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Natterings of a Nasal Barbarian

jgreenepa said:
View attachment 66066
SOTD FRIDAY MORNING, NOVEMBER 5, 2021

Edgar Allan Poe was a wastrel, a substance abuser and an incredible burden to his stepfather, John Allan, a Scotsman, of the Richmond, Va. Import/Export Mercantile Firm of Ellis and Allan, established in 1800, who became a naturalized citizen in 1804. He and his wife took young Poe in following the death of his mother, Olivia Poe, in 1812. She was an opera singer and friend of Allan’s wife. In 1815 Poe accompanied Allan and his wife to England where he managed the export of British products for the firm, returning in 1820 following the Panic of 1819 which eventually led to the failure of Ellis and Allan in 1824.

Nevertheless, this giant stubtail Sheffield blade 8/8 survived from that hallowed firm as an unsharpened blade blank until 2021, when it came under the capable ministrations of Mr. Glen Mercurio (GSSIXGUN), proprietor of the well known Sandpoint ID razor beauty spa. Glen restored, honed and clothed the blade in bone scales using custom period beehive brass washers and pins. It is one big honkin’ chunk of steel, but is incredibly well-balanced in hand, and delivers an excellent mug shave as it did this morning in two and a half passes, leaving yours truly surprisingly smooth.

My friend, David Place, a well-respected collector of vintage shaving arcana and a fine southern gentleman, always had great things to say about his favorite vintage safety razor, the Ronson, after listening to me rant about my beloved Shake Sharps. So I bought one well over a year ago on his recommendation and have not regretted the purchase. Both razors were designed as thrifty, self-sharpening alternatives for the thicker carbon steel DE blades of the 1930s, and both became moot with the advent of thinner, sharper non-proprietary, stainless steel blades. In any case, my two pass ATG dome shave with my Ronson safety razor this morning was terrific and left me velveteen smooth from noggin to shoulders.

RAZOR: Ellis & Allan Stubtail 8/8 (Mug), Ronson Safety Razor (Dome)
BLADE: Schick Proline B-20 Injector (Dome)
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a scrub with Argan Oil
BRUSH: MrEE LE Aluminum Handle SynBad Knot #005
SOAP: Mitchell’s Wool Fat
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by a rinse with Humphreys Lilac WH. Finished with Williams Aqua Velva (Spanish Version).
Click to expand...
Great background story, Jeff. Thanks for posting it.
 
jgreenepa said:
View attachment 65876
SOTD WEDNESDAY MORNING, NOVEMBER 3, 2021

I had a very enjoyable lavender shave a few days ago. Since SWMBO left early this morning for the office, I decided to repeat the experience in the newly cleared migraine-free zone. I retrieved my tub of Mike’s Hungarian Lavender from our condo last weekend, and decided to pair it this morning with Chatillon Lux Lavender Toner. The soap, probably because it was stored for well over a year, maintained only a faint lavender scent. Two drops of lavender essential oil restored the scent nicely.

The mug shave featured my second shave with the new Gipson Katsumi 14/13. It is a beautifully crafted homage to the Saito SK series of Japanese razors by the extremely talented Andrey Shpakovskiy of Gipson razor. Andrey is a star seller on Etsy which means he possesses only 5 star ratings. And there’s a reason for that. This razorsmith from Kiev builds superb shaving tools.

The Katsumi is the latest and largest new artisan razor in my den; it is so well balanced in hand that it is a joy to shave with. After this purchase, a number of friends have bought from Andrey as well and the response is uniformly positive. He goes out of his way to ensure that his customers are happy with their purchase. He now has a second example of this beautiful razor for sale. My two and a half pass mug shave with mine this morning checked all the boxes.

The dome shave that followed featured my favorite adjustable razor. The Rex Ambassador on 6 for my first ATG pass is a straight shaver’s ideal safety razor. The blade feel is amazing. It feels almost like a straight, and needs to be treated with focused respect as the gap feels even wider than my Karve G plate. My second pass at 4 put the baby to bed and left your very happy narrator porcelain smooth from the top of my noggin to the bottom of my neck. The Chatillon Lux Lavender Toner was the icing on the cake.

