Aug. 5, 2022 - Headless Mammoth Hoggin' Day 5

• Brush: Proraso Professional Boar | Break-in photos
• Razor: Feather Artist Club SR (Kamisori)
• Blade: Schick Proline (5)

• Lather: House of Mammoth - Alive - Soap

• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Alive - Balm

• Fragrance: House of Mammoth - Alive - Eau de Parfum

AA Tags: #RawHoggin #MammothMafia

Things are settling down into a good rhythm but I'm continuing to refine the process. Today I decided not to shake any water out at all and proceeded to loading from the tub after the brush stopped dripping and the lather definitely still required adding more water so I'll be using this approach going forward unless the brush somehow transforms to hold more water. With most other brushes, this results in a puddle of water inside the tub right after the brush splays, but with this brush that doesn't happen probably due to lack of brush density. Yesterday I thought the pokiness was starting to go away, but today they felt more present once again so I'm not sure if I exerted more pressure today or if it's just the brush's way of reminding me that it's not soft like a bleached Zenith. Visually, the tips are splitting very nicely and it will be interesting to see how much more transformation the brush goes through by the end of AA.

I'm definitely planning to take this brush to the finish line, but seeing it next to a Zenith that came in yesterday definitely got me thinking about whether I need to keep both of these brushes in the end, especially considering that I might want to make room for the 31mm sub exclusive bad boy and I have another copper Zenith waiting for me in the US already. Variety is nice, but I like to keep the den slim as well.

Now that my lathers are pretty much perfect for shaving, I've been spending more time on shavette technique as well. The main problem areas I have with the shavette are the ATG passes on the jawline and on the neck where my hair grows horizontally. Hopefully by the end of AA I'll be able to tackle those areas more efficiently.

Aug 5, 2022 - AA: MA-RH-MM - Almond Leather - Day 5

• Prep: Warm Water Wash
• Prep: Klar - Activated Charcoal - Face Soap
• Brush: Zenith Cobalt Blue 28mm Boar Knot (505BC SE)
• Razor: GEM Open Comb Micromatic (2nd Gen.)
• Blade: Personna GEM PTFE (5)
• Lather: House of Mammoth - Almond Leather - Soap
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Almond Leather - Aftershave

An acceptable shave with very minimal sting from the splash. This may be the sweet spot for right now. I think the blade may also be smoothing out, but I don't know if that's good or bad this early on.

#GEMsOfWisdom #RawHoggin #MammothMafia

Break-in Progress

#sidetracked
Are you driving around the city late at night and need the perfect soundtrack to accompany your drive? Look no further than the album Mezzanine by the trip hop group Massive Attack. Even from the opening track Angel, you know it's going to be an alluring ride.

Rating: 3.5/5

• Prep: warm shower
• Brush: Semogue 1250
• Razor: Novelty Cutlery Co straight razor
• Lather House of Mammoth - Z
• Post Shave: Equate witch hazel
• Post Shave: Zingari Man - unscented aftershave balm

Headless Horsemen

#RawHoggin #unscented #MammothMafia

Austere August 2022 day 5 https://imgur.com/a/YSH3SN9

August 5, 2022

• Preshave: Hot Water
• Razor: Blackland Era - Level 3 Plate
• Blade: Feather (5)
• Brush: Blackland 23mm synthetic
• Lather: House of Mammoth - Kryptonite
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Kryptonite Aftershave Balm

Had a little later shave than my normal 6am shave yesterday. So not much to shave today but the shave was smooth and no nicks or weepers which isn’t very usual. I have a spot in my neck that I normally have some trouble with.

Enjoy your day.

MammothMafia

5 August 2022 - Austere August

• Prep: morning shower
• Brush: Sterling boar
• Razor: Maggard V3
• Blade: Derby Extra
• Lather: House of Mammoth Fu Dao
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth Fu Dao splash

Same shave as yesterday. Same as it ever was.

mammothmafia

Aug. 5, 2022 - La cinquième

• Prep: Hot shower
• Brush: Omega Pro 48 Boar brush 28mm
• Razor: GEM MMOC
• Blade: GEM PTFE (5)

• Lather: House of Mammoth - Hygge - Soap

• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Hygge - Aftershave

How do you act after you’ve humiliated yourself publicly? You hold your head high and don’t give a fuck, of course.

