It was great! The 2 in 1 balm I've had for a long time sitting in my drawer, this stuff is super moisturizing. Nivea makes super products.
Shave of the day Pre- Hot shower, Bulldog Original face wash Soap/cream- How to grow a mustache Lo Haiku shaving soap Brush- Whipped dog 24 mm silvertip Razor- Gillette Slim adjustable(5) Blade- Astra superior platinum(2) Post- Cold water rinse, Alum block, Lucky tiger bay rum aftershave lotion and Nivea sensitive aftershave balm FINALLY! I get to try a HTGAM soap. Thanks to @Slow Joe who sent me a surprise birthday present I have the opportunity to try one. BUT! I got mixed feelings about this shave. The HTGAM soap lathered up easily and provided a nice voluminous and very nice scented lather. I had a couple of days growth which might have added to the feeling, but I felt like the slickness of the soap wasn't very good. Of course I'm not gonna judge a soap on the very first try. I'm gonna use it a couple consecutive shaves. It was protective, but I would like some more slickness so I'm gonna play with water ratio. The soap did leave my face feeling good which I like. Finished off with a cold water rinse and Lucky tiger Bay rum and Nivea aftershave balm, my face likes that =) PS: I have figured out a way to take the curves of my face and navigate the part of my face where the hairs change direction. It's a big J-hook motion =P
Hey Lloyd great to hear from ya' man! Yep, I got to the second level of my razor drawer and re-discovered these great SE's. I don't use them as much as I should what with the straights and DE's but they are super shavers. Two passes and that's all that is needed. That's cool about your new thread! I will check it out and put it on my favorites list. I've got about three dozen Fedoras but don't have many pictures of them. (A new photo subject! ) Hope you are diggin' Seattle man!
SOTD Thursday 1-22-2015 GEM 1912 w/GEM Stainless Noxema Tiki 7 Seas SC (Thanks Guy!) GP Scuttle Semogue 820 Boar Dickinson's WH GB Body Lotion Brut ASL This GEM Travel razor was the competition for Gillette's Tuck-A-Way New Improved Razor back in the day. Lovin' the 7 Seas and the Brut seems to be up to the challenge for a refreshing after shave.
Thursday's Shave Prep: Hot shower w/ Grandpa's Pine Tar Soap Music: Classic Rock Mix Lather: Cella Brush: Omega 13522 Razor: Van der Hagen TTO Blade: Wilkinson Sword Classic Post: Witch Hazel, Nivea Sensitive Balm, Pinaud Clubman Switched it up a bit today. Decent shave but not sure I like the Wilkinson Swords with the VdH.
This poor soap tin hasn't gotten any love because of all of the recent soap samples, so today I decided to dust off the trusty WSO. It's too bad this not is not available anymore, but I respect the artisan's decision. I was able to thread the 102 onto the elite razor handle, and it proved to be a great combo. I challenged myself to shave the left side of my face with my left hand (I'm right hand dominant), and it was easier than I expected. I really enjoyed the results, and will continue this way from now on. It's cold and rainy out, but I'm feeling fresh and smooth. Have a good one gents...
Prep: Hot shower, olive oil soap, hair conditioner Razor: Merkur 34C Blade: Astra SP (3) Brush: Omega 13109 Pure Badger Cream: TOBS Jermyn Street Post: Cold rinse, Alum, Thayers WH Original A/S: Proraso White balm Cloudy day, but I got a glorious shave today! TOBS to the rescue! Having previous trouble with he Astra blade, today was a very nice irritation-free shave. Have a wonderful Thursday!