RAZOR: Gipson Katsumi 14/13 (Mug), Rex Ambassador (Dome)
BLADE: Feather DE
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a scrub with Argan Oil
BRUSH: Kent Infinity Synth
SOAP: Mike’s Hungarian Lavender
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by a rinse with Thayers WH. Finished with Chatillon Lux Lavender Toner.
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Very nice shave with cool gear, Jeff! Lavender is one of my favorite scents. Mike's Hungarian Lavender is on the "buy" list once I complete my no-buy in mid-January. I may decide to bask in Lavender while @JTSpartan serves out his 30-day sentence in the Tabac Big House. Naturally, he'll be in solitary confinement as his Bride will disown him for the month. :ROFLMAO:
 
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SOTD SATURDAY MORNING, NOVEMBER 6, 2021

Closing a pool this late in the season is not a lot of fun. The problem was scheduling a Saturday when my 21 and 18 year old grandsons would both be available to help. SWMBO and my Kildare have both forbidden me from doing anything other than supervising. This is the first time I haven’t done it all myself. As my grandfather used to say, “this age shit ain’t for sissies”! Fortunately, they both arrived by 7:00 AM ready to work. Unfortunately, I had SWMBO standing behind me to prevent me from pitching in. As the years passed, what used to take me about about an hour had stretched out to almost 2 1/2 hours. My grandsons finished in 30 minutes, leaving me time for a shower and an awesome shave.

This morning’s mug shave featured the new-to-me Filarmonica 13 Novodur. This razor at approximately 6/8 falls right into my sweet spot. The first thing I always do whenever a new straight arrives is to assess the flatness of blade and the sharpness of the edge. The Filly arrived from Japan a few weeks ago flat as a pancake and popping styrofoam. It had a buttery smooth edge which my son, Ben, touched up on his prized Uchigomori stone. Experienced open edge shavers always instruct new straight shavers to imagine they are just wiping away the lather. Well that’s what this morning’s 2 1/2 pass mug shave felt like leaving this old man’S mug delightfully smooth.

Yesterday’s noggin shave with the Ronson safety razor was very good. My friend David really enjoys using that razor, but he’s not a dome shaver. The Ronson does a decent job on the noggin for me, but it pales in comparison to any of my three Shake Sharps. My absolute favorite is the Bakelite handled Model 1, but there’s really no difference in shave quality between it and either my nickel or gold plated metal handled Model 2’s. The G.E. Jones Shake Sharp is the only SE I know of that takes an unmodified DE blade. I like to stack two DEs in the razor, which emulates the very slightly thicker carbon steel DE blades of the thirties the razor was designed for. I’ve never cut myself with this razor, and this morning’s two pass ATG dome shave maintained the razor’s rep leaving me velveteen smooth from noggin to shoulders!

RAZOR: Filarmonica 13 Novodur (Mug), G.E. Jones Shake Sharp (Dome)
BLADE: 2 Stacked Feather DEs (Dome)
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a scrub with Argan Oil
BRUSH: JR Rosewood Silvertip Badger #377
SOAP: Mitchell’s Wool Fat
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by a rinse with Humphreys Lilac WH. Finished with Pre de Provence Bergamot & Thyme AS Balm.
 
jgreenepa said:
View attachment 66066
SOTD FRIDAY MORNING, NOVEMBER 5, 2021

Edgar Allan Poe was a wastrel, a substance abuser and an incredible burden to his stepfather, John Allan, a Scotsman, of the Richmond, Va. Import/Export Mercantile Firm of Ellis and Allan, established in 1800, who became a naturalized citizen in 1804. He and his wife took young Poe in following the death of his mother, Olivia Poe, in 1812. She was an opera singer and friend of Allan’s wife. In 1815 Poe accompanied Allan and his wife to England where he managed the export of British products for the firm, returning in 1820 following the Panic of 1819 which eventually led to the failure of Ellis and Allan in 1824.

