What happened to my shaving mojo?

[RBE17]

For the last 7-10 days I have been getting not so good shaves. I had settled into a nice rhythm of BBS or near BBS shaves almost each and every shave. It didn't matter what soap I used (Tabac, Speick, MWF, TGQ, VDH) I was ok. Blade use was a little more difficult to pinpoint, but as long as it was a Crystal or Astra I was ok.

Starting last week the shaves starting getting really rough. I put in a new Crystal blade and same thing. Tried it again the next night, same thing. I have tried Crystals, 7 o'clock yellows and IRP combined w/ various soaps. Even trusty Tabac is yielding poor results. It feels like the razor is sticking to my face and the shave consists of dragging and skipping the whole shave. I've also cleaned the razor and soaked it in Barbicide.

Any ideas on what could be happening? The only thing I can possibly think of is the weather is getting colder and less humid. Could that be changing the moisture level of my skin and affecting my shaves? Any help, thoughts or suggestions are appreciated. This is becoming most frustrating.

Thanks,


Steve.

 

[Blondie]

Are you getting the razor sticking with all soaps? I had that same problem with Tabac.

 

[MPruett]

I don't know... it seems that I just wax and wane in my ability to get great shaves; some weeks it's BBS every day, and others it's razor burn city.

If I had to venture a guess, I'd guess that a lot to do with it has to do with how awake and preoccupied I am; if I'm really busy at work and not sleeping well, I tend to chew my face up more than if I'm not so busy, and sleeping well.

 

[taffy]

I know the feeling, poor shaves lately though have not changed anything.

 

[bill mcdill]

Try being more diligent with your prep, it could be changes in the weather or maybe you (diet?) has triggered small changes in your beard.

 

[Jonnie]

Very well could be the weather change if you've had one recently. I was going along good then it got lots hotter and more humid and I couldn't get Proraso to lather worth a darn. Had to use lots more cream and cut back on the water a tiny bit. I thought I was starting to go crazy or something - I prolly am but not for this reason. Now it's cooled off some and humidity back down and I'm back to normal cream/water mix like before.

Kind of crazy that it could make that much of a difference. I never had that problem with the canned goo and disposable but since I looked like (color too) after every shave I'm happy to put up with a bit of planet alignment issues for what I generally get now days with a DE/wet shave!

 

[RBE17]

Are you getting the razor sticking with all soaps? I had that same problem with Tabac.

Yep, every soap.

I don't know... it seems that I just wax and wane in my ability to get great shaves; some weeks it's BBS every day, and others it's razor burn city.

If I had to venture a guess, I'd guess that a lot to do with it has to do with how awake and preoccupied I am; if I'm really busy at work and not sleeping well, I tend to chew my face up more than if I'm not so busy, and sleeping well.

It was hit or miss for me in the beginning. The last month had been awesome right up until this started.

I know the feeling, poor shaves lately though have not changed anything.

How does it happen? That's what I want to know. Actually, why does it have to happen?

Try being more diligent with your prep, it could be changes in the weather or maybe you (diet?) has triggered small changes in your beard.

I had gotten really slack w/ my prep because I found I didn't need it. Maybe I have to start kicking it up again. I hadn't thought about diet. There was one other thing I've started doing that maybe is affecting it. I shower and shave at night. 80% of the time I used Thayer's WH w/ aloe as my aftershave. When I wake up in the morning I wash my face. A few weeks ago I started w/ a cold water splash. Afterward, I started applying the Thayer's in the morning because I enjoyed how it felt. I wonder if that is changing my skin somehow. Maybe I'll lay off the morning application of Thayer's and try again.

 

[lamina]

Muddy Waters is the key!!! Before shaving

Got my Mojo workin'...

 

[dpmtherrien]

Every once in a while I'll have a shave that just doesn't quite stack up to my usual very good shave. I have no idea why that happens, as I don't think I do anything different. Mabey the shave god is distracted.

 

[ProphetNoir]

I find it helps me to go into "newbie mode" sometimes. I literally sit down here with my B&B brethren as you are doing, and between here and youtube, where I review Mantic's videos, I get my mojo back for the next attempt. It's easy to fall into that comfort zone after several weeks of great shaves. I love that BBS feeling, but I would rather have a DFS with no irritation than a failed BBS attempt that leaves my face raw and tender. Go back to shave school for a couple of hours and relax, your mojo hasn't been lost, it may have just gotten a little overconfident.

 

[cymric]

Here's a possibility: the water of your prep is too hot.

 

[strat1117]

I live in the Northeast like you, but the change in the weather hasn't really changed my shave results. It sounds like you may need more water in making your lather, if it is not slick enough. That could be because of a weather change or perhaps your brush isn't holding as much water as it was (I've noticed that sometimes the brush needs a good soaking and cleaning, to get out some of the lather residue that builds up over time, causing it to be less absorbent). Also, especially if I think my lather is a little dry, I make sure to rinse my face thoroughly between passes. That extra water will almost always stop the blade from skipping.

Anyway, based upon your description, I would be focused more on changes in my lather than changes in my hardware.

Good luck, and enjoy the shaves!

 

[Subcutaneous]

i feel your pain, it went from like 80-90% humidity and 30 deg. C to like 18 and 40% it changed the amount of water i needed considerably

 

[gone down south]

Have you desecrated any Indian burial grounds lately? That happened to me one time.

 

[pmast]

Find some Hoyt's or Kanaga Water to feed your mojo hand. Or, more appropriate to shaving, some Aqua Velva, or Ivy Club.

 

[Matt P]

I've been wet shaving with a DE for a little over 5 years. That by no means makes me an expert. I did it wrong for 4 of those years. Inadequate face lathering and no preparation other than a shower are the bad habits this forum cured me of.

Anyway, I experience what you are going through about once or twice a year for a week to ten days at a time. My theory (more of a guess really) is that my skin changes based on all kinds of factors, and every now and then the stars align resulting in very sensitive skin. It sucks but I fight through knowing that it will come to an end.

Like others have said, go back to basics. If it is real bad I only do one pass WTG and horrors of horrors, skip shaving on the weekends.

 

[The Nid Hog]

Lots of good advice. Walk yourself through your next shave like you've never used a DE before. Do a nice slow review of the basics. Make sure that you're pressing lightly. This might just be the shaving gods telling you to heed their words.

And try the Hoyt's. You really never know.

 

[closer]

I would echo what others have said - go back to basics, and review your prep and technique. It may be that you are getting slack with one of those, and not realizing it.

 

[beaverboy]

I find that if I let my face dry out too much betwen latherings or if I dry my face off before I lather, the razor head feels like it sticks to my skin. Maybe try and keep your face more damp.

 

[RBE17]

Thanks for all the replies and advice. I had a pretty good shave last night despite being apprehensive about it. Two things I did notice were I think my lather was a little dry even though it was slick between my fingers. I decided to use my grated Speick shave stick last night. The first pass was ok, but I added some more water to the lather and the second pass was so much better. Another thing I noticed was the grip on my razor. I had been slowly moving it closer to the head and applying a little pressure to it. This was changing my blade angle and wreaking havoc on my shaves. I really paid attention to that and the shave was much more enjoyable.