First Shave... and a Mirror Question

[weevil]

I had my first ever straight shave this morning.

Firstly, I have to say that those of you who have struggled with not-quite-shave-ready razors, before eventually sending them to be honed, must have faces of steel if you didn't cut yourselves to ribbons.

The shave took about 45 minutes, wasn't great, and wasn't especially comfortable, but at least I didn't cause myself any damage (not even a nick; beginner's luck). And that was with a razor I know to be shave-ready (another nod of thanks and recommendation to Steve at The Invisible Edge, to add to those already posted here).

My most obvious areas for improvement are lathering technique, skin stretching and control of blade angle around contours (chin in particular).

To save you helpful folk the trouble of posting, "Stick with it, it gets better," replies, I'm certainly not planning to give up.

Instead, I have what might sound like an odd sort of question: what sort of mirrors do you guys use?

The reason for asking is that I have a small (6" diameter), stand-mounted mirror sitting on a windowsill above the sink*. The mirror sits at about mid-chest height, which makes it hard to get a good skin-stretch on my neck and see what I'm doing. I never had this problem when using a cartridge razor, but I guess that's no surprise, since one barely needs one's eyes open to use those.

I have no doubt that things would be easier if my mirror were higher, but I'm wondering whether a larger mirror would help too, since it wouldn't require me to move about or crane my neck every time I turn my head. What d'you reckon?


Cheers
weevil




* Does "sink" mean anything over the pond? If not, insert "wash basin".

[mkevenson]

I use the standard wall mounted mirror in the BR. My rooms are small so the mirror is not big but way bigger than yours. I would say if you can get a larger mirror, one that lets you see your whole face at once. Course if your eyes are like mine you won't be able to see much detail in the wall mount anyway.

[professorchaos]

Did you cut yourself? If not, then you had a successful first shave with a straight and congratulations are in order. And if you did get cut? Well, if you can read this, congratulations are in order.

[muddy250]

Congratulations on the shave. I have a wall mounted mirror and an eight inch freestanding one so use both. I think you'd be better with bigger, higher so you can get a better view of that blade. My everlasting problem is not being able to see the blade at the start of the first stroke on my cheeks. Hand in the way whatever I do!

[dpm802]

I have a wall-to-wall mirror above the counter. That's for general use.

There is also a 1x/3x reversible mirror that hangs above the sink, at eye-level, supported by a suction-cup hook. I use the 3x side for closer inspections, either holding it in my hand, standing it on a chest of drawers, or most of the time, just leave it hanging by the hook and lean in over the counter when I need to get a closer look.

You can buy both the mirror and suction-mount just about anywhere. I paid less than $3 for both of them together, and I didn't have to shop very long before I found them.

BTW, that mirror is the most useful item in my shave-den. No shaver should be without one.

[Slafav]

I'm lucky enough to have a mirror that takes up the entire wall in front of my sink. I had the problem with the hand being in the way, but I got the feel of the blade down where I can shave without having to see the blade. I just know where it is. That huge mirror is a Godsend for me, and I can't imagine trying to maneuver around a smaller one. Look for a larger mirror at garage sales or pick up a cheap one at a retail store. Haven't priced mirrors lately, but I don't think they are that expensive. Congrats on the great shave. I added a rather large scar at the corner of my mouth my first shave, which I have grown rather fond of since then.

[muddy250]

I had the problem with the hand being in the way, but I got the feel of the blade down where I can shave without having to see the blade. I just know where it is.

I've come to the conclusion that that's the only way it can be done, by feel. Scary at first!