I have been pretty inactive on the boards lately in part that I feel I finally found my 'groove'. My desire to experiment and try new products has declined greatly.
I figured I would stop by and say 'thank you' to the community for all the helpful information and answers and share what I settled on in my DE adventure.
Technique:
* Face lather. I started out bowl lathering, but once I figured out how to face lather properly, I never looked back. I just soak my brush for a couple minutes, shake it out (I don't squeeze), then load the brush for about 15 seconds, apply to face, add water to brush as needed.
* I cold water/tepid water shave. I tended to get more irritation with hot water.
*2 pass shave with the grain
* Shallow angle (i.e. blade is closer to parallel /w skin)
* Blade longevity: With fresh blades, try to use minimal pressure. As blades age (around 10-20 shaves), I tend to use a little pressure or heavier razors for more cutting power without any adverse effects. Around 40, I replace the blade as it tends to have trouble consistently cutting the whiskers under my chin.
*Blade buff under chin on 2nd pass (my stubborn area, and it is not sensitive).
Weapons of choice:
* For regular daily shaving: NEW long comb or a Red Tip Super Speed.
* For cutting off 3+ days of growth: NEW SC
* Honorable mentions: Old type, any Super Speed, ball end Tech
* Blades: Personna Lab Blue since I have a 100 pack to get through. Over time I have become less picky about blades. I have a wide variety of blades, but I find that technique and experience generally trumps blade brands.
Soap: Tabac, Williams (I just use modern)
Brush: Omega 10066. I find boar brushes to be much more effective with shaving soaps, plus they're inexpensive. I have a CO Bigelow badger, but I never use it.
Preshave: Cold/tepid water
Aftershave: Pinaud products are my personal favorites (Original, Veg, VI BR, Special Reserve). Honorable mentions: Capt Choice North, Skin Bracer, Aqua Velva
Cold weather/low humidity: I use a small shaving of unrefined Shea butter as a facial moisturizer at the very end of my routine.
Have a great day!
I figured I would stop by and say 'thank you' to the community for all the helpful information and answers and share what I settled on in my DE adventure.
Technique:
* Face lather. I started out bowl lathering, but once I figured out how to face lather properly, I never looked back. I just soak my brush for a couple minutes, shake it out (I don't squeeze), then load the brush for about 15 seconds, apply to face, add water to brush as needed.
* I cold water/tepid water shave. I tended to get more irritation with hot water.
*2 pass shave with the grain
* Shallow angle (i.e. blade is closer to parallel /w skin)
* Blade longevity: With fresh blades, try to use minimal pressure. As blades age (around 10-20 shaves), I tend to use a little pressure or heavier razors for more cutting power without any adverse effects. Around 40, I replace the blade as it tends to have trouble consistently cutting the whiskers under my chin.
*Blade buff under chin on 2nd pass (my stubborn area, and it is not sensitive).
Weapons of choice:
* For regular daily shaving: NEW long comb or a Red Tip Super Speed.
* For cutting off 3+ days of growth: NEW SC
* Honorable mentions: Old type, any Super Speed, ball end Tech
* Blades: Personna Lab Blue since I have a 100 pack to get through. Over time I have become less picky about blades. I have a wide variety of blades, but I find that technique and experience generally trumps blade brands.
Soap: Tabac, Williams (I just use modern)
Brush: Omega 10066. I find boar brushes to be much more effective with shaving soaps, plus they're inexpensive. I have a CO Bigelow badger, but I never use it.
Preshave: Cold/tepid water
Aftershave: Pinaud products are my personal favorites (Original, Veg, VI BR, Special Reserve). Honorable mentions: Capt Choice North, Skin Bracer, Aqua Velva
Cold weather/low humidity: I use a small shaving of unrefined Shea butter as a facial moisturizer at the very end of my routine.
Have a great day!
