Shave of the Day - Late December

I've been slowly working my way thru a bundle of blades a friend sent me about a year ago.

Slowly because I only shave once or twice a week (blasphemous of course, but SWMBO likes the stubble), and I alternate between my 1961 Super Speed and a 1940's Tech.

Well, I've gone thru Wilkinsons, Derbys, 7 O'clocks, and... well... I was feeling a little like I had a two digit IQ or something. I could never really tell the difference between blade brands - although thankfully I could distiguish between the two razors loaded with the same brand of blade.

Finishing up a brace of 7 O'Clocks, I reached into backstock for the next candidate.

"What came to the top of the pile?" you ask?

Ya, yoo-betcha... the Feathers.

Loaded one in each razor and had at it with the SS.

"Holy SHIT, Batman!!!"

I had weepers galore, even though I'd been careful to use zero pressure. Overall, the shave was terrifically irregular - caused mostly by the shock of the operator, I'm sure.

Most of all, I felt a strong regret that I hadn't chosen the milder Tech for the first test drive.

Travel Razor

Just picked up a nice, apparently unused travel razor on eBay. If you include shipping charges, I paid more than I typically care to - about $11, but it's a nice example of a genre that I did not previously own.

Pix to follow!

(and yes, I know I still owe you better picutres of most of the summer's acqusitions)

Shave of the Day - Art of Shaving

Lisa was out at the Mall of America the other day and stumbled upon the new Art of Shaving store there. She took a quick peek inside, just to have a look around, and was rewarded with a sample package containing pre-shave oil, shaving cream, and after-shave.

Well, I tried the pre-shave and shaving cream yesterday.

I found the overall results quite satisfying - I especially liked the cream. The pre-shave oil however, was pretty odd to me. It was very heavy and sticky, which made it surprisingly hard to apply to my face.

These days I shave post-shower and the oil instructions did not say whether to apply to wet or dry skin. I made no special effort to keep my face wet, but portions were still damp from my shower. These areas seemed to be the hardest places to apply the oil.

I then rubbed the shaving cream in a thin layer over my entire beard. I followed that with the brush, face-lathering to a very nice rich creamy lather which built very quickly.

Following the lathering, I did a quick with-the-grain pass with my early '60s Super Speed.

I then rinsed and relathered, using only the lather remaining in the brush. Again, I was able to build a nice creamy lather, although it was not quite as rich as the initial application.

Following that, I did my usual second pass against-the-grain, and only needed minimal touch-ups. All in all, a very nice satisfying near-BBS shave.

My initial reaction to the Art of Shaving products is that they are quite effective, though I can't say I care unduly for the fragrance. In fairness, I did not try the after-shave, so cannot comment on that.

AD - Take Three

Another round of flea marketing and antiques at the September Gold Rush in Rochester last weekend.

I managed to escape with only a little travel razor from Germany, vintage maybe 1930's or 1940's(?) and an old porcelin shaving mug.

Pictures to follow, although the mug has already been pressed into service.

Also, my lovely wife was at the Mall of America yesterday. She noticed the new Art of Shaving store there and ducked in for a quick look. She came out with a sample pack of pre-shave oil, shaving cream, and aftershave.

I'll report on those directly as well.

More New Stuff or, "I'm Buying and I Can't Stop!"

Gold Rush Days in Oronoco, MN last weekend. This is a huge flea market / antique fair, and there's a sister show that's similar just down the road in Rochester the same weekend.

Sure enough, my Acquisition Disorder kicked in again.

In Oronoco on Friday I made off with three DE razors (1960s Super Speed with case, 1960s Adjustable with case, and a Thick Handle Tech), an Old Spice mug, and a reference book of 1000 straight razors priced and illustrated. Total spend - $19.00.

Saturday in Rochester I did even better: three razors - a nickel plated Ball-end Tech (appears new & unused, with thick paper insert showing where the blade goes, but has some pitting), a Fat Boy Adjustable, and an older gold tone Ball-end Tech in Bakelite case. Total spend - $7.00.

All razors except the 1960s Super Speed will require some clean-up. That particular razor looks to be new-in-the-case. Even has a metal pack of blades still sealed in cellophane.

Better pix to follow!

New Stuff - First Look

Lisa and I were in South Dakota in late June and early July.

As we always do, we stopped in every antique store we saw, and this is a first look at my booty.

More to follow when I get it all cleaned up.

Shave of the Day - Aug. 16

This load of Derbys is reaching the end of its life. I have one in both the Tech (which I used for this shave) and the Super Speed.

I've lost count of how many shaves I've gotten out of them - probably ten apiece.

I keep lovin' the Arko. I'm craving the fragrance!