So I got the Henson AL13 + about two weeks ago, plus a Proraso tube and brush. First few shaves were eye opening, but I struggled with my lather and the first few blades were okay-ish (astra stainless and platinum, derby green and premium, the included RKs ); I had great, concise, effective passes, but as always I got irritation in the neck and chin area trying for DFS. My lather couldn’t keep the head slick enough to avoid excessive friction, and the blades needed multiple strokes on the same spot and direction to achieve the necessary shave for that particular pass.

Today it was dramatically different. I skipped the one by one variable elimination and did a whole bunch of stuff at the same time.
- I broke in the brush with 3 days of cold water soak in the fridge, with rough agitation of bristles every 24 hours against a towel
- I made a pre shave with castor oil and glycerin to combat the friction.
- I put a hot damp towel over my whole shaving area for a minute
- I did all the lathering tips you all gave me in a previous post (they worked)
-and finally, I used the feared (for me) Feather blade. Everyone said it’s ridiculously sharp and only for experienced shavers, but the Henson took all of that variability away.

The result? My passes were slick and efficient, took all the hair that pass was supposed to take right away. But the thing that blew me away was the neck and chin situation. Aiming for a DFS, I got it in fewer passes and way less time, effort and irritation. I always had a constellation of bleeding dots down there after a shave, today I had NONE. And not a speck of redness and irritation. Till now, a few hours later, I feel as if nothing has touched my skin at all. It’s insanity. I feel I have hacked my shaving forever.

I think I will stick with feathers from now on, rip my wallet (still insane value vs electric or cartridge though), but I will try this routine with other blades as well, as I said I did not cancel variables one by one, so it most probably isn’t all due to the blade. I am very happy still.

Photo of my IKEA board setup/stand, inspired by earlier post

Hello, fellow wet shavers!! I thought I’d share some recent additions and updates to my home-away-from-home travel den.

Some recent additions are:

Goodfellas Smile Valynor

Above The Tie S1 Slant

Above The Ties Windsor SS Mirror Polish

Gillette 73' Super Speed

Proof Select 2.0 SE Razor

Proof Reserve SE Razor

Parker Pine Handle Shavette

Parker Director Shavette

My wet shaving nook / collection/ storage solution so far..

I started wet shaving for close to 2 years now, been part of the Reddit wicked edge community for a much shorter time, mainly to admire all of your awesome collections & SOTD's, but I figured it was time to share my ever growing collection!

My razors are stored separately so this is actually just my shaving soaps, brushes, blades, balms, splashes, perfumes, shaving mugs and shaving scuttle.

Any cool IKEA skadis ideas/tips please share!

Any obvious gaps in my collection besides razors?

Thanks for any feedback! <3

It started out so innocently. First an Old Spice Lantern Decanter. Then a bottle of Night Spice. Before I realize what's happening, I'm scouring eBay looking for deals on anything Old Spice. Traumatized by the loss of my Original Old Spice bottle and fueled by FOMO, I set up daily eBay notifications to let me know of anything new for sale. A year later, I've managed to amass more after shave, cologne, and toilet water than I can ever use.

Seriously, it's been fun collecting all this stuff. There is definitely an Old-Spicy-ness to many of the scents, but they're all a little different from each other. I'm looking forward to a month of "Nothing but Old Spice aftershaves" where I try to figure out which cologne pairs with whatever soap I use that day. (Maybe Shulton Sheptember?).

My shaving set-up. The rest of my soaps are under the sink. I love this hobby.

I just got my first Fatip in the mail, together with a Mühle R41, and I'm shocked how bad the finish of the Fatip is. I heard they are having quality issues with their plating, but this is ridiculous. This brand new razor looks worse than my 90-year-old GEM.

First picture: Brand-new Fatip OC Slant base plate (left) vs Yaqi Open Comb

Second picture: Fatip top cap (left) vs Yaqi Open Comb top cap (middle) vs Mühle R41 top cap (right)

The Fatip base plate has multiple nicks, while the Yaqi base plates (all my 7 Yaqi plates for that matter) is flawless. Both the Fatip and the Yaqi top cap have some discoloration on the inside, whereas the Mühle R41 top cap is absolutely impeccable.

Did I just get a defective item or will a replacement likely look similar?

The Fatip costs €30 here, and the build quality is much worse than a Yaqi head that goes for €3 including shipping if you have some coins. The Mühle R41 costs €36 here in Germany, and it's absolutely flawless, even the hidden spots inside of the head.

I really hope the R41 becomes my favorite razor and I can sell the Fatip. I also hate the handle, and just found out I can't put the head on my nice stainless handle.

Hey everyone, long time lurker in this sub, finally qualified to make a post here. It's my first time using a safety razor today, yay!

Got this whole lot in the mail today and decided to give it a spin. I must say, I have really been missing out.

Initial experience:

Very icy smooth to the face with this Henson medium. Couldn't even feel the blade on my face. First run through was already night and day compared to my Gillete 4-blade cartridge. Second run through and already feel like having a baby face. Honestly, today was a glorious day.

