@JCinPA, where were you all those decades ago when I first tried DE shaving? Wonderfully said.Welcome! And you've prompted me to write the following guide for new shavers! You're my guinea pig, as it were.
For New Shavers, the JCinPA's How to Get Off to a Right Start Guide!
So, this is an enthusiastic wet shaving community, full of wonderful and helpful people! We'll give you advice on Double Edge (DE) razors! DE razor blades! Single Edge razors (SE), and SE blades! Straight Razors (SR) and hones, stops, and everything SR shaving! And we'll get you started with a dozen soaps and creams, a dozen blade sampler, how to get started in collecting vintage razors! You name it, we will help you!
Except it may not be too helpful right at the beginning. Razor geometry varies dramatically, blades vary incredibly in sharpness, smoothness, and longevity. Some products lather easily, others are a little tougher, and some may irritate your skin.
The problem with all of this is you can be smothered by extremely experienced shavers who are incredibly well-meaning, but they can overwhelm the beginning wet shaver, and greatly lengthen your learning curve. So herewith, some guaranteed tips to get you started easily and successfully. I don't pretend to have patented The Way, but it is a good way to get your shaving legs under you.
1. Get ONE razor and stick with it for a month of shaves. That means about 25-30 shaves. If you shave twice a week it will take longer, but do not change razors for your first 25-30 shaves.
2. Get ONE blade, and stick with that for the first 25-30 shaves.
The reason for this is that you are learning a new skill. It's not rocket science, but it is a new activity and involves fine motor skills, and you are scraping a sharp blade across sensitive areas of your neck. You need to limit all variables in the shave so that your first 25-30 shaves are focused on building your skills and learning your face and beard growth.
I recommend getting a popular mild-medium razor that is favored by a high percentage of us to start with. The King C. Gillette is a good choice. An Edwin Jagger DE89 or Muhle R89 are good choices (exact same heads). A Merkur 34C is a good choice. In vintage razors, a Gillette fat-handle tech or plain Super Speed Flare tip are good choices, but get one razor and stick with that for 25-30 shaves.
I recommend a popular smooth blade, the Astra Superior Platinums are a good and economical choice. Might you find a better blade later? Of course. But the problem with blade samplers in the beginning is you have not locked down your technique, and when the blades start feeling way different you won't be able to determine if it's your technique or the blade that is the issue.
After this post everyone will tell you I'm wrong, some will tell you they hate the ASP, some will tell you that YOU have to find your own blade, and none of them are wrong, per se, but I'd ignore them if I were you. Whatever blade you start with will, in fact, not be the blade you run with 6 months from now, but I'd make two points.
a. You can't know, a priori, which blade will be your favorite, and no matter how vociferously someone else argues they have found blade nirvana, it may not be the same for you, so it really doesn't matter what blade you start with, does it?
b. The blade is one of the two most important factors in how you feel the shave after the razor. Blades feel so different that if you start getting uncomfortable results you won't know if it's the blade or your technique. The rest of us who have been at this would. We can judge blades, you cannot. Yet. So stick with one blade.
3. Lower the heat!
You do not need to prep your face with hot water. A few years ago people were keeping tea ketttles in their shave dens to heat up their face towels with hot water to prep for the shave. A nice shower is good prep. If you don't do that, by all means hold a wet towel to your face for a while, but warm water will do fine. Temperature will have no effect on your shave, but super hot water in the prep will set you up for irritation. Comfortably warm is fine. Cool is fine. Trust me, it won't affect your shave.
4. Use some easy, less scented lather products.
You won't know this for a while, but some folks get skin irritation from products most of us don't react to. Cella's almond scent sets some people's skin off, for example, albeit rarely. Some folks have a reaction to lanolin or bentonite clay. Lavender and other scents can cause skin irritation. I'd stick with very low scent products, like Taylor of Old Bond Street Jermyn Street or even their unscented shaving cream, or Haslinger's Schafmilch soap, stuff like that for the first 25-30 shaves.
5. A good synthetic brush is a good starter brush, and economical.
And it dries out quickly and thoroughly after every shave. Set up your den with one razor, one blade, one brush, one or two lather products, and shave for a month of shaves, 25-30, and you'll be successfully having close comfortable shaves in no time at all.
THEN go nuts! Collect razors! Get a blade sampler! Try a dozen lather products! Try a Straight! Try a vintage injector! You'll probably be hooked and have a blast. I highly recommend YouTube videos by a guy who goes by Mantic59 and another called GeoFatBoy. Both will get you started off right.
Please understand I am not denigrating any of the tips experienced shavers share around here, and they all want to help. But it can be overwhelming and can really undermine early success for new shavers, IMO. Lock yourself in, read and watch all you can, but do not change anything for your first month of shaves, and you'll cut months off your learning curve. I guarantee it.
