Shaving, Wet shave vs electric

Cheers, I'll try and have a look in there, else I'll have a look at the English Shaving website.

I think a lot depends on the angle of the razor matching the blade. I bought a bulk lot of blades when I first got the razor and I found Feather best followed by the Astra then Derby.

Aesop do a metal bowl... just a simple metal bowl which you can buy independently of their shaving kit.

It's ace.

The best shaving bowl I've used.

http://www.aesop.com/uk/skin-care/stainless-steel-bowl.html

Seriously recommended. Feels right in the hand, works great at producing a lovely lather, and the brush comfortably reaches everywhere.

No idea about their brush, etc... but the bowl is superb.

That's a nice bowl.

Do you guys fine that you actually need to lather up in a bowl?

I used to use a neat little oval olive dish. Now I just soak the brush, squirt some body shop shaving cream into the centre of the brush, then lather on my face.

I always use a bowl...

Specifically one of these: http://www.muji.eu/pages/online.asp?Sec=11&Sub=97&PID=2499

Its a bit small and the lather always ends up running over the edges but I like the little grabby bit at the bottom...

Ceramic FTW - http://www.ebay.co.uk/usr/studio_pottery?_trksid=p2056016.l2559

I use a shaving cream from Taylor: http://www.tayloroldbondst.co.uk/acatalog/Shaving-Cream.html

I use to use a hard soap, and one could just lather on top of the block... but the creams are far nicer but require a bowl to get a great smooth lather.

I've tried a couple of cheap ceramic/pottery things... but never really liked the feel of them. Wanted something that was really light too so that I could travel with it, and also was looking for something with a better shape so a small bit of shaving cream went a long way in producing a lot of lather.

I saw the Aesop bowl and felt it was pretty much the perfect travel bowl, but perhaps wouldn't be ideal as my main bowl. But, having used it I now use nothing else. It's pretty much perfect for both home use and travel.

I like the stainless steel too. Thought I wouldn't, but the brushed steel is nice and easy to clean, and it's easy to see it is clean.

My current shave setup:

• Feather razor http://www.shavelounge.co.uk/feather-as-d2s-all-stainless-de-safety-razor-with-stand (with Feather blades from the same shop)
  
• Aesop bowl http://www.aesop.com/uk/skin-care/stainless-steel-bowl.html
  
• Trumper Brush https://www.trumpers.com/product_detail.cfm?product=111547301
  
• Taylors cream http://www.tayloroldbondst.co.uk/acatalog/Shaving-Cream.html
  

The stand is lovely but that's a pretty pricey razor.

My dad went nuts in a bodyshop sale years ago and bought a shit load of maca root shaving cream. He's never used it. I think I'm finally down to 1½ bottles!

Oof. The as-d2s looks incredible.

It's a lovely razor, smallish but incredibly well balanced.

I figured I could move from Gillette blades to a safety razor of good quality and that it would pay for itself in 2 years. That was 5 years ago and I'm still using the original blades I purchased with the razor and my amortized cost per shave is approaching pennies.

If I already had safety razors, then yeah... it's pricey. But as a "buy the good one from the outset" it's been a fantastic purchase.

For travelling I have a Merkur 933 http://www.shaving-shack.com/merkur-travel-razor-933cl.htm which is very small but still perfectly usable.

Wait whut? How many blades have you used in 5 years?

I get 3-4 double pass shaves out of my Feather razors before they threaten to tear my face apart.

I get 3-4 double pass shaves out of my Feather razors before they threaten to tear my face apart

Yeah, but your hair is quite thick...

Just one. It only rips open my face every time.

Kidding... Shave Lounge blades get cheaper in quantity: http://www.shavelounge.co.uk/10-feather-double-edge-safety-razor-blades

So I bought 20 packs, to give 200 blades, and am using them less frequently than I used to as I like the perfect close shave and generally let a 2mm stubble grow... so it's 1 shave every 3-4 days, and 3-4 double pass shaves per blade.

I've got about a third to a half left... not sure, what's in the cupboard is from memory. I guess that's what.... just over 100 blades in 5 years? At what was £2.75 per 10.

Ah. That makes sense. I'm almost out of blades so your timing is excellent.

I'm back to shaving every other day as the blonde ones are turning grey, and not in a would look cool like @jonny kind of way.

wut?! I do 3 passes with feather and I have to shave every 4/5 days ! Blade only lasts 2 or 3 shaves ..

Well that makes sense.

3-4 double pass shaves = 6-8 total passes
2-3 triple pass shaves = 6-9 total passes

Lasts the same amount of passes as we have said.

Science.....

I am pretty elegant...

ha. cheers dude. reckon you have to give it a try.

Anything longer than 2 days growth and there would be a vote for Chrexit.

phew! I thought I was a freak ..

Read through this thread and inspired to give shaving with a traditional razor a go. I've just got a bad feeling I'm going to cut my face to shit...

@JamesNQ As others have said Taylors from Bond street soap I use the avocado one as it has the added oil, aloe vera is another good one. Run some hot water in the sink and drop the razor in to warm through at the bottom for a bit - before you do anything!, I do that while I get the coffee on, just a nice touch. I think it doesnt shock the skin as much either. I don't use a brush to put the foam on preferring to lather on my face as its more controllable. 3 - 4 strokes, then a rinse. Blades cost bugger all, but people also forget you can flip them over and use the other face of the blade when the edge gets a bit tired. Two schools of thought, some say a heavy razor is more steady, but I like the controllability of a lighter handle. I use a Parker 79R which really does have a superb balance. You get the hang of nailing the "Prince moustache phenomenon" under your nose after a bit. Good luck! When we were younger my brother and I got passed a wash kit from my mums first husband. The safety razor in it we nicknamed "old faceripper" so the handle makes a load of difference. Amazon have a good range of Parkers.

Recommendations for cheap but reasonable double-edged blades? I tend to leave it so long between shaves that I'm often only using a blade for one or two shaves (and that's mainly just tidying up my beard) before switching it so Feather ones are a bit pricey and unnecessary for that.