Hi all, been wet shaving with a DE for two weeks now and just wanted to tell my story for the benefit of other newbies.
Pre-Shave: Been using the Neutrogena Men's Razor Defense Face Scrub because it says you can use it every day. It seems to work, and I have no complaints and nothing to compare it to. I also have some Pacific Shaving Company Pre-Shave Exfoliating Wash that I picked up from West Coast Shaving (WCS) however I haven't tried it yet as the Neutrogena is working for me now.
Razor: I started with a Merkur 34C which is nice and heavy however the Razor Acquisition Disorder quickly set in and I procured a couple of razors off B&B Buy/Sell/Trade (BST) and one of eBay. The BST score got me a Gillette Fat Handled "Early" Tech (Triangular Slots) from around 1940 which I decided to try three shaves ago. Wow what a razor! For the newbies out there, the razor really does make a difference and this old Tech is sooooo silky smooth and give a great shave (for me, YMMV). I'm really happy with it and will try the other razors I recently acquitted in rotation after a while. Really happy with this old Tech. Today's shave was baby Butt Smooth (BBS) with no irritation, no nicks, what can I say?
Blades: I used the Merkur blade that came with the Merkur for the first two shaves then moved on to Feather which I have stuck with for the rest of my shaves over the past two weeks. I want to get used to a blade before I mix it up some more. I did get a sampler pack from West Coast Shaving (WCS) so I have plenty to experiment with later.
Brush: With my Merkur I ordered the Parker Pure Badger brush off Amazon. Its fine. I have nothing to compare it with so maybe later I'll get a nicer brush however this one works well for now.
Shaving Cream: Started off with Kiss My Face (KMF) because it was available locally and never really got a great lather from it. I found some CO Bigelow (same as Proraso) in the green tube at Bath and Body Works (BBW) for really cheap and this stuff was a LOT better than the KMF. So I used that for over a week and was really happy with the lather etc. THEN I got a Taylor of Old Bond Street (TOBS) "sample" pack from Maggard Razors and tried the Sandalwood this morning. I'm not sure about the scent however the lathering was ridiculously luscious, thick, and creamy. The little sample jars (about the size of a small lip balm jar) will give me about 5 shaves I think. Crazy good stuff and I highly recommend Maggard. They shipped ridiculously quick even on a Saturday (I placed the order late Friday night) and it arrive on Monday! Wow that was fast. So go get a TOBS sample pack you'll be glad you did.
Shaving Bowl: Picked up some cereal bowl from the dollar store that has some bumps across the sides and seems to work OK. A little big but I haven't found anything else yet and the price was right
After the Shave: Right now I'm using Aqua Velva in a plastic jar and the stuff is blue in color. Goes on with a sting then turns into a cool refreshing (minty?) feeling. Wow that stuff is great. Then I follow it up with some Arbonne shave balm that my sister gave me for Christmas that was just sitting in the drawer for 6 months. She has good insight
Thats it for today. Feel free to PM me for any questions I can help you with.
Thanks for the great forum and great guys here at B&B.
Michael
Pre-Shave: Been using the Neutrogena Men's Razor Defense Face Scrub because it says you can use it every day. It seems to work, and I have no complaints and nothing to compare it to. I also have some Pacific Shaving Company Pre-Shave Exfoliating Wash that I picked up from West Coast Shaving (WCS) however I haven't tried it yet as the Neutrogena is working for me now.
Razor: I started with a Merkur 34C which is nice and heavy however the Razor Acquisition Disorder quickly set in and I procured a couple of razors off B&B Buy/Sell/Trade (BST) and one of eBay. The BST score got me a Gillette Fat Handled "Early" Tech (Triangular Slots) from around 1940 which I decided to try three shaves ago. Wow what a razor! For the newbies out there, the razor really does make a difference and this old Tech is sooooo silky smooth and give a great shave (for me, YMMV). I'm really happy with it and will try the other razors I recently acquitted in rotation after a while. Really happy with this old Tech. Today's shave was baby Butt Smooth (BBS) with no irritation, no nicks, what can I say?
Blades: I used the Merkur blade that came with the Merkur for the first two shaves then moved on to Feather which I have stuck with for the rest of my shaves over the past two weeks. I want to get used to a blade before I mix it up some more. I did get a sampler pack from West Coast Shaving (WCS) so I have plenty to experiment with later.
Brush: With my Merkur I ordered the Parker Pure Badger brush off Amazon. Its fine. I have nothing to compare it with so maybe later I'll get a nicer brush however this one works well for now.
Shaving Cream: Started off with Kiss My Face (KMF) because it was available locally and never really got a great lather from it. I found some CO Bigelow (same as Proraso) in the green tube at Bath and Body Works (BBW) for really cheap and this stuff was a LOT better than the KMF. So I used that for over a week and was really happy with the lather etc. THEN I got a Taylor of Old Bond Street (TOBS) "sample" pack from Maggard Razors and tried the Sandalwood this morning. I'm not sure about the scent however the lathering was ridiculously luscious, thick, and creamy. The little sample jars (about the size of a small lip balm jar) will give me about 5 shaves I think. Crazy good stuff and I highly recommend Maggard. They shipped ridiculously quick even on a Saturday (I placed the order late Friday night) and it arrive on Monday! Wow that was fast. So go get a TOBS sample pack you'll be glad you did.
Shaving Bowl: Picked up some cereal bowl from the dollar store that has some bumps across the sides and seems to work OK. A little big but I haven't found anything else yet and the price was right
After the Shave: Right now I'm using Aqua Velva in a plastic jar and the stuff is blue in color. Goes on with a sting then turns into a cool refreshing (minty?) feeling. Wow that stuff is great. Then I follow it up with some Arbonne shave balm that my sister gave me for Christmas that was just sitting in the drawer for 6 months. She has good insight
Thats it for today. Feel free to PM me for any questions I can help you with.
Thanks for the great forum and great guys here at B&B.
Michael
