01-09 - Back on razor's edge

• Brush: Yaqi 'Heavy Metal' 24mm silvertip badger
• Razor: Marianna #310
• Blade: Fromm Shaper
• Lather: House of Mammoth - Hygge - Soap
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Hygge - Aftershave Balm

Has it truly been a year already? I could swear it was just a few months ago that I last participated in Austere August, but my calendar (and thermometer) tells me this fateful time of year has come around once again, so here we go.

I completely missed this year's Lather Games, so I figured I'd make an effort to show up during AA instead, and while I was at it I should probably do some sort of wacky challenge as well to definitely make it worth my while.

As such, I've resolved (as of literally 30 minutes before my shave and after a late-night beer) to dust off my u/OnionMiasma -provided Weck (actually a Marianna), stock up on a fresh box of vasoconstrictors and bandages, and throw my lot in with u/whosgotthepudding's Headless Horsemen. I would have just kept going with my daily driver GEM 1912 or even finally tackled the MMOC, but none of you buggers deigned to host a GEM challenge this year…

But Juli, I hear the one person who actually remembers me say, you've shaved with the Weck all of two or three times - this month is going to be suicide!

Yeah, probably. But who dares, wins - and if they lose, at least they probably learned a lesson or two along the way. I fully expect those lessons to be written in blood, but from my very limited experience with this shave medium, I actually did fairly alright and came away from my virgin Weck shaves smooth and nearly bloodless (I think the one time I did cut myself was when I pressed the blade's corner into my cheek like a complete fool).

Anyway, to the setup.

The Weck (Marianna #310) hair shaper I've already covered. I'm using a Fromm blade because that's what I used last time I gave this razor a go, and it worked alright. We shall see if I live to regret that choice. Getting the blade out of the razor after the shave is still a massive PITA (and not the fun, flavourful kind at your favourite Indian joint), and I am waiting for the day my hand slips, slides along the blade and books me a nice trip to the ER.

I'm using Mammoth software again this year (u/mammothben, enjoy your well-deserved holiday!) because Mammoth rules and I want to use Mammoth. You're welcome, u/Mammoth_Don. After last year's AA nearly depleted my beloved puck of Mood Indigo, I went with Hygge this year, another great scent. My Hygge puck is also already pretty used-up, but if I kill this soap during August I won't be as mad as if it had been MIndigo.

One problem I am already seeing is that my Hygge balm has a bad case of the crystals. I genuinely don't know if anyone else's balm has this issue (I can't find anything online about it) but mine has a bunch of sharp, needle-thin little crystals all throughout it. They break easily when spreading the balm between my fingers and they're not able to break skin or get stuck in anything, but it's somewhat unpleasant and concerning. I suspect it may be the salicylic acid in the balm crystallising out over time? When I got the balm ages ago it didn't have this issue. Eh, we'll say it makes for an extra challenge during this Ultra Nightmare Mode. If anyone's heard of this and knows a fix, though, get in touch - thanks!

My Yaqi Silvertip brush is my current daily driver and I don't see the need to switch - plus it's got a silver handle so it matches nicely with the Weck.

Shave and lessons learned in a reply because Reddit doesn't like my blogposting and has told me this is already too long. Sorry.

$headless $MammothMafia24

August 1, 2024  

• Prep: House of Mammoth Embrace Doppio Bath Soap 
• Brush: Dogwood Handcrafts 26mm APSC Pure Bliss
• Razor: J.A. Henckels Friodur 17 15/16
• Edge: u/whosgotthepudding (12)
• Lather: House of Mammoth - Kryptonite - Soap 
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Kryptonite - Aftershave 
• Fragrance: Spearhead - Sea Spice Lime - Eau de Toilette    

Here we go again... 

$MammothMafia24
$FriodomRiders
$headless
$Discord
u/Mammoth_Don

Austere August, Day 1 * Brush: Copper Zenith B36, bleached 28mm x 50mm * Razor: Ern 22 7/8 * Lather: Vintage Williams Tonsorial * Post: Proraso Red Aftershave * Frag: Ethos Mysore Santal

Here we go, Headless Hoggers or anyone else playing along in any capacity, day one of Austere August. As required, here is my unboxing proof. This stubby scrubby little brush is going to be tough to use for a while, but I know it will be fantastic once it breaks in. I had one many moons ago and regretted selling it, so now I start again.

I'm trying out a vintage scuttle this year as well, which when Mrs. Eld saw she asked, "Why is there a random old gravy boat in our bathroom?" Trying to explain what a scuttle was led to several funny looks, a loving headshake, and a "whatever floats your boat, I guess."

