Big Daddy is back! Wearing a new set of ebony scales: http://drmoss.ca/Web%20Images/Big%20Daddy.JPG I was surprised to see and feel the large step between the wedge and the scales (easily visible in the photo), which have not been sanded into contiguity on a wheel, and the sharp and catchy rivet wor...

Interesting articles on stock-making. Since I principally cook for a vegetarian, I don't get to make chicken stock, and fish stock is pretty much only good for fish dishes, so it comes to vegetable stock, which is hard to make very tasty as the umami-quality is lacking unless you make a special effo...

I have never lived in France or Quebec. The freshest croissants I have ever had are probably those made by the kitchens at The Royal York, and they may have been an hour or two old; cold, dry and chewy. Yet I kept hearing about people who felt it worth the effort to arrive at the door of the patisse...

I'm not sure I'd recommend this more than once - I started last night at 8pm, and got up at 4am to finish the job. Very shortly these will be gone, with the help of a pot of home made marmalade!



I followed the instructions in this video:

What a good idea!

My Livis are from ~2005 - 2010. I have no complaints about them, although they aren't the easiest blades to sharpen. That stainless steel is tough in the technical sense. I have read mutterings that the Maestro has passed on the blade-making to his (?)son, and that more practice and experience is ne...

GA Russell wrote: ↑

Fri Feb 15, 2019 7:00 pm

I remember seeing Tony Randall discuss this concept with David Letterman. He said that for every famous shibboleth there is another one that says the opposite.

*****
(snip)

If you like proverbs, you'll enjoy this story: The Proverbial Murder Mystery.

There are many many versions of damascus steel used in straight razors, so you'll have to give some thought to what you're looking for. There's pre-made billets of Swedish stainless damascus as used by Maestro Livi, all the way to traditionally made carbon steel damascus as made by Tim Zowada, and a...

Pauldog wrote: ↑

Sat Feb 09, 2019 6:00 pm

What does the extra width (or whatever you call that dimension) do for the shave?

It goes through neck vertebrae more easily.

http://drmoss.ca/Web%20Images/IMG_6424.jpg http://drmoss.ca/Web%20Images/IMG_6449.jpg http://drmoss.ca/Web%20Images/IMG_6452.jpg http://drmoss.ca/Web%20Images/IMG_6459.jpg http://drmoss.ca/Web%20Images/IMG_6462.jpg 17/16, quarter hollow, O1 steel, round point, Honduran rosewood, mammoth ivory wedge...

There's definitely something that can happen to soaps that might match that description. I have a drawer full of old Woods of Windsor shaving soap, which I like for its tallowy goodness. But I also like the scent and have used some as bath soaps. Either way, it makes less and less lather as time goe...

The paradox is this: the razor isn't as sharp, but the resulting shave feels smoother and lasts longer. The explanation is that the straight edge frays the tips of the cut hairs, making them less spiky and softer to the touch. You see the same thing with less aggressive DE blades compared to super s...

...so I've honed and stropped a TI 5/8 Super Gnome half hollow. Had a very comfortable two pass shave with it, sterilised, re-stropped and oiled the blade. The oil can be very lightly and carefully wiped off the edge before use, but it's non-toxic and won't do any harm if you leave it there. It is a...

That's no good at all. Don't judge what a straight can do by that experience. Let's see what we can do...

Thank you; I never knew the old watery stuff, which was excellent, was ever in a pump bottle.

Suggestion? A lifetime's worth! 1. We don't know how good a job your honer did. He may be excellent, he might be average. 2. Dovo razors are common, and sort of OK, but none of us who are really into straights use one as our principal or favourite razor. So even if your honer is very skilled, he mig...

Has it been reformulated a second time? With the original (rose scented) Shaving Milk, the best sort was thin and watery and came in a glass bottle, and this was replaced with a homogeneous creamy goop that came in a pump bottle exactly like the one in your photo. I didn't care for that one, being a...

Please, one question mark or one exclamation mark at a time. And no repeated vowels for emphasis. I'm serious.

I was thinking this morning about Eucris "Hairdressing" (OK, I'm going to kick off on some grammar. "Hairdressing" exists as the present participle of what those who dress hair actually do. As a noun, no. That would need a space to make "Hair" and "Dressing" two separate words. I suppose this arose ...

I believe that if it is checked baggage it will be OK. As for alcohol-based aftershave, if it is expensive and rare I'd take only a small volume in some suitable sample-type container: if confiscated it won't be such a disaster.