Pre-shave:- Pears Green
Bowl/Scuttle:- None
Brush:- Body Shop Synthetic
Soap/Cream:- Cella Almond
Razor/Blade:- Gillette Tech and Shark
Post/After-shave: Cocoa Butter and night cream mix to keep my allure
Fragrance:- Lacoste
Great shave 9/10
.
What did you use today? +Rate the shave 1-10 (10 best)
- Thread starter Bleedrunner
- Start date
Pre-shave:- Pears Green
Bowl/Scuttle:- None
Brush:- Body Shop Synthetic
Soap/Cream:- Cella Almond
Razor/Blade:- Gillette Tech and Shark
Post/After-shave: Cocoa Butter and night cream mix to keep my allure
Fragrance:- Lacoste
Great shave 9/10
.
SEptember!
Razor: Gem Featherweight
Blade: Personna GEM PTFE Stainless Steel Blade
Brush: Frank Shaving G4 Synthetic striped handle
Pre-Shave: Proraso Red
Lather: L'Occitane Cade
Aftershave: Gillette Series Cool Wave
Additional Care:
Thayers Facial Tonic Witch Hazel Unscented
Pinaud Finest powder
Rating Ten
Tuesday, Sept 1 Shave
Razor: P1 Super Speed
Blade: Astra Platinum Superior (4th use)
Brush: Semogue 830 Boar Brush
Soap: Williams puck
AS: Thayers, Nivea balm, Old Spice Fresh Lime
Loaded up my P1 Super Speed with the Astra blade to see how the 4th shave would go, and it wasn't a great shave, but not a bad shave. I flipped the blade from yesterday, so the top and bottom got the same number of uses, and turned the edge when I went from left to right, so 3 passes on each edge (WTH, XTG, ATG), plus touch up.
Tried face lathering today, and didn't see any better results with lathering than bowl lathering.
No matter what I do, how much water I use, or how much soap I load, I cannot lather my whole face and get one side finished before the soap on the other side starts drying, even when I dipped the brush in water before applying the soap for my second pass. So I will go back to just lathering up one side at a time. The water is just tap hot, so it's not evaporating because it's too hot.
Didn't get as good a shave today as yesterday, but as I said yesterday, my facial hair doesn't grow 'fast', so the cheeks were still pretty smooth overall before the shave. And because my trouble spots that don't get BBS are on my neck, there was a little more there to remove. Might go 72 hours before my next shave, if I can stand it after 48.
No nicks or redness. Used washcloth rinsed with cold water to clean up, then used some thayers, followed by the Nivea balm. After a few minutes spent cleaning up, allowing the Nivea to soak in, I used some OS Fresh Lime AS, and got a little feedback from that. Overall a good shave.
I know the Astra blades are good for 3 shaves for me, so that will be the limit next time I use one.
Today's shave gets an 8.5.
Razor: P1 Super Speed
Blade: Astra Platinum Superior (4th use)
Brush: Semogue 830 Boar Brush
Soap: Williams puck
AS: Thayers, Nivea balm, Old Spice Fresh Lime
Loaded up my P1 Super Speed with the Astra blade to see how the 4th shave would go, and it wasn't a great shave, but not a bad shave. I flipped the blade from yesterday, so the top and bottom got the same number of uses, and turned the edge when I went from left to right, so 3 passes on each edge (WTH, XTG, ATG), plus touch up.
Tried face lathering today, and didn't see any better results with lathering than bowl lathering.
No matter what I do, how much water I use, or how much soap I load, I cannot lather my whole face and get one side finished before the soap on the other side starts drying, even when I dipped the brush in water before applying the soap for my second pass. So I will go back to just lathering up one side at a time. The water is just tap hot, so it's not evaporating because it's too hot.
Didn't get as good a shave today as yesterday, but as I said yesterday, my facial hair doesn't grow 'fast', so the cheeks were still pretty smooth overall before the shave. And because my trouble spots that don't get BBS are on my neck, there was a little more there to remove. Might go 72 hours before my next shave, if I can stand it after 48.
No nicks or redness. Used washcloth rinsed with cold water to clean up, then used some thayers, followed by the Nivea balm. After a few minutes spent cleaning up, allowing the Nivea to soak in, I used some OS Fresh Lime AS, and got a little feedback from that. Overall a good shave.
I know the Astra blades are good for 3 shaves for me, so that will be the limit next time I use one.
Today's shave gets an 8.5.
