Newbie - been using a DE for about a month now and.

I think the shave is great, I look forward to shaving now, even waking up another half hour early for work. I imagine that time will start to decrease a little more as I get better. I am still afraid to go against the grain, so It takes a while (1-3 passes) to get certain spots great. I came from about 3 years of electric shaving constantly getting next day whiteheads, having to go over the same spot 10-15 times (not against the grain) and the worst shaves ever. Would have to shave everyday, like most of you I am assuming, I work in a professional office setting and engage with clients, so whiteheads, beards, etc are unacceptable at least in my opinion they are. I would like to preface this with I have moderate acne and severely sensitive skin. I would like to find out what works best or the best way to prevent whiteheads, etc with Sensitive skin and an extremely thick beard. Recently I have been getting white heads that haven't surfaced, I could prob pop with a pin but don't want to do that.

My method of attack so far:
Merkur Heavy Duty Double Edge Razor #34C
Merkur Double Edge Razor blades (10pack) Almost went through them and was pretty satisfied with the shave.
Proraso Shaving Soap, Eucalyptus & Menthol, (Jar, I mix it directly in there)
Escali 100% Pure Badger Shaving Brush (my first one, it was cheap, are they all supposed to shed their hair?)
After shave: Every Man Jack Post-Shave Face lotion

Just received in the mail and used a couple times so far, not sure how I feel about them:
100 Astra Superior Premium Platinum DE Safety Razor Blades (Had great reviews on amazon so decided I'd try them, may not be sharp enough for my beard).
Proraso Shave Soap, Sensitive Jar
Proraso Shaving Cream, Eucalyptus & Menthol (Tube, I wanted to try a lather in a mug, it wasn't so thick and I used more than a quarter size amount, I thought it was the worst lather I had so far in my wet shave experience)

Any suggestions for me would be greatly appreciative, and I could provide suggestions for things like hunting, fishing, outdoor stuff, etc.. Lol

Thank you so much...

I have several blade recommendations so bare with me, Gillette Silver Blues, Personna Red Israelis, Crystals, and Feathers

Welcome to the club. Glad to have you aboard. Most razors will shed a few hairs when you first start using them, but if it continues to shed after a dozen or so shaves, or if it sheds excessively, then you have a bad brush.

Welcome to B&B.

Hello and welcome to B&B. This is a great forum full of friendly, helpful shavers. You'll learn a lot here.

Thanks guys, appreciate the welcoming. I plan on being an active contributor here, my aftershave I have been using is Every Man Jack Post Shave face lotion.

Rub a pecan sized glob of Noxzema (Original Deep Cleansing Cream. About 5 bucks at Wal-Mart) into the skin that you shave (neck and face) while you are in the shower. Leave it on your skin until you are done showering. Rinse it real well, then before your face dries, rub in 3 drops of Shave Secret (dirt cheap at Wal-Mart) or other decent shaving oil. Don't be bashful. Really rub the oil well into your clean, wet face and neck. Then, go on with your shave as usual. Apply Thayer's witch hazel after you are done shaving. Any Thayer's will be fine. You can get it at GNC. See how things are working out after about 5-7 days.

Welcome to the forum !!

Beadog said:

Rub a pecan sized glob of Noxzema (Original Deep Cleansing Cream. About 5 bucks at Wal-Mart) into the skin that you shave (neck and face) while you are in the shower. Leave it on your skin until you are done showering. Rinse it real well, then before your face dries, rub in 3 drops of Shave Secret (dirt cheap at Wal-Mart) or other decent shaving oil. Don't be bashful. Really rub the oil well into your clean, wet face and neck. Then, go on with your shave as usual. Apply Thayer's witch hazel after you are done shaving. Any Thayer's will be fine. You can get it at GNC. See how things are working out after about 5-7 days.

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THank you for the pre-shave advice, it adds more time and have a bottle of noxzema sitting aroudn I don't touch, but I will try these for night shaves. Shave secret, shaving oil, never even heard of that, but it makes since. Are Pre shave oils pretty necessary when you get into wet shaving?

What is the deal with Witch hazel, everyone talks about it, do you mix it in with your after shave(my aftershave currently is a cream), or do you put it on before? I try to avoid putting a bunch of stuff on my face that will make it shiny/greasy. Can someone help me out with that one?

Welcome aboard, glad you're enjoying it!