1st DE Shave in the Books

I was finally able to get all my supplies from the post office yesterday, so I was ready to dive in this morning.

Here is my set up for the event
Brush: Tweezerman Badger brush
Pre-Shave: The Gentleman's Refinery Pre-Shave Oil
Razor: 50's Style Gillette SS
Blade: Walmart Personas
Soap: Mama Bear Pepperberry Soap
AS: Anthony After Shave Blam

Before I got in the shower, I filled the sink and my dollar store mug with water and let my brush soak. After the hot shower, I applied the pre-shave oil and loaded up the brush and started to make the lather. I could not believe how nice the soap smelled. I think I got a pretty good lather, it seemed a a bit less creamy than I thought it would, but it held up through the shave without a problem. I think I might need to watch the videos again, now that I have done it once. I applied the lather and it felt great. I do not think I ever got this kind of satisfaction from any other shaving cream I have used. The shave went well, a few nicks but nothing major. I was expecting a lot worse to be honest. The sound of the razor cutting the hair is pretty cool. I tried two WTG passes and got a decent shave. I can already tell my problem areas are going to be around my chin. I think I got the no pressure part down, but I still need to work on my angle. It was a little inconsistent, but I think that is something that will come with practice. I rinsed with cold water, applied the balm, and proceded to clean up.

All in all I am pretty happy with my first attempt. I can't wait for the beard to start growing back so I can try it again.

Great report on a good first shave. Keep it up!

After quite some time and a few acquisitions, I still enjoy my Tweezerman brush and find the ASR Personnas can deliver solid results. I think your selection of gear is very solid.

Good selection of equipment there!
Congrats on your first successful sojourn.
It does get better with practice.
Keep us posted on your progress, and be sure to ask questions if you have them, that's why this board exists.

Congratulations. Well done!

Good job! keep at it!

A quick question, as the day has gone on, I have noticed my chin area seeming slightly warm and maybe a little irritated. It could it is just dry. It doesn't look like anything is up but it feels different. Would using some moisturizer take care of this or would this be an opportunity to use one the sample I have labeled "Skin Food"?

Do you have witch hazel? It is a disinfectant, but also a mild anesthetic.
Follow up with your skin food.
If you don't have any, try the skin food alone.
A note: If you have an irritated spot or area, the tendency is to want to rub it and fidget with it. Bad idea. Leave it alone after you treat it, and try to forget about it so it heals up.

Thanks. I do not have any witch hazel, but I am going to pick some up today. I ended up using one of the Face Lotion samples last night and that seems to help. I'll use the Witch hazel and skin food combo today. In the normal shave routine, where does the witch hazel go? Is it before the aftershave or does it take the place of the AS?

and yeah was compelled to keep rubbing my chin yesterday That might have been part of my problem too.

Thanks for the advice

jonwings said:

Thanks. I do not have any witch hazel, but I am going to pick some up today. I ended up using one of the Face Lotion samples last night and that seems to help. I'll use the Witch hazel and skin food combo today. In the normal shave routine, where does the witch hazel go? Is it before the aftershave or does it take the place of the AS?

and yeah was compelled to keep rubbing my chin yesterday That might have been part of my problem too.

Thanks for the advice

Click to expand...

I rinse the face with water after the shave, then on goes witch hazel. A few minutes later after clean up, the After Shave goes on, without rinsing the witch hazel. That's why I use just a generic witch hazel and not a fancy scented one that costs 5 times as much.
You can find witch hazel by the rubbing alcohol at walmart for a ridiculously low price.

Looks like you're well on your way. Have fun experimenting.

Congrats! Your shaves will just keep improving now!

Congrats. Practice makes perfect.

Congrats and welcome to B&B

nice one, mate