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3rd shave - success! mostly...!

hi all

im 34 and have probably only shaved with a razor maybe 100 times in my life because it has been painful (neck burn and ingrown hairs) and basically a pointless chore when i can use an electric shaver.

anyway i recently got a DE kit as a gift:

  • dont know the brand of my razor but is apparently italian, its chromed and looks like a Murkur but not the same.
  • wilkin sword blades
  • proraso tub cream
  • omega boar hair brush

my first wet shave a couple of weeks ago had fairly poor results and with 8-10 cuts.

second attempt - i thought id try the brush and soap but with a bic single blade disposable. anyway the lather was poor and technique too, so i got neck razor burn.

third shave - i didnt shave for 3 days, and started to understand the direction the hair grows in. i could then better go WTG... i also made sure i had a good lather, re-lathering as needed, i took my time (30 minutes or more).

anyway, the result this time was very pleasing - in general about as good as my electric shaver would do in some places, better in others. what made me most happy was its the first blade shave in my life where my neck hasnt been really sore! i didnt think it was possible. i kept touching it during the day to be sure! i could nearly wet shave again tomorrow (unheard of for me).. will skip a day though to let things settle down. my face was stinging a bit afterwards, so i probably need to improve the technique a bit yet still.

i also didnt try to get a perfect result.. stopped short to ensure it was succesful!

unfortunately i still got a couple of small cuts - on the upper lip. when i looked closer later, there were a couple of tiny cuts on the chin too.

these are the 2 areas i had a lot of trouble in shaving (i had to do 3-4 passes on my chin).

so, does anyone have any tips for the upper lip and chin? the upper lip is hard because going n-s, the razor angle is too sharp to get the hairs right up under the nose. i just thought maybe i should go against the grain (s-n) it might be ok as the razor will be flatter?

the problem with the chin is just the contour.

at least now i have the confidence that i can do this without taking off 4 layers of skin!

thanks a lot of the help of this forum!

next up is a sample razor pack from westcoastshaving.com and a couple of Colonel Conks, then i want to try some trumpers samples!
 
Personally, if I had to do it all over again I would go straight to the Trumpers products. Just my opinion. Welcome to the boards.
 
Hi. Welcome to B&B.

Just think - if youre getting great shaves now, imagine how good theyre going to be once youve got more practice!
 
Sorry, didnt mention that when using your DE try to stretch your skin a little or "make faces". That should help. Tilt your head back as you do your neck. Concentrate on your blade angle and do not apply pressure from the blade to your face. Let the wieight of the razor itself be the only "pressure" that is applied. Also there are plenty of videos on You Tube (You Boob) or Sclipo for the You Tube impaired of B&B's very own Mantic giving the general public excellent shave tutorials. Sorry for not having a link. Good luck on your shaving journey. I hope what little I offered will be of some help.
 
thanks again

goatee is a creative solution ill keep it in mind :D

definitely not great shaves yet but i see its possible!
 
Welcome to B&B. If all goes well,you may shave 100 times before the end of the year. Since I switched to a DE, I find myself shaving on the weekends for fun which was unthinkable at this time last year. Learn how to "make faces" to deal with your chin and upper lip. Ultimately, I have to blade buff my chin, but I wouldn't recommend that for you right now. Most importantly, don't get frustrated if you haven't hit perfection quickly, it takes time.
 
Welcome to B&B. For the upper lip you can try making a very overstated O which should enlarge, for lack of a better word, the area. Also make sure you check out mantic's videos on Youtube. After some more practice you won't have anything but pleasurable shaves. Good luck
 
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Welcome to the B&B. Presumably you've checked the You Tube tutorials and read through the new guy stickys. Loads of good info in them. I find one of the most important factors to a nice, close shave is the preshave. Warm things up in the shower, scrub with a pre shave lotion or scrub, slather some pre mix later on your face while whipping the 'real' thing. All helps to soften the beard before shaving. When I skip the preshave I get stubble and burning. Just a thought. Good luck.
 
Welcome! Congrats on your first non-really-sore-neck-shave!

To help you with under your nose: try making the face to pull your upper lip down over your top teeth, stretching your nostrils down. Then shave E-W/W-E starting at the center-line and shaving toward your ear. (I hope that makes sense).

To help with your chin: I just keep it slow and try to mirror/follow the contour - it's very difficult for me, but I go much much slower than anywhere else on my face/neck.

Take it with a grain of salt, I'm still a newbie myself. But that's what has worked for me so far.

Good luck and keep us posted on your progress!
 
make sure you´re using correct blade angle, razor with the handle perpendicular to your face, and then lower it a bit till it shaves, usualy around 30 degrees,

and remember, you can always add water, but its hard to take it out, if you want better water control with your lather, remove most of the water in the brush after soaking and work a thicker cream, hydrate as necesary to get the lather you need/want.
 
Weclome!

The nose problem is easy to fix, but you must be VERY careful. I usually to the under nose thing last.

Take the tip of the razor (corner) starting from the end of your one nostril and shave towards the middle of your nose. Repeat with other side. Second pass if required. BE VERY CAREFUL, SLOW AND GENTLE. It's a tricky area but I find this works really well for me. Note that using a Futur to attempt this is futile, since this razor is too bulky.

The chin thing is open to all kinds of experimentation; just go slow and find what angles work best for you.
 
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