I've been using conditioner in the shower and then lathering up before stropping the razor.

Today I used the conditioner while stropping and working up lather in a bowl method, then hot toweling off the conditioner before lathering my face. The results were fantastic, particularly on my neck. I was using a first time ebay blade that I got a particularly nice edge on so don't know how much a variable that was, so will continue using the conditioner this way to see if I like the results with other razors as well.

Thanks for the tip, Ilija.