Pre-shave and aftershave? Which ones?

[Markserilo]

Hello. This is a long post, I hope someone will take his or her time to read it, would be appreciated

I'm a starting 16 year old and currently I'm purchasing things.. These are the things that I HAVE purchased:
- Crabtree & Evelyn Sandalwood shaving soap (probably the one I will use, best scent however not used yet)
- Taylor of Old Bond Street Rose Cream (used, lathers well (but my lathering technique isn't mastered yet, have shaved only 4 times with brush/cream), not good scent, have always hated rose scent, don't know why purchased..)
- Proraso Shaving Cream (used three times, have never succeeded lathering this one up, always ends up with me taking more and more and in the end I get nothing, scent is fine)
- Proraso Pre- and Post- cream (used, love the chilling effect, scent is fine although lil bit greasy but I might be using too much, have used both before and after)
- Styptic block (awesome)
- Edwin Jagger Shaving Brush (best badger I believe, I had another one cheap from china but the smell of badger never went off and killed me, EJ one is awesome)

Currently I have only used the above with my fusion razor or my father's mach 3 razor and it works well. Well, I haven't used the C&E soap as I bought it two hours ago but still.

NOW, this is in my current shopping cart on traditionalshaving.co.uk (best prices and best shipping to Sweden out of the ones I have checked):
- Merkur HD 34C (should I pick futur instead as a first razor?)
- Luxury Avocado hand cream TOBS (don't know why this is mentioned, maybe I was hoping for input if someone knows better hand creams)
- Razor blade sample pack
- Styptic Pencil

And this is where YOU come in!

There is such a big selection of what to be used pre- and post shave and sure, I have the one from proraso that is designed for both but yet I don't think that it satisfies me well.. Maybe as a preshave cream but post shave I don't think so. Leaves a thin white layer behind sometimes. So, I have checked these out now and some seem to be used for both, some don't seem to be aftershaves rather something called moisture lockers or whatever.. Oh well, here are those that I have checked out:

Truefitt & Hill's balms like grafton, trafalgar, west indian limes, sandalwood and 1805. Those that come in 100ml bottles. This is definitely a post shave balm and has only gotten positive reviews on all sites.

Geo F Trumper's Skin Food (sandalwood, extract of limes and coral) This is a tricky one, is it a pre-, post- or is it a "moisture locker" or whatever? Reviews seem to be mixed, some people call it greasy, some call it heaven. Double the size of Trufitt&Hill, almost same price (in other words, half the price per litre).

Crabtree&Evelyn's balms like Sandalwood, probably goes nice with my soap but the soap is an excellent scent but not a scent I'd consider wearing for a day. Not on all sites but the few they are on seems to be getting mixed reviews.

Penhaligon's balms like endymion, blenheim bouqet. Positive reviews, most expensive brand on the Swedish market (like 5 times the price of other brands) but on UK stores cheaper than Truefitt&Hill.

Then we have Edwin Jagger, American Crew, bulldog, dermalogica, clarins, L'occitane and other brands..

Which one should I pick for an aftershave that isn't used up to quickly, has a nice scent and also soothes well and feels wonderful?

Note: I'm still only 16 and don't want a to manly scent just yet. Also, I currently use Acqua Di Parma Fico Di Amalfi for a scent and since I happen to own the 5oz bottle (150ml) that won't end for a year or two, the scent of the aftershave most accompany that one. I can't pick aftershaves like Acqua Di Parma and Floris or such because they are too expensive. Remember, I'm 16.

Also, pre shave? Should I stick to proraso or get an oil from like Truefitt&Hill (the lemon one) or what do you say?

Thanks and I really appreciate answers!

 

[sulkhogan]

Try not changing so many variables while you are still learning. Pick one soap or cream and really get to know it and work on your lathering technique. This may mean wasting a bit of product test-lathering and experimenting, but the stuff is relatively cheap and it will be worth it in the end. The fact that you are having trouble getting Proraso to lather tells me your technique still needs a lot of work, as Proraso is one of the easier products to get going. Try more product and adding only a little water at a time. Definitely pick up the 34C over the Futur for your first DE. An adjustable razor will only hurt the development of your technique. As far as the greasiness of the Proraso Pre-Post, a little bit of that stuff goes a reeeally long way. Try applying only a dab to a very wet face and work it in well. It is also very soothing/moisturizing, so you may find yourself happy with it once you get to know it better. But if you must try other aftershaves, many vendors offer samples. This is very helpful as it allows you to assess products before committing to a product whose scent or performance you may hate. Trumper and Truefitt & Hill offer sample packs on their respective sites for somewhere around 10 USD, both of which include creams and aftershaves of various scents. I personally do not care for either, but YMMV. And as far as pre-shave products go, I could do without. Some swear by them, but I find a hot shower and a good scrub is all I need to prep my face. Therefore I cannot recommend any. But you should still try them to see if YOU like them. Hope this helps, and good luck!

 

[Markserilo]

Try not changing so many variables while you are still learning. Pick one soap or cream and really get to know it and work on your lathering technique. This may mean wasting a bit of product test-lathering and experimenting, but the stuff is relatively cheap and it will be worth it in the end. The fact that you are having trouble getting Proraso to lather tells me your technique still needs a lot of work, as Proraso is one of the easier products to get going. Try more product and adding only a little water at a time. Definitely pick up the 34C over the Futur for your first DE. An adjustable razor will only hurt the development of your technique. As far as the greasiness of the Proraso Pre-Post, a little bit of that stuff goes a reeeally long way. Try applying only a dab to a very wet face and work it in well. It is also very soothing/moisturizing, so you may find yourself happy with it once you get to know it better. But if you must try other aftershaves, many vendors offer samples. This is very helpful as it allows you to assess products before committing to a product whose scent or performance you may hate. Trumper and Truefitt & Hill offer sample packs on their respective sites for somewhere around 10 USD, both of which include creams and aftershaves of various scents. I personally do not care for either, but YMMV. And as far as pre-shave products go, I could do without. Some swear by them, but I find a hot shower and a good scrub is all I need to prep my face. Therefore I cannot recommend any. But you should still try them to see if YOU like them. Hope this helps, and good luck!

Thanks! I shall go with my proraso for pre-shave and try some samples on aftershaves as you said. 34C it is! Thank you for your answer, helped me a lot. I'll definetly practice on lathering, in fact, I'm going to do it now.

 

[Cedar]

I have the lemon pre-shave oil from T&H and it doesn't do much for me. I've had the most success with cold water shaving.

 

[BlackBear]

I have used Trumpers skin food, Coral and Lime. For me the Coral has a nice rose scent (but if you didn't like the TOBS rose, you may not like this, although it doesn't really linger long) I found it left my face feeling ok, perhaps a little dry.

The Lime seems to be a little more oily and less viscous, has a fresh citrus scent and left me feeling more moisturised, could be used as a pre shave, due to it being more 'slippery' than the Coral.

Of course YMMV depending on your skin type I guess.