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Not quite Music City USA

Up at 4:30? Time for a shave!

Prep: Hot shower, Musgo Real Lime Glyce Soap
Razor: Gillette NEW SC
Blade: Vokshod (2)
Brush: Simpson Chubby 2 Super Badger
Soap: MdC Original
Post-shave: Humphreys Maravilla
Aftershave: Nivea 2 in 1 (first use)
Talc: Borotalco

All these NEW shaves lately inspired me reaching for my SC. It's a great razor, although I think I prefer the LC for its greater efficiency. It was a good four pass BBS shave, so no real complaints. I tried out the Nivea 2 in 1, and feared that I used too much and that it would leave my face oily, but it absorbed quite quickly. Not sure about the scent, but it doesn't last long at all. I like it. It certainly leaves my face feeling soft and smooth. I was worried the talc might not go on right because of it, but those fears were unfounded. All in all, a great shave from start to finish, and I've really dialed in how to get a first rate lather with MdC. It rinses clean, and though it may not leave my face feeling moisturized like, say, Kaizen, CK-6, or Sego, it's still a super slick lather that's obviously going to last forever.

Thanks for reading and have a great shave!

Frank

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Another very early shave. I tried an Astra SP in the Fatboy and really liked it.

Prep: Hot shower, Musgo Real Lime Glyce Soap, Proraso Green Pre-shave cream
Razor: Gillette Fatboy
Blade: Astra SP (1)
Soap: Ariana and Evans Kaizen
Brush: Yaqi Sagrada Familia
Post-shave: Humphreys Maravilla
Aftershave: Swiss Pitralon
Talc: Borotalco

I broke out the Kaizen today because it is in a drawer right in the bathroom and there's no doubt it's a great soap. I didn't even mind the scent. Too much, anyway. Everything else about the soap is superb. I wanted a substantial but wet lather, and it provided that. So very slick! As it does in every razor I own, the Astra SP was smooth and plenty sharp. I'm very happy I splurged on 500 of them when they were $6/100 a few weeks back. Blades are something I may never need to buy again. That's possibly true of soap, but I'll probably keep trying out the new stuff that sounds interesting, and any classic stuff I'd like to experience (A new tube of La Toja gets inaugurated tomorrow). The Sagrada Familia, which I'm assuming is named after the Antonio Gaudi Cathedral for some reason, is a great little brush. I now have 5 synthetics, and they each have their strengths. The Thater is firm for hard milled soaps, the two PAA are unwieldy, but with rose petal soft knots, the Tech Hive has the perfect knot for me with a non-favorite handle, and this brush has a knot that's just a little small, but with the perfect handle. I hate to have missed out on the SV brush, but the time wasn't right money-wise. I'll soften the blow with a Simpson Duke 3 in ordering on Tuesday. I have to say, I'm really into the Simpson brushes since my Chubby 2 has turned out so wonderfully. I haven't had the misfortune of getting a shedder. Enough late night/early morning rambling for today. My shave was great and I'm feeling really good.

Thanks for reading all this, and have a great shave!

Frank

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What a pleasant shave today!

Prep: Hot shower, Musgo Real Lime Glyce Soap, Proraso Red Pre-shave cream
Razor: Paradigm Diamondback
Blade: Personna Israeli Red (1)
Brush: Simpson Berkeley 46 Best Badger
Cream: La Toja (first use)
Post-shave: Humphreys Maravilla
Aftershave: Nivea 2 in 1
Talc: Borotalco
Fragrance: CK One

La Toja is one of those products that's always been around, and highly regarded that I'm finally getting around to trying out. I don't use creams as much as I did years ago - so many soaps! But I finally got a stick and a tube and tonight I tried it out, mystic mineral salts and all. It's very lightly scented, and it's a nice scent. I could've used more, but that's a minor gripe. It made plenty of very rich, slick lather and felt good on my face. The Personna Red in the Diamondback is a winning combination, and for the first time in a couple of days, my shave was completely irritation free. I got a fine, four pass BBS shave. I enjoyed everything about it!

Thanks for reading and have a great shave!

Frank

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk
 
Nice shave Frank. It may be a bit but I will have a Diamondback coming to me in the future to give it a spin. Your posts have certainly had me curious if it would be a winner for me.
 
Dave in KY said:
Nice shave Frank. It may be a bit but I will have a Diamondback coming to me in the future to give it a spin. Your posts have certainly had me curious if it would be a winner for me.
Click to expand...
Thanks Dave. To me it's the optimal razor. Smooth, efficient. Balanced but not too heavy. I get great shaves with it.

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La Toja is a great, classic soap! I’ve only used the shave stick version myself. I imagine the cream is good too though!
 
GearNoir said:
La Toja is a great, classic soap! I’ve only used the shave stick version myself. I imagine the cream is good too though!
Click to expand...
I really enjoyed it. Light scent but a very rich lather and plenty slick. I'm happy with my purchase!

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A terrific shave with the Krona this morning after a great night's sleep!

Prep: Hot shower, Musgo Real Lime Glyce Soap, Proraso Red Pre-shave cream
Razor: Schick Krona
Blade: Astra SP (2)
Brush: Simpson Duke D3 Best Badger (first use)
Soap: Mystic Water Brown Windsor
Post-shave: Humphreys Maravilla
Aftershave: PAA La Tierra Mojada
Talc: Borotalco

I may very well have found my dream brush. I got a Simpson Duke 3 in Best Badger, and it is pretty much everything I want in a brush. The backbone, light scritchiness, density, knot size, are all in my wheelhouse! I imagine it'll soften a bit as it breaks in, and there are a couple of other Simpsons I want to try out, like the milk churn, but I really couldn't ask for more than what this brush delivers, so that's very cool. I used it to whip up a beautiful lather with MW Brown Windsor - one of the many soaps with a scent I really like, but am loathe to describe. MW soaps are so terrific! They smell great, and really perform. The Krona gave me a smooth, effortless BBS in four leisurely passes, with not a whit of irritation. Best of all, I slept through the night and am awake, refreshed, smell great thanks to the La Tierra Mojada, and ready to face the day! Shaves like this are really the perfect way to start the day off right!

Thanks for reading and have a great shave!

Frank

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Got up really early this morning, so I dove into a sublime shave.

Prep: Hot shower, Musgo Real Lime Glyce Soap, Proraso Red Pre-shave cream
Razor: Gillette Fatboy on 7
Blade: Astra SP (2)
Brush: Simpson Berkeley 46 Best Badger
Soap: Ethos Succes
Post-shave: Humphreys Maravilla
Aftershave: Proraso Red Aftershave Lotion
Talc: Borotalco
Fragrance: Ralph Lauren Polo Green

Everything about this shave was superb. The Fatboy on 7 is a lot like the Rex Envoy, but with the added cache of being a vintage instrument in like new condition. The Astra SP was smooth and sharp. The Ethos Succes smells wonderful off the puck and on the face. The four passes were leisurely and comfortable and left no irritation at all. I'm BBS all over, and I smell great! I was gifted a Polo Green gift box when I was 14, and I wore it daily until it ran out. Then I moved on to Drakkar Noir, a partial bottle of it persists after 30 years. But even with my mid-life rabbit hole of AS and EdT fragrances, Polo still is one of my favorites, alongside Eternity, CK One, and Grey Flannel. I've got nowhere to go, and nothing to do except study today, so I applied it liberally. I smell great! I feel great! Today is one of those days where I hope the joy of my shaving portends a great day to come. I wish I could do it again sooner than tomorrow. Things are great!

Thanks for reading and have a great shave!

Frank

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