My Journey towards a BBS dream: W/Photos. (Warning, not for the faint-hearted)

[humber burns]

Man that's looking worlds better! I think that the less agressive razor will be much better for you.

I was using the Merkur at first as well (I also think I got ripped off on the same deal as you. Did you get yours at personal edge?) and it was irritating my neck, it seems to be more agressive than it's supposed to be.

btw you mentioned earlier you wanted advice for handling the jawline and upper neck. The main thing is that you want the flatest surface possible to shave. The best way to get this situation is to stretch the skin slightly, I like to make faces to do this (for the jaw line I make the biggest grin I can make as such, and the drop my jaw as far as possible. This will pull the skin that was formerly on your jaw up and give you a nice flat surface to shave on.) or you can alway just use your free hand , but don't over strech!

Thanks for yuour sacrifice in being the exaple you've propted a very good discution which I think could help may people in the future. As a man with very thick, slightly curly hair and sensitive skin I've definitely learned a few things I hadn't considered before from this thread. I hope your situation improves b/c once you get it right it's very rewarding.

Stick with it and good luck,
Kev

ps can wait to see how this one works out!

 

[Pottertons]

Man that's looking worlds better! I think that the less agressive razor will be much better for you.

I was using the Merkur at first as well (I also think I got ripped off on the same deal as you. Did you get yours at personal edge?) and it was irritating my neck, it seems to be more agressive than it's supposed to be.

btw you mentioned earlier you wanted advice for handling the jawline and upper neck. The main thing is that you want the flatest surface possible to shave. The best way to get this situation is to stretch the skin slightly, I like to make faces to do this (for the jaw line I make the biggest grin I can make as such, and the drop my jaw as far as possible. This will pull the skin that was formerly on your jaw up and give you a nice flat surface to shave on.) or you can alway just use your free hand , but don't over strech!

Thanks for yuour sacrifice in being the exaple you've propted a very good discution which I think could help may people in the future. As a man with very thick, slightly curly hair and sensitive skin I've definitely learned a few things I hadn't considered before from this thread. I hope your situation improves b/c once you get it right it's very rewarding.

Stick with it and good luck,
Kev

ps can wait to see how this one works out!

Cheers for the votes of confidence. Oh, and yes, I did get my Merkur from Personal Edge. Right rip off.

Since the day of that last shave my hair has barely grown so I reckon it would be best if I left my shaves for a good 3 to 4 days before I go again. For now anyway. My urge to scratch an itch still has not surfaced either, great stuff for making sure the irritation doesn't come back.

As stated before i'm going on a hunt for the Anthony Logistics or AOS Ingrown Hair Treatment so once I get my hands on it i'll be sharing my thoughts on how it helps the cause.

If any of you out there who live within the Toronto area and east know of a shop where either of these products can be purchased (preferably the Anthony one) I would be truly greatful.

 

[humber burns]

The personal edge got me for $70 including tax. I've been having a hell of a time trying to find B&M shop that cary wet shaving products here in Toronto, but here's a list that might help you out http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?p=176803. Call around is the only advice I've got.

 

[jpkunst]

Looks much better. Don't feel pressured into switching to a DE if the Bic disposable is working for you.

 

[Thelonius1]

Glad to see your prep is working for you. As always all advice is YMMV. However, I'd say stick with the single edge if it works. When you do decide to go back to DE don't forget the pressure will be markedly different from that of your BIC. I've tried bump stopper creams and I currently use the AOS line. I may switch to a few cheaper creams, but the AOS I purchase once every six months or so, so I don't have a big issue with coming out of pocket for something that smells/feels better than other products I've used. Anyway, irritation is way down, so that's always a good thing.

Best of luck on the shave journey, for us fellow ingrown sufferers, its a long one!

 

[Pottertons]

The personal edge got me for $70 including tax. I've been having a hell of a time trying to find B&M shop that cary wet shaving products here in Toronto, but here's a list that might help you out http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?p=176803. Call around is the only advice I've got.

