First Shave HELP!

Well, first let me say the whole process from pre to post was really enjoyable. The shave quality didn't come out that great, but I am not discouraged at all.

What I used.


With an EJ 89, I picked the Gillette 7 O'clock blade only because I had to start somewhere.

I soaked the brush as I took a shower. While in the shower I washed my face with conditioner and then let the hot water run on it a bit.

After the shower I loaded the brush with the soap. (the con-cave of Proraso kind of threw me, all the videos I have watched show a flat soap) This kind of made it tough to load the brush.

I face lathered but I really don't know if I had a good lather or not. Not sure if a pic can show but here is one of before I shaved.


Next I put the blade to my face and adjusted the angle as best I could. I was trying for 30 deg. At this point I was intimidated and was moving too slow and pressing too hard. I didn't nick myself, but I definitely had razor burn after. I shaved wtg twice and didn't go for a third. While shaving I found that you can't go back to an area that you had already made a pass on to try and touch it up. The razor wouldn't move on unlathered areas. I also found out I have a few tough spots to get at, mainly under my jaw line and chin.

All in all I loved the whole experience and cant wait to do it all again. Maybe tomorrow which will depend on how my face feels.


I am sure as my technique improves the razor burn will go away. I am starting from 0 after all.

Congrats on your first DE shave! Likely you need to try less pressure. If you have the correct angle the blade is cutting even though you may not feel it cutting. This was hard for me to comprehend when I first started. Relax and experiment, the technique will develop. There are a lot of good shaving YouTube videos out there with tips that may help you also. Good Luck!

Congrats. Your face will get used to it. I found that what I thought was WTG was in fact XTG in some areas, beard mapping helped me a lot. I didn't shave for 2 days and then realized the direction of some areas is different. Consider beard mapping to get the irritation reduced and as stated above very little pressure. Good luck and enjoy the journey.

I would suggest adding a little more water to your lather. Also, be careful, before you know it you'll have 5 more razors and brushes and too many soaps and creams to keep up with.

Something that has helped me is that after the first pass, I put a little water to my face with my hands in a circular motion. That will really tell you which direction you need to go and where, in a second pass. Also, depending on whatever soap or cream you are using, adding the water may bring back enough glide so you can finish up without adding more soap (not that there's a need to skimp on soap). Enjoy your shaves!

You're doing very well; I rinse between passes and lather on a dripping wet face.

Nice work there Bpnzk74 and congratulations on your first shave buddy. I'm still pretty new to it but believe me when you start to get it right, there's no better, fresher feeling than that following a good wet shave.

Congrats on your first shave, and welcome to B&B! Light pressure, correct angle, patience, and practice are all key.

From the picture, it looks like your lather is a bit dryer than what I prefer. Try adding small amounts of more water while lathering until it has a nice glossy sheen to it like refrigerated Cool-Whip (the stuff in the tub, not the can).

Going too slow is not terrible in the beginning. It's better to go slow and do it right, than to go fast and carve your face up.

Also, try not to press too hard like you had mentioned. I can't remember who said it, but something that I always like to keep in the back of my mind is, "Shaving is beard reduction, not beard removal."

Congrats. You're off to a super start. It only gets better and better. Wander on over to the Hall of Fame and introduce yourself.

I concur on the lather being a bit dry. That is why you got "stuck" after a pass. Everyone has that problem at first…or too wet. (like me)

MartialArtist said:

I concur on the lather being a bit dry. That is why you got "stuck" after a pass. Everyone has that problem at first…or too wet. (like me)

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Agree. The lather looks a bit pastey. More water will do wonders. Good luck and enjoy the ride!

Thanks for the replies. The face isn't feeling too bad today, I may have another go.


Brian

Pretty good so far! Like others said, you can add a little more water to your lather and it should blow up! You might also want to go to tryablade.com and pick up some blades to see what you like.

Welcome to B&B

You've gotten some good advice on your lather (always more product more water = more lather)

Drop into the Shave Wiki and read over some of the shaving articles. http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/ You will find a LOT of useful info in there.

If you have not already done so, stop into the Hall of Fame and tell everyone a little about yourself

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/forumdisplay.php/30-Hall-of-Fame

I agree. The lather looked a little dry. The advice I got that helped me is to practice with a palm lather and to keep adding water until it's too runny. That will help you realize how much water you need to put in your soap/cream.

I started as a face latherer, and I have switched to bowl lathering. For me, I'm just able to get the lather going quicker in a bowl than on my face so it saves time. I got a small fruit bowl at wally world for $1 and it works great.

mswofford said:

You're doing very well; I rinse between passes and lather on a dripping wet face.

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As I do.

Welcome to traditional shaving, echoing what has been said here I'm sure the quality of your shaves will improve along with your enjoyment of the process. I know this has been the case for me.

Nightcap said:

Welcome to traditional shaving, echoing what has been said here I'm sure the quality of your shaves will improve along with your enjoyment of the process. I know this has been the case for me.

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+1 My outlook on shaving now is completely opposite from a month ago. I really enjoy the whole process now. It doesn't hurt to have a stack of samples to go thru either, really makes me look forward to my next shave.

Greetings and welcome to the forum. Take it slow and with practice your technique will improve and the shaves will get better and better.
Thanks for your interesting post.

sandstone said:

Greetings and welcome to the forum. Take it slow and with practice your technique will improve and the shaves will get better and better.
Thanks for your interesting post.

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+1