30 Day Rule/Focus; August 2022

Very nice shave Paul.

 

Very nice shave Danny.

 

Great recap on your shave Danny. The Planet Kind is a good soap based on a you tube review from Mark Szorady. It doesn't take much to make a good lather.

 

Good afternoon!

Rockwell Model T (4)
Gillette Winner DE Blade (?)
Heritage Collection C-Mon Replica Super HD Badger Brush
Stirling Christmas Eve SS and AS
Maggard's Alum Block
Dickinson's Witch Hazel
Beard Growth: 28 hrs



I decided to open the month with my Rockwell Model T razor and lather with Stirling Christmas Eve SS. I am at the bottom of this tub and probably will want to use it up before Christmas because I won a TSD 50 dollar gift card on the current TSD raffle. I guess that I will be getting more soaps and aftershaves. Lol!
Anyway, it is been a month since I have facelathered and it felt good doing so. I realize that using boar and badger brushes are not as effective as synthetic ones when it comes to bowl lathering so I am happy to use a natural bristle brush once again.

I have been using milder settings on my adjustables and still get great shaves. I usually have gone on max settings, but now I see it is not necessary. I was setting 4 ( max is 6) and got a great 2 pass shave without errors.
Did get minor feedback from the alum. Finished with my usual postshave routine. The Stirling Christmas Eve scent is just great to use any time of the year in my opinion. Take care.

 

Thank you Joe...maybe my face was better prepared for it(neck too)from the Stoylin bath soap.

 

SE Shave # 270 - MICROMATIC & DARKFALL MONDAY

Rating: 5 / 5

Razor: GEM Micromatic Bullet Tip
Blade: GEM Stainless
Brush: Epsilon Horse Hair
Lather: Declaration Grooming Darkfall
Aftershave: Declaration Grooming Darkfall
Additional Care:
Stirling Alum Block
Humphreys Cucumber Melon Witch Hazel
Stirling Unscented Glacial Balm

What a perfect way to starry off the month of August with cooler temperatures, albeit short lived, and a fantastic Fall scent. That being said, I enjoy the Declaration Grooming Darkfall year round. I will be purchasing another tub and splash once Scott releases them for their seasonal sale later this month or early September.

I think I will go with a semi-adjustable/malleable August. I have 13 DE razors between the two dens, however, only one is adjustable, the Ming Shi Futur Clone. I will shave with this razor on weekends.

Also, I could go with Affronted August weekdays, excluding Monday, for the many soaps that do not get much love in my den.

This morning’s shave was truly enjoyable. I always receive a close shave no matter which Micromatic, MMBT or the MMOC, I select for the day’s shave. Following the shave I decided to bin the razor just because it has well over my normal ten shaves for a GEM blade. I received the SOA from the missus regarding the smoothness of the shave so I know the blade is still capable of performing g well.

I look forward to the continued great shaves, the camaraderie and what high jinx this month offers. I hope you are having a great day gentleman.

 

Wonderful way to start the month Joe.

 

Terrific shave and another creative theme Joe. Enjoy your day.

 

Thanks Joe.

 

The knot on your brush is a close match to that on my Albion 1925....shux, my last use with the Albion wasn't good.

 

As Vice-President of Bloomers Without Borders, I'd like to avail myself of this availability to thank you for blooming your soap.

 

I am assuming your Albion brush knot is a super high density knot like mine. I don't know how many kinds of brushes you have Paul, but I can see you having a problem with your brush because I did with mine. I have always said that you have to adjust your methods of using different razors, soaps and brushes. It's one of the most difficult things to do, especially if you have plenty of everything.
Assuming you have a high density knot, you have to initially paint the lather on your face instead of using a circular and spraying motion, otherwise the lather goes deep in the bristles and the brush becomes a lather hog.
The way around this is to load the brush with an overabundance of soap which you usually have a tendency not to do and again just paint your face a few times. Afterwards, you can dd a small amount of water to the brush and then go with the circular/spray method. If you need to add water to make the lather to suit you, then do so. I just want to say there isn't a right or wrong way to lather your face, regardless of the brush or soap. You have to experiment to find the right lather for you. Once you find the right lather for your shave, then you need to repeat it until it becomes second nature for that particular brush and soap. Like I mentioned earlier, each different brush/soap combination may not always follow the same soap/water ratio in lathering.

 

Thabks Joe..I've ben doing better with my loading of late, probably because I have better brushes than the Albion(my Stoylins, the Jayaruh). But I'll try your suggestion. In some videos, the shaver just dives right in with the circular motions, no painting.

 

Looks to be a "shave cream soap".

 

You are welcome Paul. Again, shavers need to know what method works on any of their tools. Sometimes circular motion is better than painting and the reverse is true or a combination thereof. It is really based on one's experience with their tools.

 

Thank you Joe.

 

Ok, I just used my TSD $50 gift card to offset my purchases at the TSD shop.
I bought Barber Shoppe, Irish Spring and Orange shave soaps with the matching splashes. I also got the Menthol bomb to add menthol drops to my soaps. I have heard good things about the TSD soap base and the aftershaves. I am excited. Oh well, I am back to 14 containers of soaps. LOL.

 

Happy August Everyone! This month the only thing I am changing from last Month is that I am using Astra Platinum blades

That is with a Hi-Synthetic Brush
Stirling Barbershop Soap
A small Metal Bowel
Van Der Hagen Razor
Omega Hi-Synthetic Brush
Nivea for Men Sensitive Skin Aftershave (gel)

I am a convert at this point with no intention of going back except few times I go through the TSA.

 

I hope you post about it with pictures. I know I need to take some pictures myself and also need to set a profile picture, too.

 

Yes, I always post pics of my mail calls.