Wednesday SOTD Thread - June 14, 2023

Prep: Hot Shower - Preshave
Brush: Zenith /r/Wetshaving MOAR Boar 🐗
Razor: Schick Eversharp I1
Blade: Schick - Injector (10)
Lather: Stirling Soap Co. - Deep Blue Sea Soap
Post Shave: Noble Otter Soap Co. - Northern Elixer Splash
Post Shave: Zingari Man - AS Balm Unscented

A damn nice shave on a Wednesday and always a plus when the wife gives the sniff test and a smile. Have a great day all!

Razor: Gillette 1958 TV Special
Blade: Shark Super Chrome
Brush: Vie-Long #13051M
Pre-Shave: O Way Softening Shaving Cream
Lather: Mike’s Natural Soaps Orange, Cedarwood & Black Pepper
Aftershave: Barber No3 Marmara
Additional Care: Alum Block & Barbossa Organic Sandalwood Beard Oil

A citrusy and woodsy Wednesday morning shave. The combination of a horse hair brush with stiff backbone and a shave stick makes for a exfoliating shave, leaving my face both clean shaven and very soft.

My favorite scent from Mike's.
- It reminds me of orange soda. This is not a bad thing :)
This is the first time I've heard someone say something good about Vie long horse brushes. You would recommend it?
- Are there other horse brushes that you've seen recommended? I think this is the first I've seen listed on any SOTD, but I haven't done this very long.

14 June, 2023

Brush: Maggard Razors - 30mm Synthetic
Razor: GEM - Pushbutton
Blade: GEM - PTFE (8)
Lather: Barrister and Mann - Latha Sandalwood - Soap
Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Sonder - Aftershave
Fragrance: Noble Otter - Monoi de Tahiti - Eau de Parfum

Lather: Folk Soap
Brush: AP Shave Co G5C 24mm
Razor: Gillette Tech
Blade: ASCO Platinum (2)

Overall a very nice shave. The ASCO Platinum was just as smooth as the first shave but a little less sharp. It hadn't lost anywhere near enough sharpness to make the shave uncomfortable, but it didn't feel quite as sharp as last time, also worth considering that I was using it in a different razor so that may be the cause.

I posted about this soap last time I used it on R*ddit. It's the only shaving soap made by Folk Soap in Wales. I bought it through Etsy. For me I find it to be a good soap. Very slick and produced a good lather.

Razor: Gillette NEW Deluxe
Blade: Wizamet
Brush: 28mm Motherlode
Lather: Declaration Grooming - Southern Paradise
Aftershave: Declaration Grooming - Southern Paradise

Let's see how many times I can use this software before I get bored and switch things up.

Let’s see how many times I can use this software before I get bored and switch things up.

This is the way.

Jun 14, 2023 - Witchcrafts Wednesday: Revisiting the Wolf

Prep: Klar - Activated Charcoal - Face Soap
Brush: Wild West Brushworks Matador 26mm Sweet Spot Badger Knot
Razor: Aylsworth Razors Drakkant Plus
Blade: Gillette Platinum [8]
Lather: Southern Witchcrafts - Lycanthropy - Soap (Vegan)
Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Summer Storm - Aftershave
Song: Vivaldi - Four Seasons: Summer

Lycanthropy was among the first artisan samples I tried, and I've never been a fan of Lycanthropy. The scent notes: fir tree, lilac, musk, mildew, moss, Egyptian jasmine, palo santo, white sage, and ozone.

I was going through some samples yesterday and I came across it. I gave it a whiff on a whim, and to my surprise it was nothing like what I remembered. I found myself craving a shave with it.

Maybe over time the problematic scent notes in the soap have subsided, or maybe I've grown to appreciate some of the scent notes that originally gave me issues. Either way, I'm really surprised by how much my opinion of this scent has changed for me.

What scents have been like that for you?

Rating: 4.5/5

I was pretty excited for Noble Otter/APR - Texaus when it came out, but when I first got my hands on a set I thought the scent strength was weak and was a bit disappointed and couldn't really pick up on the various notes listed. Over time my love for it grew and I killed the tub of soap but fortunately I still have more than half the splash left that I'm enjoying slowly.
- Texaus is on my list of unobtainium to track down and try.

