Starting DE for the first time

Ed-Belfast

Ed-Belfast

Messages
173
Hi all!

I'm Ed, I'm a 34 year old from Belfast.

I've had a beard for the past three years or so, which I've kept trimmed with a Philips one beard. Before that it's been the world of Gillette cartridge razors since I was about 14.

One of the things I liked about the one blade was price, 12 quid a year to keep it in blades was certainly saving me money.

So once I started getting fed up with beardedness, I looked into how I could do things properly without breaking the bank. DE seemed the way to go.

For now I've picked up a Muhle R106, personna blades and some Taylor of old Bond Street sandalwood cream from the folks at Executive Shaving.

I've already an old Body Shop shaving brush kicking about that I used to use with a bar of dove soap, back when I used cartridge razors. I'll see how I get on with it.

Bowl wise, you'll likely laugh but I just grabbed a small steel cat food bowl from the local pet shop.

The stuff arrives on Monday so I'll see how I get on with it. I'll be sure to go through a nice long prep process with warm water, lather up well, and shave carefully without pressure and let the weight of the razor do the work.

I'll likely be asking for some advice here, probably on a replacement synthetic brush which is good without breaking the bank! Any thoughts on those “jock” ones by Executive Shaving?

All the best

Ed
 
Hello and welcome Ed, you seem to have everything in hand, will you be using aftershave lotion or perhaps an alum block?
I'm sure the "jock" brush will be just fine although im sure you will get more advice as your post recieves reply's . Good luck and be sure to let us know how your first DE shave goes. :) p
 
Welcome to TSR, Ed!

If you're after a good value synthetic brush and don't want to order direct from China, you can't go wrong with the Simpsons Trafalgar - T2 or T3 (T3 being the bigger one).

This is also an excellent brush:
www.ebay.co.uk

Yaqi 24mm Knot Purple Haze Mew Brown Synthetic Shaving Brush R1738-S | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Yaqi 24mm Knot Purple Haze Mew Brown Synthetic Shaving Brush R1738-S at the best online prices at eBay! Free delivery for many products.
www.ebay.co.uk
 
Welcome to TSR Ed. Im also from Belfast and one thing I will say is we're lucky the Internet exists...not a single traditional wet shaving shop in the whole of Northern Ireland we can go to and see items first hand and get a feel for razors, brushes etc.

Enough of my moaning. Plenty of knowledgeable people on here (I'm not one of them) who will keep you right.

Happy shaving.
DC
 
Ed-Belfast said:
Hi all!

I'm Ed, I'm a 34 year old from Belfast.

I've had a beard for the past three years or so, which I've kept trimmed with a Philips one beard. Before that it's been the world of Gillette cartridge razors since I was about 14.

One of the things I liked about the one blade was price, 12 quid a year to keep it in blades was certainly saving me money.

So once I started getting fed up with beardedness, I looked into how I could do things properly without breaking the bank. DE seemed the way to go.

For now I've picked up a Muhle R106, personna blades and some Taylor of old Bond Street sandalwood cream from the folks at Executive Shaving.

I've already an old Body Shop shaving brush kicking about that I used to use with a bar of dove soap, back when I used cartridge razors. I'll see how I get on with it.

Bowl wise, you'll likely laugh but I just grabbed a small steel cat food bowl from the local pet shop.

The stuff arrives on Monday so I'll see how I get on with it. I'll be sure to go through a nice long prep process with warm water, lather up well, and shave carefully without pressure and let the weight of the razor do the work.

I'll likely be asking for some advice here, probably on a replacement synthetic brush which is good without breaking the bank! Any thoughts on those “jock” ones by Executive Shaving?

All the best

Ed
Click to expand...

Welcome to the forum Ed, the recommendation for a Yaqi synth can't really be beaten - it's the brush of choice for many here.

As for the cat food bowl for a shaving bowl, good thinking, some guys use a travel dog's water bowl as a shaving bowl as well.

If you're looking for advice for shaving I'll try and keep it short, get a good lather (when it's been prepared it should be like whipped double cream/yoghurt), shave with the grain (the direction of your growth) and apply no pressure.

I'd also recommend getting an alum block (get a cheap one for a few quid off Ebay) for nicks/weepers.
 
