Here’s the TL;DR of the below: I’m still new to wet shaving and went deep into the rabbit hole very quickly, and now it’s time to work my way through my razors, soaps/creams, and brushes in a random fashion by rolling dice to see what gets tried. There will be blood. And pain. And regret. And joy. So, pretty much the human condition through shaving.
Hello, B&B! I’ve decided to document my wet shaving journey in the hopes that someone may find some amusement at my foibles or perhaps something worthwhile in my experiences.
I first joined B&B in 2007 right after I’d moved to Tennessee to take a new job. I don’t remember how I first came across the forums, but after a lot or reading and researching, I de-lurked and got some helpful advice from the members and started out with a Merkur 34C, an Edwin Jagger Best Badger, a blade sampler pack, and a couple of soaps and creams. The first shaves were rough and, looking back over my initial posts, I never did get to a truly comfortable shave, though I definitely had some improvements. About a month after I started I had the opportunity to attend Dave Ramsey’s taping for “Financial Peace University” and got all fired up to pay off the last of my school debt. That meant taking on a second job and that meant my time was now further constrained. Wet shaving was dropped in favor of an electric to save me a few minutes a day.
I finally paid off the school debt in 2009 thanks to a civilian deployment to Iraq, but stuck with the electric due to an okay shave and because with two young kids and a long commute the time savings was worth it to me.
Fast forward to 2014 and I got interested in DE again, going so far as to hit B&B to see what had been going on in the wet shaving world and coming across several interesting posts, one on slants and one on sticking with Astra SP blades rather than trying samplers. Shortly thereafter I put in my first order to West Coast Shaving for a 100-pack of Astra Superior Platinum blades and a Badger & Blade edition boar brush. Before I could get started however, I found myself on the move to Florida for a new job.
Skip ahead to 2020 and I needed a new head for my Braun. Trouble was, due to Covid shortages, I was having a hard time finding one and the reviews on the replacement heads were horrendous—screens wearing through in three months and the like. Given the cost and the issues (not to mention with plenty of time on my hands from teleworking and saving an hour a day in commuting), I looked at DE again. After considering it for a few weeks, and remembering the posts I’d read in 2014, I dug out my Astras and other shaving supplies and ordered a Parker Semi-slant and some Speick and Salter creams from WCS and a bunch of samples and a Kong brush from Stirling.
I then started DE shaving in July. And it’s been an overall great experience so far. I’ve stuck exclusively with the Parker, but have rotated soaps, creams, and brushes.
After doing some reading on B&B, I started thinking about a birth year razor and peeked into the Buy-Sell-Trade forum here. That was a mistake! Right away I found a 1968 Gillette Slim and bought it. But that innocent purchase resulted in a lot more purchases of brushes, razors, and soaps. And then of course, eBay and the Reddit Shave Bazaar contributed more. And naturally I picked up some more blade sampler packs from Amazon.
Of course, I’m really just kidding. The re-sell aspect of the community is part of what makes this so much fun and has allowed me to get a lot of stuff to try at great prices. I’ve only had one purchase go bad, and you can read about that on this thread: Don't Be a Paypal Chump Spoiler: I was one of the chumps–but I learned! There is some excellent advice on that thread and I highly recommend it to you for your consideration. I did not let that one scammer stop me from utilizing the BST and it is a great way for folks to get started. In fact, with a little patience, you’ll see members selling kits that will provide you with everything you need to get started at very reasonable prices.
Wanting to cool the jets on my purchases, I enrolled in the September 2020 Gentlemanly Restraint Until Month End (September 2020 GRUME), which has been a good way for me to move beyond the “if it’s available, I must buy it” phase and on to (perhaps) more considered purchasing. I’m 20 days into the GRUME and do believe I’ll make it to October. I don’t know that I’ll do the October GRUME because I’ve got a shopping list going… but stay tuned.
Reading–and enjoying—other journal entries as I searched different things on B&B, I thought it’d be fun to document my own progress with the items I’d purchased. So, I first cast about for a suggested order. I got some great responses at this thread: Suggestions for a razor tryout order?
My initial thought was to work the DEs from mild to aggressive/efficient and then try out the SEs in the same general pattern. However, I was really struck by @santamariasteve's comment that: “As to the rotation order, it makes no difference. Randomness in life has an element of sweetness.”
Indeed it does, and after considering the suggestions in that thread, my plan is to start with the Slim, work my way up the dial, and try my unused soaps. To get the randomness started, I’ll roll the bones (i.e., dice for those unfamiliar with the phrase) to randomly pick a soap and brush for each shave. For this first part, as a soap gets used it will come off the list so that I can get through them.
After that, the fun will start in earnest as I work my way through the shave den in random fashion. Every night I’ll roll for software and brush and every two weeks or so I’ll roll for a new razor. I’ll stick to the dice roll except when I roll the same badger or boar twice in a row (I’d like to let them dry in between). For the razor rolls, if it’s one I’ve already used then I’ll use it that night and roll again the next day. If it’s a new one then I’ll use it for two weeks before rolling for another. And to keep the random theme, I’ll roll for face or bowl lathering, too (except when a shave stick comes up—those will automatically be face lather). The only thing I won’t choose randomly is aftershave—if I have one that matches the soap, then I’ll use it. Otherwise, I’ll choose something to go with whatever soap or cream is used that day. At some point I’ll work pre-shaves and blades into the mix, too.
