Unusual Shaving Bowl

[roaduck]

I have never had a shaving bowl or scuttle in my life ; any small waterproof container is fine so most of the time i just put a bar of trad olive soap on my face with no brush; the only time I prefer proper lather is when using my cheapie straight then a bowl and brush comes in handy.
Then I can use my trad handmade vintage artisan soaps and shaving butters; lovely.

i thought ceramic can chip and break, stainless is a terrible conductor so i thought why not get a small antique Indian brass pan, holds the heat brilliantly , better handle , unbreakable and can be used as a coffee pot on the stove or a small milk pan plus it increases in value - so here it is - from the mid nineteenth Century - picked up for a song - just what I`m looking for.

 

[BigJ]

Looks GREAT!! Enjoy!!

 

[roaduck]

Breathed on the pan ; it`s a bit better; looks okay from the 1850`s.

 

[dmshaver]

Well done finding a lather bowl out of what you come across. And you came across a lovely brass pan that looks like it will do the trick very nicely for you. Enjoy your shaves!

 

[musicman1951]

Lovely! Enjoy it.

 

[roaduck]

Thanks dmshaver - I like dual purpose unusual items - it`s about 4 1/2 inches diameter and about a pound but has got a lovely hardwood handle for grip, but if it does drop it`ll be fine anyway; it`s thick brass.

 

[TOVT]

That is awesome, especially after the clean up!

 

[roaduck]

That is awesome, especially after the clean up!

Thanks TOVT a lot of people would have accepted the old patina but it`s not for display; it`s for daily use so I wanted to polish it a bit to cleanse 175 years worth of Indian handling.

Just getting some Farecla G360 ceramic glass polish and cotton pads out to try and make it sparkle.
Nearly there; a bit more elbow grease and it should be gleaming !

 

[Hercule]

Sure, why not! Looks great. Be sure to report back on how it works out.

As for patina - unless lacquered to preserve a polished finish, tarnish will ALWAYS come back. Don't let any body tell you that you ruined something by polishing it. Tarnish or patina will always come back in short order. I use a polish that is impregnated gun-wadding in a tin.

 

[roaduck]

Sure, why not! Looks great. Be sure to report back on how it works out.

As for patina - unless lacquered to preserve a polished finish, tarnish will ALWAYS come back. Don't let any body tell you that you ruined something by polishing it. Tarnish or patina will always come back in short order. I use a polish that is impregnated gun-wadding in a tin.

Thanks Hercule antique dealers and traders can`t be bothered doing restoration and cleaning ; they think it adds value and character; personally I think a lot of antiques look scruffy, filthy, smelly and neglected.

I might have one more go at it; it`s a lot of elbow grease.
It`s not perfect but it`s a step in the right direction.

 

[JKaboom]

It’s looking awesome!! Have fun

 

[roaduck]

It’s looking awesome!! Have fun

Thanks

JKaboom - I got it to actually use everyday - it can handle it !​

 

[EdHeart]

Brilliant, absolutely brilliant and a beautiful find. Famous TV Chef, Alton Brown, would frequently lament kitchen tools that he termed, "Unitaskers."

Your solution is anything but.

Well played @roaduck, well played indeed.

 

[roaduck]

Brilliant, absolutely brilliant and a beautiful find. Famous TV Chef, Alton Brown, would frequently lament kitchen tools that he termed, "Unitaskers."

Your solution is anything but.

Well played @roaduck, well played indeed.

On occasion I think laterally - sorry don`t know Alton Brown - personally I never read cookbooks or do recipes.

I cook a lot for the homeless but my absolutely indispensable kitchen tool is a vintage whisk; I have three for back-up.

My Mother introduced me to Fanny and Johnny Craddock in the Seventies who were both amazing plus I met Kieth Floyd in Devon a couple of times, then years later met him again in Nice, went to the Monaco Grand Prix then we sailed around the Ligurian Sea in The Med in a 6-berth 38 foot yacht for five days; what a raconteur ; had a fantastic time.

 

[EdHeart]

View attachment 1941074
On occasion I think laterally - sorry don`t know Alton Brown - personally I never read cookbooks or do recipes.

