Aug. 7, 2022 - Home cleaning day

• Prep: Icecold shower
• Brush: Böker Synthetic

• Razor: Böker Elite Carbon 2.0

• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Soap

• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Balm

• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag Splash

Yesterday I started with homecleaning which I will continue today. That's why you see an iron in my SOTD. Gf will be back tomorrow and I want her to be comfortable at home. The shave was okay. I am in the office today and look clean, although I know that my neck area could have been shaven closer.

#stagandstraight #substantialstag

Aug. 8, 2022 - Stag Day 8

• Brush: Zenith B26 Retro
• Razor: Merkur 34C
• Blade: Gillette Silver Blue (8)

• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Soap

• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Aftershave

• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Eau de Parfum

So a little over a week in, and I must say I really, really dig the feel of this handle. The shape does a great job of keeping lather from falling all over the place and just feels great in the hand. I'm a big fan.

#SubstantialStag #RawHoggin

Stag Spray 8

August 08, 2022 – Austere August 08

• Brush: Cayuen Workshop with 30mm Timberwolf Synthetic
• Bowl: Cayuen Workshop – Dark Nebula
• Razor: Winning Razor by Wet Shave Club
• Blade: Gillette Winner Platinum (3)
• Lather: Chiseled Face – Midnight Stag
• Post Shave: Chiseled Face – Midnight Stag
• Fragrance: Chiseled Face – Midnight Stag
• Video: https://i.imgur.com/jDZUNzq.mp4

A magnificent Monday shave with Midnight Stag! Have a great and smooth week!

#AustereAugust #SubstantialStag

Bonus:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nw37TLTjg2A ← The Battle of Leuctra, 371 B.C.

Aug. 8, 2022 - Austere August Ultra Nightmare RawHoggin Stagpocalypse

• Prep: Midnight Stag liquid soap and bar soap
• Brush: Semogue 1250
• Razor: GEM MMOC
• Blade: GEM PTFE (8)

• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Soap

• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Aftershave

• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Balm

• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Eau de Parfum

It was nice to shave at home again today. It WAS NOT, however, nice to unpack all of the things I brought with us this mornin. Dear God, does it really take all of that, Jim? Short answer: yes. It’s the month of Stag. This is the month that a random population of weirdos that obsess over shaving and everyone they come into contact with become mesmerized by one of the best scents ever. Disagree? Well, you can be wrong. It’s ok. No one’s perfect. Just like I only sprayed 4 sprays today because the upvotes just weren’t there. And that’s ok. This time.

SubstantialStag

GEMsOfWisdom

RawHoggin

Aug. 8, 2022

• Prep: Cold Water
• Brush: Semogue Barbear Classico Cerda 22mm
• Razor: Alumigoose
• Blade: Kai Captain Titan Pro Touch MG (8)

• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Soap

• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Aftershave

• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Eau de Parfum

Didn't took a pic of soap used yesterday but 5.8g was used between the 2 days so 2.8g of soap was used today

-

2 more pumps

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Have a great week! #SubstantialStag

August 8, 2022

• Brush: Zenith B15 (506 U/L) 27.5mm Boar
• Razor: GEM MMOC Gold Gen2
• Blade: Personna Gem PTFE (8)
• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Soap
• Post Shave: Thayers - Lemon - Toner
• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Aftershave
• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Eau de Parfum  

2 passes. Face lather. Good shave.

• Challenges: #GEMsOfWisdom #RawHoggin #SubstantialStag
• Brush Top (before use) - Brush History
• Fragrance Video
• Blade Edge (before use) - Edge Histiory
• Blade Orientation (black dots - odd days, red dots - even days)

So, another great shave. I almost rated this an excellent shave but there are areas that aren't as close as they could be. Nonetheless, again, comfortable, close, no issues.

If you're occasionally looking at the edge photos I'm making, compare today's edge photo to this one of my $20 Gold Dollar straight razor. Which would you prefer to use?

OK, the Gold Dollar edge is not the shave ready, factory edge. I've wailed on this. It's an edge that went through a series of water stones, and then a series of loaded strops. Definitely not a Jnat edge. The Jnats that I have are really too soft for razor sharpening. You could achieve the same pristine result with a series of inexpensive lapping films as u/djundjila does (I believe). Razors are quite easy to sharpen because the spine acts as your guide. What's not so easy, and what takes a bit of experience, is fixing geometry problems. This Gold Dollar was completely out of wack when I got it. The reason you see such a large bevel in the photo has to do with me thinning the spine (on both sides) to take the razor's sharpening angle down from the 18+° range to the 15+° degree range. That's a serious amount of metal removed, but the shaving performance improvement was dramatic (for me).

The actual GEM blade edge does not show significant change from yesterday. Again, I've examined the both sides and have taken a photo that is representative of what I see.

I'm not noticing much change in the brush at this point. I'm sure change will be subtle and that there will be a day when I take note of how good this brush has become.

Day 6 of Austere August! Staggin on!!

• Prep: Water on Face
• Brush: Zenith 2004/B SE
• Razor: Filarmonica Sub Cero 14
• Lather: Chiseled Face Midnight Stag
• Post Shave: Osma block
• Post Shave: Chiseled Face Midnight Stag Splash
• Post Shave: Chiseled Face Midnight Stag Balm
• Fragrance: Chiseled Face Midnight Stag EdP

Ran out of good pics so I was lazy today

​

Riiiiight. So today I was driving for the most part of the day, returning from a vacation spot. I had an evening shave, so to say. I overdid it depth wise(AGAIN), but damn am I smooth, this type of shave really puts an emphasis on the baby part...

