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New Wet Shaver!

Hi everyone! As the title suggests, I am new to this and have just started on my wet shaving journey. Here is my current setup:

Handle: Wilkinson Sword (common variety, found on amazon and local pharmacies)

Blade: Derby Premium (bought a 100 pack), Wilkinson Sword (came with the razor, I prefer the Derbys though)

Pre-Shave: Coconut Oil (bought from supermarket, also use it for cooking!)

Shave Cream: Nivea Protect and Care

Aftershave: Witch Hazel and Glycerin (
generic pharmacy brands)

It has only been a few days since I have started my foray into wet shaving. Originally I was drawn in because of saving money. Oh man, I had no idea how much of a rabbit hole this can be! I now look forward to my morning shave as one of the highlights of my day.

Right now, I am saving up for some essential oils so that I can make some diy aftershave. I hope to explore other razors and blades in the future as I become more experienced.

I don’t really see any posts here about the Wilkinson Sword razor (only the blades), but I have been pleasantly surprised by its ease of use. Perhaps this is because I have no point of reference other than cartridges!

Anyone else start with the Wilkinson Sword? Any pointers or suggestions for next steps welcome!
 
Welcome aboard!

I suggest you read through the Wiki and watch a few videos: tons of useful information!!
 
Welcome to B&B.
I don’t really see any posts here about the Wilkinson Sword razor (only the blades), but I have been pleasantly surprised by its ease of use. Perhaps this is because I have no point of reference other than cartridges!
There are posts on the Wilkinson Sword Classic TTO razor; I see that model in supermarkets now. There are also posts about the plastic razor which I don't care for. Which are you referring to? Both are capable of giving you a good shave.
I have heard good reviews about the Derby Premiums so it seems a good blade to continue with and the German Wilkinson Sword blades seem well liked too.
I don't know why you use a pre shave as it is not necessary. A good lather will give you a good shave but I have never tried the Nivea. Cella or Proraso are easy to obtain and lather with a brush.
The Shave Wiki {link top left of page} will be very helpful.
 
Welcome to B&B.

There are posts on the Wilkinson Sword Classic TTO razor; I see that model in supermarkets now. There are also posts about the plastic razor which I don't care for. Which are you referring to? Both are capable of giving you a good shave.
I have heard good reviews about the Derby Premiums so it seems a good blade to continue with and the German Wilkinson Sword blades seem well liked too.
I don't know why you use a pre shave as it is not necessary. A good lather will give you a good shave but I have never tried the Nivea. Cella or Proraso are easy to obtain and lather with a brush.
The Shave Wiki {link top left of page} will be very helpful.

Nice to meet you! It is the TTO one (didn’t know what TTO meant :)). The preshave is more of an experiment, I’m not wholly convinced it is making a difference either. The wiki is fantastic — thank you for the recommendation.
 
Welcome.

You’ve got a starting position. You have the basic tools needed. You have some great info in the Wiki. Now it will take practice. After you hone your skills, you can think about changing some of the tools. Razor, blades, soap, etc. Don’t rush it. It’s a long journey, but well worth it.
 

Ravenonrock

I shaved the pig
Welcome! I purchased a Wilkinson Sword as it was an economical way for me to tryout a twist to open razor and add to the few Merkurs I had started with. A pleasant mild- med shave, but I found the handle longer than I prefer. I’m really enjoying a vintage Gillette Super Speed if you like that TTO style, plus I find them more nimble. Since you asked, I’d keep using the Sword for a while, It’s a solid razor, don’t change too many things too quickly (like I did), get comfortable with the Derby’s and see how things go. Good luck with the DIY after shave, enjoy the ride.
 
Welcome
Your Wilkerson Sword will not be the last razor you own, if you're like most guys, but I'm sure it's an fine place to start. Is your nivea cream a brushless product? Do you have a brush? If not I'd like to recommend a brush for your next shaving related purchase followed by a decent soap or cream. I firmly believe a good soap or cream along with a good hot water prep makes pre and post shaves redundant. But if you enjoy the preshave... that's cool, too.
 

ajkel64

Check Out Chick
Staff member
Welcome to the forum. Is your Wilkinson Sword the black plastic one or the new TTO metal one?
 
Welcome @Dfree!

All roads lead to Rome SR or at least to the Feather Artist Club. The only difference is how many (useless) other devices you are going to spend you money on until you arrive there.

