This is my solution to the problem. I found it for last year’s AA.

Maybe something like it can reassure all involved mothers?

The hone is a different story, of course, but you only need it on the 17th. (Or not at all, of you participate only in $FriodomRiders)

Black Watch++;

How come? Lots of air travel?

my wife is in the hospital recovering

Quick recovery to the missus!

It’s really nice!

I would, but I don’t believe in Austere August.

It’s really “Austere” August at this point 😅

I also can’t travel with a straight razor which makes it impossible to succeed 😭

😭

Stropping on a loaded strop glued to a firm flat surface indefinitely is also the way Rolls Razors and Darwin Hollow Grounds function.

no way I’m going to ruin a blade trying to learn how to sharpen it myself; kitchen knives are hard enough

Sharpening razors is easier than kitchen knives. It’s easy to mess up the bevel on a kitchen knife because you need to free-hand a constant angle. Razors lie flat on the stone. It’s honestly a very accessible and also satisfying skill to pick up, if you like that sort of thing.

My other Austere August challenge is about easing into maintenance and making finding a reliable sharpener unnecessary, if you’re interested.

Prem Base is now On Prem Base

• Brush: Zenith 506B MB (27 mm × 51 mm Manchurian badger)
• Razor: Zwilling J. A. Henckels 14 (8/8", extra hollow ground, carbon steel)
• Lather: Catie’s Bubbles – Reflection
• Post Shave: Catie’s Bubbles – Reflection
• Fragrance: Tom Ford – Tobacco Vanille

What a pleasant shave!

This is my first use of Catie’s Bubbles Premium base. I was warned by u/J33pGuy13 to load super lightly, and he was right. This base loads quickly and hydrates easily. I’m looking forward to dialling it in over the next few uses, but even this first shave worked out great.

The scent is really something special; dry, spicy, a bit tart somewhere in the background, a hint of sweetness, really fascinating. It invites you to sniff it again and again to understand what’s going on. I’m really happy about this blind buy.

Yeah, it’s crazy, literally all they’re scents are winners IMO

Freedom Tuesday!

• Brush: Zenith 506B MB (27 mm × 51 mm Manchurian badger)
• Razor: Blackland Razors - Vector
• Blade: Feather Professional
• Lather: Mäurer & Wirtz Tabac Original
• Aftershave: Mäurer & Wirtz Tabac Original
• Fragrance: Mäurer & Wirtz Tabac Original

It’s back! ♥

I revel in the glory of The Stank® trickhole after a month of lather games-induced withdrawal. Although I did have Tabac scheduled for Fougère Friday in an earlier version of my LG roster after reading this precedent, but I needed to axe it to make room for the “Science with Fuck” experiments.

I’m really enjoying @[email protected]’s Vector. A delicate build, but a really nice shaver!

Oh well, as long as it works

Reserve Fern gives my son a bit of frag burn. Oh well.

Lol, when your toddler needs to smell like a grandpa, sacrifices need to be made!

Whoo!

• Brush: Zenith 506B MB (27 mm × 51 mm Manchurian badger)
• Razor: Zwilling J. A. Henckels 14 (8/8", extra hollow ground, carbon steel)
• Lather: Spearhead Shaving Company – Seaforth! Roman Spice
• Post Shave: Spearhead Shaving Company – Seaforth! Roman Spice
• Fragrance: Spearhead Shaving Company – Seaforth! Roman Spice

YAYYY! @[email protected] is back on patrol! Thanks @[email protected] for fixing it!

LG are done, I’ve cleared my docket first thing in the morning and shaved with Roman Spice as the second thing. This set has arrived during Lather Games, and I’ve been itching to use it. I love the fresh apple opening and I’m still processing scent. I think it’s going to get a lot of use this summer.

Bon Voyage, Lather Games!

• Brush: Mühle Boar Brush – Deutsche Demokratische Republik (GDR)
• Razor: СПЗ Консул – Українська Радянська Соціалістична Республіка (Ukrainian SSR) #Stainlessless
• Blade: Нева – Российская Советская Федеративная Социалистическая Республика (Russian Soviet Republic)
• Lather: Купа – Купа – България (Bulgaria)
• Post Shave: Wars – Fresh – Rzeczpospolita Polska (Poland)
• Fragrance: Красная Москва – Красная Москва – Российская Федерация (Russian Federation)
• Me: Switzerland

Another Lather Games edition is in the can, and we made it to the end almost completely without drama! I want to thank the participants and my fellow organisers from the bottom of my heart for a wonderful month of June! I’m looking forward to recording the podcast wrap-up and the winner announcements soon.

Our hobby on this sub is pretty anglo-centric, so I decided to look east for today’s international theme instead for a change.

Theme: The cream Купа is from Bulgaria, home of sub legends u/MrTangerinesky and u/DjanovShaving.

Relevant post and frag: All items used are on theme.

Special challenge: The Mühle brush is from the same Mühle company that still makes razors. This NOS brush was made around 1975, shortly after the owner family Müller had been expropriated and the company had been transformed into a Volkseigener Betrieb (Publicly Owned Enterprise, the main legal form of industrial enterprise in East Germany). The Razor was made in Severodonetsk in 1990 in the Ukrainian SSR. It’s a pretty neat clone of the Gillette Slim. The blade was made in 1963 in Leningrad in the Russian SSR. It’s tuggy. The post shave is from (modern, democratic) Poland (fresh!) and Красная Москва is from the modern day Russian Federation (“Smells like a cheap old woman’s perfume” - my wife).

An interesting titbit about Красная Москва is that it and Chanel N° 5 have the same origins in the last decades of the Tsarist Russian Empire. Here’s an interesting podcast episode about it for those who understand German.

Good to hear! Maybe I’ll have to spring for one soon too :)

Huh, I didn’t realise Tabac is expensive in the US. Here it’s much cheaper than Stirling (5.8¢/g vs 8.7¢/g and that’s not even taking into account Tabac is triple milled).

Just a small pile of shave gear in my parent’s apartment :)

Do you still enjoy l’ours russe?

Sandalwood Saturday, The Penultimate Challenge

• Brush: Zenith r/Wetshaving exclusive MOAR BADGER (Silvertip) #SUBBROOSH
• Razor: Eversharp-Schick Hydro-magic (I2, NOS)
• Blade: Personna Injector Blade
• Lather: Proraso – Sandalwood
• Post Shave: Taylor of Old Bond Street – Sandalwood
• Fragrance: Le Labo – Santal 33

I can’t believe that LG is already almost over again!

Theme: Proraso Red is a dry, warm, slightly dirty sandalwood scent.

Relevant post and frag: Both the post and frag are completely sandalwood-forward frags. I smell like dry twigs on a sunny patch of forest floor.

Challenge: It would be a bit unethical for me to answer since I know the current rankings. Well, now I do, but I knew this challenge would come, and I answered today’s challenge on day 1, before I had relevant knowledge. Here’s my answer:

• Main ROTY will go to u/MudAccording. He’s going full hog right out of the gate. The other two roty prizes are random so your guess is as good as mine.
• photocontest goes to u/Crossan1983, that black and white shot looks well set up, like he means business.
• FoF u/Hugbckt: Great write-up, someone to watch.
• LG goes to u/Tsrblke. He was a joy to follow last year, and this first post looks like he’s full of energy this year, plus, he has that racing team!
• No Scruba: The real winner here is going to be everyone (awww!) I’m looking forward to u/Enndeegee’s no scrub list, and dread his scrub list.