On Leave... again

I know it's been a while since I last updated the blog. I'm not sure how much more time I will be able to devote to the blog. While I am still interested in Wet Shaving, my expertise is not anywhere near some of the others that have websites, blogs, youtube channels, and I don't have the time or money to devote to reviewing products or updating the blog. Not to mention I voluntarily got rid of my iPhone a while back to focus more of life, and thus, not able to update twitter or play with creating new blog post.

With being a foster parent, and having 2 infants in the house, my wife and I have our hands full at the moment. Not to mention working full time, family members is bad health, going to school part-time, up keeping the honey-do list, yard work/landscaping, detailing the vehicle, working to become financially peaceful (Yeah Dave Ramsey!) and never really having time to veg out or do anything for myself, I stay pretty busy.

So thank you to everyone who continues to follow the blog, even though nothing new has been posted. And if you're new or just now finding the blog for the first time let me welcome you! Feel free to look back at the previous post (although some are funny looking back at how much of a Newbie I was when I first started this blog. ha ha. It's like look at old yearbook photos. Sheesh!).

And finally, thanks to Mantic and the crew at Sharpologist! I noticed the number of views my page has gotten has really taken off as of lately. I wondered why, then I stumbled across this...

www.sharpologist.com

Scroll down to the bottom of the page at the blogroll. "I'd Rather Be..." is listed!

Thanks for checking out the blog!

Absent

So the fam went to the lake yesterday. We had an awesome time and it was great to have everybody with us and enjoy some family memories.

However, I gotta give a shout out to my fellow internet friend, Brassbuff. While I was gone, brassbuff headed out to the range without me, but ended up spending a lot of time on the rifle range with some AR's. I figured y'all would enjoy. Check out his video at http://www.youtube.com/user/brassbuff 

Thanks for reading!

Wordless Wednesday

Product review: Taylor of Old Bond Street

Product review: Taylor of Old Bond Street

Taylor of Old Bond Street is one of those old school traditional men's grooming company's. Founded in 1854 in London, Taylor of Old Bond Street is one of those company's whos product do all of the talking. They are also known in the shaving world as one of the "3 T's". The 3 T's are the 3 big London shaving company's known as Geo F. Trumper, Taylor of Old Bond Street, and Truiffit and Hill. While their products are just as good as it's competitors, one of the best things about TOBS is the price, seeing as how they come in at about half as much as the others.

 

 

 

TOBS's products are high up on my list because they are some of the best shaving creams I've ever used. I've got a few of their creams and their lavender scent is exceptional.

TOBS comes in a hefty tub filled with 150 grams of cream. The screw top tub is wonderful for many reasons. It's simple. No fancy curves or graphic designs. Looks and feels big and hefty like a man's product. Also, the design of the screw top lid makes it great for not leaking all over your other products, and with it being air tight, there no chance of it drying out and getting old and sticky. And since it's in such a large tub, you get plenty of shaves with it and should be able to make it last for a long time.

Not only does it comes with a screw top lid, it also comes with a plastic air seal lid inside for added protection.

 

 

 

The cream itself DOES contain dye's, which I'm not a fan of. However, its very light. At least it's not neon purple or blazing bright.

 

 

 

The cream itself is rich and light. Almost fluffy, I would say. And the scent is wonderful. I wouldn't say it's faint, but I also wouldn't say that it's really strong. I think it's got a fair amount of scent to it, but not enough to knock you down or make you question if it's got a scent at all.

I would say it smells like...well...lavender! lol Not too sweet and floral. Think of the smell of saltwater taffy and you're getting close to the scent. It's great and has a wonderful smell that I find extremely relaxing.

Like the other TOBS creams I've used, it also has no problem with building a great lather. Whether you face, hand, or bowl lather with a badger brush, you'll always come out with a great slick and protective lather which helps against your razor blade dragging against your skin. You CAN use it without a brush, but we all know about the benefits of using a shaving brush, so just don't go there a'ight?!

I haven't tried the whole range of scents like I have with the Trumper's samples, but the few I have make it on par or better than those. And again, the best thing about TOBS products is the price! Coming in at around $12-16 a tub, it'll last you a LONG time. I would even venture to say that using it every day, you could probably get 6-8 months out of it (...it's just a guess people). Unfortunately, I won't have the patience to try that theory out, seeing as I have other products that I enjoy encorporating into my rotation.

If Taylor of Old Bond Street looks so good that you just have to try it, hit up my man John over at West Coast Shaving and order you some! I got my tub for $14.

Thanks for reading!

I'll be back...

Just like Arnold Swarch...Schwartz... The Terminator said, "I'll be back", I plan on coming back and trying and attempting to start updating the blog again.

