First straight shave!

Received my sight unseen deal from Whippeddog yesterday (MANY thanks to Larry for the excellent kit!!), and absolutely couldn't wait. Normally I'm a DE shaver every day of the week, but had saved up a nice 5 day growth for the occasion.

Did my typical pre-shave routine, lots of hot water, face lathered up with some TOBS avocado, and really only planned to hit my cheeks with the straight.

As with many of us first timers, I did get carried away, continued on a full WTG pass. Unfortunately managed to slip just slightly as I was getting close to done, left a small (but bloody) cut on the right side of my jawline. Ended up with a surprisingly good SAS.

Grabbed my DE89 + Feather and did a very quick mop-up pass (which felt like I was shaving air after handling the straight) to bring it up to DFS level, then took care of first aid

I think, honestly, that had I not received my first barber shave from one of the AOS shops a few months ago, I would have been unprepared for the feeling of the straight. I likely would have stopped considerably sooner thinking something was going wrong. Instead, kept on trucking and ended up with a surprisingly decent shave for my first attempt. Just gotta watch my angle on that jawline (in addition to everywhere else), apparently.

Many thanks to B&B for being an awesome learning resource on this!

rwagner76 said:

... I think, honestly, that had I not received my first barber shave from one of the AOS shops a few months ago, I would have been unprepared for the feeling of the straight. I likely would have stopped considerably sooner thinking something was going wrong...

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I would be interested in more AOS shop details. What type razor did they use, and a description of the AOS shave experience?

For the Art of Shaving barbershop shave, it was an interesting experience. Being a very patient DE shaver at home, it wasn't the closest shave I've ever received by a large margin... I'm guessing due to the equipment, mostly. (shavette using half of a Merkur DE blade - yuck)

On the other hand, the man-pampering was awesome. Lay bay in the old-school chair and get the works. Multiple hot towels, massage in a nice pre-shave oil, hot lather, a post-shave mask, a spritzing of rose water, etc, etc. Amusing, as the AOS store was a glass-front thing in the middle of the Mall of America - got quite a few gawkers looking in. The barber used quite a variety of scents (some mixed in his own special concoction), added nicely to the experience. All in all I enjoyed it quite a bit, but would have liked a closer shave for the 40 minutes or so I spent in the chair.

On the other hand, the guy mentioned that I could bring in my own blade of choice, he's just supplied Merkur blades at the shop. Not sure what blade I'd use as a match for that shavette, but I'm sure there's a better choice for my face. (Merkur blades went almost directly to the recycle bin when I sampled them at home...)

On a good note, remembering how the shavette felt going across my face, I think that helped give me a hint of how the straight going across my face should feel. I've still got a _lot_ of work to do (especially on my chin), but I think that gave me a little head start.

Not getting a close shave, by our standards, seems to be a universal observation when going to a barber.

LarryAndro said:

Not getting a close shave, by our standards, seems to be a universal observation when going to a barber.

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Ahh, gotcha. Unfortunately, I live in Central Wisconsin, and none of the barbers around here have done shaves in quite a number of years... the ones I asked about it cited issues with their insurance carriers. I'm 35, and had never experienced a barbershop shave.

I don't think I'll probably do the barbershop shave again, but it did give me some things to learn about my own man-pampering experience and to add to my shaving routine on occasion.

PS - I was really pleased with the thorough nature of the kit you sent and the directions included. Excellent deal, and an excellent teaching tool!

rwagner76 said:

I'm 35, and had never experienced a barbershop shave.

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Too bad- you missed out on some greatness. My last one was in 1992, when I left Cleveland for Texas. When I lived in C-town, all the barbers (not stylists) were union, very good at what they did, and closed on Wednesday and Sunday. A large portion of them were named Tony

Passed through shaves 2 and 3, promising myself to be diligent, study my technique.

Day 2:
WTG pass went okay, decided to try a _little_ bit of XTG and ATG in a couple different spots, mostly as an experiment. No cuts, and no nicks, but some definite razor burn on my chin proper. I think my hands were a little shakier than I liked, took notes to make sure I have my breakfast before my shave. Cleaned up with my DE89 as on day 1.

Day 3:
Although I went about it at the speed of sludge, my stropping technique is getting a little better. Went a few more laps today than yesterday, and I think the edge was a little happier for it.

My hands were more steady (yay oatmeal), and my WTG pass went very well. Ended up with a minute nick under my nose, but the first pass went very well!
Tried some more work with XTG and ATG... went okay on my cheeks, but still very much struggling with gripping the razor and being able to apply the right blade angle for the neck and jawline areas, particularly with my off hand (I'm a lefty).
Ended up with DFS on most of my face, and SAS+ on some parts of my neck. A tiny bit of burn, but I'm pretty happy.


It's definitely not 'natural' yet, but if I can work out the angles for the additional passes, I think I'm going to fall in love here

You'll be surprised though on how you pick it up. It just seems like out of no where your hands are doing what they're supposed to be doing and it gets better. It seems to do that almost day by day.

I think stropping is my biggest weakness right now. My technique and/or coordination appear to be lacking. Trying to practice as much as I can get away with, just hope I don't beat up this strop too much more than I already have. Butter knife, hooray.

Wow, shaved yesterday after a day off, got a really nice shave!

BBS on 90% of my face, DFS on the other 10% (my normal trouble spots). Irritation free, no nicks or cuts.

That was a really nice close shave, definitely closer than my DE razors provide for me.

If I can repeat this regularly without bloodletting, might have a covert here

It only gets better over time!

Since this entry seems to act as my shave journal, my discovery of the day:

Apparently I was making really poor lather.

I studied some of the guides on here, changed my technique a bit to change the ratios of water and soap/cream being used, and the difference when handling the straight is quite significant. Did one pass yesterday, was really unhappy with how the lather was treating me and how the razor was riding across my face. I tossed the lather, made some fresh with a little more planning, and the second pass (ATG) was very nice.

Sometimes it helps to work on the fundamentals, I guess. ;-)

There are so many things that can be less than optimal when you start out: stropping, lather, shaving technique but like others said it can only get better, takes a bit of time to get everything just right and I'm sure even veteran straight shavers discover something new now and then that get them a better shaving experience.

Guess I've been at the straight thing a couple weeks now... and really enjoying it. Getting overall better shaves than I was with a DE, though my technique is still a bit lacking (particularly for the strange directions I need to go for my chin/neck area).

That being said, I was in a hurry this morning before work, lathered up quick and hit myself with a Gem SE (which I've used before). Two pass shave, pretty close to as good as I've been averaging with the straight, but my face feels like it's on fire now that all is said and done. Holy crap. I think I'll keep on the _straight_ and narrow for now ;-)

I do have to say that overall, the irritation I've gotten from my straight has been surprisingly little, even when I need more than a couple passes to clear an area out. Been very happy about that.

I keep waiting for the post where you lose your focus for a minute and cut yourself just when you think your getting the hang of it Enjoy the process.

Hehe, well, I've had at least one of those... a nice little slice below my bottom lip. Tried to holler at my son for misbehaving in the other room while handling the razor. Not the best choice ;-)

JeffM said:

I keep waiting for the post where you lose your focus for a minute and cut yourself just when you think your getting the hang of it Enjoy the process.

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+1, except "lose focus for a minute"? If I lose focus for a split-second I get a reminder - (ow!). Never get cocky, always keep your focus. Get your edge to a razor-sharpness, then when you first feel your blade you are close enough. No need to dig - that will cause a weeper.

It seems you are on the path so I'll be quiet. I'm just pretty new with straights (about 6 mos) too and it seems like I am still learning.

Enjoy your shaves!