Hello from Norwich

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DJRenegade

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3
Hi,
I am a noobie to the proper wet shaving world. I used cartridge razors for years before moving onto an electrical thing. Dont like either and have been slightly obsessed with starting to shave the good old fashioned way.
However I was hoping to go out to a store and have a gander at some hardware before buying instead of diving in blindly and buying what my gut tells me to get (Merkur 34c) - Is there any physical stores in the Norwich area that sell more than 1-2 brands? I am struggling to find any, other than barbers that sell their own custom stuff. :(
 
Hi and welcome to the forum.
I am not familiar with Norwich so cannot help on that. However there are very few stores that carry DE shaving equipment these days. I am pretty sure you would be wasting your time finding one with a substantial range.
The Merkur 34C or EJ89 are usually recommended as they are mild in aggressiveness. Plenty of reviews on both of these. The only other item you need would be a brush so decide on boar or badger. I think a lot of supermarkets carry the cheap boar brushes and there is better value to be had online. Soaps and creams are available in a limited selection in stores so you can start off without spending too much money. A selection of blades is also essential to start off till you find a blade you like but these are only available online. If you have a budget in mind it would be helpful to know.
 
DJRenegade said:
Hi,
I am a noobie to the proper wet shaving world. I used cartridge razors for years before moving onto an electrical thing. Dont like either and have been slightly obsessed with starting to shave the good old fashioned way.
However I was hoping to go out to a store and have a gander at some hardware before buying instead of diving in blindly and buying what my gut tells me to get (Merkur 34c) - Is there any physical stores in the Norwich area that sell more than 1-2 brands? I am struggling to find any, other than barbers that sell their own custom stuff. :(
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Welcome.

I'm in north Suffolk, and my son lives in Norwich, so I get there fairly often. I quite like using "bricks and mortar" shops, but I haven't found anywhere in the city that has anything much in razors; and, as you say, the S&J offerings are limited. I get everything on-line.

I'd therefore endorse what @Blademonkey and others say about going the online shopping route. As well as the names mentioned, you might like to look at the Connaught Shaving website. They operate from Stowmarket, and have a very good selection of all sorts of desirable shaving things.

Looking at, and perhaps handling razors may be a useful start, but the only way to find out which and what suits you (or not) is to actually use one. Other than the forum Pass Around Lending Pool (which usually has more exotic and expensive razors circulating), the only other way is to take a deep breath and buy a razor. Even if you could look at one in a shop, you wouldn't be able to use it without buying it, and I don't think anyone, whether shop or online retailer, accepts returns of used razors, for obvious reasons.

That said, the Merkur is a good razor at a reasonable price, as are Edwin Jagger and Muhle products.
 
Welcome from a few miles south of your location! Norwich is actually fairly well-served for shaving gear - Jarrolds have a nice gents' shaving stand and plenty of gents' Eau de Toilettes/aftershaves on the ground floor, and there are a couple of artisan barbers who offer wet shaves with hot towels and proper lather as opposed to rubbing something from a can or tube into your face.
 
Hi guys, thanks for the replies. I went for it and bought a few items from Amazon for delivery tomorrow since I have Prime.
I am hoping I have chosen well, the Proraso was only £2.70! I did a ton of research before hand, the reason I went for the Amazon Exclusive was the handle. I decided against the Merkur to keep the missus happy by saving myself a tenner, but will likely be buying one at some point anyway ;)

Here is the stuff I bought:

b52dddd9d929d98b5bdb3a89441c0849.png


I have a weeks worth of growth waiting to vacate my face, looking forward to my first experience tomorrow. :)
Now to buy a few different blades, first on my list are the Wilkinson Swords and Feather Hi Stainless. The razor comes with a small pack of Derby Extra blades.
 
Hi.

I'm not to far from Norwich, and as mentioned jarrolds has some nice bits in stock. I generally buy online myself though.

Welcome to TSR!
 
MPH said:
Hi.

I'm not to far from Norwich, and as mentioned jarrolds has some nice bits in stock. I generally buy online myself though.

Welcome to TSR!
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They do indeed have some nice "software", especially EDT and aftershaves. However, when last I looked, they didn't have much in the way of DE razors.
 
Hi DJRenegade,
A welcome to TSR from the Highlands of Scotland. That's a good choice of gear to get started with. The EJ89 is great to learn the technique. I had the EJDE86 for many years and enjoyed using it. Then I tried the Merkur 34C and found it be just right for me personally. That's the great thing about de shaving. It's very personal and unique.

Andy.
 
Ferrum said:
They do indeed have some nice "software", especially EDT and aftershaves. However, when last I looked, they didn't have much in the way of DE razors.
Click to expand...

I can't really remember, but i thought they had a couple of DEs. Nowhere near as many as you average online shop.

They had enough soap and brushes etc to satisfy your average newbie.
 
So my first experience of DE shaving was as to expected from a complete newbie. I have so many bad habits from years of cartridge use that I need to get rid of, I kept finding myself putting pressure on and sometimes rather than going slow and steady I started shaving as if it was a cartridge razor. My face feels like I just lost a fight against a man using sandpaper gloves lol. The Styptic pen felt like it was burning my skin off, and I still have a few small patches of roughness that I just couldnt seem to shave off.

All in all, I think it was a success!
 
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