I doubled my collection of Thäter brushes. Thäter Père has a 30mm knot, Thäter Fils a 22mm knot. Both knots are the domed shape that Germans like. I bought these for variety — all my other brushes have fan-shaped knots — and the variety includes size. Usually, I don’t like a knot larger than 24mm — 26mm feels too large, and even 24mm is pushing it. But that’s if the knot is fan-shaped.
I thought that I could use a larger knot if it was dome-shaped. With a dome shape, the part of the knot on my face will be a smaller area than would a fan-shaped knot of the same knot diameter (measured at the base of the knot). So I decided I would take advantage of the Thäter sale at Maggard Razors and go with a large knot. Today’s shave inaugurates Thäter Père.
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I picked a Meißner Tremonia shaving paste, Woody Almond — a German shaving paste to make the German brush feel at home. When I loaded the brush, the enormity of the knot was evident: it almost covered the paste.
Shaving paste is substantially firmer than shaving cream, though not so hard as MT’s shaving soaps. The bitter almond fragrance of the paste is muted a bit by the cedar note. And the lather was magnificent. I was relieved that my theory — that a dome-shaped large knot would be workable and feel fine — turns out to match the reality of experience. The knot felt fine on my face and proved agile and effective.
Fine’s aluminum slant is a take on the vintage celluloid (I think) Merkur slant, and it does a super-effective job and is totally comfortable so long as the pressure is light. Three passes removed the two-day stubble easily, leaving my face perfectly smooth.
A splash of D.R. Harris Marlborough, whose fragrance is cedar and sandalwood, finished the job. The week begins on a great note.
The tea this morning is Mariage Frères Smoky Sakura: “This large tea is smoked in Japanese cherry wood according to an artisanal method. Its soft liquor floods the palate with its wooded notes enriched with a fragrant veil evoking incense and licorice. Coming from a family garden in the shizuoka region, close to Mount Fuji, this tea is cultivated according to a method registered in the ingenious system of the world agricultural heritage, respectful of the biodiversity of plants and animals.”