Lather Games Day 1- Let's Fuckin' Go!

• Prep: Hot Shower - Preshave
• Brush: Semogue 610 #SMOLL
• Razor: Gillette Travel Tech #JETSETTER
• Blade: Rapira Platinum Lux (1)
• Lather: MacDuff's Soap Co. - Prairie Rumrunner
• Post Shave: Barrister and Mann - Bay Rum Splash
• Post Shave: Zingari Man - AS Balm Unscented

Bonjour! Hola! Shalom! Welcome back to the month of insanity known as the Lather Games.

MacDuff's is a new soap company for me and since Prairie Rumrunner is their Bay Rum adjacent scent, I figured I'd snag a tub for this fine occasion. It was definitely interesting. It's a bit spicy and a bit dirty. I'm not sure I loved the scent, but I figure I need to get a few more shaves into the tub to make that determination. Performance-wise, it's a fine soap. It's not going to change lives though.

Also new to me is this teeny tiny Travel Tech I picked up as part of a vintage travel kit. Since I've tried pretty much every style of razor in the scavenger hunt, I could have attempted something like a Rolls Razor, but our friends who did the Audiobook Club Shaving podcast didn't exactly give the shave with this antiquity rave reviews. Why would I want to take a chance and slice the shit out of my face and risk looking like someone who survived a knife fight?

But have you ever used a Travel Tech? Have you ever shaved with something so fucking small? What kind of insanity is this?? It's damn near impossible to hold on to if you have average-sized hands. And I suspect it went out of production after loads of little children grabbed these fuckers thinking they were cool little toys. How many kids born from the late-50s to early-70s are nicknamed "Stumpy" as a result of losing digits to these cold-blooded killers of a razor? How many kids were unable to pick their boogers after an encounter with one of these things? I'm sure the Djudges will tell me to go pound sand because it's still a DE and I shave with loads of DEs. But this is some kind of special black magic-created DE. No one in their right mind should use such a thing. Hell, I might have been safer just shaving with the DE blade itself.

All that being said, I pulled off a decent shave to start the Lather Games. Easily better than attaching a DE to a chopstick and then slathering my face in mayonnaise.

So welcome to it, my friends. Good luck this month. Good luck also maintaining marital harmony and keeping your spouse from sending you off to a a padded room.

Lather Games Day 2- Veggin' Like Legends

• Prep: Hot Shower - Preshave
• Brush: Shore Shave 26mm Motherlode
• Razor: EldormR Industries MM24
• Blade: GEM - PTFE (11)
• Lather: Razor Emporium - Citrus Shave Soap
• Post Shave: Razor Emporium - Citrus Splash

I don't have many veg soaps in the collection. I could have used SV's Tundra Artica today, but it felt just waaaaayyyy too fancy for a Sunday. So out came the Razor Emporium Citrus soap and splash. Razor Emporium actually makes a strong performer of a soap in a veg base so I didn't feel like I was going to have to perform a blood sacrifice this morning to the Djudges.

Today's Challenge- (Note to Djudges- Thanks for giving us a heads up on the next day's theme. It makes it a little easier to prepare as opposed to rolling out of bed and thinking "Oh fuck, how the hell am I going to pull this shave photo/video off without the wife thinking I've lost my mind yet again) This is an Easy Mode Challenge for sure. The MM24 (aka The LG Butterknife) can be heard scraping stubble off through the whole house. My dogs run into the kitchen wondering what crunchy food item might hit the floor for them. But, alas, disappointment reigns for my canine kids as they realize it's just their dad scraping his face again.

#PHOTOCONTEST

Lather Games Day 3- Almonday

• Prep: Hot Shower - Preshave
• Brush: Shore Shave 26mm Motherlode
• Razor: Razorock Gamechanger .84 #CNC
• Blade: Astra SP Green (2)
• Lather: Cella Milano - Crema da Barba Soap
• Post Shave: Proraso - Eucalyptus Oil and Menthol Splash
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Hygge Balm

Not going to lie. I've been dreading this day. Almond-scented shave products are not my favorite, typically, and I am once again stuck using Cella on this day due to the way my calendar shapes up. Cella has this propensity to overtighten the pores on my face and requires copious amounts of balm to return my facial structure to its usual state. Cella also smells like almond oil rolled in Silly Putty. And then there's the shave quality which can sometimes be lacking. But today, I had a shockingly good shave with Cella. Maybe it's because the Motherlode knot holds so much water and really hydrated the shit out of the lather. Maybe it's because the Shaving Gods were smiling down upon me and they wanted me to have a successful Almonday. Who knows but the shave actually didn't suck. I still needed some balm, but not half a bottle.

As to our man u/RedMosquitoMM, I raise my coffee mug to a man who not only has excellent taste in shaving gear, but excellent taste in coffee. I raise my coffee mug to a man who has excellent taste in music while his username reminds me of an excellent Pearl Jam Song of the same name. And finally, I raise my coffee mug to a man who, like me, can extol the virtues of Talent Soap Factory. So here's to u/RedMosquitoMM . May you have an excellent Almonday and a successful Lather Games.

Lather Games Day 4- April, May, June and July Showers Better Bring Flowers

• Prep: Hot Shower - Preshave
• Brush: Shore Shave 26mm Motherlode
• Razor: Razorock Gamechanger .84
• Blade: Astra SP Green (3)
• Lather: Martin De Candre - Rose Soap
• Post Shave: Catie's Bubbles - Ocean Grove Splash

It's another rainy morning here in Southern Maine on the 4th Day of Our Shaving Lords. Fun Meteorological (aka SCIENCE!) fact- In the month of June, we had all of two days without any precipitation here. We had 5.68 inches of rain to be scientifically exact (thanks National Weather Service), which outpaces our usual average of 3.77 inches. Funner Meteorological fact- It has rained every day to start the month of July. A Botanical (More Science!) fact recently learned from a farm with a pick-your-own-flowers operation is that many flowers aren't blooming yet because there hasn't been enough sunlight to help the blooming process along.

Well, I'm here today to bring more flowers to Southern Maine and to you. I wasn't going to use a soap that had flower essences mixed with petrichor. Hell, I can smell petrichor any time I want just by walking outside lately. Nope, we are going for the straight flower note provided by MdC Rose, or, more scientifically, MdC Rosa Rubiginosa. Fun Science fact- there are over 360 species of roses to be found worldwide. MdC is produced in France which is a couple of thousand of miles away from the wilds of Maine, so I'm going to assume that they use the essence of Rosa gallica officinalis. This species is defined as a "compact, fragrant, European rose (Rosa gallica) having usually pink, red, or crimson flowers that yield an oil used especially in perfumery."

