SoS: January 19, 2015 - January 25, 2015

wouldn't that be 300% quicker?

 

Herm, I'm shaving with different Aristocrats in my collection for the next week or so

 

Friday's Shave



Prep: Hot shower w/ Grandpa's Pine Tar
Music: Led Zeppelin - Houses of the Holy
Lather: Arko
Brush: Omega 13522
Razor: '46-'50 Gillette Heavy Gold Tech
Blade: Wilkinson Sword Classic
Post: Witch Hazel, Nivea Sensitive Balm, Pinaud Clubman

Nice shave today, which I am starting to expect when I use the Tech. Not quite DFS because of some stubborn hairs around my chin. Very little irritation today. I don't hate the Wilkinson Swords, but I think there's better options for me with the Tech.

 

SOTD 01/23/2015

~ Valet Auto Strop with a fresh Treet blade that I modified to fit.
~ My handcrafted pre-shave oil, lavender and eucalyptus.
~ Pre de Provence face lathered with a Semogue 1305.
~ Clinique followed by Skin Bracer. Wen styling creme for the hair.

 

Ok, I'll go 75% quicker, but that's all.

 

Lots of Techs getting used lately, I see. Cool.

∙1968 Tech head on a handle made by that company Gillette bought out early on (name slips my mind)
∙vintage Wilkinson blade (shave 2)
∙VDH

BBS followed by Lucky Tiger and Avon Windjammer. Good shave.

 

Saturday's


Nivea Men's Face Wash
ARKO Extra Performance
Wild Cherry PTS
Schick L-1
Personna Injector
CWR, Asma Alum Block
Thayers Rose Petal WH
Aqua Velva

The ARKO Extra Performance Shaving Cream face-lathered well with my Wild Cherry PTS 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...

 

SOTD 23 January 2015
Day 21 of 30
30 DAY RULE with a Slim

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J2 Gillette Slim Adjustable
Kroger Israeli Personna
VDH Kit Badger
TSD Lanolin Shave Stick - Barber Shoppe Scent
Today's Great Cheap AS™ is Aqua Velva Ice Sport!

Check out the 30 Day Crew as we write about our month of focus on razor technique and share our experiences throughout January. Read about it here:

30 Day Rule/Focus Pic and Discussion Thread- All are Welcome!

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is not a dollar worth 300% more than a quarter?

 

SoTD for Friday, January 23, or, the day that SElebration became... SINGLEMANIA!

Pre- Clove balsam PSO
Soap- la Pere Lucien
Brush- Anchorset w/ new finest knot
Razor- Gem Contour, Gem Contour II
Blade- vintage Gem Super Stainless
Rinse-Osage
Aftershave- Florida water
Lotion- Kiehl's
Cologne- TSD Tabac type



Recently I got a Gem Contour II. Not really headline news, but it was cheap, and was still in its blister card packaging. The card itself had been torn away, leaving just the package contents in its sealed bubble. When I was making my razor of the day decision, I decided to open and use the Contour II. But once I got into my den with it, my eyes fell upon the Gem Contour that I put aside to use, but never did. It has been languishing for a few weeks, and seeing it made me feel guilty. So I decided, what the heck, I will use both Contours today! A plan was born.
The unopened razor came with a set of three sample blades. So I decided that I would use those. They are Gem 'Super Stainless'. The dispenser is the exact style still in use. Grey with a transparent back, marked with the American Safety Razor info. And the blades themselves look just like their current production counterparts, with the exception of 'Super Stainless' printed in black just above the cutting edge. I loaded a blade into the Contour, having decided to alternate between the two razors with every pass. I lathered up* and got started.
After recently coming to the decision that there is no substantial difference between Gem carbon and stainless blades I got a bit of a shock. The vintage Super Stainless? It was amazing. Seriously, the finest single edge blade I have ever used. There was absolutely zero resistance as it cut. I had to feel my skin after the first several strokes to make sure it was working. My first pass left me sitting comfortably between DFS and BBS. I switched the blade to the Contour II, and did my second pass. Not only was it an easy BBS, the combination of the fantastic Super Stainless blade and the mild Contour razors allowed me to effectively shave over the top of my wound from Monday... the first time I have been able to do so. Basically I have been forced to ever so gently try to scratch as much scruff as possible from the raised area around the cut. Wouldn't be fun to cut it again. So not only was the quality of the shave high, I felt complete for the first time all week. No little patch of stubble under my nose to hope that no one would notice. The only downside to these blades is that they are not in production. And I only have three. So I guess I should either not get used to them, or begin the hunt for more... bet you can't guess which one I'm going to pick!

