After a couple of weeks, from the seed being planted and flourishing into a potentially dangerous hobby/habit/addiction, I have finally enjoyed my very first shave with my first ever DE razor. I'll give you a bit of background: I was brought up by my mum-so I was never shown anything to do with shaving. I followed the route I'm sure many my age (27) have-multi-blade cartridge razors, bit of soap or shaving foam and scrape away. I persisted at that for a few years until eventually giving up and opting for stubble and an electric trimmer. Partly down to laziness, partly down to dry and very sensitive skin. Last year I finally got my ass in gear and applied for a graduate scheme. Irrelevant you may think... But it meant for the first time in years (about 10 probably) I felt the need to be clean shaven. So in preparation for my first interview I bought myself a philishave! A decision made on the back of my laziness and complete lack of knowledge on all things shaving. So I got through several assessment days and a couple of interviews all with my new gadget smoothing my face, still completely ignorant to traditional shaving. Then one day a couple of weeks ago I was reading an Esquire article on my phone about 5 essentials for your wash bag. In their list was the Merkur travel razor-the seed was planted. I should mention at this point I got the job-start in 5weeks-which will involve a lot of travel... hence the interest in the article. To be honest it was a bit more than a seed being planted-more like a flourishing young fruit tree being planted. I have spent hours and hours researching technique and equipment. Thanks Matic59 for your excellent videos and for all the members of this forum for your wisdom in your posts. So I have gone out and spent more money than I should have, although not as much as I now feel the urge to! I have the following: A Merkur 34c HD Edwin Jagger travel brush Lots of blades-bought 2 sample packs. A few sample pots of TOBS creams A sample pack of trumper bits Truefitt & Hill pre shave oil TOBS Jermyn st aftershave cream Proraso shave cut gel That gets me to today: my first shave (I class it as my first ever really because I certainly don't remember my first as a teenager). I got some new music for the occasion-electro-swing for anyone who's interested, a nice blend of old skool swing(traditional shaving) with modern beats (my style). Got all my stuff ready and warmed up my bowl. Jumped in the shower-one of those long thought filled and relaxing ones. Now for the business. I made a lather with some Jermyn st cream-which I must say made an excellent lather! I applied a small amount of oil then following Mantic59's very strict instructions I applied a generous amount and started my first pass-straight down. I used a Derby blade to start which was good-although I have little to compare it with. It was smooth and didn't bite at all or tug. I had only a single cut as I took the head off a lumpy spot I forgot about after hiding it in lather. I loved every moment, it is so satisfying to slice the hair off in luxury. I carried on, rinsed and lathered up for a second pass-another straight down as he advises for newbies like me. All went smoothly and I again survived the pleasure with no more cuts. I rinsed off and applied my after shave cream and a tiny bit of cut gel. Both excellent products also. On inspection I had a slight bit of rough just on one side above my Adams apple-lack of attention on my part. I was shocked I had virtually no soreness/burn/rash at all. I was a tiny bit red on the lower edge around my neck, but not sore at all. All I can say now is I'm hooked!! How long will it take to grow back? Because I want another go! Oh and why the hell didn't my dad introduce me to this? I'm certainly going to master the skills so that by the time I have a son hitting his teens I can give him a right of passage into traditional shaving. I hope nobody is too sleepy after my waffling on, but I had to share this with you and I hope if anyone has read this whilst debating whether to give it a try... Go for it! Oh and one thing I forgot to say: Hello!
Welcome to the den. Now before you go off into swapping out razors and creams and soaps, let me give you a piece of advice that was given to me when I entered traditional shaving and because it worked I freely give it to you. I call it the 30 day rule. Find a razor, then a blade that will not cause issues with your face (that may take a few different blades in a sampler to find a suitable choice or it maybe the first out of the gate) and select a soap or cream that is easy to generate good lather. Once you find those, spend 30 days using nothing else until you build up your technique. After 30 days, change one and only one variable and work for another week. At that point you should be able to make better decisions because your technique is now in place. Be sure to check out the videos available on YouTube from Mantic59 and Geofatboy. They are excellent resources for the new and the seasoned traditional shaver alike. Oh, and by the way: Welcome to the Den. We know you'll fit right in. So grab yourself a comfy chair, and give our threads a spin! Burma Shave
And welcome to the TSD!..sorry the and worked in perfectly.. just remember when you travel by air, DE's are a no no for carry on so pack razors and blades in the regular luggage..
Welcome to the shave den, great intro, the 34c was my first DE razor, thats a better set up than I started with. im sure you aquire more stuff soon. lol.
Great to add and to the den, and and will probably catch an ad, leading to and's end. Welcome and and glad to have you. ...I think the fish riddle thread has permanently scarred me.
Hi! Welcome to the Den. Looks you're off to a great start. The 34C was my first DE, as well. I now have three!
Thanks for the warm welcome and the head screwing riddle (shortening my name from Andrew to And sure does cause some confusion!). Just had my second shave today, kept everything the same except for going XTG for the second pass. Had a few spots of blood and a bit sore around my Adams apple. Could the difference have been caused by only 20hrs or so growth instead of .5mm stubble? Or the 2 days in a row? Or the XTG pass? It did feel a little bit less smooth/tugged a bit today, should I use a fresh blade maybe?
I'd say for now it's technique that needs refining. Follow Gary's advice below and keep us posted on how you're coming along. Stick with it! You'll do fine
So even stick to just a 2 pass straight down and not go XTG on the second? How often should I change the blade?
welcome i change to blade after 3 shaves. i find on the 4th i can get by but there is some tugging on the whiskers that i dont care for.. you my be able to get by with 2shaves,3,4,10...it will depend on the the type beard you have
For now, yeah. Your face will tell you when it's time to change the blade. Some folks use a fresh blade for every shave, most get 3-5 (I go 5), others have gone well into the teens with the same blade! Like Phillip vance723 said, tugging is the key indicator it's time for a change.
Welcome to The Shave Den Andrew, a great community of guys and gals that enjoy wet shaving, I hope you enjoy your stay! Be sure to sign up for the May Newbie Give-Away for a chance to win some great shave gear!
...to The Shave Den family! Be sure to stop by The Shave Den "Master Sticky" thread to familiarize yourself with the rules and different areas of The Shave Den!