Life is filled with busyness, taking care of the lawn/landscaping/flowers, a new FOSTER baby, guns, etc... Life is awesome right now, but still busy.

Hopefully I'll be able to start back updating a little bit at a time. I'll see if I can get a good product review out in the next week or two. So stay tuned!

Thanks for reading!

And the search begins...

While enjoying the success, we fans forget the big picture of things. Jeff Long was right in his actions by firing of Coach Bobby Petrino.

The Razorback nation is hurt...but we are not dead. Petrino was NOT Razorback football. We will once again find a coach who will bring us to the top, and this time with dignity and class. As for me?

I'm a true Razorback fan thru and thru.

WOO PIG SOOIE!!! GO HOGS!

Quick update

The sleeping giant has awoken...

Not really. I'm still on hiatis and I still don't have time to do much blogging. I've still got a lot of work to do, as far as cleaning up the blog, organizing, getting new posts ready, etc... And I'm still crazy busy with working full-time & taking 3 classes this semester. I don't have time to do much of anything other than work, homework, eat, and sleep. However, I figured a quick check in would be appropriate.

I do still ocassionaly tweet. You can follow me on Twitter, @BrandonWPS

I've also decided to keep the name of the blog... sorta. I feel it's been established for a while, and going out and changing it wouldn't be a good idea. I don't want to be "The New Coke". However, I don't want to be pinned down to one topic. So the title of the blog stays the same, but I'll leave it blank for the viewers to insert their own choice of hobby.

I've picked up another new hobby of sorts since late last year. It should bring more posts and help cut down on the monotonus of the same ole-same ole type of stuff. Should be interesting and fun to write about. Here's a clue...

Stay tuned for more shaving posts, fishing posts, and some occasional blogs on the new shooting hobby!

Happy Shav...fishi...shoo... Whatever

Temporary Leave

Life is crazy right now. I did have big plans for the blog this year. But times are super busy right now with work, and school, and everything else right now. Hopefully, if things slow down, I can start posting again. In the meantime, I'll try and update as often as I can.

Happy Shaving!!

P.S. - Happy late Christmas

P.P.S - Happy late New Year

SOTD - December 14, 2011

Razor: Merkur 34C HD

Blade: Red Personna

Brush: Simpson's Special Pure Badger Hair

Cream: The Bluebeards Revenge

Alum: Razorock Alum

After Shave: Master Bay Rum

Future Changes

Alright folks. While one of my passions is still fishing it seems the direct of this blog has made a shift.

While most of you know, my recent hobby of wetshaving seems to be the easiest and most enjoyable topic to write about. Thus, after the end of this year, I will be changing the title of the blog (not the url).

I've created a poll to provide some possible new titles. Please take a quick 30 seconds out of your day to cast your vote on your favorite title. Don't like the choices? Leave me a comment and I'll add another.

I've also got some ideas and future plans for the blog. Not sure how many people follow me or read this, but I'm hoping to have more production for the blog. I've got some ideas for posting more, creating tags for each entry, creating a shaving video(s) for my YouTube channel, possibly doing a giveaway, guest blogger posts, and some other fun ideas to increase productivity and traffic. I might also try and take down and remove some of the more personal blog entries and info for privacy.

Thanks for visiting! You can follow me on Twitter @BrandonWPS and be sure to leave a comment! Oh yeah, and don't forget to vote on the poll.

Happy Shaving!

Anniversary & Movember

Mo = N. Slang for Mustache

November = 11th month in calender year

Movember. It's an annual month long event that involves growing a moustaches during the month of November. The Movember Foundation Charity is an annual event in November that encourages men to grow a mustache to raise awareness and money for men's health, most notably Testicular Cancer and Prostate Cancer. I heard about this last year right around the time I was interested and started researching about wetshaving.

Ahhh. Wetshaving. Funny. ...thinking about shaving use to be a chore and something I dreaded. Now, it's part of my morning routine that I continue to look forward to every morning. This month marks my 1 year anniversary since making "the switch". Overall, my shaving experience has been drastically changed. I went from complaining about razor burn and ingrown hairs nearly every day, to having only a few ingrown hairs over the last year. And, I honestly can't remember the last time I had razor rash. It's crazy to think that I used to grumble and complain about cartridge prices while I tossed a new $25 pack of replacement blades into my cart at Wal-Mart. While I'll admit, getting a new replacement DE blade for under 17 cents is an amazing way to save money, my AD (Acquisition Disorder) has caused me to spend much more on shaving supplies that I enjoy using. I guess that's the equivalent to a women buying clothes I guess. lol Anyways, I'm glad I made the switch. Little did I know that on that fateful day, when I googled how to get rid of shaving irritation, I would run across some quirky dude shaving on YouTube named Mantic59. My life, would never be the same. I remember I stayed up till nearly 3:00 in the morning that night. Watching his videos and learning so much. It was then that my life changed forever... or at least my shaving habits. And my mug is better for it! Thanks Mantic!

