Welcome to the B&B gang 
Wanna get this right
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Welcome !
Enjoy Your Shave !
Enjoy Your Shave !
I would suggest the Merkur 34 for a next razor
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- #44
Trying to avoid buying anything extra for now. I've only used the DE 4 times and am really resisting even things as simple as more creams or soaps. I. Can't. Get. Sucked. In. So, why do you recommend that and why should I be looking at a second or next razor now or ever? Other than the neat hobby side of it, is there some real benefit of a second razor?
I've looked around, read the Wiki, searched, etc. What's the story with soaps vs. creams. I'm not talking about how they work or what-not. I want to know why a soap or why a cream for convenience? Does the soap just stay wet all the time? Do you have to rinse and dry it after each use? Cream seems more intuitive to me. Again, I'm trying to resist any more purchases, but a soap to compliment and compare to my Taylor Sandalwood cream for $5 could be nice to compare. Very curious about the bay rum smell.
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Welcome
Soaps are easy to maintain. I keep my soap pucks in small glass or plastic bowls with snap-lids (see supermarket or housewares section of Walmart/Target/etc.). After use, I just wipe off any lather with a tissue, snap on the lid, and put it away for next time. You don't need to treat them any differently than a bar of bath soap.
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- #47
Great, I'll have to pick up some soap sometime and leave it in one of my bowls. I suppose I could just leave it open then and benefit from the smell.
One caution: If you leave your soap uncovered, the fragrance will tend to weaken/dissipate over time. Some people think that's a good thing if they're not crazy about the scent (i.e., Arko, Tabac)!
Here's a 1-cup Pyrex bowl with lid that I'm using. Works great, relatively inexpensive, looks nice, and stacks easily.
Here's a 1-cup Pyrex bowl with lid that I'm using. Works great, relatively inexpensive, looks nice, and stacks easily.
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- #49
I shaved four out of five days this week, a new record by far for me. I took yesterday off because I was up late and i still have a couple red dots at the side of my beard on my neck I'd like to have heal. I really looked forward to shaving this morning, especially since my Proraso pre/post cream came in.
I did four passes on most of my face plus touch-ups. That's a bit much and I'm sure will improve with time, technique and a blade that's better for me. Still don't have that sampler pack though. Today was second day on the Derby blade I have in. I did end up with two small cuts that scabbed over fine - they're just tiny pinhead dots, so I'm not concerned. I also had about 8 other small spots that bled but stopped themselves before my last pass. My face is a little more irritated today and I know I have to get this in fewer passes. Oh, and I also caught myself using pressure on my chin since that's the only way I was getting anything cut. After I realized it, I went back to no pressure then conciously used a little pressure carefully and am glad I did. That's the only way I could get it to cut and not just pull/skip on my extra-thick hair. UPDATE BELOW Though it's a slight bit irritated (I can feel a few parts of my face burning VERY lightly even 2 hours later).
My blade sampler pack JUST arrived. Big time! I'm going to try out an Astra SP and some 7o'clocks, though it didn't come with yellows.
The only other real change today was the addition of Proraso pre/post cream. I'm sold. That stuff feels great going on. It felt like I wiped mint all over. But, I'm a bit confused as to what exactly it is as a post shave cream. Would I use it in place of my Nivea AS? It sure takes a lot to rub in and I suppose it would be easier on a slightly dryer face. But, I'm just not clear as to whether it would be the last thing I do or whether I would still use AS. If it is an AS, what are the pros and cons of using it instead of the Nivea other than taking a lot longer to rub in and a different scent? Anyone use it as their AS?
As always, thanks to all you veterans helping us new guys keep our faces intact.
UPDATE
Played basketball at noon and my neck and chin did burn pretty bad. After showering and looking in the mirror, they're pretty red from some light razor burn. Moral of the story is not to be a moron and put on pressure like I did above. I'm sure I'll try doing that again to get a good shave, but will work something out for better lubrication before I do. Still a bad idea, I know, but I'm a guy and have to try it until I've exhausted options.
I did four passes on most of my face plus touch-ups. That's a bit much and I'm sure will improve with time, technique and a blade that's better for me. Still don't have that sampler pack though. Today was second day on the Derby blade I have in. I did end up with two small cuts that scabbed over fine - they're just tiny pinhead dots, so I'm not concerned. I also had about 8 other small spots that bled but stopped themselves before my last pass. My face is a little more irritated today and I know I have to get this in fewer passes. Oh, and I also caught myself using pressure on my chin since that's the only way I was getting anything cut. After I realized it, I went back to no pressure then conciously used a little pressure carefully and am glad I did. That's the only way I could get it to cut and not just pull/skip on my extra-thick hair. UPDATE BELOW Though it's a slight bit irritated (I can feel a few parts of my face burning VERY lightly even 2 hours later).