The brush is already a tight fit, so who knows how it'll go once the knot starts to open up. I might need to move everything back into my vintage Seaforth mug. Time will tell.

The shave went fairly well. I had some difficulty getting the lather where it needed to be due to the incredibly low splay of the brush and the fact that brand new boar brushes eat lather like I go after cookie dough ice cream. That said, I did eventually build a functional lather and got through the shave with no nicks, weepers, cuts, or feedback from the splash. Was the shave as smooth as I wanted, no. But as the brush breaks in, things will get better.

Required tags:

$Discord $Headless u/whosgotthepudding $Rawhoggin

8/1/24

• Brush: Farvour Turn Crafts w/ C&H v12 Fanchurian
• Razor: Raido Star Kamisori 8/8, Full Hollow Barber's Notch
• Lather: House of Mammoth - Kryptonite
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Kryptonite Aftershave Splash

So begins another month of Austerity.

For my razor this year, I chose this custom Kamisori made by Roman Kamlash. Last month or so, I nicked my cheek going wtg. It has been a hot minute since I've done that, and wouldn't you know it? It happened with a style of razor I've used >20 times.

Yesterday, I took the time to real dial in edge. I started on my Shobudani Suita with a slurry, then a Koma Nagura slurry. I finished on my Nakayama Maruka Kiita and stropped on a Kanoyama #80000. The edge looked great, and it felt amazing this morning. Here are some pics of the edge.

I've chosen to join the ranks of the Mammoth Mafia this year. Kryptonite is an easy to wear scent and fits summer incredibly well. It doesn't hurt that tusk is an incredibly easy to get along with base.

Good luck to everyone with their respective challenges, especially those doing Headless Horsemen.

Close and comfortable shave, no nicks or irritation.

$MammothMafia24 u/Mammoth_Don

$headless

2024-08-01 Austere August Begins - Boar Unboxed

• Prep: Coffee, Face wash soap/warm water, and stroping, and stroping
• Brush: Shore Shave - Player Custom with 24mm Blond Boar
• Razor: Ralf Aust - Ralf Aust 5/8" Round Point Straight Razor
• Lather: House of Mammoth – Uitwaaien
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth – Uitwaaien (Splash)

Breaking in a new brush is not a bad deal. I have a brand new Player Custom with a 24mm blond boar not from Shore Shave for the raw hoggin.

31 straight days of a straight? That is pushing into my uncomfortable territory. Which in all fairness is kind of what Austere August is about. With Discomfort comes learning. I do a straight shave every now and then but my comfort level is...eh iffy.

Always iffy.

Hopefully I can change that with this effort.

As always, take care and have a good day

$MammothMafia24 u/Mammoth_Don

$RawHoggin u/EldrormR

$headless u/whosgotthepudding

August 1, 2024 * Preshave: Hot Shower
Brush: Chisel and Hound - LG Brushes - Boar 3
Razor: Henckels Friodur 451 No Stain
Edge: Pudding (1)
Lather: House of Mammoth Everett
Post Shave: House of Mammoth Everett Splash
Post Shave: House of Mammoth Everett EDP

Second ever shave with a straight (I tried one shortly after AA last year and had too much Weck PTSD to enjoy it at all). First shave on this u/whosgotthepudding freshly honed edge for $headless. Overall it went significantly better than I'd expected. Really a very close and smooth shave. There certainly was some blood, both from a couple of nicks and from 2 or 3 little cuts, but, nothing close to how terrible the Weck was. Feedback from the splash was fairly burny but I expect that to get better as I get better at this razor. Fun to stack headless with $FriodomRiders and u/Djundjila - though I won't be honing part way through.

The hardest part was definitely the jawline and neck, for me. I did a 2.5ish pass shave - with the grain and across the grain with a couple very risky touch ups to try and get it smooth, which really worked well. My neck was 2 passes: down and kind of angled across - I don't know how I'm ever going to get a straight across shave on my neck, but, maybe by the end of the month I'll be singing a diferent tune.

I did briefly watch a couple of videos yesterday - less than 3 minutes total probably - and the most helpful thing I observed to start was that I don't need to try and be using the whole blade at one time for some kind of gigantic pass. I don't even need to be using most of it - just whatever works well on that part of the skin and go with it, even if it's a pretty narrow pass, that's ok. Which, in hindsight, makes a lot of sense; with all the different angles on a face it's silly to think that you're going to get a 3 inch stretch that is the same enough to use the whole blade. Maybe that was part of my weck problem, I don't know. That was a nightmare, but, this is better.