Back to Movember. I bring it up because I've decided to participate this year. I started clean shaven on November 1st and am growing my first "Mo". SWMBO (She Who Must Be Obeyed) isn't too happy with it, and I've been given grief about it from others since starting my Mo. It's even been called rather hateful names. i.e.-Molestache, Skankstache, etc... I don't care. It's for a good cause. While I don't have that many people who I think will participate by donating/giving money for men's health, I am bringing attention to myself and it's a great conversation starter to bring people aware of Men's health. I'm kind of dedicating it to my Grandpa, who is now in his 80's, and has been battling prostate cancer for around 10 years now. He's a great inspiration to me.

My Mo...

Happy Shaving!

Technical difficulties

Sorry folks... We're having technical difficulties (or technical stupidity. sheesh!) Back to the old blog url and name. No changes here. Thanks for understanding.

*News*

Should have more shaving related blogs in the future, and I may take a stab at my first shaving video! ...maybe. However, Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays may delay this.

Happy Shaving!

WPS

Headin' to the game this weekend. Woo Pig Sooie!!!

Cartridge Shaving Part 3 - Final Thoughts

Now that I'm all clean and shaven from all those cartridge shaves, let's review shall we :) As Jerry Springer would say, these are my final thoughts.

While my overall impression with the cartridge razors was a good one, I'm not going to be switching over to them anytime soon. Sorry, don't get your hopes up. However, even though I had an overall good impression with them, I would like to point out a few things I have a problem with.

First is the outrageous prices for the cartridge blades. These companies are screwing over the consumers with their overpriced replacement blades. I remember reading somewhere that the mark up on these things are like 4000%! That is just wrong. Think about it... How much does it really cost to manufacture that little bitty piece of of plastic and metal. NOT MUCH. I understand that a company has to make a profit, but my word. Paying $20 or $30 for a replacement pack is absolutely ridiculous. PERIOD!

Another problem I have is the constant battle that these two companies have to "out-blade" each other. We started out with 1 blade. Then came the duo blade. Mach 3. Then the Quatro, etc... When will this end? Really? 5 and 6 blades is just overkill people. There is just no need for it. Think about it. 5 blades?! Comon! 1 blade should be sufficient enough.

I do believe that the lube strip is a pretty good idea. I have no problem with more hydration and protection. But how is it constructed on the razor again? First the little rubber fins pull the hair, then cut, then lube the face?

Isn't this backwards? As Larry the Cable Guy says, "It's like wipin' before your poop, it don't make sense!" By removing the fins, and putting the goo strip on the bottom of the razor, you wouldn't have a need for fins or a precision trimmer. Instead, you would have the lubrication strip first, then the blades. This seems like it would work much better to me. But hey, I don't make the razors.

I don't intend to sound mean or pessimistic. It's just my general observations of marketing failures.

--

Now, like I said in my reviews of the razors, I did enjoy the shave I got with both razors. Like I said earlier,

I won't be switching to cartridge blades anytime soon, but I think using them has now changed my mind on the fact that they are not evil anymore. In fact, with the proper hydration and preparation, they can give you a pretty darn good shave.

Going from a razor that has 1 blade to 5 was different. But, ultimately, a razor is a razor. Whether a cut-throat blade, Double Edge safety blade, cartridge, or sharp rock, all will cut and remove hair. Some prefer the traditional styles over the others, while some prefer the more modern day technology. That’s fine. “To each his own”, I say. People can argue over this all day. However, whatever gives you the most comfortable shave, I say stick with that. Me? I still plan on enjoying the nostalgia and the tradition of using a brush and DE razor. It's just my thing. However, I don't think cartridge razors are as bad as I had originally thought.

Happy Shaving!

Home Sweet Home

No we're not pregnant or expecting. Sorry to burst your bubble, but the "surprise" was that we bought a house! It wasn't final at the time of writing my last post, but now that we've closed, moved out, and moved in, I would say it's now official. We're still living out of boxes but have most of the big stuff unpacked.

5 things

Here are 5 things that I can't keep thinking about lately.

