Welcome to B&B! 
Hang in there, you'll get it. Lots of good advice on this forum.
Hang in there, you'll get it. Lots of good advice on this forum.
Ouchy! Daily recovery…
- Thread starter old_pine
- Start date
Please do! I would be honored and I'm sure dad would be as well! My shaving lessons took place 60 years ago and dad has been gone a long time but writing that post this morning brought back some really great memories.
Congratulations on your new son!
Welcome to the B&B community. I started traditional wet shaving last year (2020) in February. I used the same razor for 5 + months. I think that ended up giving me a solid foundation, though I wasn't aware of it at the time.
I got into DE razors last year in August, though only for a few shaves. We ended up being out of the country over part of August and September and I didn't take any DE razors with me, just that one Artist Club single edge razor I had been using.
When we got home, I started learning how to use a DE razor. It's been a fun journey. I think you'll have a blast. There are so many things to learn and this is the right place to get advice along the way.
I got into DE razors last year in August, though only for a few shaves. We ended up being out of the country over part of August and September and I didn't take any DE razors with me, just that one Artist Club single edge razor I had been using.
When we got home, I started learning how to use a DE razor. It's been a fun journey. I think you'll have a blast. There are so many things to learn and this is the right place to get advice along the way.
- Thread starter
- #24
I love it! Let the legacy continue!
Welcome aboard, @old_pine!
I've been wet shaving for about two years. I read the posts above and there is a lot of super good advice. A number of folks mentioned the journey.
You're going to have good shaves and bad shaves...and for a while you'll have no idea why. Possibly, you're going to get hooked on different aspects of the hobby. Maybe the modern razors made of stainless steel or brass or bronze or copper or titanium. Maybe vintage razors after a visit to a local antique store when you find that first treasure in the wild. Maybe it will be matching shaving soaps and splashes. Or shaving brushes; synthetic or badger or boar or horse.
All of it is the journey. You will make mistakes and you will have successes. I'm at the point that I'm mostly pleased with my shaving results and it was a journey to get here. Good luck on your journey!
I've been wet shaving for about two years. I read the posts above and there is a lot of super good advice. A number of folks mentioned the journey.
You're going to have good shaves and bad shaves...and for a while you'll have no idea why. Possibly, you're going to get hooked on different aspects of the hobby. Maybe the modern razors made of stainless steel or brass or bronze or copper or titanium. Maybe vintage razors after a visit to a local antique store when you find that first treasure in the wild. Maybe it will be matching shaving soaps and splashes. Or shaving brushes; synthetic or badger or boar or horse.
All of it is the journey. You will make mistakes and you will have successes. I'm at the point that I'm mostly pleased with my shaving results and it was a journey to get here. Good luck on your journey!
Welcome to B&B!
@Galibier_Numero_Un , I lve your name and avatar. Are you a mountaineer? I think Galibier Super Guides are the best mountaineering boots ever made. I also agree with you on Feathers and the red Getman Personnas. There are several blades I have tried that are very similar to those, at least to me: GSBs, Crystals, and Personna Lab Blues.
Glad you've joined, welcome!
Mountain Goats are most definitely my spirit animal. They survive with such grace and beauty in a harsh environment. I owned a pair of Galibier Vercours - in what seems like a million years ago.
The Galibier moniker is as much about mountaineering as it is the Tour de France. As far as bicycling is concerned, these days (in the Colorado Front Range), I fear taking my bicycle on the road, for fear of "distracted drivers".
My wife is more comfortable with me skiing in the backcountry than she is with me bicycling on the roads. I can't disagree with her. I haven't tied into a rope for several years, although it remains a part of my life (and future?)
I named my small audio company Galibier Design, and I work with folks who are easily as crazy as we are in this shaving pursuit.
... Thom
Your company website is amazing. Running a Vinyl Nirvana 150 I find your tables and arms amazing, perhaps aspirational, about as dangerous for a retired guy as a Wolfman. I share your feelings on cycling. It was a sad day when I sold a Colnago and recommitted to the WaterRower.
Best to you as you find that best blade for you. I loved the MIG Personna reds, but I cannot see ever shifting from the Lab Blues. In addition to being MIUSA they have way less packaging, a real plus for me, and it is all biodegradable cardboard and paper. They are getting a bit more scarce but the Israeli Crystals are pretty sweet, too. They are not as out of the box sharp as GSBs or the Personnas I have used, but they quickly settled in to provide a very comfortable shave with an edge that seems to last forever. I usually retired them after a month for no particular reason.
Thanks. It's been a passion to say the least. My 1986 Merckx is relegated to a trainer (having had a couple of groupo upgrades through the years - currently Campy 9-speed).
Well those German Personnas have set a high bar for me, and piqued my curiosity about the Lab Blues. My understanding is that the Meds are just sterilized Lab Blues.