As I obtain more items, I’ll add them to the mix, too. Items I use that I’m not crazy about will be set aside to sell or PIF. In fact, I’ve already got a BST box going, but I’m going to throw most of it back into use to give them at least one more try. Who knows—my opinion of them may change.
I think this will be fun!
Hello, B&B! I’ve decided to document my wet shaving journey in the hopes that someone may find some amusement at my foibles or perhaps something worthwhile in my experiences.
I first joined B&B in 2007 right after I’d moved to Tennessee to take a new job. I don’t remember how I first came across the forums, but after a lot or reading and researching, I de-lurked and got some helpful advice from the members and started out with a Merkur 34C, an Edwin Jagger Best Badger, a blade sampler pack, and a couple of soaps and creams. The first shaves were rough and, looking back over my initial posts, I never did get to a truly comfortable shave, though I definitely had some improvements. About a month after I started I had the opportunity to attend Dave Ramsey’s taping for “Financial Peace University” and got all fired up to pay off the last of my school debt. That meant taking on a second job and that meant my time was now further constrained. Wet shaving was dropped in favor of an electric to save me a few minutes a day.
I finally paid off the school debt in 2009 thanks to a civilian deployment to Iraq, but stuck with the electric due to an okay shave and because with two young kids and a long commute the time savings was worth it to me.
Fast forward to 2014 and I got interested in DE again, going so far as to hit B&B to see what had been going on in the wet shaving world and coming across several interesting posts, one on slants and one on sticking with Astra SP blades rather than trying samplers. Shortly thereafter I put in my first order to West Coast Shaving for a 100-pack of Astra Superior Platinum blades and a Badger & Blade edition boar brush. Before I could get started however, I found myself on the move to Florida for a new job.
Skip ahead to 2020 and I needed a new head for my Braun. Trouble was, due to Covid shortages, I was having a hard time finding one and the reviews on the replacement heads were horrendous—screens wearing through in three months and the like. Given the cost and the issues (not to mention with plenty of time on my hands from teleworking and saving an hour a day in commuting), I looked at DE again. After considering it for a few weeks, and remembering the posts I’d read in 2014, I dug out my Astras and other shaving supplies and ordered a Parker Semi-slant and some Speick and Salter creams from WCS and a bunch of samples and a Kong brush from Stirling.
I then started DE shaving in July. And it’s been an overall great experience so far. I’ve stuck exclusively with the Parker, but have rotated soaps, creams, and brushes.
After doing some reading on B&B, I started thinking about a birth year razor and peeked into the Buy-Sell-Trade forum here. That was a mistake! Right away I found a 1968 Gillette Slim and bought it. But that innocent purchase resulted in a lot more purchases of brushes, razors, and soaps. And then of course, eBay and the Reddit Shave Bazaar contributed more. And naturally I picked up some more blade sampler packs from Amazon.
Of course, I’m really just kidding. The re-sell aspect of the community is part of what makes this so much fun and has allowed me to get a lot of stuff to try at great prices. I’ve only had one purchase go bad, and you can read about that on this thread: Don't Be a Paypal Chump Spoiler: I was one of the chumps–but I learned! There is some excellent advice on that thread and I highly recommend it to you for your consideration. I did not let that one scammer stop me from utilizing the BST and it is a great way for folks to get started. In fact, with a little patience, you’ll see members selling kits that will provide you with everything you need to get started at very reasonable prices.
Wanting to cool the jets on my purchases, I enrolled in the September 2020 Gentlemanly Restraint Until Month End (September 2020 GRUME), which has been a good way for me to move beyond the “if it’s available, I must buy it” phase and on to (perhaps) more considered purchasing. I’m 20 days into the GRUME and do believe I’ll make it to October. I don’t know that I’ll do the October GRUME because I’ve got a shopping list going… but stay tuned.
Reading–and enjoying—other journal entries as I searched different things on B&B, I thought it’d be fun to document my own progress with the items I’d purchased. So, I first cast about for a suggested order. I got some great responses at this thread: Suggestions for a razor tryout order?
My initial thought was to work the DEs from mild to aggressive/efficient and then try out the SEs in the same general pattern. However, I was really struck by @santamariasteve's comment that: “As to the rotation order, it makes no difference. Randomness in life has an element of sweetness.”
Indeed it does, and after considering the suggestions in that thread, my plan is to start with the Slim, work my way up the dial, and try my unused soaps. To get the randomness started, I’ll roll the bones (i.e., dice for those unfamiliar with the phrase) to randomly pick a soap and brush for each shave. For this first part, as a soap gets used it will come off the list so that I can get through them.
After that, the fun will start in earnest as I work my way through the shave den in random fashion. Every night I’ll roll for software and brush and every two weeks or so I’ll roll for a new razor. I’ll stick to the dice roll except when I roll the same badger or boar twice in a row (I’d like to let them dry in between). For the razor rolls, if it’s one I’ve already used then I’ll use it that night and roll again the next day. If it’s a new one then I’ll use it for two weeks before rolling for another. And to keep the random theme, I’ll roll for face or bowl lathering, too (except when a shave stick comes up—those will automatically be face lather). The only thing I won’t choose randomly is aftershave—if I have one that matches the soap, then I’ll use it. Otherwise, I’ll choose something to go with whatever soap or cream is used that day. At some point I’ll work pre-shaves and blades into the mix, too.
As I obtain more items, I’ll add them to the mix, too. Items I use that I’m not crazy about will be set aside to sell or PIF. In fact, I’ve already got a BST box going, but I’m going to throw most of it back into use to give them at least one more try. Who knows—my opinion of them may change.
I think this will be fun!