*regarding the soap portion of the show. My second day with regular La Pere Lucien, and I love it even more today. A few years ago, if you told me a day would come when I would be a French soap enthusiast... I don't think those would have been fighting words, but I definitely would have laughed at you.

 

SOTD - Friday, January 23, 2015

Hot shower
Prep: Homemade Lime PSO
Brush: WD Synthetic
Soap; D.R. Harris Arlington
Razor: Weber bulldog
Blade: Personna Lab Blue (2)
Aftershave: Pinaud Clubman

- Don

 

My computer died yesterday morning before I could post my shave. But at least I had a great shave!

Today I got my computer back and had another great shave

French Soap Mix with a touch of TOBS Rose
Slim Adjustable
Ladas Blade

 

Day 23 - BSG

ATT S1 Kronos

Rapira PL

Plisson

Proraso white pre

Cade soap & balm

3 pass BBS. No weepers or irritation. Added some proraso pre to the mix as I was missing menthol.

 

Here's how I'm planning to shave for Saturday morning:

Neutrogena Men Facial Wash
Large Horsehair Barbershop
Super Speed/7 AM day 5
Synergy Frost_byte SS
Gold Bond Moisturizer
Alcolado Glacial Menthol Splash

Another great face-freezing shave on tap for tomorrow morning - this Frost_byte soap may not be quite as cold as my Glacials, but let me say that it ain't that far. It has super-rich lather which is so easy to build as well as a nice post-shave feeling. The Gold Bond moisturizer became my main aftershave balm because it's not only damned cooling, it's also unscented and very soothing. The Penguin is terrific also for continuing the chill. Ohhhh, guess who's gonna have fun, fun, fun!

Have a wonderful weekend, folks!

 

Saturday's Planned Shave
Razor: Phoenix Double OC
Blade: Super Iridium(5)
Brush: Israeli Olivewood w 26mm HMB
Bowl: Doug Smith 5" Shaving Mug
Pre Shave Scrub: SPAtopia Dead Sea Scrub
Pre Shave Balm: Prep
Shave Soap: Maggard's London Barbershop
Post: Monster Alum Block
Aftershave: B&M Latha


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Thank you very much.

 

Nice photo. Very atmospheric

 

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- LADAS

Post- Cold water rinse, Alum block, Aqua Velva Ice blue aftershave lotion and Nivea sensitive aftershave balm

All this talk of Russian blades made me wanna use one. So I picked up a LADAS blade for today's shave.

It was weird at first, it felt like it was skipping the hairs but I didn't want to apply pressure. I opened my slim and flipped the blade. It was much better =)

It was a nice shave =) Lo haiku provides a protective and voluminous lather, but still the slickness isn't up to par. It's a little annoying, from all the reviews and videos I've heard and seen that people get just awesome and slick lather. I'm gonna keep trying but this soap might be a subject to needing to be boosted with a cream. It's no problem though because I REALLY love the scent!

Finished with Aqua Velva Ice blue, I love this aftershave =D

I hope the Russian blades keep being this cheap for 6 months. I will get 1-200 blades in July when my No buy ends =D

 

Prototype shave brush
Today I used a badger brush for the first time. The knot is set in a handle my brother made from solid aluminum to compliment my iKon SC101. It feels solid without being too heavy, and has a nice balance. I took my time building lather and it paid off with an excellent shave. I'm used to synthetics, so I was expecting a very skritchy experience. I was wrong. This brush really works well, while it is not as soft as my beloved HIS or Plisson, it gets the job done comfortably. CRSW select citrus has a pleasingly potent scent and exemplary lather, and today was no exception. I finished up with Krampert's Finest Frostbite for a very refreshing start to my day.

Prep: Proraso White
Soap: Cold River Soap Works Select Citrus
Brush: Prototype 1 badger
Razor: iKon ShaveCraft 101
Blade: Personna lab blue
AS: Krampert's Finest Frostbite

 

Very nice looking brush!