Thread: The first shave!

Well, after much stress and questions about the honing of my Dovo Ebony Spike, I went ahead and tackled my first shave. After watching Lynn's DVD, I had my shower, lathered up, and began to strop - 15 linen, 30 leather. Relather, and I was ready to go. Seeing as I keep a beard, my two cheeks and my neck were the areas to tackle.

So first, the positives ...

1) No nicks! Even with that spike, I made it through 100% blood free!
2) That spike tip lets me cut a nice line... I don't think my beard has ever looked so sharp.
3) I stuck with WTG, and my wife's reaction on feeling my face was "Ooooooh.... I could get used to this."

And now, the negatives ...

1) I have a wicked swirl of hair on my neck, so that's going to take some figuring.
2) Right handed... left cheek is HARD. Left handed... left cheek is VERY HARD.
3) A couple of tiny little fuzzes at the turning points on the strop ( I turned spine down, I think it was tiny hesitations at the turn)
4) After my shave, I gave my blade a quick wipe on the towel... and I noticed a tiny thread stuck an inch from the spike. Upon closer inspection, there is a very tiny nick. I gave it another 10 on the linen, and then 10 on the leather... it didn't mark the leather at all. I'm not sure if it was there before (I'm going to assume no seeing as it was honed from Classic), but I have no idea when I did it. I don't notice it at all while shaving, so we'll see next shave.

All in all, I'll call it a success... and I'm already sold!

~m

Congrats on your first shave.I'm glad it was a pleasant experience.As your confidence grows,you'll find it easy to attack your various beard idiosyncrasies.I use both hands and have from the beginning,but if the one handed method works-keep at it.

Success with a Str8 razor is very satisfying.Once you realize that you aren't going to cut your throat when the steel touches your skin it really becomes fun. Hopefully you'll look forward to your next shave.

Well done!
What a fantastic first experience! Don't let it make you ****y with the blade though, or it may come back & bite you in the...er...face.
Enjoy!

Ben

CVongrats, Merit! My first was positive too. Buut it is so different you can't compare to any other shaving experience..

It is good to hear that your first shave went well and without blood. Do keep your styptic pencil around though- eventually you will become complacent or hesitate for a moment at the wrong angle. I actually just caught the skin on my Adams apple last week and realized that I have misplaced my pencil. While I was certainly not gushing blood it is a bad feeling to realize that you have no way to stop the bleeding.

I am happy to hear that you are giving the spike a shot. It is an unforgiving tip and you do need to watch it, but if you are keeping some facial hair it is the best thing that there is.

UPDATE: So... I didn't listen to the advice about letting your face relax for a day or two. I shaved again this morning. My cheeks said, "Another shave? Awesome!" My neck... well, I think I mentioned I have a swirl of hair there. Styptic pencil came in handy today from the shave bumps at the swirl.

All in all, went easier today: I was more comfortable with the razor. I LOVE the spike tip even more. But now I'm REALLY going to let my face rest for a day or two :-).

Nice, congrats. As you get comfortable, remember to slow your roll when you get to problem areas, lips, chin, etc..

Originally Posted by Ditch Doc

Nice, congrats. As you get comfortable, remember to slow your roll when you get to problem areas, lips, chin, etc..

The best part is, those are the areas that are currently covered with beard.

Originally Posted by ben.mid

Don't let it make you ****y with the blade though.

Ben

****y is not offensive in that context! Might be that i'm in England though, & it isn't used in that way over there. It isn't even derived from the offensive meaning of the word. Made me laugh that it got censored!

Congratulations, sounds like too much pressure, but it gets better with practice