Today’s shave was near perfect, except for a small cut on my cheek. No biggie. The PTFE blade has entered its Goldilocks zone and feels great, for now. Hygge continues to please, both the tremendously slick base, easy latherability, and delicious scent. It’s warm and soothing every time, for now.

My raw hoggin’ dreams may be shattered, but I plow on, or continue to plow my face with the knot and although ever so scritchy, each use feels better than the last. Happy Friday.

#GEMsOfWisdom

#MammothMafia

Aug. 5, 2022

• Brush: Declaration Grooming Jefferson Fae B8
• Razor: Gillette Flat Bottom Tech
• Blade: Rapira Stainless (8)

• Lather: House of Mammoth - Hygge - Soap

• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Hygge - Aftershave

• Fragrance: House of Mammoth - 福 (Fu Dao) - Eau de Parfum

  #MammothMafia

Aug. 5, 2022 - Austere August - Z

• Brush: Declaration 28mm B14 Jefferson Artisan’s Choice
• Razor: Blackland Era lvl 3 oc
• Blade: Personna med prep (5)

• Lather: House of Mammoth - Z - Soap

• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Z - Spalsh & Balm

Still a great shave today, but so boring.

#MammothMafia #Unchallange #Unscented

Aug. 5, 2022

• Brush: Grey Chubby - Zenith B37
• Razor: Micromatic Open Comb
• Blade: GEM - PTFE Coated Stainless Steel (5)

• Lather: House of Mammoth - Z - Soap

• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Z - Aftershave

This morning, I am speaking with s lower-than-normal voice that is characteristic of certain ailments, part of a progression of the cough I mentioned the other day. Fortunately, my job doesn't actually require my physical presence (even though my physical presence is still de jure required four out of five days per week under normal circumstances).

What was I saying? Oh, right, I have a cough, it sucks, but not as much as face-lathering sucks. Just like 16-some percent of the way through the months and then I don't have to deal with that ridiculously stupid lather method anymore.

I would be inclined to cut this short, being less-than-tip-top, but yesterday's /u/Teufelskraft #sidetracked brought to mind another song that I was introduced to in the same era as yesterday's. The song, which had been around for a good while before such introduction, is Brimful of Asha (Norman Cook Remix). That's Fatboy Slim's name; did you know that? I didn't.

I had largely forgotten about the song until a few years ago when I decided to seek it out. I didn't know anything about the song aside from the lyrics I remembered and what it sounded like, and I didn't realize it was a remix of an earlier song, which I had not heard until this search.

If memory serves, identifying the specific remix was harder than one might expect considering that this one in particular received a huge amount of accolades. What really stands out in my mind is this, taken from the Wikipedia article on the song

NME ranked the remix at number 2 in their list of "The 50 Best Remixes Ever", saying it "does what the truly great remixes do – render you unable to enjoy the original".

Finally, I can't not point out that the song itself (original) is tribute to famed Indian playback singer Asha Bhosle.

Now I gotta make sure I'm ready to ^^**cough** start work.

#GEMSofWisdom
#RawHoggin
#unscented
#MammothMafia

A Mammoth Micromatic Raw Hoggin’ August

Brush Progress

• Brush: Zenith B26 #RawHoggin
• Razor: GEM MMOC #GEMsOfWisdom
• Blade: GEM (5)
• Lather: House if Mammoth - Hygge in Tusk
• Post Shave: Hygge Splash & Balm
• Fragrance: Hygge EDP #MammothMafia

Great shave and result today, so gonna nitpick a little bit:

The brush is getting better - much better. However it’s still really scratchy at times, and I can’t imagine how many shaves it will take before some splitting starts and it feels softer like an over processed badger brush or synthetic. Today, I got distinct memories of bathing my dog Indy amongst the smells amidst the Hygge hog concoction.

MMOC is performing great, it’s only day 5, and I guess this blade is doing just fine. But, the weight distribution of the MMOC isn’t my favorite. I can’t really tell why I feel this way. Maybe the handle is a bit thin, or the head a little heavy. Something like that. I’m sure I’ll have more on this in the coming days.

