30 Day Rule/Focus; April 2024. All Are Welcome!

Hi everyone!

The month of March is history and we are now in April. The first day of April is Fool's Day and thankfully, it doesn't apply to you guys. When it comes to wetshaving, you guys don't fool around because your shaves were excellent last month. Kudos to all of you.
There's an old adage: April showers bring May flowers. While that is true in the natural realm, it also implies that good things come to those who wait. It truly is a positive message. In relation to our hobby, may all of you get whatever shaving paraphernalia you desire in the near future because you deserve it.

Monthly Themes

The theme for this month is a no brainer because it is Arko/Adjustable April.
That's right guys! It's time to get put your favorite DE razors to make your face presentable to the world. For those of you that like Arko, here's your chance to show us how proud you are to have this brand in your den despite the naysayers. Alas, I don't want to exclude you SE shavers so another possible theme could be Artist Club April. I think that title is self-explanatory. Maybe you can do a specific Artisan for the entire month so your theme would be Artisan April. Maybe do a mix of these suggested themes. Of course, there's always Anything Goes in April so that you shave with whatever you want that pleases you.

Ok, let's continue with the basic tenets of this thread!

I want to welcome all the veterans of the 30 DC and all the newcomers. This thread is for the purposes of improving your shave technique so that you will consistently get great shaves. There are a number of ways to do it. These are suggestions so feel free to do whatever you want in regards to your shave.

The 30 Day Rule

Take ONE razor, ONE blade, ONE brush, ONE soap/cream and use them EVERYDAY this month. Yes, everyday. But Trigger, I want variety! I know you do, but until you perfect your technique, it makes little sense to constantly change the variables of your shave.

The Focus

For you out there that are not up to the rigors of the Rule, there is this alternative:
Vary the gear for each shave, save for perhaps one or two elements.
This is a more accessible challenge for the majority of shavers. I like to pick a particular aspect of the shave, be it the lather, a certain blade or a new razor, that needs breaking in, and not change it daily, until I have mastered those tools.

Ok, to keep the thread on a nice even keel, I ask everyone to follow the thread etiquette as listed below:
1. New Members always welcome. Start anytime.
2. Old Members always welcome.
3. Respect everyone.
4. Refrain from political conversation.

I also want to suggest that we should try to assess our shaves as to why it was good or why it was not up to your standards and express these reasons in your comments. The spirit of this thread is to improve our shaves and if we share the reasons why a shave was good or bad, then we are giving our experiences to encourage good technique and discourage bad technique so that we have great info to get better shaves. I am not suggesting that we do it for every post, but I think it would make for a healthier thread if we start to do it more than we have in the past years.

Moreover, you don't have to do a rule or a focus. You are free to change your setup on a shave to shave basis.

Finally, I want this thread to continue to be a friendly place. It is ok to disagree because that is how we learn from each other, but let's encourage and respect every member. Yes, even if you think they are off the wall. Let's face it! We all are a little off because of our different Aquisition Disorders. Lol!

Let's have a group hug!



Also, let's have some awesome April shaves and fellowship.

Sincerely,

Joe (Trigger)

 

Aristocrat April sounds good to me,with a smattering of arko,adjustables and artisan products..

 

A nice way to begin April....with some Oud Wood. That's the chief scent provided by the fellas at Agadir. I was surprised by the strength of my skinny runt of a brush-The Clubman Pinaud. It really snapped up a lot of the Stoylin Agar soap to prepare for the shave.I say " a lot", but course my other brushes do better. Where's my "Just Like The Previous Two Shaves" rubber stamp when I need it. For the third shave in a row, great job everywhere but central Cactus Nation. It was just a Knick down there, but it preventedd me from a top-notch shave. Clearly a "Technique Trumps Toolks" shave. 2(yes, I remembered to do the 2nd this time!)passes. Just the one Knick, no cuts/Polka-dots. The AgadirMen aftershave to close out...nice job. Super Duper Outstanding.

 

Seems to me EVERY month is "Artisan" around here(course the exeption is in days when you do a Lovely Goo shave.)

 

Asil KIRATLI

 

i don't really do 'goo' shaves Paul.maybe 2 in the last 6 years..

 

great shave Paul.is cactus nation " down there",?,where all the pr__ks are..

 

cool shave and pic Asil.

 

not that far down-it's the neck area. And thanks for the shave compliment, it was a nice one.

 

When I got my Proraso order, I made a mistake-not realizing you can get it as a shave soap, too. Will do that in the future.

 

all good.i did a couple of nivea deep goo shaves a while back,it wasn't bad.good for travel..

 

SOTD 20240401 Trésor

ischiapp.blogspot.com​

 

Great intro, as usual, Joe!

Arko/Adjustable April sounds good.

I still have several sticks of Arko left out of a carton of 12 that I bought years ago when a vendor on Amazon sold off cartons for the price of one stick.

My usual Supply 2.0 injector is "technically" an "adjustable" razor, although I think "interchangable" is probably a better description for razors like it that come with a set of swappable plates of varying aggressiveness - you can't really "adjust" them mid-shave the way you can with a Gillette FatBoy etc.

Anyway, I have a "true adjustable" Rockwell T2 in the stable that I tried briefly on each setting but have never really wrung out or dialled in. I should maybe spend April with it and really learn its quirks.

Anything Goes April is always a good fallback excuse to use anything I want that day.

Mainly though, what I will try to be this April is Around -- I never posted my last three or four shaves in March.

 

April 1 SOTA

Good afternoon.

Straight razor shave #536
Frederick Reynolds Square Point
MrEE Tuxedo Brush
Captain's Choice North SS and AS
Stirling Alum Block
Personal Care Witch Hazel
Beard Growth: 31 hrs.



I have been truly blessed with a major haul last Friday by a benefactor who will remain anonymous. This razor was one of the many items that I received. It was a razor that I wanted because of its reputation. It's a vintage straight with Sheffield steel. The previous owner put a nice edge on it. The script on the scale says, "The Old English Razor". Of course, I disinfected it with 91% alcohol before I used it.
I went with the Captain's Choice North because it really makes a terrific lather. I added a little too much soap, but I didn't care. Lol! I am liking this shaving bowl a lot. It was really creamy and smooth. Here's my lather:



Three error-free passes resulted in a close, smooth shave. The alum block feedback was negligible. Splashed on the witch hazel and matching aftershave to end this shave. It's a great start to the month. Take care.

 

Aristocrat April, Gary? Getting Fancy Schmancy, are we? The plain old Gillette Techs are not good enough for you anymore, so now you have to move uptown and forget your roots?

Sounds like a good month, actually. Iirc, you have some really nice ones. Looking forward to seeing them!

 

Good start to the month, Paul!

 

A little light on the shave descriptions, but great equipment photos, gents!

 

Thanks John. I love your plan for this month. Always appreciate whenever you post.

 

It's nice to see the really old equipment still doing such a great job! If those old makers knew that their razors were still in use a century or more after they were made, I bet they would be deeply pleased about a job very well done!