Hello, DE newbie here!

[mozartman]

Welcome to B&B, and to the wonderful of luxury shaving. If you're hoping the folks here will share money saving tips, I'm afraid you have made a grievous mistake!

Bruce - I think you're selling yourself and DE shaving short. Like Graybeard, I've started with a Merkur 34C razor for $30, and Astra blades that are 10 cents each, and a $13 brush. Thanks to several good recommendations from helpful veterans here, I've now ordered another $13 brush, this one synthetic (a RazoRock Plissoft) to placate my animal-loving daughter. I already see how different DE razor designs might have different advantages or drawbacks. And with your help and advice I could easily collect beautiful and expensive new or antique razors and/or brushes the way I collected coins and stamps. But I could also stand pat and get very good shaves for the rest of my life. Hey, there are always more soaps and aftershaves to try.

 

[se7enw00d]

Welcome to B&B, and to the wonderful of luxury shaving. If you're hoping the folks here will share money saving tips, I'm afraid you have made a grievous mistake!

Hahaha! You're right. That old "more economical than cartridge shaving" line was a real honeytrap! No one saves any money on a hobby.

 

[Graybeard57]

Bruce - I think you're selling yourself and DE shaving short. Like Graybeard, I've started with a Merkur 34C razor for $30, and Astra blades that are 10 cents each, and a $13 brush. Thanks to several good recommendations from helpful veterans here, I've now ordered another $13 brush, this one synthetic (a RazoRock Plissoft) to placate my animal-loving daughter. I already see how different DE razor designs might have different advantages or drawbacks. And with your help and advice I could easily collect beautiful and expensive new or antique razors and/or brushes the way I collected coins and stamps. But I could also stand pat and get very good shaves for the rest of my life. Hey, there are always more soaps and aftershaves to try.

You are right. I went nuts in the beginning, accumulating quite a bit of soaps, AS, and blades. I've since calmed down, picked my favorites, and keep only the essentials on hand. I buy blades in bulk to save money, and will order two soaps at a time from a vendor to save on shipping, but never went crazy over razors. Since becoming Steward of AS, my collection of those jumped from two to five. Frankly, having five on hand confuses me some mornings, as I cannot decide which to use. I may thin the herd there, but at least I've expanded my horizons, and will continue to use a second vendor now.