Razor: GEM Junior (brass)
Blade: GEM Blue Star (carbon) (1st)
Brush: Henri et Victoria Karma (synthetic) 25mm
Pre-Shave: Face Scrub, Thayers, Hyaluronic Acid
Lather: Shannon's Soaps - Silk Pajamas
Aftershave: Henri et Victoria - Cognac and Cuban Cigars
Additional Care:
Clubman: Pinauds Finest Powder
Shave Rating: 9.8/10
Free Razor and Blades
My Etsy vendor realized he shipped me the wrong razor, refunded my money and told me to keep what he mistakenly shipped.
I have a number of GEM Juniors and various 1912 types so the shave wasn’t with an untried razor, but the blades are new to me.
So far I have only used Personna SS PTFE blades in my GEMs. I didn’t really know anything about these Blue Stars, but what I found seems to indicate they are uncoated carbon steel. I wasn’t sure how the shave would go, but I’ve always been very happy with the shaves I’ve had with my double edge carbon blades.
The blade was sharp as the dickens and the Shannon Silk Pajamas Soap was as slick as an oil spill on an ice field.
The result was a really nice, silky smooth BBS with no kind of harmful or injurious consequences.
I don’t know how many shaves I’ll get from this blade, but the first was pure bliss.
Be Good...Be Safe!
Blade: GEM Blue Star (carbon) (1st)
Brush: Henri et Victoria Karma (synthetic) 25mm
Pre-Shave: Face Scrub, Thayers, Hyaluronic Acid
Lather: Shannon's Soaps - Silk Pajamas
Aftershave: Henri et Victoria - Cognac and Cuban Cigars
Additional Care:
Clubman: Pinauds Finest Powder
Shave Rating: 9.8/10
Free Razor and Blades
My Etsy vendor realized he shipped me the wrong razor, refunded my money and told me to keep what he mistakenly shipped.
I have a number of GEM Juniors and various 1912 types so the shave wasn’t with an untried razor, but the blades are new to me.
So far I have only used Personna SS PTFE blades in my GEMs. I didn’t really know anything about these Blue Stars, but what I found seems to indicate they are uncoated carbon steel. I wasn’t sure how the shave would go, but I’ve always been very happy with the shaves I’ve had with my double edge carbon blades.
The blade was sharp as the dickens and the Shannon Silk Pajamas Soap was as slick as an oil spill on an ice field.
The result was a really nice, silky smooth BBS with no kind of harmful or injurious consequences.
I don’t know how many shaves I’ll get from this blade, but the first was pure bliss.
Be Good...Be Safe!
Brush: Parker 23mm Badger
Lather: Maggard's London Barbershop
Razor: Charcoal Goods Lvl 2
Blade: Polisilver Super Iridium (4)
Post: Baxter's aftershave balm
Almost exactly the same as yesterday. Trying to use up the rest of this Baxter's ASAP. 8.5/10 Brush is scratchy, so I've already removed it and ordered a new knot.
Lather: Maggard's London Barbershop
Razor: Charcoal Goods Lvl 2
Blade: Polisilver Super Iridium (4)
Post: Baxter's aftershave balm
Almost exactly the same as yesterday. Trying to use up the rest of this Baxter's ASAP. 8.5/10 Brush is scratchy, so I've already removed it and ordered a new knot.
- Pre-shave: Hot Shower / PAA Tube 2.0
- Bowl/Scuttle: Quintero Lather Bowl (Medium Version - 3D Printed)
- Brush: PAA 'The Starcraft' (24mm Roswell Hybrid Synthetic)
- Alum: Gentleman Jon Alum Block
- Soap/Cream: Zingari Man Sego Shaving Soap 'Explorer'
- Razor/Blade: 'Super-Shimmed' Merkur 34c and Voskhod Blade (2nd use) w/ 1mm Nylon flat washer (Found here: Amazon Link)
- Post/After-shave: Zingari Man Sego Unscented After Shave Balm / PAA Unrefined Shea Butter
I mentioned the 'Super Shimmed' Merkur 34c in a separate thread but will post about it here in more detail:
In short, I am not a fan of the standard Merkur 34c. After using cartridges for years, I converted to DE shaving with the King C Gillette, but was looking for something more efficient, and slightly more aggressive. People kept referring to the 34c and 'right technique'. Unfortunately regardless of my technique, it was doing little more than irritating my skin, without the close shave I was used to with my KGC. I decided to shelve it for a while and after a few other purchases (restored '59 Red Tip, Razorock Mentor & MJ90-A, Maggard's V3A) I decided to give the Merkur 34c one more chance before it went back out for sale on the secondary market. I had read about 'shims' and while I had spare razors I could have used, I commonly place clear M5 Screw Bolt (1MM thickness) washers on my 3 piece razors to maintain the life of the threads as well as the material between the handle/bottom plate.
