Hello fellow B&B'ers and straight shavers,
First of all, thanks to all of you for your infinite patience with those of us who are just starting out! I tried my first straight shave yesterday, but it wasn't going too well, so I abandoned the idea. I will try again this weekend when I have a little more time to dedicate to it. I am not really discouraged, or intimidated; really I feel a little better knowing what my (first) issues are.
So, first, I had a problem with my lather drying out well before I was able to complete a pass. Is this a common problem? I don't think my face was wet enough to begin with (overthinking the shave and not paying attention to the obvious), and I was using MWF which I am not that familiar with and I know can be a little unruly. I will use good ol' Proraso next time, but I am still worried about it drying out before I finish. Any tips other than just relathering as necessary?
The second issue was that I was having a hard time getting the razor to cut anything. It is a new razor that was ordered as shave ready, so I am thinking it is all down to technique rather than the blade itself. I have done lots of "presearch" here and don't think my blade angles were off by that much. Again, any tips, especially for a first-time straight shaver?
Finally, I've had a few professional straight shaves in the past, and it has always felt like the barbers used short, fast strokes. Most of the videos I see here seem to use really long strokes. Is that possibly just a difference between shaving yourself and shaving someone else? What is the recommended stroke length, or doesn't it matter that much.
Any help appreciated...I will try again tomorrow. I am trying to have realistic expectations, but I really hope to be good at this someday.
Thanks,
GS
First of all, thanks to all of you for your infinite patience with those of us who are just starting out! I tried my first straight shave yesterday, but it wasn't going too well, so I abandoned the idea. I will try again this weekend when I have a little more time to dedicate to it. I am not really discouraged, or intimidated; really I feel a little better knowing what my (first) issues are.
So, first, I had a problem with my lather drying out well before I was able to complete a pass. Is this a common problem? I don't think my face was wet enough to begin with (overthinking the shave and not paying attention to the obvious), and I was using MWF which I am not that familiar with and I know can be a little unruly. I will use good ol' Proraso next time, but I am still worried about it drying out before I finish. Any tips other than just relathering as necessary?
The second issue was that I was having a hard time getting the razor to cut anything. It is a new razor that was ordered as shave ready, so I am thinking it is all down to technique rather than the blade itself. I have done lots of "presearch" here and don't think my blade angles were off by that much. Again, any tips, especially for a first-time straight shaver?
Finally, I've had a few professional straight shaves in the past, and it has always felt like the barbers used short, fast strokes. Most of the videos I see here seem to use really long strokes. Is that possibly just a difference between shaving yourself and shaving someone else? What is the recommended stroke length, or doesn't it matter that much.
Any help appreciated...I will try again tomorrow. I am trying to have realistic expectations, but I really hope to be good at this someday.
Thanks,
GS