Christopher Moss, who has sent us reader’s wildlife photos before, favored us with a fancy “reader’s photo”. Being a photography buff, he calls it a “large format selfie”. His notes:
Inspired by Tim Anderson’s lovely photo, here is a selfie for your reader photographs. I’m using a 1940’s Crown Graphic camera and black and white sheet film. Included are my “Shelves of Shame” with a tiny fraction of my collection of straight razors, badger brushes and shaving soaps. We all have our eccentricities….
Click to enlarge and see the shaving paraphernalia.
Best reader’s photo so far.
Nice pose and expression. What are the tins or bowls (that’s just what they look like) in the bottom half of your “Shelves of Shame” cabinet? (I first wrote “Shelves of Shave” lol!)
That 70+ year-old camera takes a fine photo. Did you develop the film yourself? Nice exposure.
What an ingenious selfie! You even see the camera with the picture inside that you are looking at!
Some collection. The barber I go to has some of the brushes and several early razors on display that are for sale. Not many straight razors but the old razors we used prior to the newer types today.
I am reminded of the saying – “It’s not about what you love but how you love it.”.
Nice. What’s a “badger brush”?
Those big poofy brushes you see used for lathering men up for a shave.
Also, an implement to tend to your badger’s fur but, inferring from context, I think it’s the earlier definition I gave. 😀
Lathering with a badger not recommended!
I guess because they were once made from badgers’ bristles?
As often happens, googling proves I’m right but at a cost. According to PETA:
“Frightened, Injured Badgers Violently Killed for Makeup, Shaving, and Paint Brushes”
https://secure.petaasia.com/page/29996/-/1
Still are.
Yes, see my PETA link.
All that cut throat paraphernalia on display & yet I see someone in the house uses a rechargeable electric ‘one blade’ style razor, for goatee shaping perhaps? 🙂
I’m focused on how big and lovely the bathroom looks.
Yeah, big, warm bathrooms with low lights [cept around mirror] is such a peaceful space. Big bath.
Same here. It must be spa-like. I had 2 bathrooms like that, years ago. Current one is a little tight.
I’m focused on how big and lovely the bathroom looks.
New WEIT series: Send Us Your Big Lovely Bathroom.
Haha. I love those bathrooms that are atriums almost. I’ve seen pictures of them with chairs and such in them. I’d never leave!
You’d need a full time grape peeler & wine pourer who is handy with a back scrubber. Maybe Craig’s List has a section.
One of those Roman devices slaves used to scrape olive oil off you.
I’m not sure that was olive oil.
That’s a bizarre flossing tool belonging to my better half.
You got me. Had to look up electric flossers/picks.
Very Nice brushes. I celebrate the weekend by using a trumper (either best or super) badger that i splurged on some forty years ago to provide a nice worm lather every saturday and sunday morning. If not in violation of da roolz, i would love to have christophers shaving cream or soap recommendations to use with these brushes.
Warm not worm of course…sorry
I’m just a pleb on these matters, but I use the Palmolive for Men Classic Shaving Stick or the shave cream version – invigorating, a gorgeous subtle scent & cheap as chips! I’ve never used a lather bowl as my face + loaded brush does all that.
I have never used a lather bowl on my face either. Great chins think alike.
Dig it!
And I first thought it must be Detective Morse, Oxford CID, in the crime lab!
Great photo.
I find myself contemplating returning from a sea voyage and whistling the Old Spice jingle while in the arms of a lassie (after I shave and clean up).
Do you charge for a shave and a hair cut? 😎
Two bits.
Thanks for the comments! I’m surprised no one asked why I had a beard and all that shaving impedimenta (it was taken during chemotherapy, which did not make my hair fall out but my platelets were so low I was banned from using edged weapons to shave). The bowls someone asked about are wooden and each contains a different shaving soap. Funny thing is I generally use my homemade shaving soap rather than commercial stuff. While I have lots of badger brushes, I have come to prefer a lowly boar brush for the pleasure of the using it, being a bit more ‘scrubby’ than a soft badger. You can’t get good badger brushes anymore – the old badgers with long stiff hair are hunted out from China, and the commercially farmed badgers are killed too young making for floppy brushes. They are also kept and killed inhumanely and I can’t condone the trade at all. All in all, there’s nothing like the ritual of honing, stropping, lathering up and carefully using a super sharp straight razor. Every one should try it!
With respect to the camera, yes, I do develop all my own film. I wonder if all those hours splashing around in colour chemicals gave me the leukemia. I knew I should have stuck to black and white…
Photo chemicals are really nasty. My chemical exposure is weird. When I was in my 20s I worked each year of university at a park in the summer. As one of my duties, I had to paint the picnic tables with a strong nasty paint. I got it all over myself and would have to use paint thinner to get it off. I used so much I often could taste it. I joked “in 20 years if I get cancer you’ll know it was from this”. I got breast cancer 20 years later. Hmmm.
Fantastic photo. 👍
Thank you for sharing.