SAFETY Razor Shave of the Day (SOTD)

[120inna55]

Storybook Soapworks - Shaken
Kent V8
Ever-Ready SE | Gem PTFE

I've used Storybook Soapworks' "Shaken" soap four times, now, and the splash a bit more than that.  I typically speak up right away when I encounter a fragrance I like.  My delay comes out of my trying to discern the promoted "paper money" note (pun-intended).  I haven't found it, yet.  There is a little musk, that may be masking it from me, but more on that later.  Shaken opens with a spicy note approaching cinnamon or possibly clove, but not quite.  This stage is bold, but quite pleasant.  As the shave progresses, the spice mellows to a more obvious tobacco that's accompanied by a clean juniper/gin note.  Nearing the end of the shave, the overall accord warms up with a shrewd use of sandalwood and musk.  At this point, the fragrance is absolutely exquisite, but it's one of those alluring fragrances that you realize there's more to be had if only the soap were the proper medium. Fortunately, the splash comes next, and with it are more subtle notes that cleverly fill out this already sexy fragrance. The tobacco is more forward and the cinnamon/clove peculiarity is probably the documented carnation because it does have some floral component.  Honestly, I can't remember the last time I smelled a carnation, although I'm aware it's not an uncommon element in fragrances.  I can detect a small amount of gun powder, but only because I'm tipped off to it.  The juniper/gin note is more alcoholic than the soap.  All of this is well-seated in a pleasant, but again, judicious musky and warm sandalwood.  At some point, I get intermittent suggestions of new leather, but it's not documented.  I get this each time I use Shaken.  It's such an artfully crafted accord that it's possible my brain fills in facets of the story. After a couple hours, at best, the gin exits as does any remnant floral component, but the spiciness holds on longer than expected as does the tobacco and of course sandalwood.  Alas, the "paper money" fragrance eludes me.  This is a sexy fragrance, indeed.  The only problem I have with it is that it just doesn't last long enough.  Sure, four hours is a reasonable expectation of a single-duty aftershave splash, but there needs to be more of this.  "Shaken" is a night on the town, so it should at least close a bar or two.  It's my sincere hope that a Shaken EdP will some day see the light of day.

[120inna55]

Phoenix and Beau  - Whitechapel
DrivenLegend Red & Black | APShaveCo Tuxedo 30mm
Ever-Ready 1912 | Delta Echo | Gem PTFE

Whitechapel is my first Phoenix and Beau soap.  Obviously, the label on this limited run caught my eye, so it made for a good opportunity to try them out.  The label is certainly striking if not a little difficult to capture in a photograph.  Upon initial inspection, I thought it was a screen-printed label, but it is in fact a sticker label, only very well done.  The label is thick textured vinyl, and the "blood splatter" (not "spatter" in this case) is raised beyond that.  For those that don't know, this is a Jack The Ripper themed soap.  The blood splatter is in the shape of a nude female torso, and Jack and his knife can be seen in the negative space.

The soap concept was borne of a contest in which the winner named the soap, defined its theme, and played at least some part in outlining the scent profile.  It was inspired by five victims of Jack The Ripper.  Each note was influenced by the surroundings in which their bodies were found.  The place was Whitechapel.  The notes were to be smoke, chocolate/caramel, leather, lilac, and tobacco.  I can provide a screenshot of the original listing if there's interest.  Macabre as it may be, its creativity can't be denied.  This, alone, will offend some.  The art will offend others.  This writing is not intended to broach that aspect, but rather comment on my impressions of the overall product.

The all-black tub is your standard plastic offering.  There are no visible identifying marks for me to track down the precise model, but other than being black, they're the same as my L&L Grooming tubs in every other aspect.   The tub itself being quite flexible and the lid is fairly rigid.  I didn't measure it, but it's documented to have 150g of product, and the tub is just over half full.  The product is a pale tan color and is on the firm end of the croap spectrum.  It appears to have been pressed into the tub with the aide of a spatula or similar tool.

The fragrance off the tub was mostly smoky vetiver and leather with perhaps a very faint floral note, but not such that I could define the specific floral.  Lathered, the smoky vetiver is still forward, but it's much cleaner than say, Catie's Bubbles' "322".  The leather note is present, but muted throughout most of the shave.  With continued exposure during a 2+ pass shower head and face shave, the floral note also remained muted, but useful in keeping this from being a single-faceted aroma.  It's possible I detected some cocoa, but I was searching for it given the documented notes.  I did not detect tobacco.

I used the 30mm APShaveCo Tuxedo knot both for a test lather the night before and for the full shave today.  I'd read some less-than-stellar reviews and was thus fully prepared for a mediocre experience.  Fortunately, I was surprised.  This beef tallow-based soap loads and performs very similarly to Barrister and Mann's white label soaps.  With that it shares the rather substantial thirst.  I learned a lot from the test lather and found it could handle even irresponsible amounts of hard water before finally collapsing. I suspect this thirst is the culprit for some of the below-average reviews.  In pushing the water, I obtained a very dense lather.  While this first go yielded a sufficiently slick lather, it wasn't quite as slick as Barrister and Mann's white label.  The residual slickness was above average, but again, not to the level of that of B&M's.  The post-shave was at least competitive with my other favored artisans, such that skipping a post-product could be entertained.  I almost never skip an aftershave, so I had planned on using Catie's Bubbles' "322" regardless.  I chose it for the smoky vetiver of which I'm a fan.  B&M's Hallows may have been a better "pairing" with the cocoa element, but it's irrelevant since the soap has little to nil lingering fragrance.  In this case, it's more about extending the experience.

I've been intrigued by Phoenix and Beau's offerings for some time, now, and I'm glad to have picked this one up.  Since they're across the pond as it were, this single tub cost me $31.52 shipped to Texas.  Given that, I'm not compelled to randomly explore more of their offerings since similarly performing soaps are readily available stateside.  Additionally, I gravitate to soaps with matching splashes, and Phoenix and Beau apparently have no such offerings.  That said, when a unique theme and eye-catching label comes along again, I won't hesitate to jump on it.  Especially now that I'm confident they offer a product that performs as good as it looks.

Ingredients: Potassium Stearate, Potassium Tallowate (Bovine), Potassium Castorate, Cocos Lactate, Glycerin, Potassium Safflowerate, Potassium Shea Butterate, Lanolin, Allantoin, Tussah Silk, Vetiver EO, