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To a Newbie, From a Newbie: It's not all Doom and Gloom

I had my first-ever wet shave today.

I did my first pass. North to South.

I thought I'd stop there since keeping things simple in the beginning seems to be a common theme here on B&B for newbies.

As I hosed down and inspected, though, I noticed the shave just wasn't close enough. I was gonna be in business all day and needed to have a real shave. So lather again I did. I passed Across the Grain this time.

I was so surprised that I hadn't cut myself yet, that I decided to go for another lather, just for kicks. This time I went Against the Grain. Du-Dum-DUMMM!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It wasn't that bad. No cuts. No irritation.

Please don't misinterpret this as me bragging. I'm not.

EVERYTHING I have learned so far about wet shaving has come from a close friend of mine and this website, and my results probably had nothing to do with skill. Maybe tomorrow I'll totally destroy myself. Let's wait and see.

Just a message to other newbies or anyone who's thinking of getting into wet shaving: Don't be too scared. Get in there and try it. You never know, it might not be that bad.

You may be doubtful of ever really being able to receive BBS results from any shave. I sure was. Especially since we've all heard guys talk about Electric Shavers giving them BBS results (YEAH RIGHT!). The cynic I am, I had prematurely assumed that perfectly clear skin can only be on Brett Favre in TV commercial cameos and on actual baby bottoms.

But after this shave today, I'm rethinking everything. Give me 3 or 4 months of practice. I'm confident in BBS.

To conclude: wax on, shave off. Get crackin' newbs.

P.S. If I totally destroy myself tomorrow, I will have a good laugh, and then let you guys know.
 
That sounds great.

I think that new members of this site tend to be folks who have very sensitive skin - perhaps from years of neglect or abuse. So I try to be conservative when giving advice. But if you don't fall into that category, you may be able to dive right in and get excellent results.
 
That sounds great.

I think that new members of this site tend to be folks who have very sensitive skin - perhaps from years of neglect or abuse. So I try to be conservative when giving advice. But if you don't fall into that category, you may be able to dive right in and get excellent results.

Yes, I understand. And hopefully I didn't come off too dogmatic. Everyone's face is different. Maybe this post shouldn't be taken as advice necessarily. More of just a good first time experience.

When I first started looking around, I saw a lot of talk in the newbie circle of blood and guts on the bathroom sink. It almost made me rethink purchasing a DE.

But boy am I glad I got into it.
 
Pinski I had the same experience my first week of shaving. I thought it would be all doom and gloom at first and it was not. By the end of the week I was doing 4 pass shaves with no nicks or cuts.

I think the advice here for people to be careful and conservative at first is a good thing... but for some of us we can jump right into it.

I am glad you are enjoying yourself...it really is a fun hobby.
 
Ive had the exact same experience. I thought there was going to be blood, irritation, razor bumps, and stinging. I was pleasantly surprised when after the first shave all I got was my best ever shave. I guess its a great example of YMMV
 
Similar boat here. My first shave was great. I think was so nervous about actually using a blade (even in a safety razor), that I was afraid to apply any pressure at all. It worked great, and I've been able to keep at the no pressure since. I've had a few tussles with ingrown hairs, but there's plenty of info on this forum to help when problems eventually come up.

So, even if you totally shred your face tomorrow, no worries. I'm a couple months into this adventure, and even my low points were higher than any cartridge shave. Also, it's really pretty fun learning all the curves of your face. I thought my first shave was great, but they've only gotten better (and I just got my blade sampler pack, I haven't tried any yet, but I'm super excited to try other blades).

Welcome to the boards. Glad you got a warm welcome from your razor. :thumbup1:
 
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