March 2017 30 Day Rule/Focus Pix & Discussion

Yes, my replacement order of tubs of TOBS Avocado, Sandalwood and Lavender creams arrived yesterday. Of course, they aren't going to be exactly the same creams, because sometime in the last decade, TOBS reformulated them to be parabens-free. They should be healthier choices and also better for the environment, but what effect that will have had on their shaving qualities I'm not sure. Probably won't have as long a lifespan for one thing...

I guess tomorrow I will shave with The NEW Non-Eternal Tub of TOBS Avocado Cream (parabens-free formulation) -- and see how I like it.

 

Very cool. Too bad it's not hunting season.


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Thanks Clint.

 

Hooray! My new Nathan Clark / Envy Shave red Alluminati Envy White 24mm shaving brush just arrived. (And I had to pay an extra $16 in border taxes on it ... Boo!!!) It is doing a break-in soak as we speak. And Jared @PickledNorthern, I think it is going to be everyrhing you said it would be. Man, that knot is dense! The knot is the exact same loft and diameter at the handle opening as my Supply Provision synthetic brush, but the hairs seem packed about twice as dense.

I will take it for its first shave tomorrow starting the new tub of TOBS Avocado Cream and see how it goes.

 

Was it sent USPS?

 

Congrats. The Envy White is a fantastic knot.


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The mighty Feather attached to a bolt,
Makes a fine razor, wild as a colt!
Chasin’ the baby, yellin’ “Technique Trumps Tools!”
Goin’ for broke, we’re the 30-day fools!

A Gillette Slide with a naked blade
Is like playing catch with a hand grenade.
We’ll keep takin’ passes ‘till we’re BBS
Or else we’ll bleed out, and make quite a mess!

 

An instant CLASSIC!!

 

What a beautiful settting, Doug! Sorry your brush is not working out. I'm planning to use my Trac II beginning this weekend.

 

Yes. Fortunately. A lot of times if stuff is sent USPS handing off to Canada Post, it just sneaks through without being caught for the 5% PST ( Provincial Sales Tax) and 5% GST (federal Goods and Services Tax aka Gouge and Screw Tax). Anything under $100 in declared value gets through tax-free about 90% of the time. Every now and then, they snag a package, and then you have to pay the postie the PST and GST and also Canada Post's $10 "handling fee" for collecting same. (This time, I paid $3 for each of the taxes and then $10 for the service charge.)

But that's hugely better than when someone sends something UPS or FedEx -- the companies always collect the tax on any amount -- and then they ding you a $50 service charge on top. This same brush coming UPS would have cost me an extra $56 instead of $16 with the $50 going to UPS for "brokerage fees".

Which is the reason I never ever use UPS or FedEx for anything anywhere if I can possibly avoid it...

 

Thread Hijack

http://theshaveden.com/forums/index.php?threads/54962/

 

It certainly is. It bloomed out nicely after soaking and also smelled a bit of animal, so I just did a test lather with it and the new TOBS. A quick light swirl of the brush on the cream, a palmful of water in my lather bowl, and the lather just exploded. The brush held enough lather for about 3 or 4 passes with more in the bowl. And the brush was stiff enough working the lather in the bowl that it would obviously give a good controlled face scrub. A perfect brush right off the bat. Unreal.

I finally understand all the fuss over badger brushes...

Oh, the new TOBS Avocado Cream is very nice too. It actually has a pleasant light scent of fresh green vegetables where the scent on my old tub had mostly disappeared. And the cream loads on the brush with just a quick swirl and then lathers immediately in the bowl. My old tub was acting more like a medium-hard soap, taking about 30 seconds to load and then longer to lather up, although it was very reliable in its performance. I think I will really enjoy these fresh tubs of TOBS and expect I will highly recommend them.

 

Fantastic picture, Doug!

 

<Thread hijack>

My Bride and I have been looking at folding bikes. We can get a pair of them in our trunk and take them anywhere, so we ordered a couple today. They're made in England, so we have an 8-week wait. They are 6-speeds with small bags on the front to hold water, snacks, our phones, etc. Mine has a took kit that stores inside the frame. We're pretty excited to be getting them!

 

March 14 - felt like Dark Chocolate



Merkur 34C HD
Voskhod teflon
Jayaruh #148 brush - Dark Chocolate
DIY PSO
Stirling Tuscany
Alum/TWH
Nivea S-PSB

Upon seeing the latest Jayaruh brushes and seeing its near twin in honey, I approached Jim to see if I could buy them both. They came so fast and as with any new item, I couldn't resist trying them out as soon as possible.

Jim does excellent work. The photos do not do the brushes justice. They are even better up close and work fantastically. The backbone is perfect, enough to know the brush is working and capable of working a puck but soft enough for a truly pleasureable experience. I think anyone can cut a handle but not everyone can make a great shaving brush. Jim does. This is my first synthetic knot and it outperforms my Silvertip in every way. Better backbone, soft tips, great scrub without any scratch and can load quickly off a puck. I did not soak this brush but just passed it under the shower head. Quickly I had the best wettest and thickest lather to date. Application was silly smooth but with enough backbone to work the skin for some mild exfoliation. The knot felt like mink. It held enough lather for 4 full passes and plenty for more than a half face touch up. All that and there was still some in the bowl.

Today I showered with the last of Scott's Pine Sheep bath soap and it left the shower smelling great. I am not sure if it was this scent before the Tuscany or what but to me Tuscany smelled great. Maybe I just wanted the smell of spring on a Nor'easter snowy day. Whatever it was, I was very happy with the scent. It could be that it has changed too. Maybe it just needed a bit of pine to me.

I did three passes, WTG, XTG, and ATG and some touch up for a DFS+. The lather was great and gave me a super smooth first pass. Unfortunately I ruined everything with a little pressure on the next 2 passes since the Voskhod just weren't cutting as close as I liked. Alum proved what I suspected - razor burn. I was really lit up.

In all, I think the 3rd day of the Voskhod is their last. They were good and smooth but seemed to irritate more easily than the Astra SP for me

In the end, if it wasn't for the skin irritation and missing a small difficult spot, this would have been BBS.

I cannot wait for the next shave with this brush and will need to think long about deeper setting the knot in the Phoenix.

 

Is it "hunting" if you take one bare handed? Get close enough and you'll have to defend yourself with extreme prejudice...


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I would expect no less from a 30-day crew member.

 

I think Brompton pretty much created the concept of the 20"-wheel folding bike or at least perfected it. And after nearly 50 years in that niche it has gotten very good at making them. I expect the two of you will have a blast using them. BTW, if you become really adventurous on them, I believe Brompton also has little luggage trailers that you can hook on behind to carry your touring and/or camping gear...