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

Hi everyone!

Alas, another month has come and gone. We are now in July and for most of us, summer has finally arrived. It's that time of year to get out the citrus scented and mentholated soaps that we all love. To those shavers that live below the equator, warmer and spicier scented soaps are just the ticket for you. Although our posts were low this month, thank you all for sharing your shaves. Most of you had consistently very good shaves and that's what it is all about here on this thread. Bravo to all of you!

Ok, let me get to important matters. I am proposing that the theme for this month would be Just One July. Now, it does sound like a monthly focus, but it is with a twist. Each week you will use the same item in your setups, it could be one soap, or razor or brush. For example, you pick out an Omega Boar Brush. You must use that brush for the entire week, but you can change everything else. The following week, it could be your favorite soap that you must use for that week. The next week, it will be something else and so on. Basically, it's four mini focuses for the month using a different item each week. It's up to you to choose the items.
Now, the other suggestion would be to continue last month's theme because July starts with a J as well. Yes, I mean Just the Basics July. Again, use the basic gear that got you into wetshaving. Of course, Jagger and Gillette July is self-explanatory.

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 a great July of shaves and fellowship.

Sincerely,

Joe (Trigger)

 

awesome intro Joe.Jillette July for me..

 

Thanks Gary.

 

Super intro as usual, Joe!

Just One July sounds interesting. But so do Just the Basics July, Gillette July, and, I suppose, Jeeves of Hudson Street or JM Fraser's July. Decisions, decisions....

 

Monday July 01 (early morning) - Just One July, Just the Basics July and JM Fraser's July AND early Canada Day shave

Prep: Hot shower with Aleppo olive oil soap with 20% bay laurel oil

Razor: Supply 2.0 matte black stainless steel injector w/ SE "nickproof" comb plate / vintage American-made Schick Plus Platinum (15)

Soap: J.M. Fraser's Shave Cream

Brush: APShaveCo 24mm SynBad fan

Lather Bowl: None

Post: rinse, alum, rinse, Crown Shaving Co balm

Last shave: Friday morning - 3 days

No photo - still working on the new Kindle Fire tablet... Since I am doing Just One July, I will do the photo next shave.

For Canada Day (July 1), I used as many Canadian shave products as possible. I would have used a Canadian Gillette Tech razor as well, but I wanted to finish off my vintage American-made Schick Plus Platinum injector blade with one last shave - its 15th.

J.M Fraser's Shave Cream was Canada's equivalent of Williams or Arko - a commercial shave cream found in almost every Canadian drugstore from the late 1950s until the Covid pandemic shut down the manufacturing line. It sold in a 1lb tub - enough shave cream for 6 months to a year of daily shaves - for the whopping sum of $15 Canadian in its final years. It even smells somewhat like Arko, although the lemon scent is lighter and less "industrial". I will use it for my next few shaves.

APShaveCo is a Canadian artisan brushmaker and knot provider. And Crown Shaving Co is a fairly new shave cream and balm maker based in Toronto. I will also use their products for the next few shaves.

My tub of JM Fraser's cream now has a firm, slightly rubbery surface. A few swirls of the damp synthetic brush picked up enough cream to face lather a slick covering for three or more passes. Two were all I needed.

My usual two passes with the injector resulted in a DFS without any errors. Alum was mostly silent. I didn't really need any postshave product but used the Crown Shaving Co balm because it was sitting handily nearby and is also a Canadian shave product.

I finished my shave with an armpit shave using all the same products, then with great ceremony removed the Schick blade and dropped it in my blade bank.

Hope my fellow Canadians have a great Canada Day holiday long weekend Monday! (That's you, I guess, Gary.) And hope everyone else has a good start to their week.

 

Thank you John. I believe in giving choices. Thanks for sharing a few of your own.

 

Terrific shave and post John. Shaving armpit hair?
Have a Happy Canada Day!

 

JILLETTE-The Best A Man Can Geeeettt

 

As noted in SOS for this month, I changed my A.S. at the last minute to

A.S.-Stoylin Coniferous(w/Menthol).;:

0:50 at the Loading Dock for the Mike's Natural. Clean and clear all around. I had to spend a little extra time doing the sideburn at the right side(nothing new there), but I got it. Ditto North Porcupine(just under the nose). Zero cuts, Knicks, Polka-dots. (I should explain here,a Knick is a glorified Polka-Dot). It'll be a bit drier at the beginning of the week, which is why I put aside the Osage Rub for the Coniferous (w/Menthol), while keeping the Menthol Monday theme. 2 passes. No cologne today. Super Duper Outstanding. Let's all have some great shaves in July .

 

thank you John,have a fine Canada Day.

 

fine way to start the week gents.

 

SOTD 20240701 Brutiful

ischiapp.blogspot.com​

 

-Monday-
brit gold new rfb
jr#282 zebrawood 400 2 band
bartigan & stark



good morning gents
Canada Day work shave.
awesome
have a fine day everyone.
​

 

Excellent shave Pierpalo

 

Happy Canada shave Gary. Great shave Gary.

 

Yes - It's feels cooler in summer

 

Great start to the month Gary.

 

thank you Joe.

 

thank you Joe.

 

July 1 SOTE Head and Face Shave

Good evening.

GEM MMOC
Schick Injector Blade (5,6)
Omega Pro 49 Boar Brush
Los Jabones de Joserra Noir SS
Aqua Velva Ice Blue AS
Stirling Alum Block
Personal Care Witch Hazel
Beard Growth: 27.5 hrs
Dome Turf: 3 days.



I decided to break in the month of July with a head and face shave. I went with the GEM MMOC to make it a Micromatic Monday shave. I only needed 2 passes for the face and head to get a nice, smooth shave. Did get a microdot weep on my chin, but the cold water fixed it. Did get some nice feedback on my neck and on the back of my dome, but nothing serious. The Joserra Noir soap makes a nice, slick and creamy lather. Thanks Joe @ JACarbone for piffing me this sample. Would I buy this soap? If it was 15 dollars less than their price for a full puck, maybe. As you can see, I made more than enough lather to do a head and face shave. Here's my lather:



Finished the shave with my usual routine of the splashing of the witch hazel and the aftershave. Take care.