Norsemans shave diary

There, Friend Frode, I have to disagree, reading your shave log posts and such..

 

You are too kind

 

Wednesday - 24.10.2012

​

Don't stop me now I'm having such a good time​

I'm having a shave, don't stop me now​

If you wanna have a good time just load a new blade​

Don't stop me now ('Cause I'm having a good shave)​

Don't stop me now (Yes I'm enjoying a new blade)​

I don't want to stop shaving at all​

D.R Harris make some wonderful products, and the shaving sticks are no exceptions. I had the pleasure of using the lavender scented shave stick from the good doctor. (he was a surgeon, was he not?) And it was a very intriguing scent. Lavender with a twist of burnt wood, or so my nose tells me. Not a big fan of lavender, but find it pleasant enough. But I do enjoy a whiff of burnt wood. Not as much as a bored fireman, looking for a raise. But enough to enjoy a nice evening by a fireplace.

The lathering capabilities of this stick was not Arko league. But more enough to give me a satisfying three part shave, with enough left in the brush for a fourth pass.
And it also did not "grow" out of proportions. When lathering Arko I have lather all over the brush, and then some.
The lather from the Harris stick was more behaved and knew its place. And that was in and on the brush. The handle of the brush was spotless after the shave, and usually I have lather all over
Its obvious that D.R Harris produce soaps for Gentlemen and decent people. I am neither, so in a way it impeccable manners are wasted on me, but that doesn't mean that I do not appreciate it.

The razor I used was the usual Merkur HD, and I had a Personna Lab blade loaded. I have shaved with this blade about 3-5 times now (sleep deprived, so I do not remember ) But this blade has delivered excellent results every time. Last nights shave was no exception, and I got a very close shave out of it. A DFS+, I reckon.
The drawback is that the blade feels a little on the rough side, but I suspect/hope that when the technique is improved, it will be a lot more smooth.
Therefore I foresee a 100 pack purchase in the near future.

The AS routine is as always, Witch Hazel, Proraso Aftershave and an aftershave balm at the end. This time it was the L'occitane Cade AS Balm.

Cliff Notes:

Merkur HD
Personna LAb
D.R Harris lavender shave stick
Thayers Witch Hazel
Proraso Aftershave Lotion
L'Occitane Cade Aftershave Balm

Good stuff

 

Friday - 26.10.2012

I never got around to shaving yesterday, so I had a nice growth and wanted to try a reputable blade.
The choice was obvious and one of my Gillette 7 o'clock blades was unpacked. The black one, fresh from India.

Still being in the middle of shave stick week, the choice was clear also here and the Palmolive classic stick was removed from the den.
This stick smells like soap. And old fashioned lightly scented soap.
I like soap. I have very found memories from soap. Soap is in lack of a better word, clean. A clean wholesome scent. I like that.

Starting the shave, I had very high expectations. The black gillette is a blade I have read nothing but good things about. Even more so than any other blade.
Therefore I was disappointed when the two or three first strokes was less than comfortable. After that it went uphill and did not stop before I reached shaving Nirvana (not the band, I prefer Pearl Jam)

For me, this single experience with the black Gillette showed me the perfect union between sharpness and smoothness. Not the sharpest, but so far it is the smoothest blade I have ever experienced.
But with an experience spanning two whole months, I reckon that does not say much.

I had the usual three pass shave. One pass going with the grain, and the remaining two went across the grain, starting from opposite sides.
The result was, and I am launching a new term her. A most excellent shave. And when you experience AMES, the shave is as close as a DFS+, its nick and irritating free, and after the shave your skin feels absolutely wonderful

It is therefore safe to say that I had one of my more enjoyable shaves this evening. Everything fell into place. The lather was great, the blade was perfect and I felt that for the first time since I started DE shaving, my post shave routine was also perfect.
Usually I feel the need for an aftershave balm a few short minutes after I put on the aftershave lotion. But as I write this an hour later, I still feel pretty darn groovy and do not feel the slightest need for a moisturizer of any kind.

I do not know if it was the soap, the razor or the blade. It might have been the aftershave, the full moon shining on my house or the hazel from a magical witch
It might have been all of the above. I do not know. But I had a most excellent shave

This most excellent shave was brought to you by:

Edwin Jagger DE89l
Palmolive Classic Shave Stick
Gillette 7 o'clock - Black
Thayers Witch Hazel
Ogallala Bay Rum & Sandalwood
And I had planned on putting on some of Fitjarsoaps Aftershave Cream. Maybe later

 

Saturday - 27.10.2012

My daughters 9 month birthday today, and I just had to celebrate that with a nice shave.

For this shave I decided to move the black Gillette over to a Merkur HD razor and find out if it delivers the same outstaniding performance.
The stick for this evening was the excellent La Toja stick, and since I am running out of brushes to use with these sticks, I had to dig out the Merkur Futur brush from my cuboard. This is a brush that has annoyed me in the past, and because of that I archived it in the innermost part of the Den.

The La Toja stick lathered up like nicely. Just as nice as Arko, but with a much nicer scent. The brush surprised me and I guess it finally found its calling in face lathering. It generated lots of lather, and had excellent backbone. This was very plesant, and I see no need to put it back in my cuboard again.

The first pass went as smooth as last time, and in my eager to shave I once again forgot the golden rule of DE shaving. No pressure.
And by the time I started the second pass the soap started to sting a little. Not much, but enough to be noticable. I still enjoyed the second and third pass and finished with a DFS

Sometime during my second pass, I came to think about this excellent advice from Mr. PLANofMAN

And since I have had nothing but success following his advice I decided to make som changes in my post shave regime for this evening.

I removed the Ogallala Bay Rum aftershave and the Bulldog Aftershave Balm, and replaced it with GFT Skin Food. So after rinsing and applying the Witch Hazel I put a drop of the SKin Food in my hand and distributed it evenly across my face. Granted, it was a big drop. But still a drop. About the size of a small pea.

This time I had slightly more success than last time. But unfortunately after a good ten minute, I was left with a similar feeling of stickiness on my face. A lot less this time, but enough to be annoying.
To counter this I put on a layer of Firjarsoaps K3 cream. This is a foul smelling cream (contains camomile, which I do not like) but it is still an excellent moisturizer.

Now as I read this again, I do remember that I had some water on my face, and also to be quite honest (I usually am) I am not sure I can call it a feeling of stickiness, or that my face feels "astringent" Not tonight anyway
Perhaps I should try it again. On a dry face, and without putting on the Witch Hazel before

Anyway...:

Merkur HD
Gillette 7 o'Clock
La Toja Shave Stick
Merkur Futur Brush
Thayers Witch Hazel
GFT Skin Food
Fitjarsoaps K3 extra

Picture taken before shave

 

I think I might be allergic, or something.
I have been using the Musgo glycerine soap a few times, and I get the same sensation. Not as strong, but still similar enough
But I'll give it a few more shots before I retire it. Can't win them all

 

Lol, sort off.
It took too much time to keep up. Time I do not have at the moment. In fact my lack of time also cut in to my SOS postings

But since I am here, I can report to a wonderful shave yesterday. 90% BBS going ATG with a feather and a Merkur 34 on a wonderful field of Proraso green.
Pic is still in my camera.