So I was rummaging around the internet again, when I spotted a pair of interesting old photos.
Old Swedish van with Gillette Advertisement
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Category Archives: Wetshaving
Shave of the evening 7th May 2023
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
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?
Footnotes:
- The foppishest?
- From 1795 to 1837 or so – or in between the end of the American Rebellion and the accession of the less than amused Queen Victoria.
- By tightening the handle less or more, as described on the Gillette Adjustable Razors website.
Shave of the day 3rd May 2023
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.
Electrically heated safety razor
As I briefly mentioned in a post a couple of years ago, the idea of a heated razor is old. As old as the idea of self-lubricating razors and self feeding brushes. And a heated safety razor makes about as much sense to me. It may make more sense if you’re bathroom is frigid and you don’t have endless hot water straight from the tap. And it obviously made some form of sense to Leon and Thomas J Henderson back in 1935 when they applied for a patent for their variation on the theme of heated safety razor.
Continue readingShave of the night 1st May 2023
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
A late night shave at work, shaving from the GoBag.
Shave of the day 28th April 2023
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 am still shaving from the GoBag, and I am still enjoying the one hundred and five year old Gillette Khaki Set.
Light attachment for razors
People get bright ideas now and then – and by that I mean people trying to put a light in or on their razors. The light attachment patented by Jacob N Garfunkle in 1927 is just one in a long line. Personally I like turning up the light in the bathroom, but a century ago that might not have been an option.
But first, let us see what Jacob was trying to achieve with his invention:
Continue readingShave of the day 26th April 2023
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
A 1867 improvement in shaving-cups – the first scuttle?
Wikipedia, in their article on shaving soap, sort of implies that a 1867 patent for an improved shaving mug is the first patent for a scuttle. And while I haven’t tried to verify that claim, if this isn’t the first scuttle it is an early scuttle for sure.
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