Fine shave with discoveries
Today’s shave went very well, including some novelties.
First, the Mühle synthetic fiber brush is clearly from a different process than the other synthetic “artificial badger” brushes I have from TOBS, Omega, and men-ü. The bristle ends don’t have the silvery “exploded” appearance and the loft is not so much, so that the Mühle is somewhat scrubbier. Withal it is a very pleasant brush to use, held ample lather for a three-pass shave, and worked up a Creamy Lather from the Queen Charlotte Green Irish Tweed Type soap with no problem. Indeed, its action reminds me of some of the Vie-Long horsehair brushes I have—specifically, the little number with which I first got a Creamy Lather.
In the Wicked_Edge Reddit group I posted yesterday my impressions of the Feather blade (gets nicky as the edge goes) and how the premium Feather stainless razor seemed to tame the Feather blade. And then I realized I haven’t really used a Feather save in that razor for a long, long time, and perhaps it’s not that the razor has some special magic, it’s merely that my skills have improved. So I decided it was time for a return to Feathers in my other razors, and I started today with a new Feather in my Edwin Jagger DE87. (The model number appears nowhere on the page at the link, only in the URL in the address bar. This is an innovative approach to Web design, maximizing screen real estate by using the address bar to include information for the page. — I am being ironic and annoyed, in case that is not evident.)
I had no problems at all with the Feather, from which I deduce that it is not close to the end of its life. Yet. I shall continue. In the meantime: a fine, smooth three-pass shave, and a good splash of Pinaud Coachman, an aftershave not easily found and gifted to me by a kind gentlemen on one of the shaving forums. It’s a fine aftershave, and like all the Pinaud fragrances nowadays has an old-timey aspect, I imagine simply because fragrance styles have evolved and the Pinaud dates back to my father’s and grandfather’s time, it seems. Great stuff and highly appropriate since I am getting to be old-timey myself.
I used the feathers exclusively for about 1 year and although I enjoyed it at first, I noticed that I was getting nasty razor bumps on my neck (I think it was cutting too close there). I think your book said the Gillette 7 O’clock was the next sharpest and the problem has gone away with them.
J Dogg
13 July 2011 at 7:38 pm
I stopped using them after I noticed I would get random nicks that I didn’t get with other brands. But we’ll see. I’ll give a good go with this Feather and see what happens.
LeisureGuy
13 July 2011 at 8:21 pm
I wouldn’t be surprised if your random nicks decrease significantly since you have mastered Creamy Lather.
Gogo
14 July 2011 at 8:03 am
Interesting thought. At any rate, it’s almost certainly due to skill improvement—and probably both skills: wielding the razor and making the lather. As one practices a skill, the improvement is (I imagine) in all aspects—e.g., in playing the violin, practice improves bowing, fingering, rhythm and timing, and so on.
LeisureGuy
14 July 2011 at 8:14 am