Thanks folks. Solid recommendations already!
I'll definitely have that brush on my list. It'll be interesting to see how often I can get away with shaving with a DE. With cartridges daily shaving absolutely ruined my skin with ingrown hairs.
Dcshaves said:
Welcome to TSR Ed. Im also from Belfast and one thing I will say is we're lucky the Internet exists...not a single traditional wet shaving shop in the whole of Northern Ireland we can go to and see items first hand and get a feel for razors, brushes
Click to expand...
[/QUOTE]
Yeah isn't that crazy? There was that wee shop in Joys entry that had a handful of shaving products along with watches and stuff, but nothing in the league of a dedicated shop.
I have a wee styptic pen coming from Amazon tomorrow at some point. Hopefully I'll not be using it too much.

Thanks for the tips and the welcome folks!
 
Hi Ed, welcome along. Bowl lathering is probably the best way to learn how to make a good lather. you can get a good feel for water ratio, look and feel of a good lather. Meringue type peaks, Is what you're looking for with a glossy/greasy appearance. I started this ways but quickly gravitated to face lathering only. It ultimately saves time, but your skin and bristles benefit from the agitation of building up lather and the softening of the bristles during The process.
Yaqi brushes are very well regarded, as are brushes from AP Shaveco https://apshaveco.com/
Tuxedo knots are excellent, but Synbad & Cashmere knots are a delight. Incredibly soft tips and will lather any product effortlessly.
You can get a phenomenal brush for around £20 delivered.
Stick to a few products for now, while you learn, and enjoy the journey.
 
Welcome to TSR Ed.

Don't worry about the bowl, I've used many types that weren't dedicated shaving bowls.

Razor, for a beginner I think an adjustable razor are ideal, you learn to find what aggressiveness works for you best.

Blades, here is where you will probably spend more time trying to find the best for you. I wouldn't buy those mixed blade packs, they have two or 3 decent blades and the rest is garbage... in my experience. Read the forum instead and see what people are actually using.
Brush, I've seen the brush you have and I wasn't really impressed to be honest with you. The body Shop do a very good shaving cream though, Maccaroot and something... excellent stuff.

Get the technique right and remember, no pressure, let the razor do the work.

Good luck
 
Drew71 said:
Hi Ed. Get ready to remortgage your house. :LOL: :LOL::LOL:
Click to expand...

Well I have two kidneys and I hear you can get by on one lol!

Jest aside I'll try to keep things reasonably centred. Not bargain basement, but not lavish either. I already have some pretty expensive addictions to coffee, hiking kit and craft beer. My wife would surely despair if she saw me going to town on shaving gear.


Merkurologist said:
Welcome to TSR Ed.

Don't worry about the bowl, I've used many types that weren't dedicated shaving bowls.

Razor, for a beginner I think an adjustable razor are ideal, you learn to find what aggressiveness works for you best.

Blades, here is where you will probably spend more time trying to find the best for you. I wouldn't buy those mixed blade packs, they have two or 3 decent blades and the rest is garbage... in my experience. Read the forum instead and see what people are actually using.
Brush, I've seen the brush you have and I wasn't really impressed to be honest with you. The body Shop do a very good shaving cream though, Maccaroot and something... excellent stuff.

Get the technique right and remember, no pressure, let the razor do the work.

Good luck
Click to expand...

Thank you! I take it from the name you're a man for the Merkur?

One of the mild beginner razors I was logging at was a Merkur, but aided with the Muhle in the end.

On blades, I got a small qty of the personna ones, so if they don't work out I'll be fine to try a few more. My local pharmacy stocks Wilkinson Sword blades, so they'll be hassle free to try.

You're right about the brush. There's no getting around it, it's stuff and wiry. When I bought it I was travelling all over Europe for work and only ever brought hand luggage. My entire grooming kit involved a compact toothbrush, travel toothpaste, a bar of soap for hair, body and shave combined, with that brush to lather up, and a cheap cartridge razor. I got some surprisingly good shaves with it all things considered, but I really had to spend time on prep.

Thanks to the guys here I've already picked up a Yaqi. Very reasonably priced. Should have it next week some time!
 
You won't regret the Yaqi. Getting my Yaqi Sagrada Familia was the best shaving-related thing I've ever done.

And if you find shaving tricky to begin with don't be disheartened and keep at it - it takes a lot of practice. I'm getting there slowly!
 
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