My blade sampler pack JUST arrived. Big time! I'm going to try out an Astra SP and some 7o'clocks, though it didn't come with yellows.
The only other real change today was the addition of Proraso pre/post cream. I'm sold. That stuff feels great going on. It felt like I wiped mint all over. But, I'm a bit confused as to what exactly it is as a post shave cream. Would I use it in place of my Nivea AS? It sure takes a lot to rub in and I suppose it would be easier on a slightly dryer face. But, I'm just not clear as to whether it would be the last thing I do or whether I would still use AS. If it is an AS, what are the pros and cons of using it instead of the Nivea other than taking a lot longer to rub in and a different scent? Anyone use it as their AS?
As always, thanks to all you veterans helping us new guys keep our faces intact.
UPDATE
Played basketball at noon and my neck and chin did burn pretty bad. After showering and looking in the mirror, they're pretty red from some light razor burn. Moral of the story is not to be a moron and put on pressure like I did above. I'm sure I'll try doing that again to get a good shave, but will work something out for better lubrication before I do. Still a bad idea, I know, but I'm a guy and have to try it until I've exhausted options.
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- #50
I saw that same one in the store and almost picked it up. I'm trying some different size bowls I have around the house to see what I like best. I'm using a soup mug right now, but it's a little too deep, might be alright for soap, but not really for cream. I may end up with one of the ones pictured (or a few, they're great for leftovers).
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- #51
One more question: I know I need to put more water on and re-lather between passes. But, when I splash the warm water on I'm currently cleaning off the old shave cream by wiping my hands down my face. I realized today that doing so is making my face less slick. Is that what I should be doing or just splash some more on without rubbing? I shouldn't be re-applying the Proraso pre-shave between passes, should I? (sorry about three posts in-a-row)
Some people don't rinse at all between passes. I just splash a little water on between passes to clear off the remnants of the lather, not a full-scale rinsing. If you have a good quality lather, you'll still have some residual slickness on your face. I don't use a pre-shave, but my understanding is that you use it before lathering, and you shouldn't need to reapply. As far as using it as a post-shave, it would go on in place of the Nivea that you're currently using. If you're having trouble rubbing it into your damp face, I suspect you're using too much. You should only need a tiny dab...
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- #53
UPDATE on the DE Day 5 post a few above this.
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- #54
Small update to yesterday. Though I was a little roughed up, that shave was FANTASTIC. So much so I was still smooth when I left work and when I went to sleep, my face was smooth in every direction except ATG. Amazing. Oh, and my beard just plain didn't grow fast yesterday, which happens every now-and-then. Sadly, I did mess up my face a bit due to being a moron.
So, Day 6. Since I had a close shave, slow growth, and some dryness from yesterday I should have taken the day off. But, I was excited to try the Proraso as an AS and wanted to try a new blade. I popped in a rebranded Personna and was dumber than yesterday. I didn't watch angle, went too fast, etc. etc. I ended up with a bunch of nicks and used a styptic thing on four places after shaving. Dumb idea all around. The new blades did seem a hair sharper, but not much difference than the Derbies as far as I could tell. Moral of the story: I'm not above the law. I have to stop being dumb and shave like I ought.
Now for a question. I've been using WH and then Nivea Arctic Freeze AS. I like the smell, hydration, etc of the Nivea, but have been noticed my face feels like it has a layer of slightly tacky residue on it. Today when I tried the Proraso after WH, I noticed I didn't have that balmy feel, but I also didn't feel like it hydrated my face as well. An hour or so later I threw on some Nivea I'm back to a tacky feel. Do others of you have that also? I'm not switching right away, but if you all could recommend a different AS similar to Nivea with a sporty/fresh scent that doesn't leave my face tacky I'd appreciate it. So far I've had Aqua Velva and Gillette AS recommended, but would like to know if they come without the tacky feel.
So, Day 6. Since I had a close shave, slow growth, and some dryness from yesterday I should have taken the day off. But, I was excited to try the Proraso as an AS and wanted to try a new blade. I popped in a rebranded Personna and was dumber than yesterday. I didn't watch angle, went too fast, etc. etc. I ended up with a bunch of nicks and used a styptic thing on four places after shaving. Dumb idea all around. The new blades did seem a hair sharper, but not much difference than the Derbies as far as I could tell. Moral of the story: I'm not above the law. I have to stop being dumb and shave like I ought.