Nevertheless, this giant stubtail Sheffield blade 8/8 survived from that hallowed firm as an unsharpened blade blank until 2021, when it came under the capable ministrations of Mr. Glen Mercurio (GSSIXGUN), proprietor of the well known Sandpoint ID razor beauty spa. Glen restored, honed and clothed the blade in bone scales using custom period beehive brass washers and pins. It is one big honkin’ chunk of steel, but is incredibly well-balanced in hand, and delivers an excellent mug shave as it did this morning in two and a half passes, leaving yours truly surprisingly smooth.

My friend, David Place, a well-respected collector of vintage shaving arcana and a fine southern gentleman, always had great things to say about his favorite vintage safety razor, the Ronson, after listening to me rant about my beloved Shake Sharps. So I bought one well over a year ago on his recommendation and have not regretted the purchase. Both razors were designed as thrifty, self-sharpening alternatives for the thicker carbon steel DE blades of the 1930s, and both became moot with the advent of thinner, sharper non-proprietary, stainless steel blades. In any case, my two pass ATG dome shave with my Ronson safety razor this morning was terrific and left me velveteen smooth from noggin to shoulders.

RAZOR: Ellis & Allan Stubtail 8/8 (Mug), Ronson Safety Razor (Dome)
BLADE: Schick Proline B-20 Injector (Dome)
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a scrub with Argan Oil
BRUSH: MrEE LE Aluminum Handle SynBad Knot #005
SOAP: Mitchell’s Wool Fat
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by a rinse with Humphreys Lilac WH. Finished with Williams Aqua Velva (Spanish Version).
Click to expand...
What a fantastic historical recap! I always enjoy reading your journal my friend - And learn something new every day. Have a fantastic Saturday!
 
jgreenepa said:
View attachment 66199
SOTD SATURDAY MORNING, NOVEMBER 6, 2021

Closing a pool this late in the season is not a lot of fun. The problem was scheduling a Saturday when my 21 and 18 year old grandsons would both be available to help. SWMBO and my Kildare have both forbidden me from doing anything other than supervising. This is the first time I haven’t done it all myself. As my grandfather used to say, “this age shit ain’t for sissies”! Fortunately, they both arrived by 7:00 AM ready to work. Unfortunately, I had SWMBO standing behind me to prevent me from pitching in. As the years passed, what used to take me about about an hour had stretched out to almost 2 1/2 hours. My grandsons finished in 30 minutes, leaving me time for a shower and an awesome shave.

This morning’s mug shave featured the new-to-me Filarmonica 13 Novodur. This razor at approximately 6/8 falls right into my sweet spot. The first thing I always do whenever a new straight arrives is to assess the flatness of blade and the sharpness of the edge. The Filly arrived from Japan a few weeks ago flat as a pancake and popping styrofoam. It had a buttery smooth edge which my son, Ben, touched up on his prized Uchigomori stone. Experienced open edge shavers always instruct new straight shavers to imagine they are just wiping away the lather. Well that’s what this morning’s 2 1/2 pass mug shave felt like leaving this old man’S mug delightfully smooth.

Yesterday’s noggin shave with the Ronson safety razor was very good. My friend David really enjoys using that razor, but he’s not a dome shaver. The Ronson does a decent job on the noggin for me, but it pales in comparison to any of my three Shake Sharps. My absolute favorite is the Bakelite handled Model 1, but there’s really no difference in shave quality between it and either my nickel or gold plated metal handled Model 2’s. The G.E. Jones Shake Sharp is the only SE I know of that takes an unmodified DE blade. I like to stack two DEs in the razor, which emulates the very slightly thicker carbon steel DE blades of the thirties the razor was designed for. I’ve never cut myself with this razor, and this morning’s two pass ATG dome shave maintained the razor’s rep leaving me velveteen smooth from noggin to shoulders!

RAZOR: Filarmonica 13 Novodur (Mug), G.E. Jones Shake Sharp (Dome)
BLADE: 2 Stacked Feather DEs (Dome)
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a scrub with Argan Oil
BRUSH: JR Rosewood Silvertip Badger #377
SOAP: Mitchell’s Wool Fat
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by a rinse with Humphreys Lilac WH. Finished with Pre de Provence Bergamot & Thyme AS Balm.
Click to expand...
I’m slow on the draw this morning! Thought the last post was Saturday!