For the brush I am using the ever practically titled "Chisel and Hound - LG Brushes - Boar 3" made by none other than u/geekyoldrob. He made these thinking they'd fit a sponsor point for the Lather Games, but, joke is on him (or is it on me?) - three of us quickly scooped them up for $RawHoggin with u/EldrormR. After my first lather with it I'll say this: this knot sucks, I should have spent some extra money on a nice Zenith again. The handle is nice - the super hard wood he used is cool, but, yeah - there's a reason he called these "cheap ass brushes" when they dropped. Because, well, that's exactly what they are. But - the lather worked well enough and I am interested to see how a crappy knot breaks in after using a really nice Zenith year one and a stellar Maggard Boar last year.

Finally - the software: House of Mammoth Everett. Given my sub flair there was never really a question of what direction this would go. It's always going to be $MammothMafia24 - I wouldn't want u/Mammoth_Don to come bust my kneecaps and I think u/MammothBen and the giving back from HoM is an admirable and worthwhile endeavor; especially this one. My kids love to swim and we are very fortunate to have some great local swimming lesson options, but, I literally have nightmares about my kids slipping underwater at a lake and me frantically searching but being unable to find them (my stomach turns even typing that) and so the more kids that can learn to swim the better. That turning compelled me to donate to Live Like Jake and you can too by clicking that link. I did put $MammothMafia24 in the notes but it sadly did not show up on the actual donation. They'll probably be wondering what the heck is going on, at least I hope they do.

Anyway. overall a really good start to AA this year and I'm actually excited to keep honing my skill with the straight this month - maybe I'll even pick up another so I can continue to learn on a different kind of steel when the month ends (Ralf Aust carbon steel, anyone?).

Looking forward to a fun month with you all.

Finally - Tags again to make doubly sure I'm in each of these and to give myself a template for the month:

$MammothMafia24 u/Mammoth_Don

$RawHoggin u/EldrormR

$headless u/whosgotthepudding

$FriodomRiders u/Djundjila

$discord

Aug. 1, 2024
Brush: Zenith B36 Copper 28mmx50mm Boar
Razor: J.A. Henckels Friodur 451 5/8 Stainless Full Hollow Square Point * Lather: House of Mammoth - Alive - Soap
Post Shave:* House of Mammoth - Alive - Aftershave

Here we go with day one of AA and my first ever straight razor shave. Two passes both with the grain while I get used to this thing, so not my best shave ever but perfectly acceptable and nearly bloodless (one small weeper on my chin). I even managed to shave the left side of my face holding the razor in my left hand, and still kept my ear attached. It’s definitely not comfortable yet, but that’s what the next 30 days are for. This new Zenith scrubby boar (unboxing video here) is indeed scrubby and ate about three shaves worth of lather, but that should settle down as it breaks in over the next month.

$MammothMafia24 u/Mammoth_Don

$headless u/whosgotthepudding

$FriodomRiders u/djundjila

$RawHoggin u/EldrormR

Shared from My Shave Den for iOS

August 01 2024

• Brush: Omega 13732 24mm
• Razor: Solingen Best Silver Steel 6/8 (Straight shave #98)
• Lather: Stirling - Varen
• Post Shave: Stirling - Varen
• Fragrance: Ineke Perfumes - Idyllwild

Brush progress album

On the first day of my fourth Austere August, I'll explain my thinking on how I selected my setup. May as well say what I have to say while people are still interested and before monotony sets in.

This will be my first Austere August without using an MMOC. I do love the MMOC but the opportunity to improve my straight razor technique and contribute to what might be the largest Headless Horsemen class so far was too good to pass up. I'm using a 6/8 Solingen razor that I got from u/whosgotthepudding and that just recently returned from a touch up by straight razor savant u/gcgallant.

I was planning on using one of my newly acquired badger brushes for the month, but on my recent vacation I went to a pharmacy in Vancouver and was somewhat surprised to find a few Omega boar brushes in the shaving section. I took that as a sign to pick up a souvenir and to participate in Raw Hoggin' this year. Of course I have this same knot (I believe, same 24mm size and 55mm loft) in a different handle but I like it so that's no big deal. Tagging u/EldrormR for my first post, the brush is boxed in my SOTD pic and the first picture in the Brush Progression Album linked above shows it out of the box before the first shave.

The hardest decision for me was software. I had been waffling about doing another Mammoth Month or seeing if I could withstand a month of Terror or Northern Elixir, but then once the Sheep challenge was posted I knew a month of Varen would be fun. I'm familiar with the Sheep base but look forward to dialing it in this month. This morning the tub weighed in at 137 grams.

