations appropriately. You are of course free to be as aggressive as you wish. But the advice in the beginner's guides are there for a reason and intended to make your experience a pleasant one with realistic expectations.

I can read alot about how to play tennis but I'm not a tennis player until I've put alot of time on the courts. Take your time! This isn't a race...

Noted. I shall pay closer attention to the advice given here and pace myself.

Shave #2 tonight.

Razor moved much easier tonight... maybe it just needed a bit of stropping even though Larry said in the instructions it did not? I dunno. I was able to go quicker, and I didn't take near as long to shave, but I did still have to finish with my electric (which feels completely childproof after just shaving your face with a sharp blade, lol).

One thing I don't get yet is how to cut completely close so no stubble is left. Went all angles and still had stubble left. It was like I was just scraping off the lather. I need to work on my angle technique more (obviously).

Less nicks this time... but a bit more irritation (razor burn). Not sure why. I did get a gusher on the left side of my neck, right under the jawline, that took a bit of time to clot (styptic was no match for it).

At least I actually felt like the guys in the YouTube vids this time... Just didn't get the closeness I needed. I'll work on it. I think my next shave will be in a day or two. Definitely can't shave everyday right now while learning this new skill.