SoTD for Thursday January 22, Damaskeen SElebration Pre- 2x hot towel cycles w/ Kiehl's Face Fuel, followed w/ Clove Balsam PSO Soap- La Pere Lucien Vetiver Bourbon Brush- Baja w/ new boar knot Razor- Gem Damaskeen 1912 Blade- Gem Stainless Steel Rinse- Osage Aftershave- Cordovan Lotion- Kiehl's Cologne- vintage British Royal Continuing my length-pliable single edge celebration week, today belongs to the Gem Damaskeen 1912. This is one of a few that I own, and is my favorite. The fact that it is nearly unused is great, but as always the cardboard outer shell makes this one special to me. I love these illustrated slip cases, and I love the characteristic Gem art style. I call this guy Shaving Dad. He appears in a few different permutations on Gem items and I love every one of them. I'm a fan. There isn't much I can say about the Damaskeen that hasn't been said. Nothing really... but to recap: It is a great razor. Excellent build quality. Excellent physical balance; it feels good in your hand. It also has a perfect balance of mildness/aggression. In my opinion, the Damaskeen 1912 is a core razor. A necessity if you are at all interested in the single edged design. I have finally buckled to the hype around Gem Stainless Steel blades. I decided that I should try them, they must be good considering how glowing the reviews are. So today was the day to finally try them out. I wasn't blown away. Don't get me wrong, they are good blades. But I honestly don't see much difference between these stainless blades, and their carbon twins. I truly feel that the quality of my shave was no different. They are much better than the Pella carbons in the big dispenser, but equal to the Blue Star carbons. What is that you say? You thought those were the same blades? Well so did I. And after testing the two back to back several times, I no longer think so. The Blue Stars are significant better than the Gem science blades. So if that is the case, why spend the money on the stainless blades? They are considerably more expensive than carbon blades after all. It comes down to one word- durability. The Blue Stars are good. Great even. But carbon degrades quickly. Yes, you can dip them in alcohol, or glycerin, or store them facing east, or whatever tip you have heard to preserve blades. But other than using up time and effort, they will still decay faster than stainless. Much faster. I really do think it is worth the extra money to not have to worry about what voodoo I will use to keep my blade alive. But, as always, YMMV. Some of you guys might think the Gem ss blades are the best thing since sliced bread. Others may hate 'em. These are my opinions only, so add however many grains of salt you need to make it palatable. The soap was again La Pere Lucien, but a different type. This is a limited edition Vetiver Bourbon I got from another TSD member. It is fantastic. Just simply amazing lather and performance. The fragrance is unique bordering on weird. I do not mean that in an insulting way... it is just so unlike anything else I have used. And honestly it is also totally unlike the fragrance I imagined based on the description. I really expected something else. But what I got is great. It is like I found the exact scent that I needed, despite not looking or knowing I wanted it. Did that make sense? If not, then just go with this; I love this soap! Finally, just a quick word on the brush. I have been slowly progressing through finding homes for 11 new knots. I got the first five installed first. They were the glamorous knots. 2 different badger and 3 synthetic. Then it was time for the boars. Boring old boars. I got the first two in... and they were great. Fantastic, no frills, tough little workhorses. This brush is my third boar reknot, and two more are waiting to be fixed into permanent homes in their assigned handles. After using the badger and synthetic brushes, I was worried that I had bought too many boars and not enough of the others. But after using the three newly knotted boar brushes, I am again comfortable with the balance. Plus, a great unintended bonus of the boar knots is their cool messy blooms. Doing these brushes has been really rewarding. I cannot recommend it more. So if you have some old brushes laying around, get some refurb going. And if you don't, then get some old brushes to lay around! You will love it, I promise.
SOTD 3P Duke 3 Stirling Ozark Mountain Ikon SB Lab Blue (2) Floid Black AS I always forget how good this soap is, super slick. I reckon the slickest soap I own with the best post shave feel.
As far as I know...yeah. I haven't seen an update in a while... It's a bit of a shame, because he made a damn good product. I would be great to see how well it would stand up to some of the more recent artisan explosion soaps.
Friday's Nivea Men's Face Wash Kiss My Face Cool Mint moisture shave Wild Cherry STB Schick L-1 Personna Injector CWR, Asma Alum Block Thayers Rose Petal WH Aqua Velva The Kiss My Face Cool Mint moisture shave face-lathered well with my Wild Cherry STB Brush. Two passes with my Schick L-1 and a Personna Coated SS Injector blade gave me a close, comfortable shave. After a cold water rinse, alum block, and a final cold water rinse, I finished off with Thayers Rose Petal Petal WH and then Aqua Velva after shave. I am clean, smooth, and refreshed...
Plans for January 23, 2015 On day 22 of my 30-day journey, I plan to use my Mongoose loaded with a Feather Pro blade and my Kent BK4 brush. All of the shaves this week have been great! I appreciate all the encouragement from everyone!
SOTD - Thursday, January 22, 2015 Hot shower Prep: Homemade PSO Brush: Simpsons Duke 3 Soap: Catie's Bubbles Spanish Holiday Razor: Weber PH Bulldog Blade: Personna Lab Blue (1) Post: Nivea Men Sensitive PSB Aftershave: Floid SE Mentolado Vigoroso - Don
