A collapsible lather brush

The desire to improve and enhance upon things must be as old as the drive to invent in the first place, and the brush that Mr Marcus B Berhman filed a patent for in 1919 is in fact a useful improvement on the classic brush – if only for travel purposes.

…a lather brush compromising a handle and bristles, the knot of the bristles being held by suitable inner and outer ferrules and the bristles being adapted to be concealed within the handle of the brush or exposed outwardly therefrom for use, said handle being in hinged together sections adapted to be opened outwardly to receive the bristles or to permit the same to be removed from the handle, and said outer ferrule being adapted to lock the handle in closed position, both when the bristles are within the handle and when said bristles are in exposed condition.

Makes me dizzy just to read all that.. but the long and the short is that the handle is hollow, hinged, and shaped to hold the knot when in the stowed position. Luckily the drawing that accompanies the patent is clearer than the text when it comes to explaining things.

From patent US 1,353,984

Looks like a handy travel brush, and one I wouldn’t mind having. I do like the fact that when folded it takes half the space, meaning you can more easily fit a full sized brush in your dopp bag. While the original idea likely was to make it out of stamped sheet metal, there is no reason why a modern recreation of this idea can’t use different materials that stands up to the damp a bit better.

Shave of the day 30th March

Razor: Merkur 39C Slant
Blade: Wilkinson Sword
Brush: Semogue TSN LE 2012
Pre-Shave: The Lavish Gentleman Natural Strength Oil Cleanser
Lather: Krampert’s Finest Bay Rum Soap
Aftershave: Krampert’s Finest Bay Rum
Additional Care: Alum Block, Gentlemen of Sweden Original Beard Oil, Pereira Shavery Boomerang Beard Comb

Need something to do while in corona lock-down?

Got time to spare while being at home due to the situation in the world today? Or just want a light read in between being busy with work?

70 razor and shaving patents – available both as an paperback and for Kindle1 – is a somewhat serious, somewhat humorous meandering look at the history of shaving, as seen through patents from the last century and a half. Explore a wide range of ideas ranging from electrically heated razors to plug into the light fixtures, magnetic pseudoscience, the ever present vibrating razors, and sensible solutions for razors that were the right idea at the wrong time.

My book explores some of the roads not taken and the blind alleys explored – solutions in search of a problem as well as problems caused by the solutions – by inventors to perfect our daily shave and moment of Zen.

Get it from Amazon; this link should take you to the closest Amazon to your location.

And regardless; try to stay safe in these weird times we’re living through. We will come through the other end, together and freshly shaven.

1) If you have Kindle Unlimited, it is also available to borrow there.

Shave of the day 27th March

Razor: Merkur (?) NOS Bakelite Slant
Blade: Feather Hi-Stainless
Brush: Artesania Romera Manchurian Badger, imitation horn
Lather: Pereira Shavery Shaving Cream w/ Activated Charcoal
Aftershave: BullDog Sensitive Aftershave Balm
Additional Care: Alum Block & Gentlemen of Sweden Original Beard Oil

A 1963 Dopp kit for Dad (and other shavers)

While I was once told where the term “Dopp kit” came from – and promptly forgot – the important thing to keep in mind is that we all need a nice, sturdy, roomy toiletry bag from time to time when we travel… got to fit our shave gear and a few other bits and pieces too in it, after all.

So while I was browsing online today I came over this advertisement from June ’63 (just a little under sixty years ago) that features a dopp bag that seems to fit the bill perfectly:

Somehow I suspect I would have to fork over a wee bit more than $7.50 today ($63.40 today, adjusted for inflation) for a similar kit today… but if I could find one like the one in the advertisement it could be worth it.

Combination Shaving Set

A quadruple Plate combination shaving set, none the less.. just the thing to avoid shaving in cold water ever again.

A 1896 advertisement from Pairpoint MFG Company

For most of us – close to one and a quarter century after this ad was printed – the idea of not having hot water available on command from the tap in the bathroom is an alien concept. We might choose to shave with cold water, which can be quite refreshing in summer – but it’s a choice we make, and not something we are forced to endure.

True, in the larger cities water pipes and sewers were in place, but if you lived in a rural area there was a good chance that your options were a well and an outhouse (hopefully situated well apart). The option for having hot water for your shave in just two minutes would have been a godsend, and the Combination Shave Set also helped keeping all your shave gear organised.

I’m also reminded of a patent I’ve looked at previously; US144,667 to be exact – titled “Improvement in shaving-mugs” – which covered a shaving mug with a stand and heater. It’s discussed in my book, which you can get both as a paperback or in Kindle format.

Shave of the day 23rd March

Razor: Merkur (?) NOS Bakelite Slant
Blade: Feather Hi-Stainless
Brush: Vie-Long #12705B
Pre-Shave: The Lavish Gentleman Natural Strength Oil Cleanser
Lather: Cold River Soap Works’ Barbere Sapone
Aftershave: BullDog Sensitive Aftershave Balm
Additional Care: Alum Block, Gentlemen of Sweden Original Beard Oil, & Pereira Shavery Boomerang Beard Comb

Changing hosts and URL

I’ve been keeping my blog on blogger since 2012, an amazing eight years and roughly 130K unique visitors.

Since blogger isn’t quite doing what I want it to do, and I wish for more control over both content and back end, I’m switching to WordPress hosted on my own domain. In a few day the move should be finished and redirects set up to take you seamlessly from the old address to the new.

Old URL: https://wetshavingweblog.blogspot.com/

New URL: https://wegianwetshaving.com/