1. SWMBO (She Who Must Be Obeyed)
My beautiful wife. I can’t stop thinking about her and how much I love her. We’ve been married for 7 years, 1 month and 30 days (and yes, I had to look at a calendar to add up those days haha). I’m so glad she decided to married me all those years ago. We’ve gone through our hard times and good times together. For better or worse…sickness and health… for richer and definitely for poorer… She’ stuck by me no matter what and will always be my best friend. I love you babe

2. Arkansas Razorbacks
2 years ago, we ended up going to 5 games that year, which included 4 Arkansas Razorback games and 1 Alabama game. It was awesome! Last year, we didn’t go to any. At the time, we were concentrating on paying off a lot of our debt and didn’t really have the means to go to any games. This year, even though we have some “big plans” coming up in the next month or two, we are planning to go to Fayetteville once this year. Even if we don’t really have the spare money to do so, we’re gonna make time to do it. It’s one of my favorite things to do and it’s like my sanctuary if you will. When you grow up in the state of Arkansas, the Razorbacks mean everything to everyone. The Hogs started the season and won their first game last week. It was no surprise that it was almost a shutout. They have incredible talent this year and are poised to contend for a conference championship. I’m keeping my fingers crossed...

3. 9/11
This weekend is the 10th Anniversy of September 11th. Everyone remembers where they were that day. I was a freshman in college. It happened that morning and everyone was in the lobby of the dorm watching it on TV. It was so surreal that we were being attacked…America…the greatest country in the world… I’m not a declared political party. I’m not a fan of democrats, or republicans. I was a bit critical of George Bush when he was in office. I’ve since changed my mind a bit and really appreciate how good of a president he was. Anyways, I watched an interview with Geoge W on Natgeo the other day and was very impressed with his accounts during that tragic day. It was VERY interesting to watch. You can check it out here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1OU_t8lJZI). Let’s all remember those who lost their lives and also remember those heroes who saved countless other. May they never be forgotten. God Bless America.

4. Blessings
I’m thankful for many things right now. My wife, my family, friends, our jobs. We have wonderful jobs at a great place. It’s such a blessing to work at a place like where we work. I’m so thankful for my wife and how much she means to me. I’m so thankful for my parents and how much they have done for us since my wife and I have been married. I’m thankful for my brother and his family. And all our friends. We’re so blessed and fail to realize how much we have and how much we should be thankful for.

5. Surprise

Another thing that I can’t get out of my mind is a big surprise happening in our life right now. I don’t think it would be good to blab about it since it’s not officially happened yet, but we are very excited and can’t wait. Stay tuned for more updates on that!

Cartridge shaving Part 2 - Gillette Proglide

I followed my normal pre-shave, shave, and after-shave routine while using this razor. I performed my shave as normal as I could, to compare the razor as fairly as possible. Pre-shave routine consisted of a shower, washing face with a mild face wash, and showering in the shower, not at the sink. I used my badger hair brush with a few of my favoriate creams and soaps (C.O. Bigelow, D.R. Harris, Tabac, & Cyril R. Salter). The shave was my standard lather + with the grain pass, second lather + second with the grain pass. After-shave routine consisted of cold water splash, alum, cold water splash 2, Thayer's Witch Hazel, Nivea after shave Balm.

The Gillette Fusion Proglide

Packaging - Again, the first thing I noticed right off the bat, is that all of the packaging can be recycled. There's not anything that I can't easily throw into my recycle bins and take to the curb. As you can see, the entire packaging is printed cardboard paper, with a plastic shell around the razor. When the packaging is torn apart and disassembled, it's all able to be recycled. No problem. Good job Gillette!

First Impression - So my first impress of the razor is that is reminds me of a transformer. It is really cool looking. It definitely looks like high tech engineering. The razor did have a cool look and a heavy weight to it. Not made of plastic, but metal.

Handle - Lots of cool looking rubber wavy fins on the handle made this thing easy to grip and nearly impossible to drop. It's heft and easy to grip handle felt abnormal compared to an all metal handle, but easty to grip nonetheless.

Fins - *I'm stealing my quote from my Schick Hydro here*- This is where the advanced engineering and technology of today’s razors, I believe, fails. I’m not sure who first came up with the concept of little rubber fins on a razor, but in my opinion, that wasn’t the smartest move. The whole purpose of a comfortable shave is to avoid irritation and ingrown hairs. So why put rubber fins on the first part of the razor that goes over your skin first? The rubber will first swipe away the protective lather, and then “pull” and “straighten” the hair before it cuts. This causes the hair then to slightly go back into the skin. The result. A closer shave right? Genius! ...er, not so much. This means that the hair has to grow back through a closed pore and skin. The result? Ingrown hairs! Bad move here. Not only that, but in my opinon, the rubber fins removing and sweeping away the cusion of slick lather that protects your face from the blades isn't isn't the best idea. Why do this? That’s like lathering your face, wiping it off, then shaving. Doesn’t make sense to me.