To effect this morning's shave, I used my surgical grade US-manufactured quarter to gently lift out 1/8 of a teaspoon into my bowl. After soaking my 26mm Motherlode knot in a half cup of 120 degree water and shaking off .001 liters of excess water from my brush, I proceeded to spend the next minute watching a spectacle of water displacement science turn my solid soap into a pile of foam, or what we call lather. Thanks to Google, "In physical chemistry, foam or foam spray is defined as a colloidal system (it means a dispersion of particles in the continuous medium), where the particles are given as gas bubbles and the medium as a liquid." Now, since we don't love foamy lather around here (except for tomorrow's shave), I proceeded to add 1/8 of a cup of water to my foam creation to produce a shaving product that would meet my needs.

Once I slathered (scientific shaving term) the soap creation on my face, I grabbed my handy-dandy Gamechanger with the .84mm blade gap and started my shave spending 2 minutes going with the grain. A quick rinse of the face with 1 cup of 70 degree(F) water and another slather was done. 2 more minutes were spent going across the grain on my face. Another quick rinse with another cup of 70 degree(F) water and I began my blade buffing clean up. 6 minutes were spent to achieve the end result of what we shave scientists call Baby Butt Smooth (BBS). BBS is the physical state of the skin where stubble is reduced to .025 micrometers making the skin feel like, well, a baby's ass. To finish off my shave, I figured Catie's Bubbles Ocean Grove would be a perfect topper since it is scented with Rosa rugosa, more commonly known as the Sea Rose around these parts. You can find them growing lushly around my property as well and clearly near where u/c_bubbles likes to jump into the ocean at the Jersey Shore.

And that ladies and gentlemen is my lecture for today. Please be sure to wipe the drool from your faces as you lift your heads off of your keyboards and get the sleepies out of your eyes. Have a great day all!

Lather Games Day 5- Canned Shave Goop Day AKA Djudges Revenge Day

• Prep: Hot Shower - Preshave
• Brush: Shore Shave 26mm Motherlode
• Razor: Razorock Gamechanger .84
• Blade: Astra SP Green (4)
• Lather: Barbasol - Soothing Aloe
• Post Shave: Mäuer & Wirtz - SIR Irisch Moos AS

Forget what I said about Almonday because TODAY is the day I was least looking forward to. Last year I think I dodged the bullet with this day by using Gillette's Planet Kind that came in the tin. That allowed me to use a brush and have a damn civilized shave. But this year?? What kind of black magic fuckery is this?? People still use this stuff?

This can was purchased at either my local grocery store or CVS several years ago by my stepson and has lived in my basement shower since. Unfortunately, I have never been able to get my stepson, who is an amazing dude and a friggin' genius, to see the light and change the error of his ways of using this shit. But I digress. I haven't used a can of spray goo since I started wetshaving 15 years ago. I probably haven't used Barbasol in like 25 years. So this should be a trip down memory lane.

A memory lane filled with sadness and grief and disgust opened before me upon the first squirt. Thick, gooey and uninviting, the pile of congealed whateverthefuckthatis laid in my hand. I then had to remember how to apply this to my face since I wasn't using a brush and more sadness ensued. There was no lovely sensation of swirling animal hairs across my face in a meditative way, just my man hands smearing this unholy creation across my frowning mug. Yes, I was actually frowning. Yes, I had hate in my eyes and blackness in my soul. This product literally sucked the joy from me within seconds of hitting my palm. I shit you not, there was no joy to be found. I stared at myself in the mirror with this thick ugliness on my face and thought "How did it come to this? And how did I ever allow myself to sink so low in my youth?".

The shave was...functional. Surprisingly, the Gamechanger felt perfectly mild shaving through this surface that had none of the slickness that I am accustomed to. But the post-shave? (Shakes his fits at the Shaving Overlords) The post-shave made Cella Red seem moisturizing and that stuff puckers my skin. God damn my face was tight. My face was Joan Rivers after 12 facelifts tight. Surprisingly, the Sir Irisch Moos, which is new to the den, did a lovely job of loosening things up (it's way too muggy here to add a balm to the mix). The scent of the splash brought a smile to my face. I've been wanting a bottle of this stuff for years out of sheer curiosity and I pulled the trigger recently. Joy began to return as the fougere-y notes hit my nostrils and I could feel my soul lightening as I skipped out of the bathroom. After taking my SOTD pic, I immediately brought this can of soul-sucking darkness back down to the basement shower. This bastardization should never see the bright light of day. No wonder there is so much sadness and gloom in this world thanks to products like these.

Today's Challenge: Whew, now that I have crawled out of the darkness that was shaving with Barbasol, it is time for me to come into the light scent-wise. Honestly, I'm a simple scent kind of guy and my wife is super sensitive to scents as well. She mostly hates my soap and aftershave collection, but the few things she likes are simple and bright.

My scent notes would be:

Lemongrass, ylang ylang and wild orange as the top notes. Drop a little Bay in there. If I can get a slight (non-menthol) cooling note in that, I would be happy. I'm pretty sure the wife would be too.

Have a great day all!

Lather Games Day 6- Today We Smell Good and Stack Good

• Prep: Hot Shower - Preshave
• Brush: Vulfix Pure Badger #ANCIENT #WEDONTNEEDNOSTINKINBADGERS
• Razor: Schick M1 Adjustable #DIAL
• Blade: Schick - Injector (1)
• Lather: Catie's Bubbles - Waterlyptus Soap
• Post Shave: Catie's Bubbles - Waterlyptus Splash

It is the second day in a row that we are actually having sun and warmth and this thing called summer. As a result, there's no need to get complicated with this whole dickholing thing. Today's a great day to end up smelling like a watermelon Jolly Rancher. Yesterday, I was so excited about the sunny summeriness that I actually ate a Snocone thingy and it was glorious. I must be channeling my inner child right now.

Anyway, today's stacking challenge was achieved continuing this whole inner child/"Let's Play Jenga!!" kind of thing. Have a great day all!

Lather Games Day 7- I Like My Shaves Extra Spicy

• Prep: Hot Shower - Preshave
• Brush: Vulfix Pure Badger
• Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
• Blade: GEM - PTFE (12)
• Lather: Zingari Man - The Merchant Soap
• Post Shave: Barrister and Mann - Bay Rum Splash
• Shaving Tunes: Better Lovers - God Made Me An Animal

The opening of the description for The Merchant is as follows: A man looks out from his stall at the open air market at a crowd of people shuffling through its warm, colorful pathways. He feels the blended hum of their voices resonate in his chest like music. With each breath, he takes in the smells carried on the air from the many stalls of the market—spices mingle with vanilla and a deep, honeyed amber to create something greater than the sum of its parts.

So I think I've got the spice covered in the soap. Now to the splash. I could have dickholed this, but it is another sunny and summery day and I spent the first couple of hours of the morning at the beach in the ocean. The Merchant is just too heavy after the beach, so B&Ms Bay Rum got the call and it is perfect. Spice, spice baby!

Today's musical inspiration would probably cause most men to slice their faces open from the jagged math-core-y stylings of Greg Puciato's new project. Yet, for this hardened metalhead, the juddering guitars and otherworldly screeches put me in a Zen-like state and gave me perfect focus for the shave.