Good luck and good shaves!
Very well written sir. I think this might belong in the wiki.Welcome! And you've prompted me to write the following guide for new shavers! You're my guinea pig, as it were.
For New Shavers, the JCinPA's How to Get Off to a Right Start Guide!
So, this is an enthusiastic wet shaving community, full of wonderful and helpful people! We'll give you advice on Double Edge (DE) razors! DE razor blades! Single Edge razors (SE), and SE blades! Straight Razors (SR) and hones, stops, and everything SR shaving! And we'll get you started with a dozen soaps and creams, a dozen blade sampler, how to get started in collecting vintage razors! You name it, we will help you!
Except it may not be too helpful right at the beginning. Razor geometry varies dramatically, blades vary incredibly in sharpness, smoothness, and longevity. Some products lather easily, others are a little tougher, and some may irritate your skin.
The problem with all of this is you can be smothered by extremely experienced shavers who are incredibly well-meaning, but they can overwhelm the beginning wet shaver, and greatly lengthen your learning curve. So herewith, some guaranteed tips to get you started easily and successfully. I don't pretend to have patented The Way, but it is a good way to get your shaving legs under you.
1. Get ONE razor and stick with it for a month of shaves. That means about 25-30 shaves. If you shave twice a week it will take longer, but do not change razors for your first 25-30 shaves.
2. Get ONE blade, and stick with that for the first 25-30 shaves.
The reason for this is that you are learning a new skill. It's not rocket science, but it is a new activity and involves fine motor skills, and you are scraping a sharp blade across sensitive areas of your neck. You need to limit all variables in the shave so that your first 25-30 shaves are focused on building your skills and learning your face and beard growth.
I recommend getting a popular mild-medium razor that is favored by a high percentage of us to start with. The King C. Gillette is a good choice. An Edwin Jagger DE89 or Muhle R89 are good choices (exact same heads). A Merkur 34C is a good choice. In vintage razors, a Gillette fat-handle tech or plain Super Speed Flare tip are good choices, but get one razor and stick with that for 25-30 shaves.
I recommend a popular smooth blade, the Astra Superior Platinums are a good and economical choice. Might you find a better blade later? Of course. But the problem with blade samplers in the beginning is you have not locked down your technique, and when the blades start feeling way different you won't be able to determine if it's your technique or the blade that is the issue.
After this post everyone will tell you I'm wrong, some will tell you they hate the ASP, some will tell you that YOU have to find your own blade, and none of them are wrong, per se, but I'd ignore them if I were you. Whatever blade you start with will, in fact, not be the blade you run with 6 months from now, but I'd make two points.
a. You can't know, a priori, which blade will be your favorite, and no matter how vociferously someone else argues they have found blade nirvana, it may not be the same for you, so it really doesn't matter what blade you start with, does it?
b. The blade is one of the two most important factors in how you feel the shave after the razor. Blades feel so different that if you start getting uncomfortable results you won't know if it's the blade or your technique. The rest of us who have been at this would. We can judge blades, you cannot. Yet. So stick with one blade.
3. Lower the heat!
You do not need to prep your face with hot water. A few years ago people were keeping tea ketttles in their shave dens to heat up their face towels with hot water to prep for the shave. A nice shower is good prep. If you don't do that, by all means hold a wet towel to your face for a while, but warm water will do fine. Temperature will have no effect on your shave, but super hot water in the prep will set you up for irritation. Comfortably warm is fine. Cool is fine. Trust me, it won't affect your shave.
4. Use some easy, less scented lather products.
You won't know this for a while, but some folks get skin irritation from products most of us don't react to. Cella's almond scent sets some people's skin off, for example, albeit rarely. Some folks have a reaction to lanolin or bentonite clay. Lavender and other scents can cause skin irritation. I'd stick with very low scent products, like Taylor of Old Bond Street Jermyn Street or even their unscented shaving cream, or Haslinger's Schafmilch soap, stuff like that for the first 25-30 shaves.
5. A good synthetic brush is a good starter brush, and economical.
And it dries out quickly and thoroughly after every shave. Set up your den with one razor, one blade, one brush, one or two lather products, and shave for a month of shaves, 25-30, and you'll be successfully having close comfortable shaves in no time at all.
THEN go nuts! Collect razors! Get a blade sampler! Try a dozen lather products! Try a Straight! Try a vintage injector! You'll probably be hooked and have a blast. I highly recommend YouTube videos by a guy who goes by Mantic59 and another called GeoFatBoy. Both will get you started off right.
Please understand I am not denigrating any of the tips experienced shavers share around here, and they all want to help. But it can be overwhelming and can really undermine early success for new shavers, IMO. Lock yourself in, read and watch all you can, but do not change anything for your first month of shaves, and you'll cut months off your learning curve. I guarantee it.
Good luck and good shaves!