Day 1 Prep Video

RawHoggin Unboxing Pics

MammothMafia

Aug. 5, 2022 - Austere August - Day 5

• Prep: Hot Shower
• Brush: Maggard 2-Band Fan Badger 26
• Razor: Maggard MR-18 with V3 head
• Blade: Feather (5)
• Lather: House of Mammoth - Kryptonite - Soap
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Kryptonite - Aftershave

After a week of messing around I finally found the sweet spot on this one in terms of amount of water to use - got plenty of lather and the shave felt great! Blade is holding up pretty well too.

#MammothMafia

5 August 2022 - Austere August

• Prep: splash of warm water
• Brush: Zenith B33
• Razor: Blackland Blackbird Ti
• Blade: Gillette Silver Blue (5)
• Lather: House of Mammoth - Mood Indigo - Soap
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Mood Indigo - Balm

#RawHoggin

#MammothMafia

Aug. 5, 2022

• Prep: Shower
• Brush: Semogue 1460 Boar Brush 21mm
• Razor: Razorock GameChanger .84
• Blade: Gillette Nacet (5)
• Lather: House of Mammoth - Alive - Soap
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Almond Leather - Balm

Another good shave, another bad picture. Maybe one day I'll learn something about taking better pictures, but for now this'll have to do.

Tags:

#RawHoggin

#MammothMafia

Aug. 5, 2022 - Austere August Day 5

• Prep: House of Mammoth Almond Leather Bath Soap
• Brush: Dogwood Handcrafts Mire 26mm Zenith Unbleached Boar
• Razor: GEM Micromatic Open Comb Gen 1
• Blade: GEM PTFE (5)

• Lather: House of Mammoth - Sonder - Soap

• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Sonder - Aftershave

🐗Raw Hoggin' Progress🤮:
•Unused
•Shave 1
•Shave 2
•Shave 3
•Shave 4
•Shave 5

Thoughts for the day:
Still smells like 💩. Feels great, though. For those wondering, the loft on this is 60mm (actual).

Also, happy to say I've been keeping to around 1g of soap per day. When I used this brush last year with a 26mm Maggard B&W, my consumption was averaging just under 1g when I was scooping. For the massive difference between a synthetic and a boar, I'm impressed. I could honestly probably cut 10 seconds off my load time, but YOLO.

Mandatory Taggage:

#GemsOfWisdom

#RawHoggin

#MammothMafia

Aug. 5, 2022

• Prep: Shower
• Brush: Raiser Pinsel Simfix SF1 Synthetic
• Razor: Van Der Hagen
• Blade: Voskhod (6)

• Lather: House of Mammoth - Alive - Soap

• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Alive - Balm

#MammothMafia

2022-08-05 - Austere August - Raw Hoggin' Mammoth MMOC

Prep: Warm Shower
Brush: Semogue Torga - C5
Razor: GEM MMOC version 2
Blade: GEM Stainless (5)
Lather: House of Mammoth - Sonder - Soap
Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Sonder - Aftershave
Fragrance: Issey Miyake -L'eau d'Issey pour Homme

https://imgur.com/a/fuBYUEB

Another top quality shave today. The brush is starting to open up and it feels good. No scritch and no stank. The other gear is working well, l could easily have this as my only set up.

Have a good day everyone.

#GEMsOfWisdom

#RawHoggin

#MammothMafia

August 5th, 2022 - 1 step forward, then 2 steps back

• Prep: Warm water and extra patience

• Brush: Zenith B36 “Copper Scrubby!”

• Razor: GEM (is truly outrageous) MMOC Gen 2

• Blade: Personna GEM PTFE (cinque)

• Lather: House of Mammoth - Alive

• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Alive Splash

• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Alive Balm

#MammothMafia

#RawHoggin Day 5 Before and After

#GEMsOfWisdom

I made a bit of an oopsy today. I flipped the blade and marked it. When I marked it, didn’t notice that I knocked blade on top of the little hooks that hold the edge to the comb. Basically gave the razor another 1mm of gap. Noticed pretty quickly as the feel was much rougher and the feedback was loud. Fixed it and the rest of the shave was better.