I have a solution - keep the pool open - this affords two distinct opportunities- heated pool with snow all around - you’d be the talk of the neighborhood! Only downside is a $1000/month heating bill - we all have to make sacrifices 😅

A cheaper option - don’t heat it - but you can have polar bear swims!

1636206821604.jpeg

I am a problem solver my friend. this time I mean it have a great Saturday!
 
Scuttlesoap said:
I’m slow on the draw this morning! Thought the last post was Saturday!

I have a solution - keep the pool open - this affords two distinct opportunities- heated pool with snow all around - you’d be the talk of the neighborhood! Only downside is a $1000/month heating bill - we all have to make sacrifices 😅

A cheaper option - don’t heat it - but you can have polar bear swims!

View attachment 66201

I am a problem solver my friend. this time I mean it have a great Saturday!
Click to expand...
It’s an idea, Brian! We actually have a heated spa by the side of the main pool which we’ve kept open until Dec in prior years, but it’s just too cold or we just aren’t as robust as we used to be, which is the actual case.
 
jgreenepa said:
It’s an idea, Brian! We actually have a heated spa by the side of the main pool which we’ve kept open until Dec in prior years, but it’s just too cold or we just aren’t as robust as we used to be, which is the actual case.
Click to expand...
I’ll tell you what - I’ll come over for the winter spa - and won’t charge - we need to add the eucalyptus experience!
 
jgreenepa said:
I didn’t think it gets too cold in Atlanta! My bride dreams of Tybee Island. I suspect we’ll eventually stop renting it out and move into our home there full time. These winters are getting harder and harder to handle.
Click to expand...

It’s too cold for us in the winter. We don’t mind the heat but anything below 50F starts getting cold for us. I imagine we will end up near the girls for part of the year and Florida for the remainder of the year.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Bill M said:
Wish I had a nickel for every time I got hoodwinked into working those kind of deals for donuts or pizza when I was that age.
🍩 🍕
😃
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The older one got a case of Guinness,and the younger two safety razors and three soaps I never used, Bill. I‘m pretty much only using MWF, Castle Forbes, Nancy Boy and A&E Shave butter or Kaizen. MWF 90% of the time.
 
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SOTD SUNDAY MORNING, NOVEMBER 7, 2021

This morning I shaved with one of my favorite vintage razors, the Manhattan Cutlery 13/16, restored magnificently about a year or so ago by David Work. John Newton opened ‘Manhattan Works’ at 11 Arundel Lane in Sheffield, England in 1887 as a cutlery manufacturer for export to the United States in the factory first opened by Arthur Lee & Son in 1861. Their razors developed quite a following for the quality of their edge. If you can get your hands on one, I’d encourage you to do so. Mine is just a magnificent shaving tool that always delivers as it did this morning in two and a half passes leaving yours truly’s mug porcelain smooth.

When I grabbed my Eclipse Red Ring, another Sheffield shaving tool, adjusted for its most efficient noggin shave I knew I was slated for the same quality of dome shave as I’d just experienced on my mug! The Eclipse Red Ring designed and built by James Neill who founded ‘James Neill and Co.’ in 1889 in Sheffield and produced during the early 30s had two patents and was incredibly innovative for its time. One was for the razor itself and the second for the magnet at the base of the handle, designed for picking up dropped DE blades safely. Two ATG passes put the baby to bed and left your very pleased narrator baby bum smooth from shoulders to dome.

RAZOR: Manhattan Cutlery 13/16 (Mug), Eclipse Red Ring (Dome)
BLADE: Feather DE (Dome)
PREP: Cold water rinse followed by a scrub with Argan Oil
BRUSH: JR Cashmere Synth Knot #343
SOAP: Mitchell’s Wool Fat
POSTSHAVE: Cold water wash with brush squeezings followed by a rinse with Humphreys Lilac WH. Finished with William’s Aqua Velva AS Splash (Spanish Version)
C9DB430C-0344-4999-BDF2-E57224BAF028.jpeg
 
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