Now for a question. I've been using WH and then Nivea Arctic Freeze AS. I like the smell, hydration, etc of the Nivea, but have been noticed my face feels like it has a layer of slightly tacky residue on it. Today when I tried the Proraso after WH, I noticed I didn't have that balmy feel, but I also didn't feel like it hydrated my face as well. An hour or so later I threw on some Nivea I'm back to a tacky feel. Do others of you have that also? I'm not switching right away, but if you all could recommend a different AS similar to Nivea with a sporty/fresh scent that doesn't leave my face tacky I'd appreciate it. So far I've had Aqua Velva and Gillette AS recommended, but would like to know if they come without the tacky feel.
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- #56
Found these at this site for a good price. 4 bowls with lids for $10 plus shipping. Better than what I've found in stores or at Amazon. One of our supporting vendors should pick these up in a large bulk and sell around $4ea. Bet they'd sell like mad with blue or red lids. Coupon Z03503 gets you 20% off and shipping was about $5 for me. I bought 4 with red lids and one with a blue lid for under $17 with tax and shipping.
http://www.shopworldkitchen.com/pyrex/storage-plus-set-1085655
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Welcome
First of all, Welcome Aboard! You're being very diligent, and this is good. keeping notes is an excellent way to see what you're doing wrong, both in order to get advice and also to learn from your own experiences.
It seems to me that as an athletic person, you may find some benefits to two things:
1) making certain that you're drinking plenty of water, every day. Not juice, not soda, not gatorade. Plain unadulterated water. How do you know when you're drinking enough water? when there is no color at all to your urine.
2) after your post-workout shower, if that isn't when you are shaving, you may want to try witch hazel and moisturizing your skin again. The shower will have dried your skin out some, and if your face is burning when you sweat, it is still irritated. Witch Hazel after you clean up will help to combat that.
Ultimately, preparation for a good shave starts well before you start building a lather, and hydrated skin is important.
It seems to me that as an athletic person, you may find some benefits to two things:
1) making certain that you're drinking plenty of water, every day. Not juice, not soda, not gatorade. Plain unadulterated water. How do you know when you're drinking enough water? when there is no color at all to your urine.
2) after your post-workout shower, if that isn't when you are shaving, you may want to try witch hazel and moisturizing your skin again. The shower will have dried your skin out some, and if your face is burning when you sweat, it is still irritated. Witch Hazel after you clean up will help to combat that.
Ultimately, preparation for a good shave starts well before you start building a lather, and hydrated skin is important.
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- #59
Dead-on. This is fantastic advice for everyone, all the time. Lots of water helps with shaving, sleeping, pretty much everything. Good advice on WH after a workout - I don't have any where I play, but do have AS and lotion there that I apply after. Since I don't cool down for quite some time after, a good cold rinse and some WH probably will make a huge difference.
Took the day off today as I tore my face apart yesterday. I'll have quite the scruff tomorrow and will slow it down again.
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- #60
That sampler pack of blades the USPS supposedly delivered isn't actually here. But, my alum block and blade bank did arrive. Can't wait for the blade pack.
I've caught the bug. I ordered an Omega boar brush, Erasmic cream, and a Conk soap puck for two others for Christmas. I actually ordered the 4 Conk pucks to smell them all. I'll keep the two I don't give away and added some other goodies for myself: 7 o'clock yellows, a Palmolive stick, and a twist-up holder. I've only tried my TOBS and want to see how the others work. I'm not going to get another razor or brush, so please, please, please don't ask me to. I'm fighting the RAD bug. I was anxious for this morning since my last (really bad) shave. I'm liking DE wet shaving, but wonder if the shine will wear off when I start to master it - more on that later.
Gave my face a day off to heal from my impatience on Day 6 and had a LOT of scruff - it grew very quickly these last two days. This was the second day on a Personna blade. Same basic setup: soak brush in hot water while shower, Proraso pre-shave (I like the smell and menthol feel of this stuff as a pre), TOBS Sandalwood cream, good lather. Slowed down the shave on the first pass and caught myself applying pressure twice, but not enough to irritate (phew, caught myself early). Did WTG, XTG, XTG/ATG. I did cut myself when I tried to go ATG without having done enough reduction. I had three places that should have had at least two WTG passes first, but was impatient. I then went into ATG on these areas and, what do you know?, the blade sure didn't like that. I cut myself about 6 times total; all but three closed up by the cold rinse. Oh, then I did touch-ups as needed and was too impatient here too, but not as bad as day 6. I had no irritation from the cream as in the first few days except on areas where I cut myself.