And for the fragrance, I'm not exactly sure if any of my three challenges requires the same frag every month, so I went with one that I will be happy to keep repeating if I need to. Idyllwild is a beautiful fougere and provides a lovely contrast to Varen.

And now on to the shave itself. This was a stupid shave! I've broken in three boar brushes from new before today, and always did a few test lathers with some towel stropping to get them opened up before use. The complete lack of splay made building a lather quite difficult, but I eventually worked in enough water with just painting strokes to get the job done. I had to reload and rehydrate between every pass, but the edge on this razor is so nice right now that I still managed a presentable shave without much irritation. Luckily what little funk this bleached boar has was overpowered by Varen.

$headless

$RawHoggin

$ShepherdsofStirling

August 1, 2024 – AA24 Day 1: A New Beginning

• Brush: Omega 50068 Bambino 18mm boar
• Razor: Hartford Cutlery #20 4/8
• Lather: Chiseled Face – Midnight Stag
• Post Shave: Chiseled Face – Midnight Stag
• Fragrance: Chiseled Face – Midnight Stag

My first shave with the freshly-honed-by-u/gcgallant Hartford no. 20 was not bad, but far from the best. He did a fantastic job resetting the edge and I’m quite happy. But I’m pretty out of practice, and I was never really in. I’m also probably throwing in too many variables to start, not having used Chiseled Face in a while, changing up some techniques, and using that dear little Bambino brush.

The first pass was quite a challenge, but like I said, all the above variables are at play here. Notably, a positive comes from having watched a few different videos that I haven’t watched before, namely Dapper Shave. I have to say the technique he uses with regard to the angle at which he opens the blade—less than 180 degrees—makes much sense as it allowed me a better view of my shave. I also found I could use my dominant hand for most of the shave, only needing the non-dominant hand to edge along my mustache and goatee on that side. The most problematic area is still my neck, where the grain pattern in places is like a wheat field in a cyclone.

Pass number two was much better. I reloaded the brush from the tub and gave it some more water resulting in a better lather. My experience to date with smaller boar brushes is load them up then load them up some more and they will treat you nicely.

Today’s shave took a long time. I’m glad I have 10 more days to get things going before school begins for the year.

$SubstantialStag

$Headless u/whosgotthepudding

$Discord

August 1, 2024 -- Austerity Begins

• Brush: Zenith r/Wetshaving 31mm x 57mm Moar Boar

• Razor: J.A. Henckels Friodur 14 Full Hollow Square Point

• Lather: Chicago Grooming - AG 1889 - Soap

• Toner: Thayers - Lavender - Toner
• Aftershave: Chicago Grooming - AG 1889 - Aftershave
• Fragrance: Guerlain - Jicky - Eau de Toilette

2 passes. Face lather. Excellent shave. $headless $FriodomRiders

---

Finally! No more sleepness nights weighing the pros and cons of different setups for the morning's shave. And now I can take a vacation from the monotonous back and forth of stropping.

Vida did such a great job on AG 1889 (a nod to Guerlain Jicky) with its wonderful Darkwing base, that I feel a little guilty for using it in a month that we call Austere. I'll get over it. Wondeful shave today with AG 1889, the MOAR BOAR, and the Frio 14.

u/whosgotthepudding

Edit: I forgot. I made a video of honing the Frio 14 to prepare it for this month.

Aug. 1, 2024 Day 1 of Raw Headless Mammoth

• Brush: Summer Break Steinauer 26mm Zenith Boar
• Razor: Thiers Issard Evide Sonnant Extra Hollow 6/8
• Blade: Edge By u/whosgotthepudding [11]
• Lather: House Of Mammoth - Indigo - Soap
• Post Shave: House Of Mammoth - Indigo - Aftershave

Well this is going to be a challenge for me. I’ve used the same razor days in a row but I’ve never used a soap 2 days in a row. Here is pic proof of new knot here and here I’ve learned today on day 1 of Raw Hoggin that this is going to take some getting used to. The loft on this brush is 66.75mm overall 133mm. I had to go back to the tub for more soap for the second pass. I’m going to have to load for longer.

Even though there are now 11 uses on this edge, 9 of them are not mine. The Thiers is very light and I can see me mistakenly going to fast or getting too comfortable with it. I’m going to have to adjust to it.

That’s all for day 1.

u/whosgotthepudding

u/Mammoth_Don

u/EldrormR

$Discord

$RawHoggin

$MammothMafia24

$headless

SOTD 08/01/24

https://i.imgur.com/PPOeQhv.jpeg https://imgur.com/a/6FDD4i5

• Brush: Bristle Brushwerks w/ TurnNShave Shoat Knot

• Razor: Henckels Friodur 472

• Lather: House of Mammoth - Sonder

• Post: House of Mammoth - Sonder

Off to a good start! May have set the knot too low, it's quite scrubby but we'll see how it breaks in.

