Shaving recipe for today.
Prep: Hot shower:/ L'OREAL ~ Hydra Power Mountain Water Shower Gel.
Pre:
Cold wet flannel to my face.
Pears ~ Transparent Lemon Flower Soap. / Bloom Water.
Brush: Vie-Long ~ Horsehair.
Face Lather.
Soap : Bath House ~ Spanish Fig & Nutmeg.
Blade: Personna ~ Gem PTFE coated 'Modified'.(1)
Razor: Valet ~ Auto strop VC1.
Post:
Thayers ~ Rose Petal Witch Hazel./ Boots ~ 'Freshwood' ASL + Balm.
Greetings,
Carrying on with the cold water shaves,which have been a tonic for my mature rhino type skin...
A new shave set up to start the weekend with a double maiden shave using a vintage Razor & shaving soap.
The Valet Auto Strop VC1 which i bought as a pre- birthday present to myself, after a quick 5 minute soak in near boiling water to remove any nasties ,then a careful clean with dettol anti-baterial soap & a toothbrush,and finally rinsed then a gentle polishing with a clean cloth,and few drop of wahl hair clipper oil to the moving parts to the razor,i was going to give it a quick soak in cold water/barbicide mix, but decided not to as i wasn't sure if it would have a reaction with the coating..besides the near boiling water & anti-baterial soap will have removed any living germs.
The verdict?..Absolutely superb!..After watching a great youtube demo from 'Fuzzy Shaves'
how to modify a gem blade for the razor, which worked excellently after a quick hand strop to remove any hidden burrs or imaginary ones from the blade edges i fitted it into the valet VC1 and was ready to start the shave..I really like Fuzzy's approach to traditional wet shaving giving 'straight to the point' no-nonsence superb practical advice, i also like his humour too.[emoji38]
The only trepidation i had in my mind was the amount of blade appearance, which to a maiden shave user looks daunting, but as i'm familiar with the Ever Ready SE vintage razors..these daunting thoughts soon dissappered. I found my shaving angle after a few seconds and was instantly in charge and at ease with this vintage lady...However,like any other razor vintage,modern aggressive or non-aggressive was worthy of no pressure and much respect considering it's blade gap,If not it'll bite you!...
Over the easter break i visited my local tkmaxx store, purely just to a browse, my inquistive nature attracted me to the mens toiletries section of which i saw the Bath House shaving soap with a sale sticker on it for £4.50p, so as a easter gift to myself i purchased it , not sure if it was going to be any good, but for that price i had nothing to lose if it wasn't i could always use it as a shower soap.The verdict? ...My first impressions are it's a thirsty soap, after a 5 minute bloom in warm tap water then loaded up with my damp horsehair it It took me a few attempts to get it to the consistancy of what i like, but i got it after a few minute and was rewarded with a excellent lather in no time, adding a good amount of water to the tips of the brush in between each pass,leaving a superb post shave feeling to my face.
The soap is similar to MWF, of which i like very much, it's fragrance to my nose is a very pleasant 'Spicy' scent,will be a great autumn/winter soap, but i will use it if and when i please not just for the colder months of the year.
A wonderful addition to my humble shaving soap collection.
A very comfortable 3 pass + pick ups near bbs maiden shave with no errors to report.
Finishing the shave off with a generous dollop of Boots ~ 'Freshwood' Aftershave Balm.
My face is feeling super smooth and smelling devine.
Enjoy the start of the weekend, ladies & gentlemen.