STEP 1. Find an Anchor Point
Tie your strop to a fixed anchor point to prepare for stropping. A towel bar, hook on the wall or closed and secure door handle will work! Just make sure your anchor point isn't going anywhere! A poorly secured anchor point could be dangerous to you.
STEP 2. Get a Grip!
The key to a good stropping is proper tension on the strop. To achieve this, stand with the lace end of the strop secured to your anchor point and your non-dominant hand securing the handle at the other end of the strop. Stand facing your strop's anchor point and position your body just to the side of the strop. Tuck your elbow in to reduce hand or strop movement. Lastly, pull the strop with enough force to make the strop lie flat in front of you.
STEP 3. Keep it Flat
In your dominant hand, position the blade so that the spine and the edge lay flat on the stropping surface. The spine should never leave the stropping surface. The edge of the razor will be closest to you and the spine will be farthest from you. Do NOT roll the edge toward you or away from you or allow the strop to sag or become slack.
STEP 4. Push Away & Flip
Push the blade away from you, keeping the spine and the edge flat on the stropping surface the entire time. The blade should glide across the stropping surface with little to no downward pressure. As you approach the end of the strop, stop your forward motion and flip the edge over the spine by rolling the tang in between your fingers. Remember, the spine does not leave the stopping surface. Complete the flip by gently laying the edge flat on the stropping surface. Now the spine will be closest to you, and the edge farthest from you.
STEP 5. Pull Towards & Flip
Pull the blade toward your body, stopping at the end of the strop. A good distance to stop at is one that gives you ample room to flip the edge over the spine so that you can push away from yourself again and continue stropping. To finish: repeat 25 laps on the prep side, 50 laps on the finishing side!