Hello fellow newbies and whoever else is reading this. I joined the forum about a month ago and I love it here! check the site frequently reading about new ways to improve shaving, see peoples gear and to just keep me busy! A couple weeks ago I received a badger brush, a Merkur 23c along with some lime shave soap (col. something or other). Shaves were nothing special and I didn't really know what I was doing. I was using hot water as well. This week I bought some Wilkinson Sword blades (the german ones) for like 10 bucks for 10. I think they gave me a bit better of a shave. Also I tried cold water shaving, I think that helped a bit also. Still having problems around the neck, redness and bumps, but I think they are slowly getting better as I am trying not to shave very often. Also I cannot seem to get very close of a shave right above my Adams apple no matter what I do. I posted a sequence of pictures on how I make my lather in the shave soap section, but I can't figure out why the pictures won't appear. also I have used my shave soap about 5 or 6 times now and it is only like half the size it was when I bought it. Is this suppose to happen? Here is what I switched that hopefully will improve my shaving (for noobs like me who don't know what they are doing) 1.) bought a face cleaner with beads that exfoliates skin, use daily 2.) change up your blades and try different ones 3.) used cold water instead of hot - redness and bumps decreased for me 4. read this forum! Thanks to everyone here who helps out and contributes their knowledge to the rest of us! It is greatly appreciated.
Keep at it, your shaves will drastically improve! Those Wilkinson blades sound awfully pricey. You may try buying a sampler pack from one of the vendors to test the waters on some different blades (getting your technique down is probably more important though). My feeling is that you'll want to stick with hot water for your prep and actual shaving so that your facial hair is softer and your pores are more open. Then use cold water at the end (I've found that this vastly helps my razorburn). An alum block or witch hazel might help too (or both). Adam's apples are a tough area. Just takes a light touch.
For starters ditch that cleanser with exfoliating beads and just use soap to wash your face. The razor will do the exfoliating for you. Definately buy a sample pack, or my preference would be to check the blade reviews and just buy an individual pack of the most popular blades and go from there. You also might want to try cream or some different soaps, that conk's lime might not agree with you. For a cheep fix head to walmart and for less than 2.00 pick up a puck of vdh deluxe, also if the cold is working better for you no need to go back to heat, just keep experimenting and it will get better.
Cool. But a buck a blade :shocked003 !! You gotta get a sample pack. I give a :happy088 to the VDH, as well. Great soap. $1.49 at Wally World. Like Williams Warrior said, keep experimenting. You'll eventually find what works best for you.
Keep it up! Face cleaner (other than a shower) and cold water do nothing for me, but we're all different. Once you find something that definitely works for you, ignore anyone who tells you it shouldn't. The Col. Conk's lime works well enough for me, but is nothing exceptional. It shouldn't disappear that fast. You're not building the lather right on the soap, are you? You should just get soap on the brush, then build the lather on your face or in a separate bowl. There are other soaps I like, but for a total no-brainer, easy, great lather, you might try Proraso cream (also sold as Bigelow). I put a small amount ("almond sized") directly on a wet brush, then build the lather directly on my face.
Get yourself a boar brush like the Omega 48 and face lather with it. It'll do the exfoliating job for you. You might use the cold water to splash on to wake yourself up in the morning, but follow the cold water with warm/hot to prepare your whiskers for a whacking. Keep up the good work!
Keep practicing, you will get it. As with anything, practice makes perfect. I remember someone else posting in another thread saying "If someone handed you a trombone and told you to start playing, you wouldn't be very good. Practice is what makes you a good trombone player". As far as the Adams Apple, try to stretch your skin away from that area. I also have problems with this region, and find that simply pulling or stretching my face away from the 'apple' will smooth out that area and help in shaving it And for your picture, you posted too much 'information'. You only need to post the pictures with the tags; you don't need all the extra URL information. For example [IMG*]http://www.yourimagehere.com[/IMG*] Do that without using the '*' symbol. Those were put there to merely illustrate what your code should look like. If i actually used the tag itself, it would 'disappear' and try to post an image
I almost agree with the exfoliating scrub. I use Noxzema skin cleansing cream while in the shower. The blade thing is what will help you the most. Do get a sample pack of blades. Try looking at Bullgoose shaving site. He offers quite a few sampler packs. My suggestion is to get the largest pack you can afford and give the blades a try to see what works for you. Will take some time to find the right blade and you may find some blades do not work well at all and your shave will not be what you like. So move on to another blade. Would also suggest that you read the Shave of the Day forum and see what other guys are getting good results from. That will help you narrow down the blades you may want to try in the sampler pack.