Before you begin to question my sanity in using a 1mm shim, just know that I don't know what the hell I was smoking, but it must have been some potent stuff. Fueled by the crazy idea that this would help the 34c a little bit, I loaded a second-use Voskhod blade and placed a washer underneath it, screwing the 34c back together. The result was a significant difference in blade gap, which, combined with the generous blade exposure of the 34c, promised a significant increase in aggression.
After 2 passes with the PAA Tube 2.0 preshave, I loaded the medium-sized Quintero lather bowl (excellent design if you can get it 3-d printed) with Zingari's 'Explorer' and whipped up a nice amount using my Starcraft brush from PAA, and went to town on my face.
After an extremely careful and light handed first pass WTG, I immediately could feel the difference in aggression, which was WAY more than the other razors I had. Extremely close shave, but my skin was doing well so far. XTG was the same result, with audible feedback of the 34c wiping away what hadn't been cut down with my initial pass. I rinsed with cold water and went in one last time ATG, after a liberal application of soap. The result was BY FAR the closest shave I've ever had, a true BBS with minor irritation in the neck area. Running the alum block across my face confirmed my suspicion that this was an extremely aggressive/close shave. After application of the Zingari After Shave Balm (one I firmly believe to be the best on the market, btw) and a small dab of PAA Unrefined Shea Butter, I went to sleep and awoke the next day with no irritation whatsoever. My suspicions of how close a shave I had were confirmed when my girlfriend rubbed her hand across my face and found no hair resistance whatsoever.
Would I do it again? Hell yes. Would I prefer to use a thinner stock than 1mm as a shim? Hell yes. However, I regret nothing.
Shave Score - 9/10. The upgrade kept me on high alert and the combination of items used resulted in my closest shave ever. Needless to say, the 34c is staying in my collection. I highly recommend a slightly smaller shim to make your Merkur go from Mild to Wild, just make sure to use quality soap/Aftershave that you can count on to not dry your skin. Definitely glad I tried this idea out, but found the shim technique does not work the same on other razors with plates that are not flat (i.e. Razorock Mission etc.)
Pre: Shower
Brush: Yaqi Sagrada Familia 24mm
Soap: HSSC Kootenay Blue
Razor: Merkur Progress
Blade: Ladas Super Stainless (1)
AS: Highland Springs Kootenay Blue
Post: Thayers Rose Witch Hazel and Hyaluronic Acid
Love the soap and AS but lots of irritation from the Ladas blade with the Progress dialed into 2.5.
7.5/10
Tuesday morning shave
Razor: 60’s Super Speed
Blade: Astra SP
Brush: Omega Boar
Soap: Proraso Red
Date with the dentist this morno, so no post shave splash. That’s what they prefer, minimal scent so I obliged. I do detect the lingering fragrance of smoking molar (crown) antiseptic and fluoride. A little Old Spice will take care of that nicely. A great shave, have not used the Proraso as of late, very nice. Happy Tuesday!
9/10
Razor: 60’s Super Speed
Blade: Astra SP
Brush: Omega Boar
Soap: Proraso Red
Date with the dentist this morno, so no post shave splash. That’s what they prefer, minimal scent so I obliged. I do detect the lingering fragrance of smoking molar (crown) antiseptic and fluoride. A little Old Spice will take care of that nicely. A great shave, have not used the Proraso as of late, very nice. Happy Tuesday!
9/10
Today was a nice day. Yesterday's shave went so well I grabbed the same razor and blade. Tossed in some Orange scented soap, splash and EDT and we were off to the races.
There is only one day of shaving with this soap and in reality it may not be enough to lather. I finished the splash. So that is sad as in the last week I cleaned out the MITA and Lime. I will be placing an order this weekend.
So far the unmarked blade on day was good. May have to try a more aggressive razor tommorow.
8.6/10
KM
There is only one day of shaving with this soap and in reality it may not be enough to lather. I finished the splash. So that is sad as in the last week I cleaned out the MITA and Lime. I will be placing an order this weekend.
So far the unmarked blade on day was good. May have to try a more aggressive razor tommorow.