Still I am not enjoying face lathering the hog. Was a bit wet today, still trying to find the right amount to shake out after the 5ish minute soak. Lather was ok, just a bit wetter than yesterday. Not much sting from the splash, just the area on the first pass before I fixed the blade. I still enjoy the scent, but as usual the fruit/floral notes are not as apparent as the woody/musky/mossy ones. My wife says it smells fruity and piney.

After a long week, did get finished early (2PM). Going to run a couple errands before I pick up my daughter from summer camp. She is going to be exhausted. Today the camp had a field trip to a big outdoor pool/small water park in town.

Aug 05, 2022 - Getting Sidetracked while searching for the Wisdom of a Mammoth

• Prep: Hot shower and CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser

• Brush: Maggard Green Handle 2 Band Badger 24mm

• Razor: GEM - MMOC

• Blade: Personna GEM Stainless (5)

• Lather: House of Mammoth - Sonder

• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Alive Balm

• Fragrance: House of Mammoth - Sonder EdP

Every day tags: #MammothMafia #GEMsofWisdom

#Sidetracked u/Teufelskraft

Ants Marching - Dave Mathews Band

Another band that I fell in love with thanks to my “Second Father” Andy. He always went to the concerts whenever they performed anywhere near him. I attempted to join him once when I was in college but Mother Nature stopped that from happening.

I had just started dating the woman who would eventually become my wife and for my Birthday she got us tickets to go see DMB with Andy! I was so excited, not only for the concert but to get to go with Andy. It was a beautiful summer evening at the amphitheater with the warm up bands getting the night going well when a huge storm rolled up on us! We stuck it out as long as we could but they forced us to evacuate when the lightning started. That led to waiting in the car, soaked, only for them to cancel the show due to a power outage. Best thing about it was Ticketmaster refused to refund our money due to “you attended the show” calling the warm up bands enough of a show to warrant the price.

Aug. 5, 2022 - Day Five: Arrive alive, don’t shave and drive!

• Prep: None
• Brush: Zenith B33 Copper Boar Brush
• Razor: GEM Micromatic Open Comb
• Blade: Persona GEM PTFE Coated (5)

• Lather: House of Mammoth - 福 (Fu Dao) - Soap

• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - 福 (Fu Dao) - Aftershave

• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - 福 (Fu Dao) - Balm

• Fragrance: House of Mammoth - 福 (Fu Dao) - Eau de Parfum

First. Buy permafrost. It’s awesome and I’ve used it with everything.

I’m starting to get packed up to be away from home for a couple weeks. At least I do not need to think about what shave gear to bring!

The GEM razor is giving me good smooth shaves. It is a little uncomfortable though the House of Mammoth splash and balm leave my skin soft and moisturized. Supposedly these blades get better after the first few shaves, I hope it gets more smooth.

I added a pump of PermaFrost to the soap before loading the brush. A single pump gets me about 20 minutes of cooling after finishing my shave. The cooling sensation started a little bit after face lathering.

The patina on the handle is starting to look like a mess, but it should look good soon. I did not expect the handle to patina so fast. The knot lost a couple more hairs this shave. I think it’s going to break in nicely. Brush break-in album

#rawhoggin #mammothmafia #GEMSofWisdom

Aug. 5, 2022 - Austere August Day 5

• Prep: Hot Shower, Stirling Soap Facial Soap
• Brush: Zenith 508A SE 28mm
• Razor: GEM Micromatic OC Gen 1
• Blade: GEM PTFE (5)

• Lather: House of Mammoth - Restore - Soap

• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Restore - Balm

• Post Shave: Zingari - Unscented - Aftershave

• Fragrance: Tom Ford - Grey Vetiver

Day 5 or 16% of the way through this thing. MMOC Gen 1 is good but not as good as Gen 2 imo. I smell like honeyed roses. The brush is breaking in nicely. That is all.

