Why does everyone seem to have so much stuff?

[Wrangoleer]

Funny. I've been away for several months now. I thought I was over the acquisition thing. Wrong! I just bought a Merkur travel razor. just goes to show, you never know when it will strike! For me it's kind of a collecting thing. Sometimes I just see something and I HAVE to have it.

[syngent]

you know what happeneds, ill try to explain it

you see you start out buying things here and there, then you end up with a bit to much
so you give some of it away then that person thinks hey i got some nice stuff would you like to try and they send stuff back
and you like some of it so you go and get some, then you get to much again and you try to give it away and stuff just keeps coming back
then you go to rockvipers house and on his kitchen table he has a spread like that and he shares, so like the "nice guy" i am when i get more stuff ill be sure to go share it with him to return the favour, and it just keeps going and going

you read how people love their items and you get curious and little by little you end up with a lot of things, but you have the small amount of products and tools you really love, everything else is just a revolving door of trials and errors

[Nils]

As men, we know that the more equipment you have and the more expensive it is, the better you get at whatever it is you're pursuing at the moment. *g*

[Whilliam]

Nearly four months ago, I quit smoking. I have an app that tells me how much money I've saved by not buying cigarettes. Appears I may have to allocate this savings to new shaving gear, because from what I can tell, the temptation to buy more and more stuff (under the rationalization of "I just wanted to try it...") seems like it might be overwhelming.

Interesting way to look at cigarettes. I now denominate purchases in terms of cigarette packs . . . just like a prison convict would. (One fill-up of gasoline = seven packs, 100 Astra SP blades = one pack, etc.)

Best of luck in all your endeavors.

[lt114]

1) It's fun. 2) I'm always a bit apprehensive that there is some vastly superior product that I am missing out on.

[InHotWater]

Many of us like to try out different products. Often times you may decide you do not like the product, or you have other products you like more. The B/S/T forum is great for selling stuff you no longer use/need, or you may want to try out a product that somebody else no longer uses/needs, at a reasonable price. I get some good product recommendations on this forum, especially when it comes to shave soaps, and blades.

[MikeC]

I switched to wet shaving a few weeks ago and love it. Found this website and love it too.

I notice that many of the regulars here have a LOT of shaving gear. Razors, brushes, soaps, creams, etc. And when I say a lot, I really mean a LOT.

What puzzles me (and please forgive me for asking) is – why? Why does anyone need half a dozen razors, for instance, or ten different brushes? If it's simply to collect this kind of paraphernalia, I understand. But if there's something more to it than that, what is it? I could use some enlightenment this morning.

Thanks!

I keep a small setup and only buy blades online the rest I purchase locally. With prep, technique etc a $30 cream and $250 brush doesn't give me better results then a $5 cream and a $60 brush. If you want all that shave gear to collect or just to have it that's fine but I just want a nice shave with a simply setup. 2 creams 3 brushes and 1 aftershave and 50 or so blades. The Edwin Jagger DE86 was my first razor I bought the 89L for a backup and because it's a nice looking razor. I don't really rotate products I just use the same brush & cream for a few months then switch the brush or cream. I spend less then $30 a year.

[shavingnoobie]

Good lord.

[AirForceMX]

What if THIS razor works better with THAT cream. Or maybe THAT cream works better with this PREP. Or maybe.....this is what I am suffering from at the moment!

[rockviper]

what if this razor works better with that cream. Or maybe that cream works better with this prep. Or maybe.....this is what i am suffering from enjoying exploring at the moment!

ftfy

[Compaq]

I switched to wet shaving a few weeks ago and love it. Found this website and love it too.

I notice that many of the regulars here have a LOT of shaving gear. Razors, brushes, soaps, creams, etc. And when I say a lot, I really mean a LOT.

What puzzles me (and please forgive me for asking) is – why? Why does anyone need half a dozen razors, for instance, or ten different brushes? If it's simply to collect this kind of paraphernalia, I understand. But if there's something more to it than that, what is it? I could use some enlightenment this morning.

Thanks!

I have no idea what others have answered, but here's my story (in short ;) )

I bought a starter set with a Merkur 34C HD razor, Proraso boar brush, Proraso cream and Proraso after shave balm. I used that for some time, and then I bought a soap. I think it was a Trumper's Lime or something. Still have it, but rarely use it. After I tried a soap, I decided that was more for me than creams. And so I bought a few more soaps, over a period of a few months. One Fitjar (Norwegian brand), and one Col conk cheap one. One day on here, a really nice guy called Zephyr offered to send me some Tabac and a few used pucks of a few more soaps. And so I had 5-6 soaps - enough for years.