I cook a lot for the homeless but my absolutely indispensable kitchen tool is a vintage whisk; I have three for back-up.

My Mother introduced me to Fanny and Johnny Craddock in the Seventies who were both amazing plus I met Kieth Floyd in Devon a couple of times, then years later met him again in Nice, went to the Monaco Grand Prix then we sailed around the Ligurian Sea in The Med in a 6-berth 38 foot yacht for five days; what a raconteur ; had a fantastic time.

Quite the experience and memories created. Cheers!

Like you I don't do recipes the majority of the time. Simple fare, experience working in restaurants and bartending, chef friends and et voila - something tasty off the top of my head.

An awesome thing to cook for the homeless. I'd a very tiny kitchen quite a number of years back and I mean tiny, something akin to a galley kitchen on boat. The only counter space I had was slim 12 or 13" deep, the cabinets were formerly the upper cabinets from a kitchen remodel as lower cabs were far too deep.

At the time I was serving the homeless with a group of folks on Sundays. We'd rotate cooking duties among us. I prepped and cooked pasta and veggies or something tasty for up to 50-70 people.

Kitchen was always a disaster afterward but well worth the effort.

Bless you for the time and thoughtfulness you put into doing such service. Thanks for sharing it.

And...love the mechanical beaters. Brings back memories from my childhood, playing with those when I'd visit my grandparents.

 

[roaduck]

Quite the experience and memories created. Cheers!

Like you I don't do recipes the majority of the time. Simple fare, experience working in restaurants and bartending, chef friends and et voila - something tasty off the top of my head.

An awesome thing to cook for the homeless. I'd a very tiny kitchen quite a number of years back and I mean tiny, something akin to a galley kitchen on boat. The only counter space I had was slim 12 or 13" deep, the cabinets were formerly the upper cabinets from a kitchen remodel as lower cabs were far too deep.

At the time I was serving the homeless with a group of folks on Sundays. We'd rotate cooking duties among us. I prepped and cooked pasta and veggies or something tasty for up to 50-70 people.

Kitchen was always a disaster afterward but well worth the effort.

Bless you for the time and thoughtfulness you put into doing such service. Thanks for sharing it.

And...love the mechanical beaters. Brings back memories from my childhood, playing with those when I'd visit my grandparents.

Ah bless you man - no wonder you`re called EdHeart - my heart is always getting me into trouble - for giving people the benefit of the doubt - the voice in my head says "no" and is invariably right but I ignore it lol !

I`m not a chef or a cook I just dabble a lot - like skinning a 200 lbs shark on a beach at midnight in Macau for a barbeque for the whole beach using a $10 carbon caidao or cooking for a 300 at a wedding reception using 6 catering pots, borrowed non-matching;cutlery and crockery and a bendy 5" Tramontina knife from the seventies and a Lancashire peeler - with no equipment in a new kitchen for a whole rainy weekend - even made the wedding cake from scratch and it was a paupers wedding - only had £200 for ingredients when I was seventeen - that was a sweaty satisfying, tiring struggle.

 

[roaduck]

edit ran out so...
Ah bless you man - no wonder you`re called EdHeart - my heart is always getting me into trouble - for giving people the benefit of the doubt - the voice in my head says "no" and is invariably right but I ignore it lol !

I`m not a chef or a cook I just dabble a lot - like skinning a 200 lbs shark on a beach at midnight in Macau for a barbeque for the whole beach using a $10 carbon caidao or cooking for a 300 at a wedding reception using 6 catering pots, borrowed non-matching;cutlery and crockery and a bendy 5" Tramontina knife from the seventies and a Lancashire peeler - with no equipment in a new kitchen for a whole rainy weekend - even made the wedding cake from scratch and it was a paupers wedding - only had £200 for ingredients when I was seventeen - that was a sweaty satisfying, tiring struggle.
My kitchen is 12` x 9 ` and I have 3 chefs in it - but they respect me `cos I can do 4 large diced onions a minute with a £10 carbon caidao lol - lived in Hong Kong and Macau for 15 years and it was Chinese Chef knife or nothing lol.