Mandatory Tagging:

#GEMsOfWisdom

#Rawhoggin

#MammothMafia

August 5 2022

• Brush: Zenith B28
• Razor: GEM MMOC (Gen 1)
• Blade: GEM PTFE (8)
• Lather: House of Mammoth - Mood Indigo
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Mood Indigo splash
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Mood Indigo balm
• Fragrance: House of Mammoth - Mood Indigo

#MammothMafia

#GEMSofWisdom

Another great shave after a long morning of traveling. Turns out the Orlando airport has a new TSA Reservation system which allows you to almost entirely skip the hour+ security line 🤐🤫. That was a lifesaver for traveling with a hyperactive 5 year old. I celebrated the return home with a Mood Indigo quadhole, which still felt special even though I’ve been using this soap and splash for over a week now.

Aug. 5, 2022 - August Austere Day 5

• Prep: Shower
• Brush: Paladin Chief 26mm
• Razor: Merkur 34C
• Blade: Gillette Silver Blue

• Lather: House of Mammoth - Sonder - Soap

• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Sonder - Aftershave

Another beautiful day of Sonder shaving. I’m beginning to feel a little like it’s Groundhog Day, but at least it’s a good shave. Ready for the weekend and a little relaxation.
#MAMMOTHMAFIA #UNCHALLENGE

Aug 5 2022

• Prep: Mineral oil massage

• Brush: Wenghè Pure Bristle 🐗

• Razor: Brassbird head CG brass bishop

• Blade: Voskhod

• Soap: Mammoth Z

• Balm: Mammoth Z

My fifth shave of Hogust

 It was quick and dirty, today. Submerged the brush, let it dangle for a second or two, then dropped it right on the soap.  Five actual swirls, and I applied that to my face. Really slick and watery. I loved it. A very passable shave.

 A good way to not notice the scent is to be yelling at an 8 year old who’s fighting with his 3 year old sister. I may open up bidding on their adoptions.

#RawHoggin

#MammothMafia

#Unscented

#ZFighter

Piggy Stardust Shave Five Aftermath

Aug. 5, 2022 - AA Day 5 - This is going better

• Prep: Hot Shower
• Brush: Zenith B34
• Razor: MMOC
• Blade: GEM PTFE (5)
• Lather: House of Mammoth - Sonder - Soap
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Sonder - Aftershave
• Post Shave: Witch Hazel, Osma Alum

The girls in my house are taking over the bathroom counter so this SOTD pic is in honor of them. It's cool, though, they're cute and I'll keep 'em around.

Today's shave again went very well. First few days were awful and I was ready to quit, but since correcting the angle of the razor and really working to make my skin as flat of a surface as possible, the shaves have gone quite well. Nicked myself on my 3rd pass tonight on my neck a bit, but overall an excellent shave.

Of course I'm still learning the MMOC, and it's too early to say whether I'm going to end up loving it or hating it, but doing this is definitely forcing me back to basics and that's got to be good for my shaving technique overall. I can't just go on autopilot - I really have to pay attention to pressure and angle and speed and stretching skin and growth pattern and all that. So - I'll call it a win.

Tonight with Sonder I got a bit more aquatic, especially in the aftershave. It smelled a whole lot like Admiral to me, and I really don't know why - they have no notes in common in their scent profiles. But - it's a high compliment, Admiral is up there as possibly my favorite scent. The first pass lather was a bit too thick, but I added water to subsequent passes and they were slick and smooth. No real hiccups to speak of.

I feel like at this point we're just talking about incremental improvements on the Zenith, and even then it's not super noticeable to me, but I did take a comparison shot of a decently broken in Semogue Owners Club for reference. That knot is much smaller at only 24mm (vs the 28 of the Zenith), but it's obviously much more filled out due to being so broken in. I suspect this Zenith will replace the Semogue as my go to boar for a while - I really like the added size of it.

