Since I’m using the asses’-milk shaving soap, a horsehair brush seemed appropriate. The soap is excellent but the container is filled to the brim and some have found that they cannot load a brush without making a mess unless the container is partly empty—thus all the soaps sold in containers that are half full.
I think it’s worth learning to load the brush efficiently and neatly since some very nice soaps are sold in full containers—this one, for example, or Martin de Candre or Le Père Lucien or Catie’s Bubbles, and many others. I loaded the brush with no problem and no mess—it’s actually quite simple if you pay attention—and I was rewarded with the rich creamy lather that this soap produces. 
And I have to admit that I appreciate having full containers: the empty space at the top takes too much room when you stack your soaps. A notable example: this Soap Commander container holds 6 oz, the Catie’s Bubble container alongside holds 8 oz.
The razor pairing today is the Above the Tie S1 slant, on the left, wearing a UFO handle, and their R1 regular razor, also wearing a UFO handle. I did each pass using both, and truthfully it was hard to detect the difference with my beard today. They both did a very fine job. The S1 doesn’t have a very extreme slant, of course, but I think the primary factor is that my beard is fairly normal. A better person for this test would be a guy with a tougher, thicker beard.
Three passes to a fine, smooth finish, and then a good splash of Anthony Gold’s Red Cedar aftershave, which I think would make a fine Christmas present. It’s available from The Copper Hat in Victoria BC, but it might not be shown in the on-line store, in which case just email them.
Tomorrow’s razor looks cool: the black Standard head on a red-jasper handle.
Filed under: Shaving