I don't have any hobbies that match the insanity of this shaving thing. I'm more of a practices kind of guy. As some of you know, I'm a yoga teacher (not my day job). I've been teaching yoga for 7 years and practicing for over 20 in some way shape or form. For the last year and a half, I've been teaching aerial yoga at my wife's studio. This isn't Cirque Du Soleil, one-point silk, death-defying shit that dudes my age would never go near. I teach a great aerial decompression practice where we'll spend plenty of time hanging upside down like a bat and releasing the spine and shoulders but also plenty of time on our feet using the hammock as a fantastic prop. We have a lot of fun and we chill the fuck out. If I'm not teaching aerial classes, I love teaching Yin yoga, which is a practice that is low and slow. There are no standing postures and we'll hold postures for a couple of minutes at a time. It is a fantastic practice to really drop into your body and your breath. But, please don't confuse me with your stereotypical yoga teacher. I don't wear patchouli (but I am ready for Hippy Dippy Day), I eat meat, I drink beer and I listen to death metal. Oh, and I shave. That's my story.

Have a great day all.

Lather Games Day 8- Thank You Maggards

• Brush: Vulfix Pure Badger
• Razor: Schick M1 Adjustable
• Blade: Schick - Injector (2)
• Lather: Declaration Grooming - Convergence Soap Milksteak Base
• Post Shave: Barrister and Mann - Bay Rum Splash
• Shaving Tunes: Fen - Monuments to Absence

I raise my coffee cup to Maggards this morning for their general awesomeness and support of the community. I raise my cup to Maggards this morning for Convergence, which I really need to use more. The scent is nice and the base is outstanding. Actually, I probably just need to add a tub of DG into my den.

As to today's challenge, my contribution to the DQT thread can be found here. And I'm asking a legit question so please help a shaving brother out.

Have a great day all!

Lather Games Day 9- A Very Green (Tea) Birthday Shave

• Brush: Zenith r/Wetshaving MOAR BOAR (31 mm x 57 mm ) #CHONK #OLDWORLD
• Razor: Gamechanger .84
• Blade: Astra - SP Green (5)
• Lather: Crown & Crane - Green Tea Soap
• Post Shave: Proraso - Eucalyptus Oil and Menthol Splash
• Post Shave: Crown & Crane - Green Tea balm

As much as I do love coffee in the morning, I do not like shaving with coffee scents. It's too much. I don't want to smell the Nectar of the Gods on my face all day. So in my quest to achieve 30 artisans in 30 days, I decided to find a tea scent from an artisan not already on the calendar. I stumbled into Crown & Crane and this green tea scent and achievement unlocked. I'm not much of a tea drinker, but damn this scent is spot on for green tea and it smells really, really good. It's a nice and bright tea scent. Unfortunately, C&C doesn't make splashes, only balms, but the Green Tea balm over the Proraso smells wonderful. All in all, it's a damn fine pinkies up kinda morning to start my birthday.

As to the Daily Challenge, just like last year, I'm bowing out in the interest of marital harmony. I just don't need to get 20 questions from my wife as to why I'm shaving in the kitchen sink.

Lather Games Day 10- A Musical Shaving Interlude

• Brush: CaYuen 26mm Tuxedo
• Razor: Schick M1 Adjustable
• Blade: Schick - Injector (3)
• Lather: Barrister and Mann - Adagio Soap
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Alive Splash

When the LG calendar came out, my original thought was to use HoM Alive because every time I pull it out, the only song I can hear in my head is "Alive" from Pearl Jam. Plus, the way u/mammothben describes the inspiration for the scent makes me think that this song was playing in the background while he was doing the write up. But after rejiggering my calendar several times, HoM got pushed to a different day as I try nail 30 soap artisans in 30 days. As a result, I did a blind buy on a tub of Adagio because...MUSIC! The scent notes certainly sounded great, but when I got the tub and cracked it open, all I could smell was earthiness. I figured that maybe it opens up a bit when lathered...and it didn't. All I got this morning was more earthiness and none of the brighter notes mentioned in the description. Sigh. But, Alive came to the rescue in splash form and made me a much happier camper on this musically challenged day.

So, onto the daily challenge. I'm not an artist by any stretch of the imagination, but I recently took an "Art as Meditation" workshop from a friend of mine and started to look past my perceived lack of artistic ability and decided to just accept what ended up on the paper. I've got a pretty great and musically cheesy sketchpad book. This was made by another friend who makes them out of album covers. How could I not resist grabbing one with the Wham! cover. Ultimately, my vision of this soap's cover took shape and I'm happy with what I was able to sketch out here.

photocontest

With today's Music theme. I have a lot of albums to choose from but the Cult's "Electric" just seemed to work for me this morning. It's such a bad ass album to represent a bad ass month here on the sub.

Treble clef notes!

Lather Games Day 11- It's Allegedly Summer In Maine

• Brush: Zenith r/Wetshaving MOAR BOAR (31 mm x 57 mm )
• Razor: GEM Flying Wing
• Blade: Gem PTFE (13)
• Lather: Spearhead Shaving Co. - Sea Spice Lime Soap
• Post Shave: Stirling Soap Co. - Glacial Spearmint Splash
• Shaving Inspiration: Bad Brains - S/T

I mean if you are not shaving with SSL today, are you really shaving with a summer scent? Is there really another scent that makes you think that you're drinking a margarita by the ocean? If you think there is, I call bullshit. This is the THE scent of summer and as I've said in the past, this scent smells even better when you go to the beach after shaving and get actual salt air mixed in with the scent of SSL in your nostrils. I'll be getting that double dose of saltiness a little later when the sun allegedly makes an appearance and I have the opportunity to go to the beach. Glacial Spearmint not only pairs well with SSL but is color match-y as well for the sake of these SOTD photos. Oh, and look at that, my razor even fits with today's challenge. Musically, Bad Brains' self-titled album not only fits the bill for a killer summer album, but the cover is the perfect match for today's shave as well. Now, if only I could get my clothing to match as perfectly. It's too damn bad they don't make Garanimals for adults because I would so buy them.

Lather Games Day 12- There Was An Attempt at Hand Lathering

• Brush: CaYuen Workshop 26mm Tuxedo
• Razor: RazoRock GameChanger .84-P
• Blade: Astra - SP Green (6)
• Lather: Arko - Arko Soap
• Post Shave: Zingari Man - Cooling Recovery splash

Per Encyclopedia Maggardica, the first three ingredients of Arko are Potassium Tallowate, Stearic Acid and (wait for it) Potassium Cocoate. So we are in the game today with a cheap ass Arko shave.

Today's challenge was most certainly a challenge for me. With MOAR BOAR, I face lather (because I haven't figured out how to bowl lather with that beast). With every other brush in my collection, I bowl lather. Clearly, I needed to find a different lathering method. Knee lather? Ehhhh, that's so LG 2022. Ass lather? Is that really appropriate? And I didn't want someone to open the pic in their office and get hauled down to HR as a result. Crook of the elbow lather? That's just weird. So hand lather it was or kind of was or kind of wasn't. Ok, it was kind of a shitshow. On to the shit in the hand show we go.