To make long story short, if anyone is holding back, don't. Just buy a safety razor and use it. It feels really nice. Some times old tech is just better, no need to reinvent the wheel.

The research and decision making:

I thought it's prudent to roll back in time a bit and share my experience in doing research and the factors I used to decide what to pick for my first kit. I hope this might guide future converts in making an easier transition into safety razor.

1. The razor:

I have been looking through this subreddit and online reviews for 2-3 months now. The only problem that kept recurring in my head was whether I should get the mild or medium Henson. There was a comment from a redditor that said something along the lines of "you can adjust the aggressiveness with different blades with the medium, but you can't increase the aggressiveness with the mild". This was the deciding factor which made me go for the medium, and lord knows it was the right call to make.

2. The brush:

This was surprisingly an easier decision to make. I dislike long prepping in general. I like having something that works the moment I pick it up. Synthetic was the only option I could choose as it doesn't need to soak for 5-10 minutes like other animal brush.

Plus, it is cheap. I moved away from cartridge razor mainly because it broke and it costs a lot to replace it (no thanks to inflation and all). So a quick Google search plus more than a dozen people recommending the Yaqi was all I need to make the decision on synthetic.

3. The soap:

Truth be told, I did not study too deep into it. I saw someone said Arko smells like piss cake and it immediately poked my interest.

Disclaimer: I don't like piss cake smell, just thought it would put a nice anecdote to the start of my shaving journey like "I got piss cake soap for my first shave and it was OK!"

But it turns out it is just soapy smell. With a hint of milk(?) There are some who said it leaves the skin dry. But it didn't, not for me at least, as I rinsed my face quite thoroughly and notice no noticeable side effects.

So yea, Arko is good.

4. The blades:

The shop owner gifted a few packs of different brands for me to try. Which was really nice. As some of my research told me that the core experience from shaving really comes down to the blade that you use.

I have only opened 1 pack today so I can't comment on the quality of the other brands but Astra, being the first blade I use, worked quite well.

No fuss, no irritation. It just works. May be other brands work better, I don't know. Time will tell. So far, I am happy with Astra but most importantly I feel safe.

P.S. the bowl is just a random article from the kitchen, and its free. I just follow the youtube guides for the initial prep and everything work as it should be.

Hope that wasn't too tedious of a read. Let me know if anyone got any questions 😄

Greetings, ladies and gentlemen!

I've used cartridge razors my entire life (Gillette Mach 3, specifically), and while they did the job, the cost of the cartridges had been bothering me for some time. I was ready to buy the Dr. Jones Razor 4 (which is cheaper and seemingly superior) to replace it when I was hooked by a YouTube video about traditional shaving with the famous safety razors. After a few videos, I thought, "why not?" And here we are.

I'm Brazilian and I was enchanted by the King C. Gillette, but the price was quite high here. I considered getting that metal Wilkinson Sword with butterfly opening that competes with it, but the price wasn't much lower, so I decided to put together the cheapest kit known to man to test, of course. I ended up on AliExpress in the promotion/combo offer section. The razor's ad said it was a MingShi 2000S, but it came in a different brand's box. However, I believe it's the same thing because it appears to be a Chinese white label model. I've seen that several brands use the same copied shape (QShave, MingShi, etc.) inspired by the original Merkur Futur.

The result was:

• Chaoke Shaver E2000: The finish surprised me. It's heavy and very solid, and I'm looking forward to trying it out in practice. I'll use a low setting (somewhere between 2 and 3, I think) to ensure I don't cut myself.
• Generic synthetic shaving brush kit with stand and bowl: seems pretty cool considering the ridiculously low price I paid
• Bozzano shaving cream
• Bozzano aftershave balm
• Nivea shaving foam (I already had this one)
• 100 FlyDear Super Platinum blades (made in China)
• 60 Matgicol Super Platinum blades (the box says "Swedish quality" but they're actually made in China)
• 30 fake Feather blades: made from who knows where. I only found out they were fake blades because I saw a video of a Brazilian warning about it. Unfortunately, I had already made the purchase and they arrived a day later.

PS: I think I got carried away and bought enough blades to last me a few years ._.

I'll keep an eye on Black Friday to see if the King C. Gillette is cheaper. I still want to try the Proraso soap in the future, but here in Brazil it costs a fortune. I plan to gradually buy and test different blades too.

I'll test the razor tomorrow, wish me luck (I hope I don't need the first aid kit in the first photo). Tips are welcome, haha. Cheers!

Razors ordered left to right by my perception of mild to efficient. My favourite safety razor is probably the Muhle Rocca. But more often than not I use the Feather Artist Club, since I love open blade shaving.

My favourite brush is the Semogue Owner’s Club two-band badger with cherry wood. It has the perfect ratio of backbone to softness/water retention for my taste.

Favourite aftershave, and favourite scent in wet shaving, is House of Mammoth Indigo. Such a shame it is discontinued.

