Don't get overwhelmed. Remember, you can only shave with ONE soap and ONE razor at a time. SO, organize everything neatly and pick 1-razor per month and learn it. As for the soap, pick one of the top of the pile and use it until done, write down which soaps you liked and the ones you didn't care for (save that list for later) Same for pre/post shave products. When you finish off your samples, narrow it down to just a few soaps to purchase. Anything you have left that you don't want...you can put it on BST or offer it up as a PIF. This should be fun to have such variety and a nice little project to get through. You can even start a thread and review each product as you finish it, that would benefit a lot of members here and help you get through everything systematically. Good luck and have fun!!
Where to start with this?
- Thread starter HighClassWhiteTrash
- Start date
Welcome aboard!
If that's a starter kit you are in for the biggest case of *AD ever seen by modern man. You are going to make the product producers very, very happy.
As others have said, only change one thing at a time when you shave. Use each shave set up twice to make sure operator error doesn't cloud a decision. This will help learn something with each shave and reduce confusion as to what works and what doesn't work for you.
Have fun!
If that's a starter kit you are in for the biggest case of *AD ever seen by modern man. You are going to make the product producers very, very happy.
As others have said, only change one thing at a time when you shave. Use each shave set up twice to make sure operator error doesn't cloud a decision. This will help learn something with each shave and reduce confusion as to what works and what doesn't work for you.
Have fun!
Welcome to B&B
WOA.... what a way to get started.
My suggestion is stick all of the products on your face at once, load all the razors up and use the old Edward Scissor Hands shaving method of thrashing away with all of them at once
Drop into the Shave Wiki and read over some of the shaving articles. http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/ You will find a LOT of useful info in there.
If you have not already done so, stop into the Hall of Fame and tell everyone a little about yourself
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/forumdisplay.php/30-Hall-of-Fame
WOA.... what a way to get started.
My suggestion is stick all of the products on your face at once, load all the razors up and use the old Edward Scissor Hands shaving method of thrashing away with all of them at once
Drop into the Shave Wiki and read over some of the shaving articles. http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/ You will find a LOT of useful info in there.
If you have not already done so, stop into the Hall of Fame and tell everyone a little about yourself
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/forumdisplay.php/30-Hall-of-Fame
- Thread starter
- #24
Last edited by a moderator:
- Thread starter
- #25
Finally figured out how to post the picture I uploaded.
I got the shaving brush washed with dish soap and it is soak in a dish soap solution now. Tonight when I get home from work, I will make a few practice batches of lather and let it soak over night. I may start my first tomorrow if I wake up soon enough before I have to be at work. Otherwise, I guess Monday will have to work.
I am wanting to find a cabinet that I can put everything in (and have room to grow) but I am tight in space in the apartment.
I did find a listing on eBay for a lot of 30-40 razors and some various other things that caught my eye. But I think the wife may notice that many "new" ones. Maybe next month.
I got the shaving brush washed with dish soap and it is soak in a dish soap solution now. Tonight when I get home from work, I will make a few practice batches of lather and let it soak over night. I may start my first tomorrow if I wake up soon enough before I have to be at work. Otherwise, I guess Monday will have to work.
I am wanting to find a cabinet that I can put everything in (and have room to grow) but I am tight in space in the apartment.
I did find a listing on eBay for a lot of 30-40 razors and some various other things that caught my eye. But I think the wife may notice that many "new" ones. Maybe next month.
From one newbie to another: the EJ razor loaded with a Derby blade gives a forging but nice shave.
http://www.atgstores.com/linen-cabi...gclid=CN6crIXz7b0CFckWMgodHEIAug&gclsrc=aw.ds
I have one of these and it's killer!
I have one of these and it's killer!
Faced with too many choices... 
I would start with the flare tip SS, Derby blade and Proraso menthol/eucalyptus. MHO.
But I can see where you might have a hard time choosing.
But I can see where you might have a hard time choosing.
Given all that shaving stuff, I hope you like tomorrow morning's shave.
Good luck and have fun!
Good luck and have fun!
Welcome to B&B. I'll just say what many have already said: nice starter and enjoy!
Wow!! That's a lot of goodies!!
- Thread starter
- #34
So I did my first shave this morning. Started out by soaking a towel and setting it in the freezer. Then filled the sink up with hot water to warm up the lather bowl, soak the brush and a towel. Took a shower while those soaked. In the shower I used the Every Man Jack face scrub and pre-shave. It is a little gritty, so I followed that up with a noxema face wash. When I got out, I loaded the tech razor with a Persona red blade and mixed up some proraso red sandalwood creme. I lathered my face and placed the hot towel over that for a few minutes as a pre-shave. Rinsed that off and reapplied the lather. Did a 4 pass shave while paying attention to the grain direction. Rinse my face with warm water to remove any residual lather. And applied the frozen towel to my face for a minute. My alum block hasn't arrived yet, so I just used the styptic pencil on my whole face. That had a decent sting to it. Rinsed out the bowl and brush. And then rinsed off the styptic pencil from my face. Towel dried and applied regular witch hazel (14% alcohol) to my face. That had a bit of a bite as well but not as bad as the styptic pencil. I then cleaned up everything else while that dried. And then applied some English Leather after shave. Again, with the stinging, worse than the witch hazel but not as bad as the styptic pencil.
