My dad is 75, ever since I was a kid I remember him using a stainless steel safety razor and packets of Wilkinson Sword blades. As time has moved on somewhere along the line he lost that razor and has used cartridges for decades.
I started DE shaving 18 months ago with a Muhle R41 and now use a straight. I’ve tried lots of soaps and brushes and blades etc so I thought I’d put a little kit together for him as a small but hopefully interesting gift.
I went to a barber shop not too far from me where there sell proper products and razors etc. I used an R41 so I was guessing my dad has a tough beard too but I thought the Muhle might be a bit much for him and might rash his face up and put him off.
In the barber shop is a counter with numerous DE razors displayed but none of them have the manufacturer or the product number so I was sailing a little blind.
I asked the barber for his advice given that I wanted a quite aggressive razor but not as serious as the R41. I was disappointed in his response as he told me that no razor was more aggressive than another, it was the blade that made the razor aggressive or not so I could pick any I want.
I’ve used a couple of different razors with the same blades and nothing comes close to my R41. But out of respect for my elders I didn’t want to get into an argument with the elderly gentleman so I asked what he had with an open comb. He gave me a pretty looking razor which I later identified as a Parker 24c. Next I needed soap so I bought him a tub of the brilliant Proraso Green which is such a good soap for the price. Those people at Proraso have been at this for a century or more and they really got this one right. I have a tub of my own which has lasted forever and I use it among others with great confidence for straight razor shaving.
Next i got him an Edwin Jagger boar brush as I know he always face lathered and I’ve found that cheap badger brushes can be too floppy for this to be done easily. I have a selection of blades at home so I gave him 2 packets of Astra SP, Polsilver SI, Gillette 7 O’clock Yellows and Nacets to try. He told me he doesn’t use aftershave anymore as it messes with his skin but the stuff he’s been getting for Xmas all these years isn’t really aftershave, it’s cologne so I bought him a bottle of the great Proraso Green aftershave splash. It’s cooling, it calms the face down, it’s got a classic barbershop scent, it has a little alcohol which I love and some witch hazel. I bought a bottle among others when I started DE shaving and it was one of my favourites.
So I gave him this paper bag full of these goodies last week hopeful that he’d give it a try. I saw him the week later and asked how he was getting on with it and I was really pleased to hear that he’s engaged with it straight away. He’d tried a few different blades, he liked the razor and he really liked the quality of the soap and aftershave after using the usual supermarket brands all these years. He’d even been online and ordered himself some Wilkinson Sword blades which he remembers liking from all those years ago. He told me he’s had a couple of nicks as he re acquaints himself with a safety razor but he’s never had such smooth shaves. So it looks like I’ve made him a convert, I’m not sure why but it gave me great pleasure to reintroduce him to this stuff after all this time and hopefully he can remember the fun to be had from dialling in a great shave every morning using nice products rather than it being a chore.
I started DE shaving 18 months ago with a Muhle R41 and now use a straight. I’ve tried lots of soaps and brushes and blades etc so I thought I’d put a little kit together for him as a small but hopefully interesting gift.
I went to a barber shop not too far from me where there sell proper products and razors etc. I used an R41 so I was guessing my dad has a tough beard too but I thought the Muhle might be a bit much for him and might rash his face up and put him off.
In the barber shop is a counter with numerous DE razors displayed but none of them have the manufacturer or the product number so I was sailing a little blind.
I asked the barber for his advice given that I wanted a quite aggressive razor but not as serious as the R41. I was disappointed in his response as he told me that no razor was more aggressive than another, it was the blade that made the razor aggressive or not so I could pick any I want.
I’ve used a couple of different razors with the same blades and nothing comes close to my R41. But out of respect for my elders I didn’t want to get into an argument with the elderly gentleman so I asked what he had with an open comb. He gave me a pretty looking razor which I later identified as a Parker 24c. Next I needed soap so I bought him a tub of the brilliant Proraso Green which is such a good soap for the price. Those people at Proraso have been at this for a century or more and they really got this one right. I have a tub of my own which has lasted forever and I use it among others with great confidence for straight razor shaving.
Next i got him an Edwin Jagger boar brush as I know he always face lathered and I’ve found that cheap badger brushes can be too floppy for this to be done easily. I have a selection of blades at home so I gave him 2 packets of Astra SP, Polsilver SI, Gillette 7 O’clock Yellows and Nacets to try. He told me he doesn’t use aftershave anymore as it messes with his skin but the stuff he’s been getting for Xmas all these years isn’t really aftershave, it’s cologne so I bought him a bottle of the great Proraso Green aftershave splash. It’s cooling, it calms the face down, it’s got a classic barbershop scent, it has a little alcohol which I love and some witch hazel. I bought a bottle among others when I started DE shaving and it was one of my favourites.
So I gave him this paper bag full of these goodies last week hopeful that he’d give it a try. I saw him the week later and asked how he was getting on with it and I was really pleased to hear that he’s engaged with it straight away. He’d tried a few different blades, he liked the razor and he really liked the quality of the soap and aftershave after using the usual supermarket brands all these years. He’d even been online and ordered himself some Wilkinson Sword blades which he remembers liking from all those years ago. He told me he’s had a couple of nicks as he re acquaints himself with a safety razor but he’s never had such smooth shaves. So it looks like I’ve made him a convert, I’m not sure why but it gave me great pleasure to reintroduce him to this stuff after all this time and hopefully he can remember the fun to be had from dialling in a great shave every morning using nice products rather than it being a chore.