Sonder thought of the day today comes courtesy of my second born - my only son. He's a challenge at times. Ok, he's a challenge daily. He feels emotions, both good and bad, to their fullest. When he's happy, he's all in. When he's mad, watch out. He's a lot like his dad in that way and when I see the bad parts of me in him, it's a tough pill to swallow. But - he turned 4 in May and he's no longer in the toddler/little kid stage, but he's not quite in the "I'm a big kid" stage either. He's kind of stuck in between, and he's often overshadowed by his older sister. But - he's not a toddler anymore and he wants to be bigger, and in so many ways he is. I think this summer at home with him made me realize how much of a little person he'd really become. My kids, and yours, are people, too. Sometimes that thought hits me right in the face, especially with my boy. He might be difficult, he might be more mad than he should or more silly or whatever, but he's a person, just like me. His world, while smaller, is every bit as vivid and unique as my own. He's not some robot to be programmed, he's a human to be raised and cared for and loved and on and on. It's hard as your kids get older (and I'm sure those with kids beyond 6 can speak more to this than me), but it's hard because you watch them experience the world as people - with all it's joy and sadness and disappointment and excitement - and when you're the one who brings the happiness, it's awesome. But when you're the one who blew it and caused the disappointment, oof. That one sucks.

Anyway - my kids are people, too. My son feels emotions to the fullest and that's often very difficult for me as a parent to help him navigate, but as I consider from him perspective, it's probably hard for him, too. And he needs my help. And his brain is so undeveloped that he doesn't have skills or even ability to manage those emotions. So. I'm going to work on doing better, trying to be more patient, and encouraging him toward better expression of those emotions but also recognize the wonder in the differences and similarities that we have.

Have a good night, all.

Edit: forgot my tags

#mammothmafia

#RawHoggin

#GEMsOfWisdom

Edit 2: goodness, accidentally said I used not Sonder. Definitely used Sonder.

Aug. 5, 2022 - Austere August

• Prep: Long work day
• Brush: Zenith B10 Boar
• Razor: Feather Artist Club SR
• Blade: Feather Professional (2)

• Lather: House of Mammoth - Almond Leather - Soap

• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Almond Leather - Aftershave

• Post Shave: alum

Shave of austerity #5

2 pass shave; I am finally getting a decent shave with this razor again, and I’m hoping to work back to three pass shaves by the end of the month. My boar hasn’t been washed in quite some time, and it seems as though it may be time for a good vinegar soak.

Tags and challenges: #MammothMafia & HeadlessHorsemen

Aug. 5, 2022

• Brush: AP Shave Co 26mm A4 Fan
• Razor: Henson AL-13 ++
• Blade: Gillette Silver Blue (2)
• Lather: House of Mammoth - Hygge - Soap
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Hygge - Aftershave

Still trucking, still love the scent of Hygge!

#MammothMafia

Aug. 5, 2022 - AA 5

• Prep: Cold Water Splash
• Brush: Semogue 1305 Pure Bristle 22mm
• Razor: GEM MMOC Gen 2
• Blade: GEM PTFE (11)

• Lather: House of Mammoth - Sonder - Soap

• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Sonder - Balm

• Fragrance: Barrister and Mann - Seville - Eau de Toilette

Alright, no fat fingers fucking up the input on my phone today. Shaving even later than all the previous nights. Hopefully the shave ~~gods~~ judges take pity on me and don’t succumb to the data of our bot overlords.

Progress album. Realized and added in a couple of the unboxing pics today to start of the album too, since they were separate in the first post. SOTD in title.

Surprise! It’s still scratchy. Got a little better under my chin, but still feeling some razor burn with 2x passes. I feel like my “soul patch” area is taking a bit of a beating, breaking out a little as I hack it up. Also, not sure if it’s the balm itself or more due to the razor, but the mammoth Sonder gives me a little burn which I typically attribute to alcohol splashes. Probably more tied to the razor I think, but there I did read the ingredients today and a type of alcohol was listed too, so maybe just that. #GEMsOfWisdom #RawHoggin #MammothMafia

Aug. 5, 2022 - SOTN AA Sonder 5

• Prep: Splash of cold water
• Brush: SummerBreak 26m SHD
• Razor: Merkur Progress
• Blade: Wizamet (5)

• Lather: House of Mammoth - Sonder - Soap

• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Sonder - Aftershave

• Post Shave: Zingari - Rescue Potion - Serum

• Post Shave: Zingari - Unscented - Balm

• Fragrance: House of Mammoth - Sonder - Eau de Parfum

Late post but was in a rush last night and had a few weepers. Tossed the blade as well #MammothMafia