Pro glide blades - It's their thinnest and most efficent blades ever! I'll agree to this claim. The blades were extremely sharp and gave me a very close shave. I didn't feel the normal "pulling" of hair as I normally do with disposables. This gave a very close comfortable shave.

Lube strip - The lube strip wasn't anything to brag about. This area probably could be improved, but it's nothing a little pre-shave oil and a good lather can't correct.

Precision trimmer - The precision trimmer was a pretty useful tool here for lining up the sideburns.

pivoting head - This is a pretty good idea here. It's old technology by cartridge razors standards. However, it allows the blade to pivot back and allow the razor to conform to the contours of your face. It's especially handy by the adams apple and those hard to reach places on the neck. I have to admit, it got the hair on my neck better than I'm accustomed to. However, I am still learning how to get those places with my DE razor comfortably.

The Price - In comparison to the competition, it is by far, one of the most expensive razor and replacement cartridges on the market. Replacement blades run about $3-5 a piece! This will never live up to the cost of DE blades! WAY overpriced

Overall -

While the fact that the non-eco-friendliness of the cartridge blade and the outrageously overpriced cost of the replacement razors may off put some of those in the traditional wet shaving community, the Gillette Proglide gave me a very close and wonderful shave! I was shocked and pleasantly surprised. It was very user friendly and easy to use. Pretty much dummy proof. I was very impressed by the closeness of the shave with the new thinner and sharper blades. It also got those hard to reach places on my neck which was a great feeling.

If you'd like to used the Gillette Proglide, you can find it ...well...pretty much everywhere!

Happy Shaving!

Don't think it's that big of a deal huh?

It was the summer of 2003. I was engaged to my present day wife and I was out of college for the summer working at the local Hastings. During that summer, the 5th Harry Potter book, The Order of the Phoenix, was released. Because it was a midnight release of the book, we were scheduled to work the midnight release of the book.

At the time, I had never read any of the Harry Potter books. I had heard of them, and had even watched the 1st movie. I knew it was popular, but never in my life would I have guess what was to come. I thought that we would sell some books, and be out within the next 30 mins to hour. Boy was I wrong. The line of people was endless! We live in a small community, so I didn’t think that there would be this many people who showed up! We stayed and sold book after book. It was nearly 3:30 a.m. by the time we were closing up and going home. I went home in amazement at the number of people who stood in line for a book… A BOOK! A stupid fantasy book!

About a year later, I somehow obtained a copy of the first Harry Potter book. I’m not sure how I got it, or where it came from, or even why I bothered to pick it up. I’ve NEVER been one who likes to read…ever. I’ve never enjoyed it and never had to read anything other than what was assigned in school. However, for some reason, I got this book and opened it up. I read the first page…first chapter…first book… and from those lowly beginnings at privet drive, my world would never be the same.

Since then, I have stood in line during the midnight release of the last book (it was even more insane than that night I worked at Hastings). We’ve also got all of the movies up to date and have enjoyed many many hours of reading and watching Harry Potter.

But last night, the final installment of the Harry Potter movies has come to an end. The release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 is the last movie in the series. We’re going to see it this weekend, and it’ll definitely be a bittersweet moment when the credits roll.

If you think Harry Potter is a joke, a kiddy thing, or just plain dumb, you have to realize that Harry Potter is one of the most successful franchises in the world! Still think it’s not worth seeing? Still think it’s a waste of time?

I guess you’ve heard of Twilight haven’t you? You may think that’s a big deal and a huge phenomenon? Guess again. That’s a teenage girl American thing. Stephanie Myer’s net worth is only about 125 million dollars. How bout Tom Clancy? Big time author, been writing books for year? Net worth 300 million dollars. Stephen King? Horror, suspense, fiction writer. 400 million dollars.

No…this is junk change to the creator of Harry Potter.

J.K. Rowling. Author of the International best-selling series of all time, Harry Potter is the first billion dollar author… That’s right, net worth is approximately, 1 Billion dollars…

Harry Potter's not so dumb anymore huh?

Suck it Stephanie Myer!!!

late....Wordless Wednesday

Happy July 4th!

I've been behind on blogging lately. It's been a busy time in our household. But I hope to get back on track this weekend and work on some more blogs. In the meantime...

I wish everyone a happy 4th of July. I'll be doing the usual grilling out, family time, and watching National Treasure! I might even try and do an American theme Shave of the Day this weekend.

This weekend, if you have time, google Independance Day and what it means to our country. *Here's a hint* It's not just about grilling, and fireworks...

Happy Shaving!