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There and Back Again, A Wet-Shaver's Tale

Razor: Gillette Heritage
Blade: Wizamet
Brush: TSC Legacy
Soap: LNHC Cedar & Saffron
Aftershave: LNHC Cedar & Saffron
EDP: Imaginary Authors Slow Explosions

It's been a while since I used a DE. I was excited enough about Gillette finally coming out with a new DE that I bought it a few weeks ago, but didn't get around to actually using it until today. @MilkCrate sent me a tuck of Wizamet blades and I couldn't wait to give them a try. @LNHC's newer formula is a knockout, though I still really like this older one as well. I love the scent, and finally pulled the trigger on matching post shave elixir.

The Legacy whipped up a fantastic lather just the way I like it, slick and yogurty. Since it has been a while since I used a DE I'll have to break out my two favorite blades(Gillette Silver Blue and Astra SP) to do a comparison of the Wizamet, but I was really impressed with the Wizamet in the Heritage. It was very smooth and sharp enough that it wiped away two days worth of stubble effortlessly. Three passes and I was sporting a wonderful BBS, no blood, no irritation. A couple sprays from the sample of IA Slow Explosions finished things off nicely. It is a very saffron-heavy frag that has a nice dry down. I like it, but not enough to spring for a full bottle.

The new Heritage is a good razor that performs well within it's price range. It's fairly mild, though a little lighter than I usually prefer. I'm glad I got it, and would recommend it to new and veteran shavers alike.

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I had a pretty awesome evening. Some of the men from a local church came to the center to hang out and fellowship with the guys. They brought snacks and games, and everyone had a great time. The guy that organized it pulled me aside and gave me a Home Depot gift card as a thank you for what I do. Gestures like that always mean a lot, especially when I feel like we should be giving them gifts for everything they do for us.

Thanks for reading and have a great night!
 
Strong shave, Eric. And awesome that a bunch of dudes can hang out. Keep up the good work.
 
Nice Shave Eric! Wizamet blades certainly are top notch!

I know you are a bit humble...but you probably deserve more credit than you are given. Keep up the good work man! You are changing lives for the better!
 
bentheduck said:
Strong shave, Eric. And awesome that a bunch of dudes can hang out. Keep up the good work.
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Thanks Ben!
MilkCrate said:
Sounds like a nice shave and a great evening!
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It was both. We moved the corn toss game inside to an open hallway, and everyone had a blast.
GearNoir said:
Nice shave man! Wizamet’s are winning me over too! May have to find my own pack soon!
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Thanks Chris! If the Wizamet blade keeps giving me shaves like this I’ll be picking some more up as well.
Dave in KY said:
Nice read Eric !
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Thanks Dave!
dangerousdon said:
Nice Shave Eric! Wizamet blades certainly are top notch!

I know you are a bit humble...but you probably deserve more credit than you are given. Keep up the good work man! You are changing lives for the better!
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Thank you, Don. I appreciate that. He actually called me up today to set up the next day they can come out to the center. It makes a big difference to the guys. Some of them have family that lives too far away to visit much, or have almost written them off, so having people come to visit them is an emotional boost.

No shave today, though I kept going through my Imaginary Authors samples, using Cape Heartache today. My third favorite IA frag, and one that probably performs better than any other frag I’ve ever used. Good projection and sillage, and I can still smell it on my skin over 20 hours later.
 
Razor: Rockwell 6c
Blade: Wizamet
Brush: Stirling boar
Soap: SV 70th Anniversary
Aftershave: SV 70th Anniversary
EDP: Rasasi Daarej

Another great shave with the Wizamet, this time in the Rockwell 6c. SV 70th is a favorite, and it's been a while since I used it. Three passes for a very nice BBS. Daarej doesn't match 70th, but the soap and aftershave are light on scent and this frag caught my eye. It's a great cool weather fragrance, and a few sprays give me really good projection for the first few hours. It starts drawing closer to the skin after that, but I can still smell it.

