Hey guys,
My name is Anthony. I'm 17 years old and a senior in high school. I've been lurking on here and shavemyface.com for over a year now. I love reading all the threads but didn't have a whole lot to contribute so I never registered. Well, after a year of Wet Shaving (brush and cream/soap) I feel I now know what I am talking about enough to make posts.
I guess I'll go ahead and talk about the products I use/d. Right now I currently use a Saint Charles Shave Brush which is, correct me if I'm wrong, a best badger. It's my first badger brush and, although it is smaller than I imagined it, I like it a lot. I use a face wash in the shower before I shave. I have several such as Zirh Clean, St Ives Apricot wash, Sharps Daily Prep, and some other "basic" neutrogena and nivea washes. All of the washes are pretty good, but in my quest to try out Method Shaving I bought a bar of olive oil soap from Kiss My Face. I haven't been able to figure out how exactly to use it with my brush but it has been, hands down, knock on wood, the best face cleanser I have ever used. I have combination skin (oily t-zone, normal otherwise) and my face is loving this soap. But, I will stop going on about my cleansers, because that is for antoher forum (menessentials.com)
Anyways, like I said, I wash my face in the shower, get my brush soaked, and decide what I want to lather for the day. I have a tube of Red Palmolive, Green Proraso, Key Lime Kiss My Face, and a cake of Saint Charles Shave soap, but I forgot the name! I think all four of the products are really great. My current favorite is the KMF. It produces the best lather, imo, of all my products and also in the shortest amount of time.
My razor is a gillette sensor. I know 90% of the board would have me shaving with a DE, but let me tell you, I have tried! All my lurking got me to buying some DE razors. I bought a used Gillette Adjustable in good condition and then bought some Gillette blades from wallgreens. I know some people would stop me right there and tell me the blades are my problem, but it's the best I can do right now. I would hate buying 1 or 2 packages online because the shipping wouldn't be worth it and I would hate buying more than 2 for fear that I might not like it at all. But like I said, I shaved with a DE for about 4 months. I got quite good at it. I could go with and against the grain without any knicks. So what's the problem? Well, there are a couple.
First off, it takes more concentration, skill, and in my case, a little more time. Now most of the members on this board take pride in the fact that it is harder to use, and I totally respect that, but for me, the end product isn't worth it. When I would get a baby butt or glass smooth shave with a DE razor, it didn't look very impressive. I have dark facial hair and lighter skin color, so even though my face felt great and smooth, I had a dark shadow on my upper lip. With the sensor, I get a smooth shave, and my upper lip isn't as dark. I assume this is because it is cutting below the skin layer??
I will say that my chin is probably my biggest problem area. With the sensor, I can get it smooth, but I still see a lot of the little black hairs. With the DE, I can get the stuble much less noticable, but to me, my upper lip is more important. Plus the risk of cutting myself is a bit higher with the DE. If anyone has any advice they would like to share, please do.
Toners and Aftershaves:
I have Sharps Oil Free Toner, Burts Bees Garden Tomato Toner, and Sea Breeze Astringent. All are good and used for different purposes. My aftershave include Proraso Liquid Balm, Will G's Bay Rum, and Aqua Velva Ice Balm. My favorite for scent is Will G's. For moisturizing, Proraso and Aqua Velva are very good.
I guess that's it for now. I look foward to reading more excellent threads and chiming in with my 2 cents every now and then.
Anthony
edit: because for some reason I thought Will G's was called Tony G's
My name is Anthony. I'm 17 years old and a senior in high school. I've been lurking on here and shavemyface.com for over a year now. I love reading all the threads but didn't have a whole lot to contribute so I never registered. Well, after a year of Wet Shaving (brush and cream/soap) I feel I now know what I am talking about enough to make posts.
I guess I'll go ahead and talk about the products I use/d. Right now I currently use a Saint Charles Shave Brush which is, correct me if I'm wrong, a best badger. It's my first badger brush and, although it is smaller than I imagined it, I like it a lot. I use a face wash in the shower before I shave. I have several such as Zirh Clean, St Ives Apricot wash, Sharps Daily Prep, and some other "basic" neutrogena and nivea washes. All of the washes are pretty good, but in my quest to try out Method Shaving I bought a bar of olive oil soap from Kiss My Face. I haven't been able to figure out how exactly to use it with my brush but it has been, hands down, knock on wood, the best face cleanser I have ever used. I have combination skin (oily t-zone, normal otherwise) and my face is loving this soap. But, I will stop going on about my cleansers, because that is for antoher forum (menessentials.com)
Anyways, like I said, I wash my face in the shower, get my brush soaked, and decide what I want to lather for the day. I have a tube of Red Palmolive, Green Proraso, Key Lime Kiss My Face, and a cake of Saint Charles Shave soap, but I forgot the name! I think all four of the products are really great. My current favorite is the KMF. It produces the best lather, imo, of all my products and also in the shortest amount of time.
My razor is a gillette sensor. I know 90% of the board would have me shaving with a DE, but let me tell you, I have tried! All my lurking got me to buying some DE razors. I bought a used Gillette Adjustable in good condition and then bought some Gillette blades from wallgreens. I know some people would stop me right there and tell me the blades are my problem, but it's the best I can do right now. I would hate buying 1 or 2 packages online because the shipping wouldn't be worth it and I would hate buying more than 2 for fear that I might not like it at all. But like I said, I shaved with a DE for about 4 months. I got quite good at it. I could go with and against the grain without any knicks. So what's the problem? Well, there are a couple.
First off, it takes more concentration, skill, and in my case, a little more time. Now most of the members on this board take pride in the fact that it is harder to use, and I totally respect that, but for me, the end product isn't worth it. When I would get a baby butt or glass smooth shave with a DE razor, it didn't look very impressive. I have dark facial hair and lighter skin color, so even though my face felt great and smooth, I had a dark shadow on my upper lip. With the sensor, I get a smooth shave, and my upper lip isn't as dark. I assume this is because it is cutting below the skin layer??
I will say that my chin is probably my biggest problem area. With the sensor, I can get it smooth, but I still see a lot of the little black hairs. With the DE, I can get the stuble much less noticable, but to me, my upper lip is more important. Plus the risk of cutting myself is a bit higher with the DE. If anyone has any advice they would like to share, please do.
Toners and Aftershaves:
I have Sharps Oil Free Toner, Burts Bees Garden Tomato Toner, and Sea Breeze Astringent. All are good and used for different purposes. My aftershave include Proraso Liquid Balm, Will G's Bay Rum, and Aqua Velva Ice Balm. My favorite for scent is Will G's. For moisturizing, Proraso and Aqua Velva are very good.
I guess that's it for now. I look foward to reading more excellent threads and chiming in with my 2 cents every now and then.
Anthony
edit: because for some reason I thought Will G's was called Tony G's
