Fun with a straight razor

I've been talking about liking the idea of shaving with a straight-razor (but being somewhat terrified) for a while. Mark and I had a conversation about this and so did Ian and I. Ian, being the generous (and possibly sadistic) soul that he is, bought be a straight-razor for Christmas. I got my courage together and tried it out for the first last night. While it wasn't as bad as this, this, or even this (couldn't find the right image for the last one, but if you've seen the film you know what I am going for, I would be lying if I told you i didn't make something of a bloody mess of it - literally. However, if you disregard all the nicks, the shave was amazing. I wasn't really prepared to shave with it. In order not to bleed to death the next time I try it out I need to get a) proper brush, b) proper shaving cream, c) aftershave, and perhaps most importantly I need to read how to do it. Gonna keep trying though. Any hints or tips would be appreciated.
rgsc