8.6/10
KM
Today' shave
Razor: Gillette Old Type
Blade: Personna Red (5)
Soap: Stirling Lime
Brush: Omega 10290 boar
AS: Aqua Velva Ice Blue
Rating: 9/10
Razor: Gillette Old Type
Blade: Personna Red (5)
Soap: Stirling Lime
Brush: Omega 10290 boar
AS: Aqua Velva Ice Blue
Rating: 9/10
My Tuesday Morning Shave
Prep: Warm shower w/ hair conditioner on whiskers
Strop: Tony Miller Heirloom 3" Artisan Premium Steerhide "OLD NO. 2" Strop, smooth version w/ Linen
Two pass shave: WTG, ATG/XTG
Razor: T. The Aiku'M No. 60 - 6/8"
Pre-Shave Cream: Proraso Red, Sandalwood & Shea Butter
Brush: Elite Razor Quilted Sapele w/ 24mm Mother Load
Soap: Williams Mug Shaving Soap
Aftershave: Proraso AS Balm, Cypress & Vetyver
Rating: 9.8/10 DFS! One nick, no irritation- This brush is awesome! Very fine flexible bristles, but packed tight enough to add backbone. Holds a ton of soap!
Last edited:
Pre-shave: Proraso Green
Soap: Proraso Green
Razor: Gillette NEW Long Comb w/ Fat handle
Blade: 7 O'clock Super Stainless (6)
Brush: Omega 10077
Aftershave: Brut
I walked out of the bathroom and my girlfriend was like "Woah, which aftershave is that one?" And she started naming all of my aftershaves and was like, "Oh, is that the one in that green bottle? I don't like it".
LOL
9/10
Soap: Proraso Green
Razor: Gillette NEW Long Comb w/ Fat handle
Blade: 7 O'clock Super Stainless (6)
Brush: Omega 10077
Aftershave: Brut
I walked out of the bathroom and my girlfriend was like "Woah, which aftershave is that one?" And she started naming all of my aftershaves and was like, "Oh, is that the one in that green bottle? I don't like it".
LOL
9/10
RFB
Polsilver SI
Ethos Melange d'agrumes
Ethos Aroma Enhancer
Graydog Black Walnut w/ Maggards 26mm SHD
Thayers
Ethos Melange d'agrumes Skin Food splash
9.5 / 10
Polsilver SI
Ethos Melange d'agrumes
Ethos Aroma Enhancer
Graydog Black Walnut w/ Maggards 26mm SHD
Thayers
Ethos Melange d'agrumes Skin Food splash
9.5 / 10
Razor: 1960 Gillette Fatboy; adjustable set to 5 today
Blade: US Personna Lab Blue, in blue wrapper, before they switched to plain white a couple years ago (shave #6)
Brush: Omega 48 "The Pro" boar brush
Soap: Stirling Coniferous
Rating: 9.75
Tonight's shave on a day and a half of stubble. BBS after WTG/XTG/ATG passes, no cuts or nicks, but some burning/irritation, so deducting .25. The Omega brush worked well with the Coniferous soap to make a surprisingly thick lather.
Blade: US Personna Lab Blue, in blue wrapper, before they switched to plain white a couple years ago (shave #6)
Brush: Omega 48 "The Pro" boar brush
Soap: Stirling Coniferous
Rating: 9.75
Tonight's shave on a day and a half of stubble. BBS after WTG/XTG/ATG passes, no cuts or nicks, but some burning/irritation, so deducting .25. The Omega brush worked well with the Coniferous soap to make a surprisingly thick lather.
20200901
Razor: Gillette English Flat Bottom Tech (@GAW9576 Custom Emerald Green Handle)
Blade: Kai (1)
Brush: @Rudy Vey B&B Group Buy 2020 (Shavemac 22mm 2-Band Silvertip)
Soap: RazoRock Irish
Aftershave: RazoRock Irish
WTG, ATG, XTG. Minor touch-up.
DFS+ with no nicks, cuts, weepers or irritation.
Wonderful shave!
Razor: Gillette English Flat Bottom Tech (@GAW9576 Custom Emerald Green Handle)
Blade: Kai (1)
Brush: @Rudy Vey B&B Group Buy 2020 (Shavemac 22mm 2-Band Silvertip)
Soap: RazoRock Irish
Aftershave: RazoRock Irish
WTG, ATG, XTG. Minor touch-up.
DFS+ with no nicks, cuts, weepers or irritation.
Wonderful shave!
Razor: Razorock Mamba 70
Blade: Polsilver Super Iridium (3)
Brush: RazoRock Plissoft Monster Synthetic Shaving Brush - 26mm
Lather: Proraso Red Shaving Soap in a bowl
No nicks. No irritation. No itching.
Very close, smooth and pleasant shave.
This combo delivers nicely and saved a pass over the Mamba 53
Rating: 9.8/10
Blade: Polsilver Super Iridium (3)
Brush: RazoRock Plissoft Monster Synthetic Shaving Brush - 26mm
Lather: Proraso Red Shaving Soap in a bowl
No nicks. No irritation. No itching.