June 14, 2023

Brush: Stirling 24mm Synthetic
Razor: Baili BD179 TTO
Blade: Personna Platinum Chrome (1)
Lather: Chatillon Lux/Declaration Grooming - Unconditional Surrender - Soap
Post Shave: allMan - Fearless - Aftershave
Post Shave: Korres - Saffron Spices - Balm

June 14 2023

Brush: Omega 11137 boar
Razor: Muhle Rocca R95
Blade: Derby Premium (3)
Lather: Stirling - Barrister and Mann - Famine
Post Shave: Stirling - Catie's Bubbles - Blugere
Fragrance: Tom Ford - Ebene Fume

I really enjoyed the scent of Famine this morning and I wish I had picked up a set of one of the Four Horsemen series when they went on clearance; I bet this smells really nice in splash form, but also because I'm almost done my only full tub of Omnibus. Oh well.

I was trying hard to GRUYE when the Horsemen rode. They broke me, though, and I ended up getting a tub of Death on sale.
- What do you think of it? The reviews panned it.

June 14, 2023

Brush: DS Cosmetic Jade Tuxedo 24mm
Razor: Headblade ATX
Blade: Personna Twin Pivot (14)
Lather: Stirling Soap Co. – South Padre

Finding a good soap for a chilly morning in the spring should not be difficult.

Stirling South Padre is where I’ll be in my mind today.

Perfect lather, perfect scent, perfect shave.

Every time.

Zen.

South Padre is great, but it doesn't always get a lot of love.

6/14/23

Brush: Muninn Woodworks w/ 24mm Manchuria Fan
Razor: Puma 75 5/8, Full Hollow Square Point
Lather: House of Mammoth - Sonder
Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Sonder Aftershave Splash
Fragrance: House of Mammoth - Sonder EdP

Today is going to be the sunniest day of the week. A perfect day for Sonder. Sonder is one of those scents that immediately lift my spirits. It is a damn fine scent.

This is my last shave with the Puma, is I've gotten a good offer for. Time to search for a 7th again. Woe is me.

Time to search for a 7th again.

You definitely need a Heljestrand in your life. :)
- Ooooh good suggestion!

🐺 Wolf Wednesday 🐺

Brush: Wolf Whiskers 26mm Maggard Razors SHD Badger Fan
Razor: Wolfman Razors WR2-DC 0.95 SB / 1.25 OC
Blade: Voskhod (12)
Lather: Chiseled Face - Woody Lavender - Shaving Soap
Post Shave: Stirling Soap Co. - Gatlinburg - Aftershave
Fragrance: Barrister and Mann - Lavender, Interrupted
Passes: WTG, XTG
Coffee: Colombia. Vereda Santa Rita, Manizales, Caldas - v: Geisha - p: honey, 48-hour fermentation, dried on raised beds
Music: Jess Williamson - Time Ain't Accidental

Trying samples of the new lavender hotness(es). I'm not a big lavender fan, generally speaking, but I love me some Lavanille.

Love it when SOTDs include music.
- I like being able to flip back through my SOTD log (just a markdown file) and see what I've listened to the last few months.

SOTD Super-Speed Wednesday 14 June, 2023

Prep: WDCB.org Chicago’s Home for Jazz
Prep: Warm Shower
Brush: Omega HI-Brush 146206 25mm Synthetic
Lather: Chiseled Face Midnight Stag 1st of 10 samples (5 shaves so far)
Bowl: Linkidea Shaving Bowl
Razor: 1957 Gillette Flair Tip Super-Speed
Blade: Shaving Revolution Platinum Series (10)
Post: Nivea Men Maximum Hydration Moisturizing Post Shave Balm
Post: Pinaud Clubman After Shave Lotion

Yesterday’s Ball-End tech left my skin a bit more tender than I first thought. I’m lucky today is Super-Speed Wednesday. I find the Super-Speed to be a very mild razor. But this razor’s “mild” comes with less efficiency. DFS, not BBS. I also pulled out my bowl to see how the Midnight Stag would lather up. I may have used more Stag than needed, but between the Omega and the bowl, I whipped up a lather that looked as good as any I’ve seen in any SOTD photo. This was a truly pleasant shave, and I have to admit the Stag is growing on me. I’m eyeing Chiseled Face’s Guy Noir. Mmmm, tobacco.

Have a great day, everybody!