Thanks for reading and have a great night!
 
MilkCrate said:
Nice ... very nice!
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Thanks Tim! And thanks again for the Wizamets. If they continue to deliver like this, they may just topple my favorite blade from it's perch.
Graybeard57 said:
You do the same.
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I will, once work is over lol. Had an interesting encounter earlier.
GearNoir said:
Mmm...70th! I find it pairs really well with Guerlain Vetiver if you have it!
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That is one of the classics that I didn't initially warm to. I had a sample of it, but liked L'Occitane Vetyver more, and someone gave me most of a bottle of L'Occitane, so here we are lol. Guerlain is possibly my favorite fragrance house and I may have to revisit vetiver(or even vetiver extreme) soon.
 
It's a seller's market for Wizamet blades. I'm not sure how much longer they're going to be available because they're discontinued, but the prices are outrageous.
 
Thursday's shave
Razor: Gillette New SC
Blade: Wizamet
Brush: Stirling boar
Soap: Grooming Department Amber & Oud
Aftershave: Pitralon Swiss
EDP: L'Occitane Eau des Baux

Great shave with the Gillette New. I used a new Wizamet, and I'm seriously impressed with how the first shave off these blades are. Astra SP has been in my top two for a long time, and the only complaint I've ever had about it is that the first shave is always a little rough, then it smooths out. The Wizamet is smooth out of the gate and crazy sharp to boot. A lazy three pass BBS what just what I needed. A glug of Swiss Pitralon is always welcome, and a few sprays of Eau des Baux is always a great idea. Fantastic juice.

Saturday's shave
Razor: Rockwell 6c
Blade Wizamet
Brush: Black Walnut Synthetic
Soap: Declaration Grooming/Chatillon Lux Gratiot League Square
Aftershave: Declaration Grooming/Chatillon Lux Gratiot League Square

I switched the Wizamet from the New to the 6c for yesterday's shave. My facial hair is crazy coarse, so I've never understood how people can get more than 3-4 shaves from one DE blade. My Gillette SBs and Astra SPs are usually tugging by the end of the third shave, and the one time I tried to actually get to 5 it felt like a pain hazed death march into shaving armageddon. Once the beard is completely gone after the first of the year I'll really test the longevity of the Wizamets, but there is no discernible loss of keenness so far.

Gratiot League Square is not a scent for the squeamish or faint of heart. The scent is in-your-face leather from the second the lid is taken off and the other notes, barely noticeable at first, don't really start to come out until after the first pass. That said, I really like this scent during the shave, and even for a while after, but wouldn't want to smell like it all day. The performance is top notch, and three passes with the trusty 6c left me with an HCBBSG(Heel-clicking grail level BBS for those who are not pretentious enough to rate their shaves higher than the plebeian three-letter acronyms). :p

Thanks for reading and have a blessed Sunday!
 
Razor: Rockwell 6c
Blade: Wizamet
Brush Shubbyu
Soap: SV Opuntia
Aftershave: SV Opuntia
EDP: Amouage Sunshine Man

Another run with the Wizamet and this blade is still going strong. Grabbed Opuntia for today's shave, just because, and pulled a brush off the shelf that I haven't used in ages. One of the first Chubby style brushes I ever turned, made of Padauk, Maple, and Black Walnut. It has a 26mm Elite Shaving knot, either Manchurian White or High Mountain White, I forget which. Good brush, but a bit of a lather hog.

Spent a bit of extra time loading the soap, and a couple minutes of face lathering rewarded me with some great suds. Three passes with the 6c using the 4 plate left me with another fantastic BBS. Sunshine Man was chosen as today's frag because it is the day before the day before Christmas and it is 50 degrees and sunny outside. I enjoy a white Christmas as much as the next guy, but I'm not going to complain about Spring-like weather at the end of December.

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Vacation starts tomorrow. First Christmas I haven't worked at least the morning shift in a few years, and I'm really looking forward to spending some time with family. Thanks for reading and have a great day!
 
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