Razor: Gillette Old Type “Khaki”
Blade: Treet Platinum
Brush: Omega #50014 Travel
Pre-Shave: Proraso Pre Shave Cream
Lather: BEA Shavestick
Aftershave: Krampert’s Finest Bay Rum
Additional Care: Alum Travel Stick & Oak SOS Beard Oil

Razor: Gillette Old Type “Khaki”
Blade: Treet Platinum
Brush: Omega #50014 Travel
Pre-Shave: Proraso Pre Shave Cream
Lather: BEA Shavestick
Aftershave: Krampert’s Finest Bay Rum
Additional Care: Alum Travel Stick & Oak SOS Beard Oil
Old razor ads can be worth looking into. New ones can be… odd. And ones from back when I grew up can be pretty bland. Recently I found a Gillette Contour ad from when I was still in elementary school. Back then shaving was, for me at least, something grownups did before I even got out of bed.
Continue readingA few days ago we had a look at a 1917 Gillette advertisement, which referenced a patent filed in 1901. And today we look at that patent – and how it differs from Gillette’s better known and slightly newer patent for the Old Type safety razor.
But before we get into the differences, let’s see what King wanted to achieve with his invention:
Continue readingRazor: Gillette Old Type “Khaki”
Blade: Treet Platinum
Brush: Omega #50014 Travel
Pre-Shave: Proraso Pre Shave Cream
Lather: BEA Shavestick
Aftershave: Krampert’s Finest Bay Rum
Additional Care: Alum Travel Stick & Oak SOS Beard Oil
Shaving in the evening, since tomorrow will be busy.
Razor: Gillette Old Type “Khaki”
Blade: Astra Green
Brush: Omega #50014 Travel
Pre-Shave: Proraso Pre Shave Cream
Lather: BEA Shavestick
Aftershave: Krampert’s Finest Bay Rum
Additional Care: Alum Travel Stick & Oak SOS Beard Oil
So what makes a razor worth looking into? Well, this 1905 Gillette advertisement from the December issue of Scientific American don’t actually answer that question, but implies that the Gillette has those qualities that makes it worth looking into. It also makes some claims that are strangely familiar to what P&G says about their plastic cartridge monstrosities today…
Continue readingRazor: Gillette Old Type “Khaki”
Blade: Astra Green Brush: Omega #50014 Travel
Pre-Shave: Proraso Pre Shave Cream
Lather: BEA Shavestick
Aftershave: Krampert’s Finest Bay Rum
Additional Care: Alum Travel Stick & Oak SOS Beard Oil
Razor: Gillette Old Type “Khaki”
Blade: Astra Green
Brush: Omega #50014 Travel
Pre-Shave: Proraso Pre Shave Cream
Lather: BEA Shavestick
Aftershave: Krampert’s Finest Bay Rum
Additional Care: Alum Travel Stick & Oak SOS Beard Oil
Another week without a functioning shave den is wrapping up. Tiling likely to start tomorrow, so we are seeing the light in the tunnel.
Beau Brummell was, according to Gillette, the greatest dandy of all time. I’m not sure if that is a good thing or not. A dandy is, after all, a man unduly concerned with looking stylish and fashionable. So that would mean that Beau Brummell was the most foppish1 man ever – and while I enjoy a good shave, I wouldn’t say I’m unduly concerned about my looks.
I guess I get what they are trying to say; whereas a foopish dandy during the regency era2 had to resort to tweezers and a lot of time to get a BBS, the vain boulevardier of the late 1910’s may simply give himself a quick shave with a Gillette safety razor.
The ad repeats the claim that the Old Type3 was adjustable. This was a common claim in early Gillette advertisements, but I am dubious as to how well it would have worked – even with the ticker blade originally used.
Using Beau Brummell as their figurehead might not have been the brightest idea Gillette ever had, by the way. Yes, he was the arbiter of men’s fashion in England for a few years, but after a quarrel with the Prince Regent he not only went into debt but had to flee the country. And yes, his name is still associated with style and good looks, but he died insane and shabby in exile. Perhaps not the image you want in your head with you see a razor?
Razor: Gillette Old Type “Khaki”
Blade: Astra Green
Brush: Omega #50014 Travel
Pre-Shave: Proraso Pre Shave Cream
Lather: GzD Shavestick
Aftershave: Krampert’s Finest Bay Rum
Additional Care: Alum Travel Stick & Oak SOS Beard Oil
I can almost see just using one razor for life, as long as it is a good one like the one in my Khaki Kit.
Almost.