Very close, smooth and pleasant shave.
This combo delivers nicely and saved a pass over the Mamba 53
Rating: 9.8/10
Wed 2 Slantember SOTD
Soap The Goodfellas Smile Italian Orange
Brush Yaqi 26mm Orange Black Synthetic
Razor Parker SemiSlant
Blade Treet Platinum 1st
Post & Aftershave
Ice Water + Special Thayers Mix
Hyaluronic + Aqua Velva Musk
Very nice soap. Scent off the puck is pleasant citrusy/orangey and remains thru the shave. Great creamy and slick lather from working with the soft brush on face.
Shave with this slant razor paired with blade was bloody today. Multiple weepers...even from the 1st wtg pass. Must be the blade...will try another blade next. Still able to complete 3 multiple direction passes and stop. Plenty of extra lather waiting...ahahaha
Icy water rinse followed by alum ensure all weepers are closed. Thayers then Hyaluronic soothed and lastly AV Musk.
A close shave...but rating 7/10 today!
Soap The Goodfellas Smile Italian Orange
Brush Yaqi 26mm Orange Black Synthetic
Razor Parker SemiSlant
Blade Treet Platinum 1st
Post & Aftershave
Ice Water + Special Thayers Mix
Hyaluronic + Aqua Velva Musk
Very nice soap. Scent off the puck is pleasant citrusy/orangey and remains thru the shave. Great creamy and slick lather from working with the soft brush on face.
Shave with this slant razor paired with blade was bloody today. Multiple weepers...even from the 1st wtg pass. Must be the blade...will try another blade next. Still able to complete 3 multiple direction passes and stop. Plenty of extra lather waiting...ahahaha
Icy water rinse followed by alum ensure all weepers are closed. Thayers then Hyaluronic soothed and lastly AV Musk.
A close shave...but rating 7/10 today!
Wednesday’s Shave - A super fine DFS++ shave - 9.5/10
Pre Shave - Hot water splash and Truefitt & Hill No.10 Pre Shave scrub
Brush - Hajamat Ash Wood Handled synthetic shaving brush
Shaving Soap - Edwin Jagger Cooling Menthol Shaving Cream
Bowl - Supply marble lathering bowl
Razor - Pearl Chrome TTO chrome finish
Blade - Gillette Silver Blue on 4th use
Post Shave - Running cold water splash along with application of alum
Aftershave - Pink Woolf Seabuckthorn & Aloe Vera cooling Aftershave Balm
Did bowl lathering today to ensure I unnecessarily do not rub the skin and cause any irritation (even though the brush is super duper soft). Paired a fairly aggressive razor with a super smooth blade on 4th use and the result was amazing. Did 3 very comfortable passes today and as a result got a DFS++ shave without witnessing any weepers, nicks or cuts. The face started feeling irritated and was little red in the neckline and hence stopped post 3 passes leaving the intention behind, of getting a BBS Shave.
The alum gave moderate feedback on application and the face was further cooled down by applying the aftershave which has abundance of menthol. Also the fragrance is so good that it always ends up uplifting my mood while making the face soft and supple.
Next shave is due on Friday where I will be using one of the best luxurious shaving creams hailed by all shave experts in the world! (Spoiler alert)
Thank you
Pre Shave - Hot water splash and Truefitt & Hill No.10 Pre Shave scrub
Brush - Hajamat Ash Wood Handled synthetic shaving brush
Shaving Soap - Edwin Jagger Cooling Menthol Shaving Cream
Bowl - Supply marble lathering bowl
Razor - Pearl Chrome TTO chrome finish
Blade - Gillette Silver Blue on 4th use
Post Shave - Running cold water splash along with application of alum
Aftershave - Pink Woolf Seabuckthorn & Aloe Vera cooling Aftershave Balm
Did bowl lathering today to ensure I unnecessarily do not rub the skin and cause any irritation (even though the brush is super duper soft). Paired a fairly aggressive razor with a super smooth blade on 4th use and the result was amazing. Did 3 very comfortable passes today and as a result got a DFS++ shave without witnessing any weepers, nicks or cuts. The face started feeling irritated and was little red in the neckline and hence stopped post 3 passes leaving the intention behind, of getting a BBS Shave.
The alum gave moderate feedback on application and the face was further cooled down by applying the aftershave which has abundance of menthol. Also the fragrance is so good that it always ends up uplifting my mood while making the face soft and supple.
Next shave is due on Friday where I will be using one of the best luxurious shaving creams hailed by all shave experts in the world! (Spoiler alert)
Thank you