I did get a pretty decent shave, but I have razor burn bad. I think I will let my face rest tomorrow, and try again on Tuesday. Hopefully the alum block will be in by then. And I will use that in place of the styptic pencil unless I get a good nick. I will also try only doing a 2 or 3 pass shave. And I am looking into ordering a Thayer's sample pack to see if that helps.
My lather seemed decent at first and was slick between my fingers, but when it mixed with the water on my face, it got a little too wet. I reloaded the brush with more cream and added to it. Then it seemed slightly dry. I figured the water from rinsing the razor would help and agaved with it anyway. It seemed to work. On each additional lather between passes, it seemed to get wetter and wetter, but still seemed slick. I will work in my lather more as well.
I also drained some water from the sink and had the bowl sitting in warm eater between lathering in an attempt to keep it warm, but it seemed to break it down some so I stopped that after the second pass.
Any other suggestions or just keep hacking away to help improve my technique?
I did get a pretty decent shave, but I have razor burn bad. I think I will let my face rest tomorrow, and try again on Tuesday. Hopefully the alum block will be in by then. And I will use that in place of the styptic pencil unless I get a good nick. I will also try only doing a 2 or 3 pass shave. And I am looking into ordering a Thayer's sample pack to see if that helps.
My lather seemed decent at first and was slick between my fingers, but when it mixed with the water on my face, it got a little too wet. I reloaded the brush with more cream and added to it. Then it seemed slightly dry. I figured the water from rinsing the razor would help and agaved with it anyway. It seemed to work. On each additional lather between passes, it seemed to get wetter and wetter, but still seemed slick. I will work in my lather more as well.
I also drained some water from the sink and had the bowl sitting in warm eater between lathering in an attempt to keep it warm, but it seemed to break it down some so I stopped that after the second pass.
Any other suggestions or just keep hacking away to help improve my technique?
Razor burn is you skin saying "Hey, I've been damaged! Don't do that again! With that in mind, please read on...
I just started a friend out with a DE week before last. He had great shaves and is now a convert. I used the KISS method with him. Keep It Simple...
1) Shower and shampoo your face along with your hair.
2) Don't dry off your face from the shower. Let it stay wet.
3) Keep face wet while making your lather...
4) Recheck your face's grain directions...
5) Lather up...
6) Shave with the grain, shave off the lather, not the beard, no pressure
7) Rinse face, keep it wet, and lather up...
8) Shave across the grain...
9) Stop shaving and rinse off your face with cool water
10) Apply moisturizer like Nivea Aftershave Balm for Sensitive Skin
On Day #2 - Repeat steps 1 through 10
On Day #3 - Add an across the grain pass in the opposite direction if you had no razor burn, rips, tears, cuts, etc... on Day #2
On Day #4 and Day #5- Repeat Day #3
When your technique is becoming second nature and if you want a closer shave... then and only then add an Against the Grain Pass.
Remember - Shaving is not supposed to be a full contact sport! It is supposed to be bloodless not bloody.
All of this is given IMHO...YMMV!
I just started a friend out with a DE week before last. He had great shaves and is now a convert. I used the KISS method with him. Keep It Simple...
1) Shower and shampoo your face along with your hair.
2) Don't dry off your face from the shower. Let it stay wet.
3) Keep face wet while making your lather...
4) Recheck your face's grain directions...
5) Lather up...
6) Shave with the grain, shave off the lather, not the beard, no pressure
7) Rinse face, keep it wet, and lather up...
8) Shave across the grain...
9) Stop shaving and rinse off your face with cool water
10) Apply moisturizer like Nivea Aftershave Balm for Sensitive Skin
On Day #2 - Repeat steps 1 through 10
On Day #3 - Add an across the grain pass in the opposite direction if you had no razor burn, rips, tears, cuts, etc... on Day #2
On Day #4 and Day #5- Repeat Day #3
When your technique is becoming second nature and if you want a closer shave... then and only then add an Against the Grain Pass.
Remember - Shaving is not supposed to be a full contact sport! It is supposed to be bloodless not bloody.
All of this is given IMHO...YMMV!
I responded to a similar thread in General Shaving. Please take no offence as I repost it here. I think it is relevant.
