Nov 1, 2023 - Witchcrafts Wednesday: Carmilla

• Brush: Wald Shaving Nimbus Haunter 29mm A1 Knot
• Razor: Karve Shaving Co. Christopher Bradley Aluminum, SB-E
• Blade: Gillette Nacet [2]
• Lather: Southern Witchcrafts - Carmilla - Soap (Vegan)
• Post Shave: Southern Witchcrafts - Carmilla - Aftershave (Alcohol Free)
• Fragrance: Southern Witchcrafts - Carmilla - Eau de Parfum

I couldn’t pass up #witchcraftswednesday the day after Halloween. What better scent than Carmilla, in honor of the vampire legend.

I don’t think the Nacet works well for me when paired with aggressive razors. I have some irritation from the shave. Ironically, no blood was let.

Rating: 4/5

Nov. 1, 2023

• Brush: Yaqi 26mm Synthetic
• Razor: Karve Overlander
• Blade: Personna Platinum
• Lather: Barrister And Mann - Adagi - Soap
• Post Shave: Barrister And Mann - Adagi - Aftershave

Ok shave. Looking at it now I seem to have some irritation. Shave felt smooth not really sure where my redness is coming from.

Black Watch Morning Shave

• Brush: Dogclaration LG 2022 Mystery Brush (B16)
• Razor: Heljestrand MK N° 10

• Lather: Spearhead Shaving Company Seaforth! Black Watch
• Aftershave: Spearhead Shaving Company Seaforth! Black Watch splash
• Fragrance: Spearhead Shaving Company Seaforth! Black Watch EdT

My original plan was to lean a bit more into the black theme here and use my Böker S.S. Paris Wins with the black scales but then I decided to tighten the pin a bit and did the tap-tap-klack splitting one scale 🤬. At least this seems to resolve the question whether this is a modern or a vintage: that’s too brittle for a recent plastic scale. Oh well, replacement scales are ordered.

The Heljestrand is a great little shaver, too, and Black Watch is just as great as I remember it. It has this note that reminds me a bit of Cerberus, and I bet they’d work great together.

November 1, 2023

• Brush: Maggard 24mm Synthetic
• Razor: Gillette Flat Bottom Tech
• Blade: Personna Lab Blue (1)
• Lather: Barrister & Mann - Roam - Soap
• Post Shave: Australian Private Reserve - Raconteur - Aftershave
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth/Declaration Grooming - Cerberus - Liniment

I have a Personna BBS-0 on its way to me, so in honor of that I whipped out a Personna blade. Great shave.

SOTD 01.11.2023

• Prep: warm water
• Razor: Pearl Flexi
• Blade: Rapira Platinum Lux
• Brush: RazoRock 400 Noir SE
• Lather: Declaration Grooming - Unscented
• Post Shave: Southern Witchcrafts - Samhain; Stirling Glacial Spearmint ASB

Two pass head and face shave since lo and behold, I was able to score an appointment for a job interview tomorrow. I want to look as good as possible, even if it’s after nursing school.

Adjustable razors are great for changing the aggressiveness between passes - that is, if they’re evenly aligned. This Pearl Flexi is like a differential razor, one side is always milder than the other. I always end up using the more “efficient” side, especially on the lower settings.

That aside, this was a good comfortable shave. Haven’t shaved my head in ages, so it feels really good. Still used the Samhain AS since it was standing around and it’s just such a great scent 🎃

November 1, 2023

• Brush: Zenith B15 (506 U/L) 27.5mm Boar

• Razor: J.A. Henckels Friodur 472 13/16" Full Hollow Square Point (Straight Shave 365)

• Lather: Summer Break Soaps - Wood Shop - Soap

• Post Shave: Summer Break Soaps - Wood Shop - Aftershave

• Post Shave: Thayers - Cucumber - Toner

This was a shave test of a refreshed edge on this razor. For the honing, I used some stones that I normally would not use for razors. While I did not particularly like the look of the scratch pattern on the bevel after the honing was done, the apex looked fine, and the edge tested smooth and very sharp. Performance was excellent. This made for a wonderful Wood Shop Wednesday.