Not sure what "B&M" stands for, been racking my brain since I read your response and it's not in the "What the heck does that mean" thread either.

Anthony Logistics replied to my e-mail in regards to a list of retailers in the Toronto area that sell their products.

http://www.sephora.com/

I'll assume that most have heard of the place already, but i've never stumbled across it on here so there you go.
Nothing in terms of the "tools" of wetshaving, but they do stock the prep, pre, and post shave products. They sell the AOS sets as well.

Scarborough town center, Fariview Mall, Eaton Center and Yorkdale are the locations that I paid any attention to. I'm sure places such as Vaughn Mills and Square One have a location as well.

 

[pbroddi]

"B&M" = Bricks & Mortar, i.e real shop, not online where you can get a feel of the products before buying.

 

[r0ckrat]

Hey Pottertons, how's it going? Been a while since an update...

 

[jiujitsuguy]

Thanks for reminding me about this thread r0ckrat. I was going to bump this thread earlier today but forgot. Hopefully things have cleared up for you Pottertons!

 

[Tolduonce]

Wow, judging from your photo progression, it looks as though you've turned a major corner with the ingrown problem. I can tell you that I expected the turnaround to take quite a bit longer. At least that was the way it worked in my case. Congratulations Pottertons.

You asked about sources for products in the Toronto area. Well, I'm down in the States and I'm only familiar with one Canadian vendor. Have you heard of MenEssentials in Ottawa? I've ordered from them a couple of times and service was good and delivery to the States never took more than five business days. If you get on their mailing list they'll start sending you coupons for free shipping or %age off fairly regularly. Here's a link to their site, specifically the Baxter of California Bump Repair product. I've used it. I liked it.

http://www.menessentials.com/oxid.p...91135/Baxter-of-California-Razor-Bump-Relief/

Best wishes.

 

[natetuly]

I admire your journey! Just had to say that. Best of luck.

 

[Pottertons]

Hi everyone

First and foremost, apologies for my weeks of neglect in maintaining this thread as I see that many of you are backing me and are anxious to see how i'm getting on.

I made some slight changes to help speed up the process a bit and things are looking great.

I had used the bic a couple more times, but because there were a number of bumps still present the irritation remained. So I decided to use my initiative and figured that the reason for this was because of the constant friction over the bumps with a naked blade whenever it was time to shave. Sort of like picking at a scab and expecting it to heal quicker than usual.

My solution was to go back to the Andis Clipper. The shaves are no where near as close, but because my hair grows quite slowly I can get away with a good shave and a substantial period of time for healing.

It's been a few weeks now and the results are quite amazing if I must say so myself. I purchased some of the Anthony Logistics Ingrown hair treatment from Sephora which has helped as well.

I have a bit of scruff at the moment so i'm going to do a shave up with the Clipper again and then post the photos tomorrow morning. OHhhhhhhhhhh the suspense.

I've firmly abided by the YMMV theory and have used great patience with this as well advised by so many on here and I thank you all.

Watch this space.

 

[SHarris]

Having read through the post I am just relieved that you are relieved.

 

[Pottertons]

So I did a shave up last night with the Andis Clipper as mentioned in my last post and these are the results thus far.

My procedure was just a simple hot face cloth for a few minutes, pat dry the excess moisture, shave, then shower. Which actually brought a thought to my mind.

Wouldn't it make sense to wash after your shave rather than before. I ask because the general idea is to cleanse the pores so that there's less build up that can create any form of irritation. Just a thought.

I also figured i'd save ppl the trouble of scrolling back and forth, tabbing side-to-side or having to tile two windows and made things easier with a before and after photo shoot.

For the time being, i'm going to stick to the clipper for another week or two i think, just to make sure the last remains are completely gone. Then i will definitely bring out the Weishi DE razor and put my skills to the test.

This is getting to be a bit like reality TV.

Speaking of, I've still got to watch last nights Big Brother. Yes, yes, I know. Awful show, but it's entertaining.

 

[pbroddi]

That looks so much better. Congrats Pottertons.