Finished the shave with a warm rinse, alum block (burned on the areas I made rough) and let my face dry, cold rinse, WH, Proraso pre/post as AS. After about 15 minutes, I decided I don't really like the smell of Proraso as an AS, though I very much like the feel. I applied some Nivea over it and was happy with both the feel and cooling.
Shave was almost a DFS with a little irritation. I'm convinced two WTG, XTG, and some ATG touch-ups would have left me with a DFS and no irritation.
Overall takeaways: I'm being impatient. Need to do 2x WTG when full of scruff and then XTG with some touch-ups. Hopefully that will do it until I learn to be patient enough for a full ATG. I think I like the Personnas better than the Derbies, but I'll have to try them both again when I decide to be patient. My technique is getting quite good when I pay attention, slow down, and shave as I should. This is taking me forever still, but I'll reserve judgement on DE shaving speed until I've been doing it a few weeks with consistent success. I can't help but wonder if I'd have great results with a disposable or cartridge kit and still using all the other items I have. I do know those don't shave me at all unless I press quite hard, so I assume not, but will likely try sometime. Maybe I'll do that when I travel later this month as a test.
UPDATE: during basketball my face did not burn at all. I was certain it would as I did cut myself a few places, but either it's not as bad as I thought or the alum block and stytic thing worked really well. My face still feels a little sensitive, but I'll take now burn! Also brought in a little WH to use after the midday shower.
Also, my face hasn't felt as tacky as it did before. Not sure why, but I like it. I'll stick with the Nivea a little longer and see if it feels like that again.
I've caught the bug. I ordered an Omega boar brush, Erasmic cream, and a Conk soap puck for two others for Christmas. I actually ordered the 4 Conk pucks to smell them all. I'll keep the two I don't give away and added some other goodies for myself: 7 o'clock yellows, a Palmolive stick, and a twist-up holder. I've only tried my TOBS and want to see how the others work. I'm not going to get another razor or brush, so please, please, please don't ask me to. I'm fighting the RAD bug. I was anxious for this morning since my last (really bad) shave. I'm liking DE wet shaving, but wonder if the shine will wear off when I start to master it - more on that later.
Gave my face a day off to heal from my impatience on Day 6 and had a LOT of scruff - it grew very quickly these last two days. This was the second day on a Personna blade. Same basic setup: soak brush in hot water while shower, Proraso pre-shave (I like the smell and menthol feel of this stuff as a pre), TOBS Sandalwood cream, good lather. Slowed down the shave on the first pass and caught myself applying pressure twice, but not enough to irritate (phew, caught myself early). Did WTG, XTG, XTG/ATG. I did cut myself when I tried to go ATG without having done enough reduction. I had three places that should have had at least two WTG passes first, but was impatient. I then went into ATG on these areas and, what do you know?, the blade sure didn't like that. I cut myself about 6 times total; all but three closed up by the cold rinse. Oh, then I did touch-ups as needed and was too impatient here too, but not as bad as day 6. I had no irritation from the cream as in the first few days except on areas where I cut myself.
Finished the shave with a warm rinse, alum block (burned on the areas I made rough) and let my face dry, cold rinse, WH, Proraso pre/post as AS. After about 15 minutes, I decided I don't really like the smell of Proraso as an AS, though I very much like the feel. I applied some Nivea over it and was happy with both the feel and cooling.
Shave was almost a DFS with a little irritation. I'm convinced two WTG, XTG, and some ATG touch-ups would have left me with a DFS and no irritation.
Overall takeaways: I'm being impatient. Need to do 2x WTG when full of scruff and then XTG with some touch-ups. Hopefully that will do it until I learn to be patient enough for a full ATG. I think I like the Personnas better than the Derbies, but I'll have to try them both again when I decide to be patient. My technique is getting quite good when I pay attention, slow down, and shave as I should. This is taking me forever still, but I'll reserve judgement on DE shaving speed until I've been doing it a few weeks with consistent success. I can't help but wonder if I'd have great results with a disposable or cartridge kit and still using all the other items I have. I do know those don't shave me at all unless I press quite hard, so I assume not, but will likely try sometime. Maybe I'll do that when I travel later this month as a test.
UPDATE: during basketball my face did not burn at all. I was certain it would as I did cut myself a few places, but either it's not as bad as I thought or the alum block and stytic thing worked really well. My face still feels a little sensitive, but I'll take now burn! Also brought in a little WH to use after the midday shower.
Also, my face hasn't felt as tacky as it did before. Not sure why, but I like it. I'll stick with the Nivea a little longer and see if it feels like that again.
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