​

Other than the quality of the shave, the quality of the lather. Today I managed to create 3 passes of lather, there was nothing left in the brush or at all for the 4th pass, BUT that's fine, in the beginning, there was barely two passes of lather. It seems that the water control is a bit off, because I'm dipping the tips of the brush in the glass that I am soaking it before the shave. But I will go back to my precision hydration, which is setting the faucet to drip and measure in water drops, that's what I usually do when making lather in a bowl with a synth, splay the knot a bit and let the water drops fall in the middle of the knot. I'll see how many it'll take me to make a lather tomorrow and if I can make it for 4 passes :D

• #RawHoggin
• #SubstantialStag
• #sidetracked Oldie But Goldie I enjoy listening to jazz and this was one of the first jazz songs that really caught my eye(or ear).

Aug. 8, 2022 - AA Day 8

• Prep: Shower
• Brush: Semogue 1305
• Razor: GEM Open Comb Micromatic
• Blade: Personna GEM PTFE (8)

• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Soap

• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Aftershave

• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Eau de Parfum

SubstantialStag

GEMSofWisdom

Going back to the angles from the weekend, today I used both the conventional GEM angle on one side and the slightly increased angle on the other. Again, I noticed a tendency to apply more pressure with the GEM angle and I tried to give a lighter touch. Comfort-wise I noticed little difference between the two sides, however, on my second pass, with is more like a diagonal to the grain in some places, there could have been the slightest beginnings of tugging, though it was more like feeling the blade cut through the coarse whiskers. I get a distinct, needle-like feeling when a blade is bad enough to tug and it was not that. What was noticeable was the cleanness of the shave from side to side. The shavette angle, as I will call it, gave me an ever-so-slightly better shave.

I want to shift gears and talk about the brush for a bit for you raw-hoggers. Last year I bitched a lot about the Semogue 1305. So much that I was ready to be done with it after I got the Zenith B33. Now the Semogue wasn’t brand new when I started AA last year. It just hadn’t been a brush I was super in love with. I thought giving it a whole month would, like the spirit of AA suggests, help me get to know it better. Don’t give up on those boars. I’m getting fantastic lathers from the 1305 this year. I really think the key is GUTL. Starting out with a drier brush and keeping that drier base of protolather to build on have made me very happy so far this month. But that brush… very comfortable and pleasant to lather on my face. Last year I struggled to have enough lather and this year it’s the total opposite, and I’m essentially using the same amount of soap as I typically do. My SOTD photo is what’s leftover from my shave today.

Keep raw-Hoggin’!

Spraying it, baby!

August 8th

• Brush: Zenith Boar - 505NK 27mm
• Razor: GEM - MMOC
• Blade: Gem PTFE (8)
• Lather - Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag Soap
• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag Splash
• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag Edp

#GEMsOfWisdom #RawHoggin #SubstantialStag

Edp video

Another day of Stag another day of an unhappy wife, the worst thing of Austere August has to be the building pile of Mail Calls. Getting hard to get inventive with the SOTD pics so need to up my game.

Aug. 8, 2022 - AA Day 8 - Sexy Stag Flair Quest

• Prep: Face wash
• Brush: Semogue 1305
• Razor: Chiseled Face Legacy Ti
• Blade: Gillette Nacet (1)
• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Soap
• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Aftershave
• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Eau de Parfum

Nothing much to report. Getting better with the razor, it's a good one. Nacet performed as well as the Astra, GSB, and Voskhod.

Cheers.

Day 8 2 sprays

#SubstantialStag

Aug. 8, 2022 - AA Day 08

• Prep: Warm shower
• Brush: AP400B XL Handle (AP ShaveCo) - 28mm Maggard Boar Knot
• Razor: GEM MMOC - Gen 1
• Blade: GEM PTFE (77)

• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Soap

• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Aftershave

• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Eau de Parfum

Pretty uneventful 3 pass shave with no real changes over the past couple days.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Monday!

Stag Spray 8 #GEMSofWisdom #RawHoggin #SubstantialStag

August 8th, 2022: Stag Day 8

• Prep: warm water

• Brush: Vintage Rubberset 400-3 with 24mm unbleached Zenith knot

• Razor: MMOC

• Blade: GEM PTFE (8)

• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Soap

• Post-Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Aftershave

• Post-Shave: Chiseled Face - Natural - Balm

• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - EdP

Quick evening shave.

Monday Weigh in:

Soap - 122.84 (this seems way too little, I are confused to say the least)

Splash - 202.99

Balm - 152.39

Frag - 182.08

Stag sprays of the day!

#SubstantialStag

#RawHoggin

#UNCHALLENGE

Stag Headlessly Hoggin' August Day 8

• Prep: Hot shower with Midnight Stag Soap.

• Brush: Zenith B33

• Razor: Cloud Shavette

• Blade: Cloud whatever that blade it is (13)

• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag

• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag

• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag

Day eight. Birthday shave. I am getting my touch honed with this paticular shavette. Great shave, though I could improve the jawline, still 23 more shaves. The wet brush is starting to look like Super Sayan hair, lots of split hairs by now. I think it is almost on the same level as my heavily used Omegas. I can only imagine how this will get.

Hail Stag!

• Stagposting

• SubstantialStag

• RawHoggin

Aug. 8, 2022

• Brush: Maggard 28mm Boar
• Razor: GEM MMOC
• Blade: Personna GEM PTFE (8)

• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Soap

• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Balm

• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Eau de Parfum

Rough day for double sprays. Woke up with a headache. Powered through though. The Stag provides to those in need.

Boar Break In Album

Stag Spray

#RawHoggin

#SubstantialStag

#GemsOfWisdom

#UNCHALLENGE