 

[humber burns]

Wow what an improvement! Just remember though when you go back to the DE absolutely no pressure or you'll be back to square one.

Good luck sir.

 

[Pottertons]

Wow what an improvement! Just remember though when you go back to the DE absolutely no pressure or you'll be back to square one.

Good luck sir.

I have that firmly planted in my mind. Trust me, I do not want to go back to square one ever again.

 

[Jaybird180]

As a suferrer of ingrown, I applaud your progress and I'm hoping to get an update.

If you do take suggestions, I'd like to offer a few that have helped me and perhaps they can help you or someone else reading this thread

Itching: Washing my face with regular Lever 2000 has helped me in this area.

Clippers: I don't wash my face or shower before and then I shower after and I make sure to use my face wash during the shower or the Lever 2000. I use a blade cleaner and lubricant before the shave and during the shave if the blade begins to heat up. I vary the technique depending on the amount of irritation I already have, flat blade if it's severe.

Sleep: It helps to not lie on your cheek

Beard Growth: sometimes too much is too much. My face will get irritated when hair is too long and the end will point into the skin and I will have a bump. Sometimes I will shave the beard and see bumps that were hidden underneath the beard.

Special Events: When I get really crossed up (as I'm learning DE shaving), or I have an event to attend, I have to reset my face. This takes a little planning before the special event. I let my facial hair grow a few (2-3) days and while it's growing I brush it using a brush that I use to clean my clippers (looks like a toothbrush). I do this in a circular pattern in the shower. I also do this in the direction of beard growth (or desired growth) while watching TV. It helps with the urge to scratch also.

Then, I clipper shave twice, with a day of rest between. Then I Magic Shave AT NIGHT, the night before my event and DO NOT wash my face,until the next afternoon or evening before the event. If it's an evening event, I may touch-up stubble with a razor when it's time to get dressed. It may irritate after but I won't experience the after effects until after my event.

Magic Shave: This may be a curse-word around here, and honestly I'd like to get away from it, but it has it uses. I had been using it for awhile incorrectly until a barber did a Magic Shave on me and then it began to work for me with repeatable results. I get BBS everytime AND significant reduction of ingrown hair and the bumps.

With Magic Shave, you want a day's worth of dirt on your face, but you do NOT want sweat, nor do you want to get sweaty when you have the unwashed residue on your face (yes, it will look dry with a white crust on your face, but it's part of the plan).

Anyhow, consistency of the mixture is important, you want it thicker than toothpaste. I use Magic's plastic tool that looks like a straight. Let it set about 6 minutes. It irritates some people, but I can let it set until it dries. Then apply a steam towel to your face just to moisten the Magic again. Then remove using the trowel. Shower, but stay away from your face, using only the towel on your face and plenty hot water to remove the excess residue (use a dark towel, that has a high thread count that your wife won't care about). Get out of the shower and go to sleep (yes, it may smell a little and may even sting, but it's drying up the ingrown bumps).

The following day, I notice a drastic reduction in ingrown bumps and after two days, I can return to shaving and figuring out where I went wrong.

Depending on the volume of ingrown hair, you may want an extra day before your special event as the Magic WILL rupture the ingrown bump; it hurts before it helps.

 

[Pottertons]

Thanks for the tips.

Since my last post, I have tried my Weishi blade. I used it the one time for the purpose of a clean smooth shave for a wedding I had to attend.

It's really amazing just how cut-throat those blades are. I barely applied any pressure at all, in fact I felt like I was wasting my time, yet my shave was dam near free of stubble.

I had a hiccup on one section under the chin where the TTO device came slightly loose without me noticing. I wasn't aware that you could apply a bit of force when locking in the blade. I figured you twist, and then it locks in place.

So because of that one little scrape, I've been using the clippers since. I'll get back to the DE soon enough.

Sorry for the lack of updates ppl, but it's pretty much the same thing as what i've posted already. Once the DE gets back into action, then i'll come through with the frequent reports.

 

[ProphetNoir]

Congratulations on your progress!