I have to question why I've been experimenting beyond that. With a modest sample pack from Men's Room Barbershop, I'll likely work through those, but the quality of the Personnas is such that I'm not very motivated to put my face through unnecessary torture.
Amongst the "close but no cigar" seconds are Astras, Feathers, and Shark Super Chromes. Gillette 7 O'clocks trail slightly, and this is of course subject to uncertainty due to my evolving technique. All that remains in that pack are some Derby Extras, although I did add in a 10 pack of Nacets when I ordered my soon to arrive Gamechanger .68-P.
Of course, when something is both sharp and smooth (Personna), I have to wonder how much improving technique will change the hierarchy of the blades I've tried to date ;-)
... Thom
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Skip the Derbys and enjoy the Nacets. I love Merckx. Mine was a Colnago Master with Record, a seventeen pound lugged steel bike. It was gorgeous and better than I, a Cat three, really needed.
Yup, I had my doubts about the Derbys ;-) Given how many blades there are to choose from, they selected quite a few good candidates, but the Derby had me scratching my head.
Without their adding the Personnas, I likely would have delayed trying them. Only after experiencing them, did I dig into the Personna ecosystem.
Colnagos are gorgeous - as much art as technology. In another life, I can visualize having both a Colnago and a guitar museum.
... Thom
Lots of good advice here on preventing problems. I'll share some things that helped me recover faster when I first started out and was over shaving out of eagerness to try all the different wet shaving techniques and gear I was reading about here.
I wasn't getting a lot of cuts and nicks, just too many passes leaving my skin feeling like a sunburn. Since it felt like sunburn, I remembered how quickly Aloe Vera heals a sunburn. I don't have any Aloe gel, but I have Aloe Vera Juice which is thin like water. So I put it in a small mist sprayer and would spray my face with the Aloe Vera Juice every now and then and let it soak in. It is really soothing and seems to help.
I also found that HA serum works wonders to hold moisture in the skin. It's rather expensive to buy as a serum but inexpensive to buy as the pure powder (a tiny bit of powder makes a whole lot of serum) and instead of using distilled water to hydrate the HA powder, I started using the Aloe Vera Juice. I mix a tiny bit of HA powder (like 1/8 of teaspoon - just a pinch) with about an ounce of Aloe Vera juice and let it sit for an hour or two (it clumps up immediately and no amount of stirring will smooth it but if you just let it sit it will mix all by itself). That Aloe plus HA serum really seems to plump up the skin and keep it hydrated and heals the burn really quickly. And mixing such a small amount of serum means I can use it up in a couple of weeks and don't have to mess with preservatives. Just make a fresh batch every few weeks.
I also like emu oil and shea butter --- and I've just bought some cocoa butter to try but I haven't opened it yet. The emu oil and shea butter (on their own or mixed together) are both really great. They feel a bit greasy at first but I find that after 5-10 minutes my face doesn't feel at all greasy or sticky and just feels really healthy.
I rarely over-shave or irritate my skin now - I've gotten much better with my technique and can get a close shave in fewer passes. I still use the Aloe Vera and HA and emu oil/shea butter even though I no longer burn my face by over shaving. I think my nearly 70 year old skin is looking and feeling younger.
I wasn't getting a lot of cuts and nicks, just too many passes leaving my skin feeling like a sunburn. Since it felt like sunburn, I remembered how quickly Aloe Vera heals a sunburn. I don't have any Aloe gel, but I have Aloe Vera Juice which is thin like water. So I put it in a small mist sprayer and would spray my face with the Aloe Vera Juice every now and then and let it soak in. It is really soothing and seems to help.
I also found that HA serum works wonders to hold moisture in the skin. It's rather expensive to buy as a serum but inexpensive to buy as the pure powder (a tiny bit of powder makes a whole lot of serum) and instead of using distilled water to hydrate the HA powder, I started using the Aloe Vera Juice. I mix a tiny bit of HA powder (like 1/8 of teaspoon - just a pinch) with about an ounce of Aloe Vera juice and let it sit for an hour or two (it clumps up immediately and no amount of stirring will smooth it but if you just let it sit it will mix all by itself). That Aloe plus HA serum really seems to plump up the skin and keep it hydrated and heals the burn really quickly. And mixing such a small amount of serum means I can use it up in a couple of weeks and don't have to mess with preservatives. Just make a fresh batch every few weeks.
I also like emu oil and shea butter --- and I've just bought some cocoa butter to try but I haven't opened it yet. The emu oil and shea butter (on their own or mixed together) are both really great. They feel a bit greasy at first but I find that after 5-10 minutes my face doesn't feel at all greasy or sticky and just feels really healthy.
I rarely over-shave or irritate my skin now - I've gotten much better with my technique and can get a close shave in fewer passes. I still use the Aloe Vera and HA and emu oil/shea butter even though I no longer burn my face by over shaving. I think my nearly 70 year old skin is looking and feeling younger.
