My first DE shave concluded...

[Austinoire]

So today was the day. I had aquired all of the basics, a razor, blades, soap and a brush. I woke up around 8:30 am and sat everything out, excited, but hopefully about my new path to a better shave..

I had purchased a mini gift set of White Birch and tobacco butter from Burlington Coat Factory. So, it wasn't a puck, nor really cream. It all ready had the yogurt consistency in the jar. It smelled more menthol than anything. No idea what white birch smells like, and the tobacco smell was faint. I then pulled out the synthetic brush that came with the gift set and wasn't impressed..

I picked up my Shave Factory (Derby) razor bought from Sally's Beauty Supply and dropped it onto the tile floor. Should have taken that as a sign, but I inspected it and saw nothing wrong (as if I could tell) and proceeded. I placed the razor and the brush in my mug filled with warm water and took a shower.

After the shower I began. I took a dime sized mount of the cream with water and placed it is the mug and tried to work up a lather .It only made the cream more milky. Another bad sign. No matter how much I tried no lather. I checked the directions. Which were of no help. I finally stuck the brush directly in the cream and applied. I then realized this was possibly a brushless soap. I remembered a few guys mentioning that slightly in the limited reviews I had found online, but never processed what that meant to actually applying it. It proceeded to lather my face and head with the shaving soap. The smell was very minimal. The brush was able to lather ok. But, sadly I could get the blade to catch on my skin. I was able to shave without incident. I didn't have any nicks or cuts, mostly because I followed all the advice of light pressure, but the blade never really came into contact to cut any facial hair (which I had a 3-4 day growth of). Then, it happened, the cream started to run down my head into my eyes. Which made me ask should I be doing my face and head at the same time, or should it be done separately? So, now looking like Carrie (minus the red color of blood) with milky white goo running down my head into my eyes, distracting my rhythm while applying a sharp blade to my face and head-Ah, living the dream! I decided to power through, but sadly had it running down my neck to my chest and stomach. It was a bloody mess, especially compounded by the fact I didn't see any hair in the sink after each rinse. Thus, I was not impressed with the.Personna.blade (a last minute substitute from the Astra). It seemed to sit to far in and not set out far enough. Will definitely consider upgrading to VDH, Astra and possibly Feather blades-hell anything else, maybe a rusty soup can lid.

I had planned to do 2 passes WTG only (remember it my first time). But after the 2nd pass left me with a goatee stubble (under the nose, mouth and chin) and virtually no hair removed from the back of my head. I finished and went to take a nap, but couldnt sleep, bexause I needed to address this. So, I got up and did one final pass against the grain and not duplicating the messy disaster of earlier got mostly all of the hair that remained. I still had some very light hair on my cheeks. But, I felt it was good enough as I concluded I would also need to refine my technique by much more practice. It was the closest shave I have had in a long time.

Immediate takeaways: I got over my anxiety of having the blade contact my skin (when it did) so that's gone. The knowledge that my face has many more subtle contours than I knew, but thankfully no cuts or nicks occured. .That I need to do more research on the selection and use of my tools and products. Next, it can only get better. Lastly, I've got to play the long game and the goal is to improve.

So all in all, not dissuaded, just a lot discouraged, because I thought I had prepared well for my first time-not even close: "Beware mileage may vary". I'll be doing it again, but I don't know if I'm suppose to shave everyday or when I have growth after a few days. I did feel manly, but the little girl in me died a messy death to achieve that.

[ShadowsDad]

Well, you walked away from your first blade shave, that's a plus. The angle that the razor is held at is critical to having it work. Examine the geometry of the blade and the various parts of the razor head and you'll see what I mean. The less aggressive the razor the more critical the angle. It sounds to me as though you weren't in that critical window where the razor works.

But since you aren't waiting to get out of the ICU there can be another shave tomorrow.

BTW, that's one of the, IMO, huge advantages of a vintage SE razor that uses a spine back blade. They talk to you to tell you that it's working. If it doesn't speak it's not working and that's a clue to try a different angle.

You'll get the hang of it though.

[CMur12]

What Brian said. Keep at it and you'll get the hang of it. The important thing is that you got started.

Right now it's all brand new to you. Each shave will make it a little less so, and then you'll start to get it. Don't give up!

- Murray

[nicodemus38]

the use of the VDH razor is good. the use of anything else from VDH is well asking for trouble.

[jww]

Patience, practice and long-suffering all pay off in both rearing children and wet shaving.