Now I have about 12-15 choppers - the best is worth £8.5K RWL-34 Powdered Metallurgy Steel - 8" x 4" totally flat - no rocking - Asian striped ebony handle with no rivets - totally bespoke knife from Savernake - Devon - UK. Can`t take it to work - 2mm thick - 11 oz but can smash coconuts with no dints or damage - tough Mother - can push-cut cigarette papers - naturally - edge retention 6/10 ease of sharpening 4/10 - quite well balanced for a nineties supersteel - btw I was a smithy in UK, and China - made 700 knives and countless nails and horse shoes since i was 14 as a hobby and helping out - hard but worth it.
Now I just feed a 1000 a week - 400 a wkd - love 3-4-5 way fusion cooking - lived in two war zones with no running water or electric etc - not easy but doable etc - Ramallah and Portrush Northern Ireland in the eighties - dropped in the deep end - no choice man

 

[EdHeart]

edit ran out so...
Ah bless you man - no wonder you`re called EdHeart - my heart is always getting me into trouble - for giving people the benefit of the doubt - the voice in my head says "no" and is invariably right but I ignore it lol !

I`m not a chef or a cook I just dabble a lot - like skinning a 200 lbs shark on a beach at midnight in Macau for a barbeque for the whole beach using a $10 carbon caidao or cooking for a 300 at a wedding reception using 6 catering pots, borrowed non-matching;cutlery and crockery and a bendy 5" Tramontina knife from the seventies and a Lancashire peeler - with no equipment in a new kitchen for a whole rainy weekend - even made the wedding cake from scratch and it was a paupers wedding - only had £200 for ingredients when I was seventeen - that was a sweaty satisfying, tiring struggle.
My kitchen is 12` x 9 ` and I have 3 chefs in it - but they respect me `cos I can do 4 large diced onions a minute with a £10 carbon caidao lol - lived in Hong Kong and Macau for 15 years and it was Chinese Chef knife or nothing lol.

Now I have about 12-15 choppers - the best is worth £8.5K RWL-34 Powdered Metallurgy Steel - 8" x 4" totally flat - no rocking - Asian striped ebony handle with no rivets - totally bespoke knife from Savernake - Devon - UK. Can`t take it to work - 2mm thick - 11 oz but can smash coconuts with no dints or damage - tough Mother - can push-cut cigarette papers - naturally - edge retention 6/10 ease of sharpening 4/10 - quite well balanced for a nineties supersteel - btw I was a smithy in UK, and China - made 700 knives and countless nails and horse shoes since i was 14 as a hobby and helping out - hard but worth it.
Now I just feed a 1000 a week - 400 a wkd - love 3-4-5 way fusion cooking - lived in two war zones with no running water or electric etc - not easy but doable etc - Ramallah and Portrush Northern Ireland in the eighties - dropped in the deep end - no choice man

I get the heart leads thing. I've been the "fool jumping in" more than a few times in my life and and had come to wish I hadn't.

Sounds like you do a bit more than dabble, by comparison I'd definitely cop to dabbling. How about posting a pic of that best knife of yours. I really enjoy knives. I've some outdoor knives by a particular maker: William Collins (wcknives.com). I love the utility a good knife offers.

My one and only true chef's knife is a Shun, quite basic nakiri. It was a gift from a young chef friend. It needed a complete overhaul. Had another chef friend grind out the edge to even it out and then I put the finishing work on it with the whetstones I have: after it comes off the strops you can shave with it.

Cheers!

 

[roaduck]

Shuns are very good knives - I`ve only got a couple of good knives - I don`t need expensive ones but got too many - countless.

Got one 13 oz folding pocket cleaver with a 4 inch, 6mm thick blade - never take one out for self-defense.

This old carbon Chinese Chef`s knife is what I prep tonnes of donated food a year with.

Got a Savernake 8" Chefs and a Michael May bespoke carbon 6" Utility - but I use caidaos 99% of the time.

 

[roaduck]

A few Kitchen Knives

A few Scissors

Here is SOME of my kitchen knives and scissors.
I had to stop collecting them because I had nowhere to put them in my tiny 3-bed house.