Christmas Gifts - Take 1

Being it is very close to Christmas, I thought I would write about a couple of my most favorite Christmas gifts ever the next couple days. I guess I will start with the straight razor, badger hair brush, and shaving cream. I received this gift almost 2 years ago, and decided there is really nothing better then shaving "old school". The process I use every other day takes a bit more time, but I think is well worth it. I start by boiling some water, then pouring it into a ceramic cup. I then hang my badger hair brush in to the water to soak up as much as it can while I take a shower. When I'm done showering, I shake out excess water from the brush and begin to create my own shaving cream. (This is one of the best parts, because the different smells from the different shaving creams are excellent. Sandlewood, Citrus, Almond, etc...it's whatever I feel like that day) Then the other part I love so much is putting this nice, warm shaving cream on my face and head. It is amazing the difference between the crap coming out of the can and a nice warm brush. It is then on to shaving. It takes about 3 passes to get all the hair of and my head/face nice and smooth. This isn't a Mach3 where you press as hard as you can and only use one pass. There is only 1 razor (as opposed to 3 per pass) and if you press too hard, there will be blood. When the entire process is complete, I rinse my face/head with cold water, then use a nice Bay Rum aftershave for a good old man smell.

I think the reason this was such an excellent Christmas gift is because it is a gift that I really wanted, but couldn't really justify the up front cost. After receiving the kit, the blades are only about $0.20 ea (which I get 4 shaves with) and the shaving cream is probably $20 a container, but that lasts about 6 months or more. It is also very relaxing to do, and the feel and smell is just fantastic. I have way less ingrown neck hairs and it is just wonderful to have a process to follow in the morning.