Stag has a way of doing that. Next thing you know you'll be using it for the whole month of August.
- I'm not sure I have that much left. Maybe after I get through all ten samples, I'll include this one in my reorder. These CF soaps could easily become my favorite brand.

June 14, 2023 – The Great Spice Off – Mystic Water Windjammer

Brush: Omega 11126, Ovangkol Wooden Handle
Razor: Rockwell 6S
Blade: Personna Platinum Chrome (1)
Preshave: Baxter Shave Tonic
Lather: Mystic Water – Windjammer
Post Shave: Old Spice – Indian

Knocking one more Spice Off out before the Lather Games come rolling into town and I need to put everything on hold. Windjammer has been on the list since the start but I’m just getting around to it. Off the puck and when lathered it’s an Old Spice scent, but I overwhelming just kind of get “soap” from it. I’ll see if my nose is being more open with the following shaves. I got it in a tub but the soap oddly comes not smushed into said tub, just in a wrapped puck inside the tub. Little weird.

After have to concentrate with every stroke using the Focus I found the Rockwell to be almost too easy, especially on the second pass when I honed the lather in a bit better and found a great slickness.

June 14, 2023

Brush: Semogue 1460 21mm
Razor: Razorock Game Changer .84
Blade: Gillette Platinum (8)
Lather: Stirling Soap Co. – Varen
Post Shave: Thayers – Rose Petal
Fragrance: Chatillon Lux - 1904 - EdT

My first Lemmy SOTD post! I think Lemmy uses the same markdown as Reddit, so hopefully this is formatted right.

It is formatted correctly! Welcome!

Jun. 14, 2023

Brush: Yaqi 26mm Synthetic
Razor: Karve CB OC C
Blade: Astra SP Green
Lather: Spearhead - Sea Ice Lime - Soap
Post Shave: Spearhead - Sea Ice Lime - Aftershave

Great shave.

June 14, 2023

Preshave: Shower, wet face
Brush: Zenith r/wetshaving sub exclusive MOAR BOAR
Razor: CJB Kamisori Shavette
Blade: Feather Pro Guard (1)
Lather: Barrister and Mann - Fougere Classique - Soap
Post Shave: Barrister and Mann - Fougere Classique - Aftershave
Post Shave: Declaration Grooming - Unscented - Liniment

This was my first time using a Shavette. It went fairly well. I like the AC blade format. It's more rigid than an injector, but less bulky than a GEM. It was awkward trying to figure out how to hold the razor and which hand to use to shave in different directions in certain spots, particularly my neck. I also have trouble knowing where the blade is going to line up when shaving my sideburns near my ears. I did 2 1/2 passes. A socially acceptable shave is good enough for a first time.

Was it more intuitive than you expected it would be? I certainly found that to be the case the first time I tried a straight, figured I'd have to pay in blood.

Rather than try to perfect your technique for your neck and everywhere I'd suggest you just use it WTG on your cheeks and wherever it seems straightforward initially and finish up with a safety razor. Reason being that it takes some repetition to build up muscle memory and you're learning a new thing here, especially with your non-dominant hand, so it's good to to get those neurons all linked up before you attempt the tricky bits. For the same reason you'll probably do best if you consistently incorporate it into your next several shaves to lock it in.
- I've attempted two shaves with a straight razor. They didn't go well. I had trouble getting it to cut. I don't think my razor is sharp enough. I found it tricky to grasp the tang. The scales get in the way. And, the width of the blade makes it tough to match to the contours of my face and use in areas that require fine control.
  
  I felt more confident going into this. I know what AC blades are like. I've used them in a RazoRock Hawk V2. I watched a bit of someone shaving with a shavette on YouTube, beforehand. Compared to the straight razor, it's smaller, more nimble, easier to grasp, the blade is narrower, and I was working with a sharp blade this time. I found the angle easily and the blade did the work. It did feel intuitive. I'm curious to see how much of a difference non-guarded blades would make.

Somewhat Hung Over Morning Shave

A Durham Duplex razor on a white girl towel leaving against a bottle of Carpathia soap next to a tin tub of Klar Charcoal soap and an Executive Shaving Co Medium Jock brush

Prep: Klar Activated charcoal facial soap
Razor: Durham Duplex Set
Blade: Ever Ready Compact Hair Trimmer
Lather: Klar Kohle
Aftershave: Southern Witchcrafts Carpathia toner

Yesterday's meet'n'greet went a bit overboard, but I still managed to wake up in time for a British travel shave with a ~~British made~~ US made (fail!) Durham Duplex razor and a full English breakfast. Other than falling in the Britishness department, I had a great shave.