Here you can see I scraped what should have been a decent amount of Arko into my hand. For the lathering experiment, I initially grabbed my Shore Shave brush with the Motherlode knot because why not try to lather my hand with the floppiest friggin' brush in my collection to add to the challenge factor. Clearly, I was being a schmuck as you can tell from the first minute of this hand lathering experiment. And so, I kept at it with this brush for another minute or so hoping to get a respectable lather in my hand. Let's just say I wound up with a lather that a r/wicked_edge noob would proudly show off. I figured I would see how much lather was in the brush and after a couple of swipes across the face, there was nothing. Like zero lather in the brush. Time to cut the shenanigans and pull out the CaYuen brush with the tuxedo knot and lather off the puck and then just hit the face. Oh look at that another brush all covered in real lather. Once an appropriate r/wetshaving lather was achieved, I was off to the races.

Admittedly, that was a damn slick shave with Arko. I should throw this in to the mix from time to time just because. The post-shave is a bit...drying...but the Cooling Recovery splash set me right up.

Lather Games Day 13- Smelling Like a Dirty Hippie Day

• Brush: Shore Shave 26mm Motherlode
• Razor: RazoRock GameChanger .84-P
• Blade: Astra - SP Green (7)
• Lather: Heritage Hill - Washington
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Z Splash

Just because I'm a yoga teacher, does not mean that I slather myself with patchouli and have incense constantly burning in my house. In fact, patchouli is not a scent that I groove with. I find it an obnoxious way to cover up bad hygiene. So why did I purchase a soap with patchouli as a primary note? I have no idea, but I do dig this scent from Heritage Hill. For me, I definitely get the tobacco bay and jasmine notes right off the bat. My wife, on the other hand, definitely gets the patchouli note and immediately turns and walks away from me wondering who the hell her husband has turned into. Needless to say, this scent definitely hits the mark for Hippy Dippy Day here in the Lather Games. The Heritage Hill base is fantastic and the shave was top notch.

Now, for the Daily Challenge, I definitely had some options. I could have gone with the soulful sounds of Grover Washington, Jr. I could have gone with the classic stylings of Dinah Washington. In the end, I decided I would go with the quirky as fuck stylings of The Presidents of the United States of America since, you know, George Washington was one of them. As it is summer, it is more than appropriate to dish out their alt-rock radio hit "Peaches". You know it. You love it. You'll be singing it in your head all day and you will thank your friendly neighborhood loudmusicboy for putting it in your brain.

Lather Games Day 14- Frigid Friday

• Brush: Semogue 1800
• Razor: Schick M1 Adjustable
• Blade: Schick - Injector (4)
• Lather: Stirling Soap Co. - Glacial Spearmint
• Post Shave: Stirling Soap Co. - Glacial Spearmint Splash
• Post Shave: Zingari Man - Cooling Recovery splash
• Post Shave: Duke Cannon - Ice Cold Balm

This was an eye-wateringly cold shave. We know that Stirling's Glacial soaps have more than just a little bit of menthol. I usually do a two-pass shave so my eyes don't quite get the opportunity to water. However, with today's challenge, I ended up doing a third pass and that's when the tears started and the nose started to run. After I splash some cold water on the face and blade buff, it's time to amp up the chill factor. First up, Glacial Spearmint aftershave that I didn't cut with a damp hand. A very Roy Kent-ish "fuuuuuccccckkkk" left my mouth causing my wife to ask what was wrong from the other room. Once that dried down a bit, I figured it was time to amp the cooling up further. Nothing better for that than ZM's Cooling Recovery splash. Yup, now tears are rolling down my face and I'm pretty sure I dropped to my knees praying for mercy. Not willing to throw in the towel, being the masochist that I am, I threw on the Duke Cannon Ice Cold balm which just trapped the chill from the prior two things on my face. Let's just say, my face was nice and cool for a good 45 minutes.

Alright, on to the Daily Challenge. As u/mrtangerinesky likes to say PICS OR IT DIDN'T HAPPEN!. This is the face of a man who never shaves against the grain except to please our Shaving Overlords and the djudges. I only did one against the grain pass on my face. No way in hell I was going to do that on my neck. That's crazy talk!

On to a summer day. Have a great day all!

Lather Games Day 15- Only using the craziest Sheep-ruh, bruh

• Brush: CaYuen 26mm Tuxedo
• Razor: Gem 1912
• Blade: Gem PTFE (14)
• Lather: Shannon's Soaps - Botanica
• Post Shave: Catie's Bubbles - Waterlyptus Splash

Let's get right to the point, Shannon is batshit crazy and there is no way in hell I would spend much on her products. To hit 30 soapers for 30 days, I figured grabbing a sample wouldn't cause the planet to tilt off its axis. I also couldn't use B&M LGC because B&M showed up on music day. I wanted to grab a sample of Grooming Depts Chypre but that was sold out so Shannon's it was.

On to the shave. After yesterday's Against the Grain Death March (yes Shaving Overlords, anything you want Shaving Overlords), I figured I would grab a mellower razor for this shave. I haven't used the 1912 a lot since I picked it up several months ago and I figured it would be the right tool for the task at hand, and it was. My face definitely appreciated the easiness of the shave. As to the soap, the scent is great. I think I really dig the Chypre scent thing. I think I can even get my wife around to it. But the soap itself? Ehhhhhh. It's fine, This base didn't move the needle for me and, for me, did not provide much in the way of residual slickness. If I don't want residual slickness, I'm perfectly fine using Proraso, but that's not why I use artisan soaps. I want the whole package and I'm happy to say that batshittery does not make for a great soap.

Speaking of bathshittery, it's time for the Daily Challenge and let's talk about WetTubers. Until a couple of years ago, I had no idea the number of shaving channels there were on YouTube dedicated to shaving. And little did I know how 1) relaxing and 2) informative some of these could be. Our man u/VisceralWatch has some stiff competition to be both relaxing and informative. But his dulcet tones do a fine job of telling me what I need to know about a specific product or his life in general before I lull off into dreamland. He should really consider a career in hypnotism. I jest about the lulling to sleep (sometimes). So who do I like to watch other HD Shaves?

In the "Relaxing and Informative" category, I like Shave&Butcher. He's got a great speaking voice, he uses a wide range of products and doesn't fanboy over many/any and I appreciate his international perspective on a range of topics. He has an interesting straight razor shaving style as well.

In the "I Don't Want Any Bullshit In My Shaving Vids", I'll watch Soap Thing . He's one of the few WetTubers not fanboying the same brands and does provide honest critiques of soaps and hardware. I find it refreshing from time to time. He has some hot takes on wetshaving things, but I haven't wanted to throw anything at my TV as a result.

In the "Wacky AF" category, there's always Silky Smooth . Why do I watch this? Honestly, I tune in from time to time just to see what metal band t-shirt he is wearing. That dude has a metal band t-shirt drawer that rivals mine and might be better than mine. But from a shaving vid perspective, he has a schtick that he sticks to and really doesn't get deep into product reviews and opinions. The dude also uses Astroglide in his lathers and his lathers look weak as fuck. But again, the dude likes metal clearly as much as I do and I just want to see what he's wearing while shaving.

