And the theme for this particular shave was 'What is a DE?'
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Double Entry - Ikon B1 SB
Doubtful Entities - Gillette Rubie
Dark Energy - Czech and Speake No.88 soap
Delectable Entrails - Yaqi Dandelion
Delightful Enema - Hawkins and Brimble
Dog Ends - Czech and Speake No.88
'And then I came up with the formula E=DE
2. Then realised I'd got it slightly wrong. Dreadful error.'
There in the back of the shaving armoury vault lies a couple of sadly neglected DE razors. There is a third but my 'Birth Year Fat Boy' (a nameful reflection of myself) sits on display in my cubby hole for bits of shit.
@Rob998 knows where it is as he often steals from there.
My shaving world over the past year or two has mainly revolved around SE razors in my endless quest for SE Zen in the art of shaving. But ocassionally I feel the need to remove the neglect and give the DE's a run. After all the Ikon B1 is the razor I raved about for long enough as being the pinnacle of the term 'close'.
Voila ici
Firstly team soap. The Dandelion is a lovely piece of cheap brilliance and a very easy to love item. I think the days of it being the Welsh national flower have been lost in the past. It is a very nice leak green though. The C&S 88 has no problems lathering and a nice quality mass of shaving medium quickly appears. The only negative I can place against it is the lack of that superb 88 rose scent. In fact it is rather more like a cardboard scent if such exists. A kind of eau de thick brown paper.
On to the razor itself. I was rather surprised that despite not having used the Ikon for a while the old muscle memory still remained and it didn't take long to fling around merrily. For an object which is basically one piece of vicious shit in the world of razors it can certainly be a smooth operator if you give it respect. There is a lot of Blade on display here and in this case a new to me Gillette Rubie. My final verdict on the blade is still up in the air. I can't say it is the best I have used in the Ikon and the Lodz is a far better act. But I will give it a second chance later in the week and see if my single mindedness can be swung. Overall a very welcome return with the B1 and end results are as to be expected. A close and smooth finish like few other DE's I have met but with a few weepers which I am going to put down to the blade.
I think my general thoughts though are that I am glad to have gone down the SE route. For me they deliver quality shaves in a fraction of the time and there is something more confidence inspiring about them. And less shitting about with blade choice.
The 'Big But'
Despite my love for being single (bladed that is) I still can't think of any razor in my little world which gets as close as the B1 even if it does push the boat a little. It sort of teeters on the edge of sensible and irrational, skin and no skin. To be sensibly rational I would never shave my nads with it.
'And I will cut your fucking bollocks off'
So I shall end this shave on something a little more spiriting than an angry lady with castrative thoughts. In fact..... I will end as usual with some pretty Japanese ladies. What more could the world ever want?