This is the place to ask beginner and simple questions. Some examples include:
- Soap, scent, or gear recommendations
- Favorite scents, bases, etc
- Where to buy certain items
- Identification of a razor you just bought
- Troubleshooting shaving issues such as cuts, poor lather, and technique
Please note these are examples and any questions for the sub should be posted here.
I need a good lesson on making a good lather with a boar hair brush. Any good video that an be recommended?
I use a boar hair brush most of the time, and I’ve found that CosmoBarber’s Precision Loading Method works wonders. Just be sure to give the boar a good soak (at least 5 minutes but I sometimes do 15-30) beforehand.
Here’s the video: https://youtu.be/IXjcJsMsKyQ
This is what I tend to do, but mostly because I don’t like the thought of getting my tubs all messy. I know it’s a stupid reason, but it’s my stupid reason.
I will just load my Stirling samples in the dollar tree tins, though. Really great for travel too.
If it’s a new boar it needs a bit of time to break in. @iamsms@sub.wetshaving.social did a good video on how to get good lather from a new boar.
Trigger warning: blooming
It’s not new. I just never mastered it and put it away. I’ll try again. Thanks to everyone for their suggestions! 👍
Another good one from the dude behind Stirling soaps: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2X6YfAI3xQ
Especially if you’re a bowl latherer, my channel has tons of boar experience. Esp with Zeniths and Semogues.
When posting a SotD and indicating a blade had (3) uses does that include the current shave eg. “this was the third use of the blade” or is it describing the condition of the blade at the start “this blad had three uses” and your current shave would be the fourth? My intuition tends to the latter as it’s a description of what equipment you brought to the task but somehow it occurs to me it might be sorta ambiguous?
For me, the number is for the shave being posted.
Same.
Hmm, so it’s starting to seem I had the wrong idea …glad I asked. Thanks!
I include the shave being posted. I don’t think of it as the state of things going into the shave. Rather, add the suffix the number: “this the n^th use of this blade.” The blade is the only item that includes this metric in SOTD, and it’s not a consistent metric, anyways. You might shave daily and do two passes, while I might wait several days between shaves and do three passes. I shave my face. Some wear facial hair and only partially shave their faces. Some shave their heads. The amount of wear between users isn’t consistent. But, the standard format includes it. Otherwise I wouldn’t keep track. I’m more interested to know how many times I’ve used a boar brush, or a soap.
You can do it however you wish; I doubt anyone’ll police you. Hell, I list the number as a question mark half the time because somehow remembering how many times I’ve used a blade and adding +1 is too much math for me.
But from what I’ve seen, most people seem to use that number as the N-th use. The first shave will have no number, meaning it’s a fresh blade, and the second will have 2. So that’s how I’ve been doing it as well, whenever I remember.