I've only ever bought one razor new. Today I don't know how many razors I've got, around 9-10. I look for them in thrift stores, and buy if the condition is passable. I polish them and restore them as good as I can, and use them regularly, some more often than others. I could probably sell them for a lot more than I bought them for. I like to collect them, I guess. As for brushes, I've got three today (had more, but gave some away to friends as part of "starter kits").

There's just something about a 50 years old razor. It has got lots and lots of unknown history, and I like to believe that the former owners would appreciate it being used. Maybe someone sold it after their father died, because they didn't want it. I bring life to seemingly dead items, and I think that's nice. Old stuff is lovely. I've always wanted to restore brushes, or have someone restore them for me. The same philosophy would apply here.

Did that make any sense? :)
Anders

[edgerunner]

With such a number of great enablers on this forum, an innocent unsuspecting individual, who just (re)discovered the world of shaving, can easily transform this trivial daily routine into a hobby. And there are so many convenient excuses to do so! We don't use the words 'hobby' and 'too much/many' in the same sentence, do we? 'Why so many' is an inept question in the context of this forum that can be asked only by someone who's at the wrong place, too new here, with very strong willpower, who doesn't possess imagination and natural curiosity, or who lives in denial and hasn't realized that he's turned into a collector.

[gus1942]

Need vs want. I want it.

I have the time, I can find the money occasionally. It is fun. Every now and then I look at my stash of stuff and swear to thin it out - but then I pick out the least favorite item and just can't let it go. So... to hell with it... I'll inventory it all and leave it to my kids. They can throw it out. ;-}

Meanwhile, I have a nice hobby that no one regulates and I don't need a permit or insurance to use. No one gets hurt and no one looks over my shoulder. I can't get stopped at midnight for over-shaving or having too many razors. There are no noise complaints. Each day is a new and fun experience with an old ritual.

Do I need a 7 day set of Feather ACs? No... and it is simply ridiculous to think about it. So I don't think about it.

I enjoyed the post.

[crfcom]

It's like a marriage. You can just get by going through motions, or you can invest a little effort and imagination and enjoy it.
Of course, I'm divorced, so go figure.

[The Kiwi]

With such a number of great enablers on this forum, an innocent unsuspecting individual, who just (re)discovered the world of shaving, can easily transform this trivial daily routine into a hobby. And there are so many convenient excuses to do so! We don't use the words 'hobby' and 'too much/many' in the same sentence, do we? 'Why so many' is an inept question in the context of this forum that can be asked only by someone who's at the wrong place, too new here, with very strong willpower, who doesn't possess imagination and natural curiosity, or who lives in denial and hasn't realized that he's turned into a collector.

Having already experienced previous rounds of collected stuff, and not always managed to weed out the stuff well enough prior to this, space was already at a premium, so I've stopped at about a dozen razors, not counting some older non-collectible ones I could have tossed before now, and half a dozen shave mugs, and half a dozen soaps, and half a dozen aftershaves, and half a dozen brushes.

If I hadn't stopped, I would have no space to sit to eat, or counterspace to prepare lunch, etc

[blademen]

Because my wife says I can't.

[Wcoppage]

When ordering, just easier to grab a couple different things.

[Captain Coconut]

It's due to reading stuff on this forum.

When I took about six months away from B&B, I didn't buy a single shaving-related item. I came back about a month ago, and I've already spent a few hundred dollars since then. I had PLENTY of stuff before that, by the way.

If you want to be content with what you have, don't look at what others have! (I have to mention that Calani soap is absolutely amazing though, and it's currently on sale at Royal Shave, along with free shipping for orders over $25... )

[Gissy]

It's due to reading stuff on this forum.

When I took about six months away from B&B, I didn't buy a single shaving-related item. I came back about a month ago, and I've already spent a few hundred dollars since then. I had PLENTY of stuff before that, by the way.

If you want to be content with what you have, don't look at what others have! (I have to mention that Calani soap is absolutely amazing though, and it's currently on sale at Royal Shave, along with free shipping for orders over $25... )

I really agree, the best way to stop buying stuff is to keep away from this place ;)

[huntingdan]

I started off to save money, so in order to save money I HAVE to make sure I hit the free shipping marks.