March 2019 30 Day Rule/Focus Pix & Discussion

Thanks Charlie!

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Thank Terry!

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I'll tell him you said so! Thanks Keith!

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This is his house, he lets us live here.

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Maybe a few tags will get @PickledNorthern to drop in to let us know he is doing well.

 

Thsnks, Clint!

 

Mine is Blair. Weekends tough to post and keep up....work remotely most weekends. Monday to Friday is easier...not as crazy, save for daily taxi duty for high school kids not driving yet...and for parents that can't drive any more.

 

Welcome to TSD, Blair!

 

Hello Blair! Welcome to the crew!

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Let's get some March Madness action going! I have tried to select the best soaps from my overflowing samples box for this tourney. I'll do a true bracket style tournament if for no other reason than to use the soaps I like multiple times. In order to make the numbers work (I shave every other day) and not go into April, only 8 soaps will compete. I'm only using soaps from companies that I have never used before. I haven't been wet shaving that long so there are some good ones that I have been itching to try.

Each soap will be judged on slickness, ease of lather, and post shave feel. I will not judge too harshly for scent as I only have one fragrance from most of these artisans. I will use the same proven setup for each shave.

The Setup:
Razor: Merkur 34C
Blade: Feather Stainless
Brush: Perfecto Pure Badger
Mug: Henry Cavendish
Post Shave: Witch Hazel and Cetaphil

The Bracket:
Stirling - Baker St. vs Declaration Original

Noble Otter - The Noir et Vanille vs Central Texas Soaps - Mr. Pepper

Barrister and Mann - Cool vs Ballenclaugh - Old Barber Menthe

Wholly Kaw - King of Oud vs Captain's Choice - Venture

The tourney starts tomorrow.

 

Looking forward to following along, Luke!

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I like it!

 

Thanks, Andrew.

 

That's a very impressive venture!

 

After all of the dangerous and strange shaving items I've used in ways never designed....and THIS is what puts me off the deep end? Yeah, I get your point. It's probably a good thing my wife is in the final stages of being a full time professional therapist. I couldn't afford the bills otherwise.

 

After a rule last month, I am devoting this month to an unfocused focus, complete with photos that are unfocused and/or bizarrely or poorly cropped.

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Saturday shave - my brother and sister in law arrived so I will busy for a week. A quick shave report:

Downsized from yesterday, todyas’s razor is a Silverloaf 8/8 smiler along with a Thäter 2 band. The shave was epic.

 

March Madness!!

March 1

Razor - Edwin Jagger DE89l
Blade - (1)
Soap - Soap Commander Courage
Brush - Semogue 620
Post - Alum

Well, here we go. Mild March Madness. Only mild razors, no Stirling, MWF, Tabac or Arko, and no Russian steel. For a month. A whole month. It's ok, I'll make it through without a problem. Most likely, anyway. I decided to start it off I'd use the EJ razor. This is a modern classic for many who started out with this razor. When I started in 2014 this one and the Merkur HD were the two most recommended razors for newbies. I chose this one and have always liked it. Not as much as vintage razors, but it's a good razor to have around. I picked out 10 blades for the month that have no association with Russia. I'm just shuffling them and picking one each time I change. Starting out, the classic Big Ben Super Stainless. Made by Lord in Egypt this is a name that has been around for a very long time. Lord originally manufactured in England before moving to Egypt. My soap to start - Soap Commander Courage. It's a great soap, vegan (which is why it's second tier in my world - no tallow) and produces an outstanding lather and a very nice after-shave face feel. Especially for being vegan. The brush? A boar to start. The Semogue 620. Small but very nice boar. Soft as any badger since it's so well broken in. Has no problem making lather out of any soap.

My one "oops" of the shave was in the very beginning. I've used synthetics so much over the past couple of years that I'm very used to walking in to shave, filling the mug with hot water, dipping the brush for about 15 seconds and loading away. Natural brushes need a bit more time to soak. So, a delay in the beginning to give the brush about 10 minutes to get ready. Something I'll have to remember all month. Three full passes to a very near-BBS. Fantastic feeling shave, no heat at all from the alum and a very enjoyable change of pace.

Saturday looms!! Sunday is supposed to bring snow and lots of it to the Lou. It is March, right?

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I like it! I like it a LOT! I have my favorite picked out and my money down at the window!

 

I believe we are all aging like a fine cheese.