The red face problem is indeed very common. New shavers buy a brand new badger brush and sometimes a plethora of soaps and aftershaves. The sharp tips on the brand new brush scratch the face . . . then of course common advice is to face lather for a good long time to soften your whiskers. Now we proceed to do this with some soap we have never used before and that may have an essential oil to which we may have an adverse reaction . . . better yet we try a few different soaps in the first week. In the meantime we are not actually shaving with the correct angle, pressure, etc. Yes we had a great first shave, I.e., it worked. But now the damage is accumulating and sheesh we can feel that we shaved this morning all day and when we look in the mirror we look a bit like Larry the lobster. So this is hurting us and we want this wet shaving to work for us as it has for so many others here on B&B. . . so we look for the cure . . . and we purchase some more new stuff that we have never tried and rub this on top. But wait . . . let's try that new cologne . . . !!!!
My advice, and I expect nobody to follow it but it might be just a little voice at the back of your mind, is to keep things simple. Pick a soap that has existed for generations, break in your badger brush with bowl lathering and brush the lather gently on your face . . . let it sit on your face for a couple of minutes (see other messages about kyle's prep) . . . relather and shave. Rinse very very well and gently . . . don't try to ex foliate. With your technique you have no foli left to ex. Witch hazel in it's various incarnations is pretty mild and a pretty good finish. Personally Aqua Velva works . . . there is a reason Olympic sized swimming pools of the stuff has been sold over generations. (Some of us are sensitive to menthol so if you are one of the few who can't tolerate menthol . . . don't force yourself)
And hey . . . if your face hurts . . . maybe don't shave for a couple of days.
The red face problem is indeed very common. New shavers buy a brand new badger brush and sometimes a plethora of soaps and aftershaves. The sharp tips on the brand new brush scratch the face . . . then of course common advice is to face lather for a good long time to soften your whiskers. Now we proceed to do this with some soap we have never used before and that may have an essential oil to which we may have an adverse reaction . . . better yet we try a few different soaps in the first week. In the meantime we are not actually shaving with the correct angle, pressure, etc. Yes we had a great first shave, I.e., it worked. But now the damage is accumulating and sheesh we can feel that we shaved this morning all day and when we look in the mirror we look a bit like Larry the lobster. So this is hurting us and we want this wet shaving to work for us as it has for so many others here on B&B. . . so we look for the cure . . . and we purchase some more new stuff that we have never tried and rub this on top. But wait . . . let's try that new cologne . . . !!!!
My advice, and I expect nobody to follow it but it might be just a little voice at the back of your mind, is to keep things simple. Pick a soap that has existed for generations, break in your badger brush with bowl lathering and brush the lather gently on your face . . . let it sit on your face for a couple of minutes (see other messages about kyle's prep) . . . relather and shave. Rinse very very well and gently . . . don't try to ex foliate. With your technique you have no foli left to ex. Witch hazel in it's various incarnations is pretty mild and a pretty good finish. Personally Aqua Velva works . . . there is a reason Olympic sized swimming pools of the stuff has been sold over generations. (Some of us are sensitive to menthol so if you are one of the few who can't tolerate menthol . . . don't force yourself)
And hey . . . if your face hurts . . . maybe don't shave for a couple of days.
These guys hit the nail on the head! Take it easy on the products you're using at first, I was wincing reading about all the different stuff you were putting here and splashing there. I always joke that my face is my money maker (if that were true I'd be dirt poor) so I normally try to keep things simple.
I'd say stick with the same shower process you usually use in regards to your face. Ditch the towel, witch hazel, and after shave. Never EVER use your styptic pencil on your whole face.
In addition to this, try just doing one pass with the grain. As you figure out the best angle for your razor, move onto another across the grain pass and when you feel up for it go against the grain.
Gradually introduce your face to new products, try not to shock it like that again - you'll get the same stinging.
Good luck and PLEASE be safe.
Sometimes with shaving less is more. I definitely wouldn't use a styptic pencil on my entire face. Only use that to close nicks that bleed a bit. Work on your technique and go for a comfortable, irritation free shave. Smooth will come naturally as you perfect your stroke. Don't go crazy washing your face either, your shaving soap will do the washing. Scrubbing with your brush also can make irritation worse so just paint on the lather with gentle strokes and don't try to scrub with it. Start with two passes and a touchup pass and stick with it. Never try to clean up a spot you notice isn't smooth unless you first put some lather there. Above all though I would say it is important not to get caught up chasing that perfectly smooth shave at the expense of razor burn.
Last edited:
My advice would be to take a couple of days off. I see you've used a lot of heat and several products for during prep, during the shave and after the shave. Simplify it. Take it slow. Far more experienced shavers than me have given some great advice above. But most important, resist the urge and take 2 days off from shaving! By the way that's the biggest starter kit I've seen on the entire site. Nice!
Last edited:
I did not know such fine women existed. You are one lucky dog!