Tags: u/Mammoth_Don u/whosgotthepudding u/EldrormR $MammothMafia24 $FriodomRiders $headless $RawHoggin $discord

Photo Album

• Brush: Omega 10098
• Razor: Panhandle Barbershop Company Tonsorial Gem
• Lather: House of Mammoth - Indigo
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Indigo
• Fragrance: House of Mammoth - Indigo

Photo album has the boar pictures. I'm tired from marching band. This isn't my first time using a straight razor but I'm no expert so it was just a mediocre 2 pass shave, maybe this weekend I will post a video of my strange technique.

u/Mammoth_Don u/EldrormR u/whosgotthepudding $MammothMafia24 $RawHoggin $headless

August 1, 2024 - AA Day 1

• Prep: Warm Shower
• Brush: Semogue Torga C5
• Razor: Weck Hair Shaper
• Blade: Kismet (1)
• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag
• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag
• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag

Challenges/Tags: $SubstantialStag $RawHoggin $headless $Discord u/EldrormR u/whosgotthepudding

Unboxing Album

Let the Stag Spray Begin

I was planning on using a straight this month, but with work and school, I was never able to get it sent out to be honed. So, hopefully, the Weck meets the intent of the headless challenge. After today's use, you would think I didn't use it for AA last year. I ended up with a pretty nice cut under my lip, but the technique should come again quickly, so I'm not too worried.

I'm super excited about the annual month-long use of Stag. Stag combined with today and tomorrow being days of leave for me, I'm living on cloud 9.

August 1, 2024

• Brush: Chisel & Hound ""Rob's Finest"" Boar 25mm x 56mm
• Razor: J.A. Henckels Friodur 451 5/8 Stainless
• Lather: House of Mammoth - Everett
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Everett - Splash
• Fragrance: House of Mammoth - Everett - EdP

$Discord $Rawhoggin $FriodomRiders $MammothMafia24 $headless

u/Mammoth_Don u/EldrormR u/whosgotthepudding

Welcome to Austere August, where the ~~hashtags~~ moneytags are anything but austere.

I think I've done all the right tags and called out the three individuals who asked.

On to the pics.

My setup with the brush still in the box, digitally edited to remove addresses.

The note on the inside of the box explaining how the brush got its name.

Close up of the unused brush on day one.

The shave was rather unremarkable. Pudding did a great job honing this razor. So much less dramatic than the first use of the Weck.

01AUG2024

• Brush: Aurora Grooming Nebula (r/Wicked_Edge Sub Brush) w/28mm AP Shave Co. Gelousy
• Razor: Sheffield Straight Razor
• Lather: House of Mammoth - Everett
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Everett

$MammothMafia24 u/MammothDon

$headless u/whosgotthepudding

$discord

Well it looks like I'm going for nightmare mode here, and the Headless Challenge, and the Mafia Role Call!

I'm extremely new to straight razor shaving, and I'm going into this with really no experience whatsoever. I'm excited and terrified all at the same time. Unfortunately I'm babysitting an infant tonight so I couldn't grab a picture of the shave since little man has fallen asleep on my chest. But I'm excited! First Shave of the month? I'm seeing that I really gotta figure out my angles. And I gotta figure out this whole skin stretching thing. Seems difficult when your face is all lathered up. I'll take any tips and advice lol.

Excited for AA!

Austere August Day 1 - The Headless Friodom Riders

• Brush: Summer Break Soaps “Stanton” w/ V8 Tip

• Razor: J.A. Henckels Friodur #17

• Lather: MacDuffs Soap Co. Wild Rose Country

• Post Shave: MacDuffs Soap Co. Wild Rose Country

Trying to decide if this is actually a Nightmare Mode setup or if this is just the life of luxury for the next month. Can’t really say anything bad at all about any of this hardware and software as it’s a collection of favorites. Only complaint I may have throughout the month is how well I did on this edge, but only time will be able to tell that one.

$FriodomRiders $Headless $Discord

/u/whosgotthepudding witness me!

August 1st

• Brush: Chisel and Hound - AP Shave Co Synth
• Razor: Feather - Artist Club
• Blade: Feather
• Lather: Spearhead - Heather
• Post Shave: Proraso - Green
• Fragrance: Spearhead - Heather

Great shave to start it off. Took a few days off in preparation for this. Worried about my backpacking trip this weekend tho.

$headless u/whosgotthepudding