August 2018 30 Day Rule/focus Pix & Discussion

Thank you Jim.


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Good job Charlie. I think I’ll join you. With all of the traveling I’ve been doing this year, I’ve gained back some weight that I worked very hard to lose. I know what to do and will make the same commitment you have. Thanks for the post! (Stepping out of airport coffee and a muffin line)

 

Does this mean you might be a NBforlife?

 

Early morning shave before heading to the airport.

Mike’s Natural Soap
Elk Antler Badger Brush
The Torrey Company Razor
Lucky Tiger
Ogallala Bay Rum After Shave
Have a great week!

Time to bosrd️

 

Wonderful photo Jim. Hope you have a great week.


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Thanks for the advice Charlie. I've been at this damned shaving lark for the past 6 months... I have made some improvements for sure, but I'm still not there with consistent DFSs with no irritation (though I do achieve this on occasion)! I will of course keep it up!

 

Coming back from Utah?

 

Nope, I was home for the weekend.

 

Thanks, Clint! Busy week ahead but that will make it go by pretty fast.

 

That is great news, glad to hear you are mobile again.

Outstanding, keep with it.

 

Great photo, Brian! Safe travels, wherever they take you this week...

 

Excellent report, Neal. I continue to watch you push this blade to its limits!

Hopefully the fires will be brought under control soon, Jason.

Fantastic Photo, Clint!

Excellent shot Perry. Now that I'm better acquainted with menthol I have to wonder how the Pacific Rush compares with other mentholated splashes.

Excellent shot Jim! You're smelling good this morning!

Fantastic razor Brian!

There will be a couple of breakthrough revelations in your wetshaving career that will elevate the quality of your shaves. To this point I've had three. The first was learning how to properly hydrate my lather. No matter the brand of soap the lather will be at its slickest when it is nearly saturated with water. Properly hydrated lather with have a very high luster sheen to it, and gets flung all over the bathroom when your working the brush. The job of the lather is to lubricate the edge of the blade as it glides along the skin and cuts the whiskers. "Cushion" (AKA dry lather) is a hindrance IMO and not needed one you achieve the second revelation, no pressure. No pressure and light pressure are two different things. When I shave I try to use so little pressure that the razor doesn't create any indention in the skin. If I'm using a heavy razor this may even mean that I have to use negative pressure (hold the weight of the razor off the skin). Lastly, ride the cap, use the shallowest angle possible. Using a shallow angle will allow the blade to cut the whiskers rather then scraping them off (which results in irritation). Start with the cap of the razor against your skin with the handle parallel to the floor. slowly lower the handle while making short strokes until the blade wipes away a clean path of lather and whiskers. This is the angle that you will want to maintain. As I had each of these revelations my shaves got closer and more comfortable. Keep at it!

 

August 13th
Gillette SA-84 w Polsilver (1)
Omega '49 / Walnut
Jeeves Blood on Steel 30DC SS & AS
Thayers

Another solid shave this morning. I pushed the soap a bit this morning, and almost took it past its breaking point. It does hold a good amount of water. Put the short Black Beauty at 7 and had 3 uneventful passes. I got the appropriate alcohol burn from the splash this morning, the burn the past few times was probably because of the heat, which has broken somewhat.
I'm going to box up the razor tonight and send it off for a fellow 30DCer to try. He is very low on adjustables.
Have a great day all!

 

August Focus

In keeping with the focus parameters, I am continuing to use my adjustable razors this month.
Today's razor was the Merkur Short-Handled Progress set to "2"
The I Coloniali has somehow self-adhered to the bottom of this wooden bowl.
Even with ample blooming, it doesn't appear that I am using much soap at all.
In reality, I über-loaded the Rubberset and was rewarded with a face-lathering extravaganza.
I could have sold tickets to this shave.
The Personna 74 in the Merkur at "2":
Shave 14 and while the blade still slices nicely, there is the occasional zing or zap that sends a shiver up me timbers.
Maybe 1-2 more? Do I want to have even one zap?
I have more razor blades. More Personna 74's.

Practiced shaving the left side of my face with my left hand today.
I had to actually think about how to hold my razor.
Good results without tripping.
Finished with a generous splash of Clubman.
Great juice.​

 

Safe travels, again, Brian.

 

Good on you for using your off hand, Joseph. I've given up.

 

Sounds like the F plate is getting dialed in, Clint. Maybe you'll keep all 3 after all...

 

Cool effect, Jim. There is some Palmolive talk on TSD these past few days, and I think you've inspired me to take it travelling this week.

 

Nice pic, Perry! What do you think of the Zenith knot?

 

SOTD August 13th


Stirling Mentholated Pre-Shave Soap
Blackland Dart
Pol-Silver SI (3)
Yaqi Professional (30mm, Cruiser Class)
Jeeves Of Hudson Street Bay Rum
Stirling Iced Pineapple

Apologies for the recycled photo. It has two of the products I used this morning, which is better then nothing. The only thing I can say about the Dart is that it is a two pass BBS machine. Once you get to know what to expect and make sure that you have your technique in mind when you are shaving it provides a very comfortable shave. I finished with a splash of Iced Pineapple (Happiness in a bottle) to make it a Menthol Monday.

In other news. Tomorrow morning my wife and I will welcome our second child into this world (via Cescerian section). I will try to post some photos and provide updates but it may be a little while before I am posting regularly again as we get him settled into his new home and as we get settled into new routines. Have a great day my friends!