Oh, guys! This was good ...
Bulldog Face Wash
Meißner Tremonia Strong & Scottish Shaving Paste
Edwin Jagger Black Fibre in Tortoise Shell
Gem Damaskeene Deluxe (Open Comb) & Gem Damaskeene (5)
Hot Rinse, Cold Rinse & Alum Wash
Meißner Tremonia Strong & Scottish Aftershave
Face Lathered
Two Pass - WTG & ATG
Well, the razor gives the instruction: USE ONLY WITH GEM DAMASKEENE BLADES
There are a few of us who have these razors, a few of us who have shaved with them, but I bet there are only a handful who have shaved with them and heeded that instruction. Over the last few shaves, I have been privileged to have shaved with a vintage Gem Damaskeene blade which I guess is about 100 years old, but was keen out of the packet and became proper sharp once stropped.
I'm on the fifth shave with it now and it has mellowed. It has mellowed into a seriously smooth shave, smoother than a cat who's been to Smooth School! Seriously, this shave was smooth. Those of us who have shaved with an open comb Damaskeene will know that these are mild, or so we thought using our modern GEM blades. But, heed that instruction and drop a genuine Gem Damaskeene blade in and that razor becomes smooth, not mild.
Two passes, one with the grain and one against. Absolutely perfect!
I tell you what ... it was made more perfect with the Meißner Tremonia soap. My, oh my! That is a great soap. My lovely tortoise shell black fibre brush, wetted and just danced around over the surface of the soap lathered up a thick and beautiful dense foam for this shave. Two passes could happily have been five with this soap, just because. But, two passes were all it needed - one down, one up. In many respects, very much like a classic Durham Duplex shave.
I set a new personal high with respect to that "best shave yet" with the first shave with this blade in a Gem Damaskeene razor. I have, again, surpassed that ...
Best shave yet!
