is this a good beginner's set up?

[newtowetshaving]

Mekur HD
100 pack Crystal DE Blades
Cereal Bowl
Crabtree and Evelyn BB Brush
Proraso Shaving Cream
Proraso liquid Cream aftershave

[Stauff]

Very good stuff, enjoy your shaves!

[Suzuki]

Yes - hard to to better - the only thing you might want to add is a splash - if you like the Proraso, their splash is very good.

[mankini]

You should not be dissappointed

[micway71]

I would say!!!! I like just about everything you mentioned, but there are a few items I have not tried.

[daniel.boone]

Proraso, Merkur and Crystals...

It's a great noob set!

[kmccullum]

I'd hold up a big stop sign on your decision to purchase 100 blades. Unless you have gone through a sampler pack, you may want to hold off making a big purchase. Blade selection is a very personal thing and you need to test various blades on 'YOUR' face. It's taken me a little over 2 months to figure out my blade of choice. Crystals work for a lot of people here but not for me. A big too much irritation on my neck. I went with the Red IPs. But I came to that decision after testing six different blades over a two month period. You don't want to have a box of 100 blades sitting under your sink that you'll never use.

You'll be happy with everything else you mentioned. You can't go wrong with the Merkur HD.

Kurt

[Mainecanefan]

Good start so far. Welcome aboard.

[kevtex]

That setup will give you a very nice shave indeed.

[Rorschuck]

I'd skip the 100 Crystals, unless you already know they work for you, and get one of LetterK's sampler packs.

[Haiku]

Mekur HD
100 pack Crystal DE Blades
Cereal Bowl
Crabtree and Evelyn BB Brush
Proraso Shaving Cream
Proraso liquid Cream aftershave

You may in fact find that you never have any need to change from any of these items. They're all very good, or rather excellent. At some point you may well find you want to try different blades to see what they're like, or you may find that you'll want to try a slant razor, but that's really a question of acquisition disorder rather than anything else.

And of course with your set up, when you finish shaving, you can have your eucalyptus and menthol flavoured breakfast cereal out of a freshly washed bowl.

[frank85]

You are off to a great start Enjoy...

[tido]

I'd skip the 100 Crystals, unless you already know they work for you, and get one of LetterK's sampler packs.

I beg to differ. The last thing a newbie needs is a sampler pack. Stick to one blade until you've got your technique down and then you can start trying different blades.

Crystals are fine blades and after some time you should be able to get good results with them. And since they are dirt cheap, even if you find out later that you like some other blade better, you won't have "wasted" more than $10.

[Prince]

Looks good to me. How are your shaves?

[Dennard]

This looks like a great setup to me. Pretty similar to when I first started.

[dmnall]

Well I say that is a good set up.. I myself bought a 100 pack of Derby Extras before even knowing about a sampler pack, then I bought a pack of red personnas *from walmart* the day I knew my SS was at my house and tried them first. I actually do not like the Red Personnas and the derbys were 100 x better. Then I tried the Astras *because a Slim Adjustable I bought from b/s/t forum had a 5 pack*, liked them a lot and bought a 100 pack of those. Now I alternate between the Astras and Derbys because these are the 2 blades I like and get the best shave with them.

[Jimbo]

It looks good but the big thing that jumped out at me was the 100 Crystals. Like others said, I'd try the trial pack or maybe 25 Crystals. No that they aren't a decent blade but 100 is a lot if you aren't sure they are the one.
Some alternate thoughts:
I have nothing against the C&E brush but Proraso has some good ones too. The Professional is decent and cheap and a good starter (boar bristles).
I found a super nice lather bowl at walmart in the dish section. Nice and roomy.
Proraso Cream is great and the balm should suit you well, especially during the winter.
Murker HD is a fine razor.
Best of Luck!

[scottish steve]

Can't really add much to the above except to say that it occurred to me the other day that the only thing I use now which I started out with, is my wooden soapbowl! Have changed everything else, but the most important change I made was my blade.