And those are my WetTuber reviews for the day. Have a great day all!

Lather Games Day 16- Off To the Barbershop We Go

• Brush: Vulfix Pure Badger
• Razor: RazoRock GameChanger .84-P
• Blade: Astra - SP Green (8)
• Lather: HSSC - Barbershop
• Post Shave: Proraso - Eucalyptus Oil and Menthol Splash

Barbershop scents don't really do it for me. Sure, I have fond memories of getting haircuts at the Suniland Barbershop in the 'burbs of Miami while sucking on a DumDum lollipop and getting to ride the metal duck on the big metal spring while waiting (the barbershop and the animals on springs in the barbershop are still around), it doesn't make me want to shave with that nostalgia. In my 30 for 30 quest, I grabbed a sample of Highland Springs' Barbershop not expecting much out of it. HSSC is definitely an underrated soap around this sub but the base is fantastic. The scent? It's a friggin' talcum powder bomb to the face which is friggin' perfect. I don't care about the Clubman-y notes that most soaps try to go after, I just want the powder and this delivers. This is the brush of talcum to your neck post-cut but right to the face. Finished off the shave with the classic Proraso scent and I was good to go for a Sunday morning. My mood is definitely uplifted.

As far as the Daily Challenge, my meme game kind of sucks but here's my effort.

Lather Games Day 17- Happy Together!

• Brush: Yaqi 24mm Synthetic
• Razor: Schick M1 Adjustable
• Blade: Schick - Injector (5)
• Lather: Noble Otter/APR - Texaus
• Post Shave: Noble Otter Soap Co. - Northern Elixer Splash

This was a nice little collab between NO and APR that ticks off today's box for the Lather Games. This is such a nice scent and makes me feel like I'm standing in like a wheat field. Truth be told, I've never stood in a wheat field. I think I've seen one or two in my life, but that's the image I get.

My SOTD picture is a tribute to r/wicked_edge. I don't typically include my lather, but if I was posting on WE, I'd practically feel obliged to. Fortunately, my lather doesn't look as thick and grim as some of those pictures do.

On to the Daily Challenge we go. While I'm sure there are plenty of folks preparing an updated dissertation and exaltation of designer alum, hereforth called OSMA, and are going to show off their vast collections of OSMA blocks stored in their bunkers in preparation for an apocalyptic event that will end the flow of OSMA, but not me. Here's my take. First, this is the state of alum in my den. It used to be one chunk. It was the last chunk of alum I had from several that were brought to me by a coworker who went to Turkey many years ago. And then the wife dropped the last chunk a couple of weeks ago and now it's a pretty good facsimile for crystal meth (Note to djudges and those concerned- I only know meth from Breaking Bad).

But this crystal meth-looking alum could definitely have value in this world of artisanally carved OSMA. In fact, for some around here, my sad alum might have significant value. I'm sure u/mrtangerinesky would pay quite a sum of money to have someone plant these in the bathroom of u/Priusaurus. The local police would then receive a call from someone with a heavy European accent that would be somewhat muffled by a raging river. Of course, when the police answer the phone all they will hear at first is said voice mumbling, "I bought the river, motherfucker. I bought the motherfucking river." The police, now duly informed of a meth lab being run out of a suburban home under the guise of "ice baths", would then bust through the doors and find our man u/Priusaurus having a miserable shave in a bath of "ice". Of course, when they find the alum/meth baggie in the bathroom, one Lather Games contestant will find himself being hauled off to the local police station for an interrogation and the rest of the world will hear the evil laughter of u/mrtangerinesky echoing through the ether.

So what's the point of my ramblings? You can spend $8 or $9 on your lovingly handcrafted OSMA, and OSMA will happily take your money, but I believe that my jagged bits of alum are far more valuable in this world and can be used for far more entertaining things.

PLayer regales us with a tale of the value of his jagged alum shards

Lather Games Day 18- Spooky Season

• Brush: Shore Shave 26mm Motherlode
• Razor: RazoRock GameChanger .84-P
• Blade: Astra - SP Green (9)
• Lather: Southern Witchcrafts - Samhain Soap
• Post Shave: Barrister and Mann - Bay Rum Splash

And another SW scent that doesn't do it for me, even though I really, really want to like them. The soap is amazing. Unfortunately, their scents bring me no joy and are just too...murky. But hey, we are on theme here.

Today's Challenge. Uhhhhh, I've got silver stubble. There is no black, there is no brown, there is no red, just silver. Here's my blurry photo of my stubble in lather.

Lather Games Day 19- Cream in Your Socks

• Brush: Shore Shave 26mm Motherlode
• Razor: Schick M1 Adjustable
• Blade: Schick - Injector (6)
• Lather: Taylor of Old Bond Street - Sandalwood Cream
• Post Shave: Noble Otter - Northern Elixier Splash

I just want to know which one of the judges found a suspect sock in their teenager's room and then said, "Hey, I bet we can make this a Daily Challenge during the Lather Games!" Sure, this challenge is interesting, if I had 15 minutes to spare in my morning to create a lather in my sock. And this challenge would be a great way to show off my cool sock collection since I don't own any tube socks or the like. My giant squid socks would be perfect for a day like this. This challenge would also find me getting the hairy eyeball from the pre-coffee wife as she strolls into the bathroom while I'm playing with my sock. So, once again, in the interest of marital harmony, I'm going to take an F on this assignment.

As far as today's theme, it's pretty straightforward. I figured I'd go right to the classic I started shaving with 15 years ago. In the before-times of wet shaving, TOBS was considered the "good shit" in a world where the options were limited. I know, for many of you wet shaving youngins, this kind of statement sounds like heresy in an artisanal shaving world. But Ol' Man Shaver is here to carry the flag for the classics (from time to time) and pull them out for you to kids to gawk at. As far as Sandalwood scents go, this is by far the most confusing scent in the spectrum. If TOBS Sandalwood is the first experience you have with this scent spectrum, it's going to fuck you up when you stumble into Proraso Red (another classic) or B&M's take on sandalwood or any other artisan's for that matter because it is way more floral than woody. I'm good with it and I got a nice slick shave with the stuff so I'm pretty happy. Of course, tomorrow our Shaving Overlords are asking as to make shitty lathers so I'm glad I had a good shave today.

