Day 2 of 30 BSG 30 Day Rule with a Slim Day two...planned for later...back with a lab report later... Today's Great Cheap AS™ is Stetson Cool Moisture...I will talk about that too. Have a great Sunday gents!
Welcome! Really glad you jumped in here. There's no real right or wrong way to build lather, as long as you build it. I face lather almost exclusively but change to a bowl for my head shaves, mostly because I only do small areas at a time. Having it in the bowl makes it easy to apply new areas or go over an area I need more work on. You'll find all kinds of helpful advice here at TSD and again, welcome to the finest group of addicts, excuse me, enthusiasts you'll find on the web!
1/4/15 - BSG - Day 4 Prep - Hot Shower, towel soak Brush - Omega 48 Soap - Proraso Green Razor - 1918 Gillette Old Style Blade - Voskhod (1) Post - Truefitt & Hill West Indian Lime Shave Balm Same set up, same prep, same everything except a fresh Voskhod in the '18. The beast is less beastly now and the only real issue I had was what I'll refer to as a "SSE" - Stupid Shaving Error. (In honor of SFE - stupid feeding error for snake keepers like myself who get bit because we do something stupid like handle the food before picking up etc.). Basically I started my first pass by my right ear and didn't level the blade on my face. Apparently held the inside corner a little high causing the outside corner to dig and nick. First pass felt smooth and was the best pass I've felt so far. Second was also good so I decided to do a third only on my neck. Face was nearly BBS. Third on neck to work on trouble spot and accepted the result. T&H to sooth the slight irritation from the aggressiveness of the razor. Probably did a little too much pressure at times. All in all I feel good about it as I seem to be getting better. Handling the razor much more confidently too. Don't want to get too cocky though lest it bite back on day 5!
You can face lather any soap. The only change is how you load the brush. Cream can be rubbed into the brush or right onto your face. A puck of hard soap can be rubbed right on your whiskers then lathered or you can load the brush on the puck and then make the lather on your face. Doesn't make a difference what YOU do for your shave. Give it all a try.
Day 4 BSG Prep: Shower, Proraso Pre Soap: Arko Blade: 7'oclock SharpEdge (yellow) Razor: Ball End Tech Brush: 24mm WD Black Badger Post: WH , Clubman ClubMend Today I did a 2 pass WTG, XTG I'd probably call it DFS, but the best part was no irritation. I'll probably try a ATG again tomorrow.
01/04 – Day 3 with the Weishi Objective: Survive a month using low end entry level products. Growth: 1 day Prep: Hot shower; Corn Huskers Lotion Lather: Arko – Face lathered Brush: Escali Badger Razor: Weishi 9306/Microtouch One Blade: Derby Extra (1) Post: Alum; Aqua Velva Ice Blue Today’s Results: New Derby and less growth today but still having trouble getting a close shave. This is just a really mild setup. So, I have started tinkering with more aggressive technique like what has been shown in recent videos (Justin and the old Brit). It looks scarier than it actually is. Just gotta grip it and rip it. What’s on the menu today? Some Pho-king good lather!
When started with my Slim I was getting great shaves but a lot of alum sting. Someone on the forum told me "use just enough pressure to take the soap off." Thinking of that when I shaved really made a huge difference not only with my Slim but all my razors.
Shave 4 of 30 day BSG Prep - Hot Shower/Axe Chilled Cooling Face Wash Razor - Parker 99R Blade - Wilkinson Swords Classic Brush - Parker Rosewood Boar Brush Soap - Proraso Eucalyptus and Menthol Soap Post - Cold Water Rinse/Crystal Deodorant/Cold Water Rinse/Real Shaving Co. Post Shave Soothing Balm Had a great shave this afternoon. Jumped out of the shower and I think the technique is definitely getting better. I got a super nice lather from the Parker Boar today maybe the nicest yet. Nice 3 pass shave. WTG went extremely well, as did XTG and then 3rd pass was ATG mostly on neck, and chin. A few small weepers but a nice close shave today. Loving this balm I picked up.
Day 3 - Thirty Days with Merkur 34c (Jan 1-Feb 4 [No shave on Saturdays]) BSG 1-4-2015 Hot Shower and Prep - Neutrogena Men Invigorating Face Wash, Used conditioner on the whiskers & Wm. Neumann & Co. Peppermint Leaf Bar Soap Razor Merkur 34c Blade Astra SP (3) Brush - Plisson Synthetic Lather - Poraso Green Post - Warm & cool water rinse, Neutrogena Razor Defense post shave lotion I had two days worth of beard growth so after washing my face I used conditioner on the whiskers. Did a 3 pass WTG, XTG, ATG with a few touch ups. Focused more on my blade angle and flattening out the skin area of my neck. I needed fewer touch ups. No irritation no nicks. A decent BBS. A great shave day.
Since I'm working tomorrow I'm not sure if I should shave again before bed or wait until I get off tomorrow....any suggestions?
30 Day Challenge 5 Month noobie. Prep: Hot shower Nivea Face Wash Brush: WD 22mm Soap: C.O. Bigelow Blade: Personna Lab Blue Razor: Gillette Ball Tech 1951 Post: Alum Block, Old Spice Today was shave four for me. Did three pass but kept the neck passes WTG yesterday's shave gave a little razor rash on my neck. My neck did not like three consecutive days with an XTG pass.
Guys, I'm going for a razor reset. The New LC is starting to chew up my neck. So I will be bringing out the Weber and resetting my 30 days. All other things will remain the same.