OK guys, I want to hear all about your shaving routine in every nit-pickin' detail, because I'm as fanatical as the rest of you. And no lunatic likes to be alone in his lunacy. That's why were here. I'll start off.
>First I pick out from my arsenal a soap or cream, an aftershave or witch hazel, and perhaps a new blade, and bring them in the bathroom.
>I load a blade in my razor (I'm still experimenting with various brands and models).
>I turn on the hot tap water and let it run into the inner and outer chambers of my scuttle until the scuttle is good and warm. Then I hop in the shower.
>I scrub my face with a washcloth in the shower to exfoliate it. And I end the shower by running the hottest water I can handle over my face for about a minute, to soften the whiskers some more.
>After showering and drying off, I empty the scuttle and refill it with hot water, dip my synthetic brush in it (it doesn't need pre-soaking), and squeeze the water out of the knot, leaving it damp.
>If I'm using a soap, I bloom it for only about 10 seconds in hot water, pour out the water and begin to load the brush. If I'm using a croap, I'll load the brush directly from the tub without blooming. And if it's a cream, I'll scoop out a bit with a fingertip and put it in the scuttle's inner chamber after emptying the water.
>I empty the water from the inner chamber and begin whipping up a lather, adding a few drops of hot water at a time until it's the right consistency.
>I rinse my face in hot sink-water for about 30 seconds, as the whiskers have already begun to dry. Meanwhile I'll leave the brush in the scuttle to keep it and the lather warm, as I always do when I'm not using it.
>I apply the lather to my face first in firm, circular strokes followed by painting strokes for more thickness. I leave the lather on for a couple of minutes before shaving, to soften the beard some more. This is a good time to rinse clean the soap bowl or tub.
>I warm up the razor under hot water. Two passes over my cheeks gets them baby smooth. Two over my chin is all it can handle without razor-burn. And I always need to make three just below the jaw-line, which can handle it.
>I rinse my face, first with warm water, then cold, and dry it.
>I rinse out the brush thoroughly with warm water, squeeze out the water, fling out more water in the shower, stroke it on a towel, and hang it on its rack
>I separate my razor's three parts and remove the blade.
>I rinse the blade and pat it dry on a towel. Then I rinse the razor parts, wipe them dry, reassemble the razor and hang it back on the rack.
>If I'll use the blade again, I place it on the paper it came wrapped in and mark a line on the paper so I can keep track of how many times I've used it.
>I empty the scuttle, rinse out the soap, dry it, and hang it up uncorked.
>I apply witch hazel or aftershave with one of my wife's cosmetic cotton pads (it's less wasteful), usually followed by a balm.
>The razor gets a drop of oil on its threads once a week.
This whole routine takes about a half-hour, and I find it a relaxing pleasure that takes my mind off of death and taxes. My psychiatrist has increased my dosage, so I think I'll be OK now. So how about you?
>First I pick out from my arsenal a soap or cream, an aftershave or witch hazel, and perhaps a new blade, and bring them in the bathroom.
>I load a blade in my razor (I'm still experimenting with various brands and models).
>I turn on the hot tap water and let it run into the inner and outer chambers of my scuttle until the scuttle is good and warm. Then I hop in the shower.
>I scrub my face with a washcloth in the shower to exfoliate it. And I end the shower by running the hottest water I can handle over my face for about a minute, to soften the whiskers some more.
>After showering and drying off, I empty the scuttle and refill it with hot water, dip my synthetic brush in it (it doesn't need pre-soaking), and squeeze the water out of the knot, leaving it damp.
>If I'm using a soap, I bloom it for only about 10 seconds in hot water, pour out the water and begin to load the brush. If I'm using a croap, I'll load the brush directly from the tub without blooming. And if it's a cream, I'll scoop out a bit with a fingertip and put it in the scuttle's inner chamber after emptying the water.
>I empty the water from the inner chamber and begin whipping up a lather, adding a few drops of hot water at a time until it's the right consistency.
>I rinse my face in hot sink-water for about 30 seconds, as the whiskers have already begun to dry. Meanwhile I'll leave the brush in the scuttle to keep it and the lather warm, as I always do when I'm not using it.
>I apply the lather to my face first in firm, circular strokes followed by painting strokes for more thickness. I leave the lather on for a couple of minutes before shaving, to soften the beard some more. This is a good time to rinse clean the soap bowl or tub.
>I warm up the razor under hot water. Two passes over my cheeks gets them baby smooth. Two over my chin is all it can handle without razor-burn. And I always need to make three just below the jaw-line, which can handle it.
>I rinse my face, first with warm water, then cold, and dry it.
>I rinse out the brush thoroughly with warm water, squeeze out the water, fling out more water in the shower, stroke it on a towel, and hang it on its rack
>I separate my razor's three parts and remove the blade.
>I rinse the blade and pat it dry on a towel. Then I rinse the razor parts, wipe them dry, reassemble the razor and hang it back on the rack.
>If I'll use the blade again, I place it on the paper it came wrapped in and mark a line on the paper so I can keep track of how many times I've used it.
>I empty the scuttle, rinse out the soap, dry it, and hang it up uncorked.
>I apply witch hazel or aftershave with one of my wife's cosmetic cotton pads (it's less wasteful), usually followed by a balm.
>The razor gets a drop of oil on its threads once a week.
This whole routine takes about a half-hour, and I find it a relaxing pleasure that takes my mind off of death and taxes. My psychiatrist has increased my dosage, so I think I'll be OK now. So how about you?