Lather Games Day 20- We've Been Duped

• Brush: Zenith r/Wetshaving MOAR BOAR (31 mm x 57 mm )
• Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
• Blade: Gem PTFE (1)
• Lather: Summer Break Soaps - Prom King Soap
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Hygge Splash

There's nothing like a fresh blade in the MM24. It's the shaving equivalent of opening a new bag of Doritos and inhaling the nacho cheesy goodness (and don't come at me with your "Cool Ranch are way better, bro" stylings). But why the MM24 on Dupelganger day? Well, as I was arranging and rearranging and rearranging the rearrangements of the calendar, I ultimately settled on SBS Prom King, which, according to the label, was an r/wetshaving release based off of JPG Le Male (DUPE!!). If I'm going to use one r/wetshaving exclusive, might as well use some others, like the sub exclusive MOAR F'N BOAR. And if we are going to use MOAR F'N BOAR, I might as well use the razor mascot of r/wetshaving, the MM24. Unfortunately, I didn't have a sub exclusive splash but settled on a scent that is sanctioned and praised around these parts in Hygge. As you can see from my SOTD photo, my dog Opie is suuuuuuuper impressed with my shaving choices this morning.

Onto the Daily Challenge of fucking up my lather. I soaked MOAR BOAR during my shower. Unlike most days, when I removed it from the mug, instead of flicking it twice, I flicked it 5 times to remove the excess water and set to lathering and then slathering it on my face. Without adding more water to the brush as I lathered, like usual, I left my lather like this. Now, our esteemed Shaving Overlords may look at those pictures and think, "That's a pretty good lather there u/loudmusicboy", but au contraire mon freres, I'm a guy that likes a much wetter lather when using this brush. I like a lather that easily slides off the razor over the sink. As you can see here, that lather ain't moving off the razor without a deluge of water and so went the first pass. I didn't wash my face between passes and continued with a stickier lather than usual. But, all things considered, it was still a fantastic shave, even though I got more feedback than usual slapping on splash after using the MM24.

Alright, Shaving Overlords, I've made my sacrifices to you this morning, now let me go off and tackle my day.

photocontest pets

How could I not include my old man Opeth in one of these photos.

Lather Games Day 21- Fougere Friday

• Brush: Semogue 1800
• Razor: 1959 Gillette Fatboy
• Blade: Rapira Platinum Lux (1)
• Lather: Wholly Kaw - Fougère Mania Soap
• Post Shave: Mäuer & Wirtz - SIR Irisch Moos AS

I can't be the only one who rolls out of bed on a Fougere Friday and has Fugees songs playing in their brain, right?

Unless our Shaving Overlords don't have their reading glasses on, I think it's clear that I'm on theme today. The Fougere Mania plays well with the Irisch Moos in my nose. The operative word being "my", which leads me to the Daily Challenge:

Fougere Friday, yay!

Shaving's manly scent is worn

Wives may be displeased

Lather Games Day 22- A Berry, Berry Good Shoulder Day

• Brush: Semogue 1800
• Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
• Blade: Gem PTFE (2)
• Lather: Talent Soap Factory - Frankie Mermaid Soap
• Post Shave: Stirling Soap Co. - Glacial Spearmint Splash

So I Googled "Is a grape a berry" and the first thing that came up was from some website called waynesword.net. According to this site I know nothing about- "Grape Family (Vitaceae) Grapes are one of the oldest cultivated plants. They are classified as true berries because the fruit wall or pericarp is fleshy all the way through. The cultivation of grapes dates back more than 5,000 years in Egypt, and they were highly developed by the Greeks and Romans." Alright, alright, alright, we're in the game today. No better grape-iness to use today than Frankie Mermaid. You get smacked in the face with grape soda right off the bat before the scent settles right down. And I'm not talking crappy-ass Sam's Club generic GRAPE SODA, I'm talking Fanta Grape. 100% classic. Maybe even NeHi quality grape soda. Regardless, this fucking rocks way more than your wine smelling soaps.

So, I had a shit ton of lather after doing the face and then had to decide what the hell was I going to shave. Now, being the hairy bastard I am, the options are pretty endless. Now, this challenge did call for leg day, but I'm already experiencing some weird hair loss around my calves that my wife is finding deeply disturbing. It's like islands of bare skin in a forest of hair. While shaving the lower legs might even things out, I'm going to look like I have some tropical hair losing disease. I could have done some side ass cheek and gotten that down nice and smooth, but do you really need to see the before and after of my hairy ass cheek? Fuck no. I don't even want to see it.

I figured it's been a bit since I cleaned up my shoulders and let my tattoos be released from their hairy prison. So here's the before and after of my left shoulder and here's the before and after of my right shoulder. And while I'm sure there is going to be some djudge out there decrying the lack of lather pictures, the missus was too close for comfort for me to be snapping pics of the shoulder lather (some things are better left unsaid in this house). So yes, today I shaved something that wasn't my face. Was it nearly as entertaining as u/hairykopite showing us that we clearly descended from primates? Absolutely not, but it gives me a shot at some teensy weensy point thing.

Lather Games Day 23- Smelling Our Best Today!

• Brush: Shore Shave 26mm Motherlode
• Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
• Blade: Gem PTFE (3)
• Lather: House of Mammoth - Sonder Soap
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Sonder Splash

When looking at how the LG calendar fell this year, I had zero issues figuring out what I was going to use for this day. Of course, it caused me to do some rearranging on some other days. But hey, I'm 23/23 for different soaps this year thus far.

And if this day requires a theme song, well, that's pretty friggin' easy

But back to Sonder. Seriously, in the summer, this scent just rocks. And my wife, who doesn't like a hell of a lot of what I shave with, definitely likes to get a little closer to her Sonder Man. As far as I'm concerned, my wife is the only opinion that matters regarding my scents. It's not like it has stopped me from using plenty of things she doesn't like. Except for Tabac splash. That is 100% verboten in this house when she is around. Those of you who walk up to strangers and ask them, "Hey, can you sniff me and tell me how I smell?" are friggin' weird. But why do I think that u/mrtangerinesky is going to drop a video of him doing this to multiple random strangers? I mean this Lather Games has already taken some weird fucking turns so why the hell not.

Shaving with Sonder, or any Tusk base soap, is so easy. It lathers like a dream. That's what my dreamy lather looks like. I'll let the djudges and the other snarky souls/Lather Games competitors mock my skills but whatever. I'm not sensitive, you're sensitive. I mean this month has been one increasing test of pushing our self-esteem lower and lower so why not just continue to head to the bottom by enduring mockery from our peers.

Time to take my Sonder-smelling self over to the wife for some self-esteem rebuilding.

Lather Games Day 24- Christmas Eve In July

• Brush: CaYuen 26mm Tuxedo
• Razor: 1959 Gillette Fatboy
• Blade: Rapira Platinum Lux (3)
• Lather: Murphy & McNeil - BDLM2 Soap
• Post Shave: Noble Otter Soap Co. - Northern Elixer Splash

It's beginning to look a lot like...uhhhh...Christmas...yea, that's it. All the smooshes are under the...blooming rose bushes. There's a slight...or not so slight...bit of humidity in the air. And the sun is trying to kill us during this season. But for the sake of the Lather Games, it's Christmas Eve! I'd like to thank u/chronnoisseur42O for today's shave. That man was a smoosh sending beast in the run-up to the Games and I appreciate him adding me to his "Nice" list this year. As you can see from the SOTD pic, the US Postal Service didn't give a shit about our reindeer games and that smoosh arrived looking like it sat under every sweaty USPS worker between our respective coasts. I managed to scrape out enough ass-warmed soap to get a great shave this morning. M&M does have a really nice soap base and this scent is a really nice expansion on the barbershop spectrum. So thank you to the man who took his life into his hands shaving with an ice kamisori.

