Rethinking Lather

Just when you think that you have found the perfect combination something comes along that upsets your perfect world. I had pretty much settled on VDH Luxury soap with their shave oil as a great combination that gave me close shaves and a great feel during the shave and afterwards. I will admit that this was with a Gillette Silver Blue blade in a Lord razor.

Ladas Super Stainless

However this past week, I switched over to a Ladas super stainless blade in the Lord razor and the soap and oil combination bombed! After a three pass shave I could feel stubble and a lot of places that just didn't clean up right. Frustrated, I originally thought that the Ladas blades were junk and about to toss it out in favour of another blade. As I was showering before my shave I started thinking about the cushion that the VDH soap gives me. Just what if I were to try something different? Something with a little less cushion?

My first impression of the Ladas stainless blade was that it was not very sharp. More like a Derby but without the Teflon coating. What if I gave the blade a little less cushion, and more of on opportunity to "grab the pavement" a little? Well, it was the end of a nice hot day, and I decided to throw caution to the wind and pull out the C.O. Bigelow shave cream and my bottle of Shave Secret.  I'm not really a big fan of Menthol products, but the thought of using them that night sounded pretty good.

C.O.Bigelow

After the shower, I got everything out and proceeded to wet my face. I then rubbed the palms of my hands together to get them both slightly wet. I then added three drops of Shave Secret to the palm of one hand and then lightly rubbed them together. I then rubbed it in the stubble. Three drops was more than enough to get a nice menthol feel going. I wet my Maggard synthetic brush and put about 3/8" ribbon of C.O. Bigelow onto the end of the brush. Since I am a face lather guy, I took this and gently pressed the end of my brush all over my face and neck several times to get the cream applied to my skin. Then I started the face lather and added water as needed to get the lather built up.

I went for my traditional three pass shave trying not to do anything different in the way I shave. I could feel the menthol kick in. It felt pretty good after a hot day, and my skin was feeling refreshed. After I was finished and was washing off with hot then cold water I noticed that my skin felt slick and smooth. Much different than with the VDH soap. I then applied the Pinaud Clubman original aftershave and then the Nivea balm for sensitive skin and headed off to the living room. Within a half hour when the shave started to settle down, I was feeling a perfectly smooth shave that was as good as any I could have asked for. No irritation, no razor burn, just smooth, soft skin with a menthol coolness about it.

As I was sitting there, I was thinking that for my skin and beard conditions, I need to always match the blade with the soap that I use, For those blades that are sharp and not as smooth I need a lot of thick cushion to protect my skin from the sharpness. When I use blades that are not as sharp or have a lot of smoothness to them, then I need a soap (or cream) that does not have as much cushion so that the blade has better contact with the skin and doesn't "ride" over it because it can't cut through the cushion. Pre-shave oils are the same. If your oil is thick it just adds to the barrier that the blade must cut through whereas a thinner oil like Shave Secret adds the slickness needed, but without the licker barrier.

It's all about the blade! Having various soaps, creams and oils on hand is a good thing. Match them accordingly. A blade that doesn't shave good with one soap may be the perfect blade with another! And that's the beauty and fun of DE shaving!

The Importance Of Pre-Shave Oil

Shaving oil? I for one would never use shaving oil by itself as some products claim you can do. Not with my sensitive skin! However I do use shaving oil every time I shave and it proves to be a great additive to get a good comfortable experience.

"That's all you need!"

I saw a video made by a company that sold shaving oil and as I watched the guy shave with it I thought "What a mess, And it has got to hurt!" At the end of the video, he said "such and such shaving oil. That's all you need!" and he was smiling like he had won the lottery. So one day, while I was at Wal-Mart, I picked up a bottle of Shave Secret. I thought, for three bucks why not give it a try.

Shave Secret

Shave Secret is a shaving oil that is promoted as a stand alone product that will give you perfect shaves without shaving cream. Three or four drops rubbed into your stubble is all that is needed before you shave (so says the directions.) If you need more lubrication just add water or a couple of more drops of oil.

Well, I was game (or lame) and gave it a try. The first time I added five or six drops and applied it to the face. After a couple of WTG passes I knew I had made a mistake. This stuff just didn't work for me like it was advertised to do. I pulled out the shaving soap and finished the shave. Funny thing is, when you look at Amazon, it has hundreds of 5 star ratings. All it did for me was pull the whiskers, give me razor burns and cuts. Not a pleasant shave. Disillusioned, I put it away in my drawer.

As a pre-shave

After a couple of months I began to think about it as a pre-shave. After I got out of the shower I applied three or four drops to my finger tips and rubbed it in. I let it sit there for about a minute or so as I got things ready for the shave. When I lathered up and started shaving I paid attention to the feel and if it was making a difference. I should say it did. The first WTG pass went a lot smother and the tugging was significantly reduced. I didn't bother to reapply between passes because at that time, the majority of the growth was removed.

I finished my shave was really happy at the way my neck and chin felt. It was as if nothing had been pulled out of the skin as I shaved. I started making it a part of my daily shaving routine ever since.

Does it really work?

Somersets

The only thing I can say about how it works (at least for me) is that when applied to the beard growth, it saturates the beard and leaves it oily slick on the outside and it seems on the inside as it penetrates. Not all oils seems to penetrate. Just those that are thinner and have a menthol, eucalyptus additive. At least that the way it feels for me. Since then I've picked up a bottle of  Somerset' s oil and routine use it in rotation with the shave secret. It is a little more expensive, but the menthol content is higher and the oil a little thicker. Both work great.

One evening, I was running late and had to do a quick shave and so I skipped the pre-shave oil and went straight to the lather and shave. I knew I was in trouble. The blade grabbed the whiskers and pulled as it cut. It was very noticeable, right down to the last pass. Afterwards, my skin was sore, and the razor burn was more noticeable. The extremely sensitive part of my neck reminded me all day that I had made a terrible decision by avoiding the oil.

The next day, I went back to the pre-shave oil and shaved with the same blade. I came away with a baby bottom smooth shave without irritation. Never again will I shave without the pre-shave oil.

Not a time killer

I am always trying to think of ways to reduce the amount of time I spend on the shave. Some guys can stand in front of the mirror for a have hour and clutter up the sink with all kinds of things that take forever to clean up and put away.  If it adds any significant amount of time, I don't do it. I'm a night shaver and just don't have the time to devote to vanity. I want a great, close shave as quick as I can get it. For me the goal is ten minutes from the time I pull my shaving gear out of the drawer until the last item is cleaned and put away.

Application of the oil takes just a few seconds and the "soaking in" time is about a minute. After I shower, I apply the oil and then use this time to get dressed,  comb the hair and get out the soap and razor. When it is all said and done, the few seconds spent is well worth the investment. The best thing about Shave Secret and Somersets is that it doesn't gunk up your razor or brush or leave your face with an oily feel. Just baby smooth and pain free.