One Year In!

January 15th was one year to the day since my first traditional shave -- well, the first one since I left DE and SE shaving for carts about four decades ago. Here, with boldface names, is how I've evolved over the past year:

My starting setup was the Edwin Jagger DE87 (faux ivory handle), Timor blades, D.R. Harris Almond soap, and the Edwin Jagger Best Badger brush. No aftershave, just witch hazel.

Now I'm into more aggressive razors: the Mühle 2011 R41, a restored Old Type with a bespoke solid Old Type handle, and the Micromatic open-comb (OCMM/MMOC). (Along the way I tried a dozen or more different razors, and I think this helped solidify my skills.) Personna Med Prep or Lab blades are my favorites, though I also like Russian Perma-Sharps, Racers, and Gillette 7 O'Clock SharpEdge (Yellows), among others. Mitchell's Wool Fat (MWF) is the soap for me, with Irisch Moos and Tabac close seconds. (I'm not into creams, but I like making superlathers by adding a bit of Ingram shaving cream to my soaps. Ingram provides a great menthol blast.) The EJ brush still sees use, but not as much as my big boars, the Semogue 2000 and the Omega 10049. As for aftershaves, I like bay rum (especially a mix of Pinaud Virgin Island BR + Master BR + Gabels Lime), Aqua Velva (AV), Proraso splash, and Master Challenge.

The best part of it all has been interacting with the people here on B&B. It's been a lot of fun, and I look forward to many more years (I hope) of great shaves and interesting shave-related talk.

Be well, guys, and enjoy your shaves!

Interesting journey. Looks like you have came full circle after a long time. Wishing you well too.

Thank you for sharing.

+1 to the shave talk and support here.

Congrats on the milestone.

Congrats on one year in!

Congratulations on your anniversary.

Looks like you've enjoyed your year as you've become proficient and tweaked your kit as you've realized what works best for you.

I've yet to try Open Combs (but see that in my future). I very much agree with you on the R41 and blade choice. Overtime I realized that sharper/more aggressive works for me. Interestingly, If I have one day's growth only, the gentle Gillette Tech does a great job also - go figure.

Thanks for your participation, I look forward to your posts in the coming year.

Thanks for sharing and congrats on your journey.

Congrats

Congratulations, and happy anniversary!

interesting journey. I enjoyed following your restoring your old razor. You did an incredible job.

Cool post!

Congratulations on your anniversary, I also hit my one year mark a couple weeks ago.

congrats on a year!

Thanks for all the good wishes!

On we go into Year #2! I can see a high-end badger brush coming my way sometime in the near future. Leading candidates right now are Shavemac and Thäter, but of course there are so many to choose from. You'll find me lurking in the Shaving Brush forum.