Same could be said of soaps and creams. Settle for nothing less than the very best, it's worth every cent. A great triple-milled soap will easily give you 6 month of multiple-pass daily shaves. Go figure, you get 3 soaps, it's a LOT of shaves. And NO, you don't need 25 or 137 soaps to learn which one works for you. All English major brands are great, so are their creams. All Italian major brands are great, so are their creams. In US, Stirling is overall best brand when you take the price, quantity, shipping cost and everything else into account - superb products for the price, with huge variety of scents. I'd stay away from overpriced artisan "croaps".

Have a great shave, have a great day... which is kinda odd to say, as I shave at night before going to bed! 😊
 
Welcome
Your Wilkerson Sword will not be the last razor you own, if you're like most guys, but I'm sure it's an fine place to start. Is your nivea cream a brushless product? Do you have a brush? If not I'd like to recommend a brush for your next shaving related purchase followed by a decent soap or cream. I firmly believe a good soap or cream along with a good hot water prep makes pre and post shaves redundant. But if you enjoy the preshave... that's cool, too.
Ah - right should have mentioned that I got the Wilkinson Sword Brush too. From what I can tell, the Nivea is doing the job. I also like the scent of it, it is what I would term to be a “classic” shaving cream scent (if that makes sense). It seems to lather nicely, too!

I find the brush to still be a little too stiff to do proper circles on my face, though, but it is softening each day.

The pre- and post-shaves are pretty experimental at this point. I’ve never used anything more than aerosol can foam and Dollar Shave Club style razors for most of my life, so I figured I’d dive in and try “the whole thing”.

One thing I do find nice about the pre- and post- shave setup is the ritual involved with it. Since switching over to DE, I have been taking much better care of my face/skin — something I have never really cared about. I think getting into the habit of actually caring about how I treat my skin should pay off in the long run. Also, in all honesty, it allows for a few minutes of escape in the morning that I otherwise did not really (care to) have.

Either way, thank you for the pointer!
 
Welcome @Dfree!

All roads lead to Rome SR or at least to the Feather Artist Club. The only difference is how many (useless) other devices you are going to spend you money on until you arrive there.

Same could be said of soaps and creams. Settle for nothing less than the very best, it's worth every cent. A great triple-milled soap will easily give you 6 month of multiple-pass daily shaves. Go figure, you get 3 soaps, it's a LOT of shaves. And NO, you don't need 25 or 137 soaps to learn which one works for you. All English major brands are great, so are their creams. All Italian major brands are great, so are their creams. In US, Stirling is overall best brand when you take the price, quantity, shipping cost and everything else into account - superb products for the price, with huge variety of scents. I'd stay away from overpriced artisan "croaps".

Have a great shave, have a great day... which is kinda odd to say, as I shave at night before going to bed! 😊
I will keep that in mind about the soaps and foams! As for the SR suggestion — there will likely be a fair bit of time before I make that leap ;)
 
I will keep that in mind about the soaps and foams! As for the SR suggestion — there will likely be a fair bit of time before I make that leap ;)
Which is why tried to suggest the Feather Artist Club (aka no-stropping, no-honing SR)... and you can get either folding or non-folding one for $60-70, which is considerably less than many up-market DE razors, let alone premium ones.

(don't say "foams" around here, as we instantly associate it with canned goo 😁😂🤣)
 
welcome aboard! The DIY aftershave is fun. It's also very difficult, most of my early concoctions ended up smelling like burnt plastic. So good luck!
 
Ah - right should have mentioned that I got the Wilkinson Sword Brush too. From what I can tell, the Nivea is doing the job. I also like the scent of it, it is what I would term to be a “classic” shaving cream scent (if that makes sense). It seems to lather nicely, too!

I find the brush to still be a little too stiff to do proper circles on my face, though, but it is softening each day.

The pre- and post-shaves are pretty experimental at this point. I’ve never used anything more than aerosol can foam and Dollar Shave Club style razors for most of my life, so I figured I’d dive in and try “the whole thing”.

One thing I do find nice about the pre- and post- shave setup is the ritual involved with it. Since switching over to DE, I have been taking much better care of my face/skin — something I have never really cared about. I think getting into the habit of actually caring about how I treat my skin should pay off in the long run. Also, in all honesty, it allows for a few minutes of escape in the morning that I otherwise did not really (care to) have.

Either way, thank you for the pointer!

Yeah, the ritual involved in it changes it from being a needed to do chore into something to be enjoyed in many cases. Also within a few months, several people commented to me that my skin was looking healthier!
 
Welcome to B&B!!!
If you're located in the continental US and would like to try some different blades, I have a Newbie blade PIF (pay it forward) thread offering free blade samples!!!
 
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