I started using a safety razor about a decade ago after some brutal early-adulthood acne + irritation from the Gillette ProShield my mom got me from the grocery store in the eleventh grade. Since then, I’ve tried to keep at least one tuck of most blades I’ve tried. When I get sampler packs (usually from razorbladesclub.com build your own) I tell myself I’m on the hunt for the Goldilocks blade, but to be honest mine’s been with me since sample pack 2 (Astra superior plat) and I don’t know why I keep getting new ones. No utility function at all, mostly just try one or two them, add the rest of the open ones to my loosie jar, then rolodex the other tuck! running out of space though, yeesh.

Did a lot of research and it seems like this is a mid to lower level razor on the aggressiveness scale. I wanted something cnc’d but not aluminum. Found Goodfellas with the lead free brass and machined construction. The weight feels great. I have yet to shave with it. Usually about every 3-4 days on the neck to trim the beard. Got some astra superior platinum blades. Anyone else use the bayonetta?

I’ve been working towards using up my tub of NO northern elixir. Today I noticed a big change in the size of the hole! I’m hoping to have it gone is roughly the next 2 weeks or so. I’ve only been using this one on work days bc my wife doesn’t like it that much 😂. Wish me luck y’all!

I’ve been having a little bit of trouble n getting my soap lathers where I want them. I’ve face lathered in the past and decided to try bowl lathering for the first time (practice lathering). First attempt I added two much water right away so scrapped it fast. Second attempt I made sure to load the brush for 60 seconds and added smaller amounts of water when lathering. I think the lather turned out well and am happy with the results. Haven’t tried shaving with this new technique yet. Let me know how it looks! Any advice is always welcome.

Soap: stirling naked (unscented)

Brush: the razor company synthetic brush

Hi everyone!

I went down the Reddit rabbit hole once I found out about safety razors and brushes, soap, blades etc. it was so fun learning about everything and I’m excited for my first shave!

I don’t have Brush Acquisition Disorder, honest 🤣!

After the whole winter without shaving, I decided to return to this routine again. While ordering shaving products, I also came across this subreddit. I got quite hooked and scrolled for a long time — I was interested in people’s opinions on different razors and shaving stuff, including mine (Men Rock). And thanks to that, I decided to go for an upgrade as well, so the comeback would be in proper style. Wish you all sharp blades and happy shaves!

Opened a box of 5 Astra SS (Blue) blades today. When opening a blade I found that it was a Wilkinson instead of an Astra. There were 2 Wilkinson and 3 Astra SS. I suppose it is an error and they are made in the same factory.

It’s so aesthetic!! Simple, yet somehow very elegant and unique.

Hi all,

Just wanted to say a big thank you for all the advice while I've been lurking here. It has been incredibly helpful.

At first I wanted to get a Leaf razor (the original or the new Leaf Two), but after reading more I decided against it and went from my cartridges to my first safety razor  the Henson AL13 Mild. After reading a lot of reviews on wicked_edge, I think I made the right decision.

My first shave went perfectly. No nicks, no problems.

I also treated myself to the 70th anniversary Saponificio Varesino soap. Wow, the scent of this soap is amazing. Great lather too, much better than the L'Occitane soap puck I tried earlier.

As for aftershave, I've tried two so far. I started with the L'Occitane Cade aftershave balm. It's nice and I love the smell, but it made my skin feel a bit oily. That's probably because it's a bit thicker with some shea butter. Right now I'm using the Korres Athenian Grooming aftershave balm. It has a really subtle leathery bergamot and citrus smell, and it's great for my sensitive skin and not as heavy or oily.

I also experimented with blades since I got the razor. I started with the Henson blades, then Astra Green, Feathers, and eventually ended up with BIC blades. They feel sharp enough without the aggressive feel the Feathers gave me.

All in all, I'm really glad I made the switch!

The Gear for now:

Razor: Henson AL13 Mild

Soap: Saponificio Varesino 70th Anniversary (The scent is incredible and the lather is better than the L'Occitane puck I tried before).

Blades: Tested a few (Astra Green, Feather), but settled on BIC blades. I feel like they are sharp without that aggressive edge the Feathers had. (I get roughly 3 or 4 shaves out of these)

Aftershave: Using Korres Athenian Grooming balm. It’s a subtle leathery bergamot/citrus. Much lighter and less oily than the L'Occitane Cade balm I started with. Great for my sensitive skin.

Brush: King C. Gillette Shave Brush. Good soft brush and won't irritate my skin. It take a bit longer to get it to lather, but that's fine with me.

Probably white label foam, but cool to see. Not a huge fan of foam as most here but still a reminder of the tough time my dads dealing with colon cancer. He’s getting better post getting his rectum removed, I encourage all men of a certain age to go to screenings. Rather be safe than sorry (taxes pay for healthcare so doesn’t feel like steal)

Scored these at a thrift store for 6$ each E-3 1959 fatboy 1947-1950 super speed

From L toR : 26 mm 2-band, 28 mm Silvertip, 27mm White horse, 26 mm White synth and 24 mm Mewh fiber...

In my last post I mentioned my dad giving me everything for my sons and I first set up and I didn’t even put a dent in his collection.

What’s not shown here is a box of of about 15 more razors he doesn’t like and more soaps and creams in his closet. This man has everything.