Today's shave came out extremely nice for some inexplicable reason. This was the same prep, same lather, and same blade as yesterday, although I was not hurried today. My face felt BBS after the second pass, and magnificent after the third. Provence Sante Rapira Stainless Slim Adjustable
SOTD: iKon Standard Head SuperMax Ti Arko stick VDH Boar brush Captain's Choice Sandalwood AS Pre shave routine is to just wash my face with bar soap in hot water the towel pat dry but only for drips. Post shave is to warm/hot water rinse extra soap off then cold water splashes for about 20 seconds and towel pad dry again. Then used a little AS. I did a three pass shave (WTG, XTG and GXT but I am not sure I like the blade. Not really sure why exactly but I did get a couple small nicks but not sure if it was blade or me. It did feel pretty sharp but maybe not smooth! I think my Astra SP is sharp but smoother so I have alittle give if I get alittle fast or heavy on the pressure. Lather was very good til the last pass, then seem to loose its creamy feeling and almost got watery. I know it was me and not the Arko (so Arko hater's relax) LOL This iKon seems to show quite a bit of blade so I it might be too aggressive for me compared to my 34C I think. I dont know but I do know I have to remember to be extra careful pressure wise. Anyone know anything about this? Thx.
I don't understand all the polarization. I decided to not even sample it, I just opened it and without reservation used it as if it were Clubman. After it dries for a few minutes it smells like lilacs and talc with a touch of citrus, but the remaining scent is quite light. It went really well with Arko!
Razor: Gillette Slim (k3) 1965 (5) (3) Brush: Bethlehem Olive Wood/WD Silvertip 24/45 Mug: Old Spice 1985 Cobalt Blue Cream: Castle Forbes cedarwood & sandalwood cream Blade: Feather (1) Post shave:T.N. Dickerson’s Witch Hazel, Jack Black balm, Old Spice original Shulton Lime Whipped up the Castle Forbes, great scent, in a minute with the Olive Wood Silvertip. Nice slick warm cushion with the soft brush on my face. The fresh Feather in the slim glided thru my beard in 2 passes WTG, XTG. My technique is getting better on my neck with ATG on 3 The T.N. Dickerson's WH felt good on my face and that natural witch hazel scent was nice and fresh. After cleaning my razor and a little spray of isopropyl alcohol to help dry the innards, I smoothed on some Jack Black. And a splash of that great Old Spice Lime, perfect!
Gillette Fatboy E4 / Astra SP (?) MWF Rubberset Pure Badger Vintage Retinol ASB Pinaud Clubman A great shave with a puck of MWF in the ceramic dish.
Razor. Birth year 1952 Gillette Blade. Astra SP new Brush Vie Long horse hair Cream. Sandlewood TOBS Post. Witch hazel/ Bay Rum. 28th Wedding anniversary tomorrow, best make an effort, taking my lovely wife over to the East Coast of the UK, no expense spared..
I had a little help picking out my SOTD today. Was getting the youngest ready for bed last night and had to put a few things away. She was looking at the shave soap and I decided to try something. I let her sniff each one to pick my soap for the morning. She wrinkled her nose at a lot of the scents I thought she would like (Catie's LPV, Ocean Breeze, Stirling Glacial Wintergreen, Taylor of Bond Street Sandalwood, etc) and ended up like Stirling Ben Franklin. I was surprised. It is int he category of "old man scent", which I like. She helped me unwrap it and mash it into one of my empty containers. I shave before she wakes up so she didn't get to smell the lather but it was still fun. I will probably shave with it tomorrow so she can see it. Also this was my 3rd shave with a loosie Voskhod blade that was included in one of my bundle purchases. I will post more in another post. The sniff test...and the result with my newly acquired bowl (yet another upcoming post)... Prep: Warm shower and St Ives oatmeal face wash (not pictured) Preshave: no product Soap/Cream: Stirling Ben Franklin soap Brush: L’Occitane synthetic Razor: Merkur 39C Blade: Voskhod Post shave: Cold water rinse, Alum stick, 50/50 Clubman Virgin Island Bay rum and Thayer's Witch Hazel mix (not pictured)
IMO, Ben Franklin smells like a root beer float, which may help explain why she liked it. Sounds like a great way to pick out your soap!