On to the Daily Challenge. While there are plenty of longstanding sub members I could say something nice about, rookies need some compliments too. This morning, I'm raising my coffee cup to u/tsrblke. That guy has not only thrown himself into the sub as an active participant but he also espouses the ethos of generosity we have around these parts. A couple of months ago, he was offering up smooshes of Shire 2 and Rumble and I figured I would find out what this guy was about. Well, the guy is a man of his word and the smooshes showed up on my doorstep pretty quickly. He has offered up his generosity at other times as well, including in the LG run up. And in an age of electronic communication, this dude has the coolest personalized envelopes. Seriously. When's the last time you've seen personalized envelopes? It's been at least 20 years for me. So that's the praise I'm going to sing this morning.

Have a great day all!

Lather Games Day 25- Ho! Ho! Ho!

• Brush: CaYuen 26mm Tuxedo
• Razor: 1959 Gillette Fatboy
• Blade: Rapira Platinum Lux (4)
• Lather: WSP - Peppermint
• Post Shave: Maol Grooming - Marlogue Wood splash

The theme of today's shave is to be a Christmas tree covered in candy canes. How does the soap meet the djudges approval? Well, WSP only markets this soap scent during the holiday season. It's not sold in the warmer weather months. Just because the lid looks like that melted Brachs Peppermint candy you pulled out of your grandma's purse in the dead of summer (that might also have a Tabac-y note to it as well), does not mean that this scent is anything other than a winter scent. And Marlogue Wood does a damn fine job of making you smell like a friggin' tree with top notes of Balsam Fir Needle, Cedarwood, Atlas Cedarwood and Ho Wood. I smell pretty strange for a warm summer day, but these are the things we do for our Shaving Overlords. I guess smelling like the dead of winter in July is easier than, say, shaving at a restaurant or in a 36 degree bathtub or drinking your stubble. And I took my SOTD picture using my vintage tinsel tree so I'm definitely on theme today.

On to today's challenge to shave left handed.

First and foremost, there needs to be a theme song for these shenanigans and Entombed was more than happy to provide the theme song.

Now, it's time to get shaving. For topographical reference, I'm right handed which corresponds to the side with my crow tattoos. But today, it's all about the left hand which corresponds to the Japanese lillies on my shoulder. For those of you playing along, both shoulders were shaved smooth during Leg Day and are now far more presentable to our djudges for this exercise.

Let's shave, shall we? First pass WTG was pretty easy on the left side. I mean how hard can it be to just shave downward on the same side? Moving over to the right side of the face proved to be a bit more challenging but was successful, albeit sloooooowwwww. I couldn't get pictures of the second XTG pass because my left hand was feeling far too uncoordinated and shaky for me to concentrate on taking a picture while shaving. But, it was done. And without blood. I actually managed a BBS shave considering 1) this soap lacks serious slickness and 2) I have zero coordination with the left.

In the end, I realized I can shave lefty if I have to, but why would I want to do that? Oh yea, I want points. I the respect of the djudges. I want the self-esteem boost that comes from knowing that I didn't wuss out of a Lather Games challenge. So Merry Christmas and Happy New Year (in July).

Lather Games Day 26- Wildcard Wednesday

• Brush: Zenith r/Wetshaving MOAR BOAR (31 mm x 57 mm )
• Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
• Blade: Gem PTFE (4)
• Lather: Ariana & Evans - Emerald Moss Soap
• Post Shave: Mäuer & Wirtz - SIR Irisch Moos AS

Sure, I could have made a late night run to the Walmart Supercenter to find the latest and greatest in Wildcard Wednesday shaving gear like some of you did, but I was deep in a weed-gummie fueled dream state last night. So, instead of shaving with lube or motor oil, I just shaved with, you know, a shave soap. Emerald Moss is allegedly a dupe/homage Irisch Moos and everything paired well together for a lovely green and gold shave.

On to the Den Tour we go. And please pardon the dustiness in some areas. We'll start in my upstairs guest bathroom where the razors, brushes and splashes live. My shelving unit ran out of space for the brushes so I had to move them down to the table to sit next to alternativemusicgirl's make up and shit. Yes, there are a few razors and a key brush missing here because they are down in the main bathroom. Watch your step going down and duck just a little bit under the threshold. It's a wee bit too early in the morning for a concussion, eh?

Welcome to our small but mighty main bathroom where the wife has given me all of one shelf in the medicine cabinet and one shelf in the upper storage area to stow some gear. As you can see in the medicine cabinet, I've got my LG razor rotation, today's splash along with other splashes and what the...Who the fuck put a block of OSMA in there? u/jeffm54321 must be sending his ninjas out to litter our dens with OSMA. After years of me and others decrying the need for designer alum, he's had enough and is taking matters into his own hands or at least the hands of capable ninjas. Ok, maybe it wasn't ninjas and I shouldn't deflect, so yes, I bought it the other day because I've gotten the wife to use alum for cuts, nicks, bug bites, random appearing pimples and other needs. She didn't like the crystal meth shards of alum (that she was responsible for) so I upped the household game. Moving on, look up, that's where the bowl and some Proraso is kept and MOAR BOAR is sitting up there waiting for today's spin.

Enough laughing about how tiny my...master bathroom...is, let's head to the basement. Definitely, watch your head at the bottom of the stairs. Alright, welcome to the tiny bathroom that holds all of the soaps. For awhile there, I had room for everything in the medicine cabinet, but then had to add some stacks on the toilet. I'm probably at the point where I should buy an over the door shoe organizer but do I really want to show alternativemusicgirl just how many soaps that I have? I mean she does wander down here from time to time to print off flyers for her yoga studio. Do I really need to start a discussion about shaving soaps? Not really. So I'll keep this organized my way.

Alright, you all can leave my house now. Leave me be to drink my mushroom coffee in peace. There's a Walmart a couple of miles away from here that you can all go to find your shave for the day.

Lather Games Day 27- Easy Like Lavendursday

• Brush: Semogue 1800
• Razor: 1959 Gillette Fatboy
• Blade: Rapira Platinum Lux (5)
• Lather: Castle Forbes - Lavender Essential Oil Cream
• Post Shave: Stirling Soap Co. - Lavender & Sage Splash

I have no problems shaving with lavender, unlike some of you whiny babies. But clearly, I don't shave with lavender often enough. Between the soap and the splash, I smell like a lavender bomb went off in my bathroom. Post shave, my wife looked at me strangely when she kissed me good morning. It was a look that said, "Who bodysnatched my husband in the middle of the night and brought me some dude who shaves with lavender??" My dog Opie felt the need to pee on my leg to mark his territory since I smelled strange to him. My dog Ainsley attempted to bare her teeth at me because I smelled different (fortunately, she just had her remaining teeth removed last week). Lavendursday has left my family confused. Thanks djudges. Just the way I wanted to start my day.