I managed to find a moment to visit Jermyn Street, a.k.a. the home of Geo F. Trumper, Taylor of Old Bond Street, Floris, and almost home of D.R. Harris, too, and I broke my soap acquisition moratorium for a tub of Geo F. Trumper Rose. More on that tomorrow.

June 14, 2023

Brush: Maggard's SHD
Razor: Weck Sextoblade
Blade: Kismet
Lather: Blades Grim - Smolder
Post Shave: Noble Otter - The Noir et Vanille

This is the third time I've done a two pass shave with the Weck, and have avoided bleeding. I'll take that as a win.

June 14, 2023 - UnAlive

Brush: Yaqi Dandelion Green 24mm Cashmere
Razor: Karve CB C Solid Bar
Blade: Gillette 7 O’Clock Super Stainless Green (9)
Lather: House of Mammoth - Alive
Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Alive Splash

Today is my first kill of a tub of soap. This was my Austere August soap last year, and I would guess I got 50+ shaves from it. Maybe even 60 shaves. So, it’s 1 out and 3 in? Probably not, but there is a Mammoth hole in my den that is begging for Dammusi. It is not to be. I have to watch my expenses until my wife is better, and we get a bit of savings again. I do still have a full other tub of Alive. Not enough was left today for the Moar Boar, but just enough to get a decent quantity with this soft synthetic. Decent shave, but the blade is on the downslope now. No going for a bbs with this blade in a razor, but still capable of moreshaves.

Now that Alive is dead, I can rotate other Mammoth scents in each week.

Congrats on the first kill. Alive was my AA soap last year as well and I killed the tub some time last year after AA.
Congrats on the kill!

Jun. 14, 2023

Prep: Hot Shower and CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser
Brush: Chisel & Hound Mighty Duck v19 Fanchurian SHD Badger
Razor: Karve Christopher Bradley SB-C
Blade: Astra Green (3)
Lather: Spearhead - Seaforth! Fleur de France
Post Shave: T.N. Dickinson’s - Witch Hazel
Post Shave: House Of Mammoth - Z (uncool) - Balm
Fragrance: Imaginary Authors - Telegrama

June 14, 2023

Preshave: Proraso Green Preshave
Brush: Semogue C3 Galahad Horse 🐎
Razor: GEM MMOC
Blade: Personna GEM PTFE (9)
Lather: Abbate y La Mantia Marduk
Post Shave: Mennen Le Grand Large
Post Shave: Nivea After Shave Balm

It's hot, and this seems to be the hot day shave combo.

Have a good night!

June 14, 2023

Brush: Brad Sears Arley 26mm Super Badger
Razor: Dovo Bismarck 6/8" Full Hollow Round Point (Straight Shave 253)
Lather: Summer Break Soaps - Wood Shop - Soap
Post Shave: Thayers - Lavender - Toner
Post Shave: Summer Break Soaps - Wood Shop - Aftershave

3 passes. Face lather. Excellent shave.

This shave didn't come around until the third pass. Again, I did three quick passes instead of two more deliberate ones. After the second pass, I was thinking that the edge on this razor had gone off but my result is BBS so I guess all is okay.

This was my second use of Wood Shop. Very nice soap base and an interesting scent.

6/14/2023

Brush: $3 Yaqi Defect
Razor: Gillette Slim Adjustable
Blade: Astra SP Green
Lather: Arko stick

Woo, I think this might be the first time I ever SotD'd two shaves in a row!

Razor: Klas Tornblöm 11/16 (11)
Lather: B&M Fern
Brush: Muhle 23mm Synth

I like this razor quite a bit (Swedish, shoulderless, thin bevel, etcccc...) and this edge has more shaves on it than almost any of mine (I went a bit overboard in my enthusiasm to try every permutation of straight and I enjoy honing so most have less than half a dozen as I gradually try to tweak every edge in a sprawling collection). It still has a ...crispness? and cuts well but somehow winds up a tad less efficient but I'm curious how far it goes before it really drops off so I'm trying to resist refreshing it just yet. And there is a bit of detail I might dedicate a post to if I get a few.