As to the Daily Challenge, I had high hopes of pulling off a lighthouse shave this year when Shave Outside day appeared on the calendar. I live close to one of the most iconic ones here in Maine and even closer to a smaller one that sits out on a jetty. Sadly, I have an early morning meeting and I couldn't pull it off. I'm also sad that I lost the opportunity to be the guy shaving by a lighthouse in a bunch of tourists' pictures.

User gets rejected by one family member, threatened by another, and peed on by a third because of lavender

Lather Games Day 28- If Only I Had Read The Fine Print About These Alleged "Savings" From Wetshaving

• Brush: Semogue 1800
• Razor: Schick Eversharp G
• Blade: Schick - Injector
• Lather: Master Soap Creations - Peppermint Latte
• Post Shave: Thayers - Lemon Witch Hazel

This was not the shave I intended for this day. Once I read the rules for the shave and the Daily Challenge yesterday, everything had to get juggled around. I'm taking this shave as the opposite of last year's Flex Day, or whatever it was called, where you could show off your $400 razor, $500 brush and the rarest soap in the world made with milk from Tibetan mountain goats and white truffles. Since we already had Drugstore Day or Canned Shit on Our Faces, there is no need to use something silly like a disposable. So here's the cheapest shave I could pull off today and still keep my 30/30 soapers intact.

1) The Shick Eversharp G - These sell at a number of price points. I've seen them as low as $10 and as high as $45. This is the injector that got me started down the injector/GEM rabbit hole. I picked this up at an antique shop in Western Maine for a whopping $6 and it needed no restoration. It was pretty much in mint condition.

2) Schick Injector blade - The unfortunate thing about injectors are the price of blades on per blade basis. Where you can buy DE blades for pennies and GEM blades for around $.20/blade, injectors are $1/blade.

3) Semogue 1800 brush - If you Google it, it runs between $15 and $20. So let's call this $17 for the sake of argument

Today's Hardware cost is $24. That's a pretty sweet deal if you ask me.

Alright, on to software we go.

Master Soap Creations Peppermint Latte was not the original choice for this day, but I couldn't confirm how much (or how little) I paid for a 1oz tin of Red House Farm Lumos. I had already used Arko and Stirling and Proraso is on tap for tomorrow so here's MSC to the rescue. This is a 6oz tub that I bought for $14.99, which comes out to $2.49/oz. This is not too far off the Stirling mark on a per-ounce basis. It's a great soap and it is friggin' cold, which is perfect for a humid morning.

Thayers Witch Hazel can be procured here locally for $10.95. It's a 12-ounce bottle so that comes out to $0.91/oz.

So yes, if I only wanted one good soap that packed a lot of value on a per ounce basis and on a quality-of-shave basis, and if I wanted to use witch hazel as my post (I don't love using it), then I could definitely save money.

Lather Games Day 29 - I Got Yer Sandalwood

• Brush: Semogue 610
• Razor: GEM Pushbutton
• Blade: Gem PTFE (5)
• Lather: Proraso - Sandalwood Soap
• Post Shave: Southern Witchcrafts - Sandalwood splash

Today is another day that Big Soap is going to take over the Lather Games. Today is the day that the djudges should get down on their knees and beg like they've never begged before for Proraso to become one of the sponsors of the Lather Games. I mean is there any point in using any other sandalwood scented shaving product other than Proraso today? Sure, I could have used the Southern Witchcrafts Sandalwood soap I have that matches the splash used today, but that's bullshit. I'm pretty sure Southern Witchcrafts stopped making their version when Proraso sent them a cease and desist letter. I'm willing to bet B&M got a cease and desist letter as well. Go find their version of Sandalwood flooding the market. It's practically unobtanium thanks to Big Soap. So many artisans think they can band together on a day like today and knock Big Soap off its pedestal as the sandalwood king. So many artisans' hopes and dreams will be crushed today.

On to today's challenge to give our djudges a day of rest from thinking about who has been worthy in this year's LG. I do have to say that u/priusaurus definitely brought his A-game with the ice baths, the getting kicked out of restaurants for shaving and other hijinks. I have to give a shout out to my fellow Pine Tree Stater u/hugbckt for doing (or maybe not doing) the unthinkable and enjoying a nice glass of stubbly lather water. u/mrtangerinesky and his attempt to shave in a headstand before falling and slashing himself is definitely taking one for the team. u/chronnoisseur420 and his creation of the most dangerous shaving instrument ever is worthy. u/crisp_mango wins song of the year for his brilliant remake/remix of the Humpty Dance to kick off the LG. Of course, you have to give credit to u/jeffm54321 and his commitment to keeping the Air Bud Rule from going extinct with his usage of Bay Rum this year.

Lather Games Day 30- Hasta la vista juegos de espuma

• Brush: Semogue 1800
• Razor: Mühle R89
• Blade: Rapira Platinum Lux (6)
• Lather: D. R. Harris - Marlborough Soap
• Post Shave: Proraso - Eucalyptus and Menthol AS

It's over? Really? I feel like we just started these shenanigans. Man, how quickly 30 days of shaving asshattery, nutbaggery, borderline stupidity, mild insanity and marital harmony questioning flew by. These Lather Games seemed to go from ho-hum to what the actual fuck in no time. For me, I had no designs on winning or even a Top 10 finish. I'll be happy if I finish a place higher than last year (I think I was 42nd). Did I hit 30 different soaps for the month? You betcha. Did I slay the hardware scavenger hunts or photo contests? Absolutely not. I was just content to grind away in the middle (or bottom) of the pack and watch everything unfold around me. To all of the 'competitors' this year, congratulations on getting across the finish line of one of the weirdest months of the year on the internet. To our esteemed djudges, thank you for all of the hard work to get these Games up and running and manage the insanity once they took off. Oh, and thanks for giving us a day of notice of the following day's challenges. That was immensely helpful.

So on to today's final shave. As a US-residing competitor, my shave had a European flair. The Semogue 1800 hails from Portugal. The Muhle R89 was made in Germany. The blades came from Russia (prior to the Ukraine invasion). D.R. Harris is my favorite English shaving soap. Proraso...well we know that next year's Big Soap sponsor hails from Italy. I nailed the theme. I nailed the challenge.

Now, to welcome a day of shaving rest (what the hell am I going to shave with tomorrow??? What is this free choice of shaves day that I have??) and to make decisions about how I will spend Austere August. Should I use Sonder, Alive or Hygge to get into the Mammoth Mafia fun (feel free to push me one way or another)? Will the Zenith boar that I ordered that got lost in the post office here in Maine actually land on my doorstep tomorrow or will I be using the Omega boar that I quickly ordered from Amazon to engage in another August of Raw Hoggin'. Tune in on August 1st when these and other razor burning questions will be answered.

Until then, arrivederci, shalom, adios and goodbye Lather Games.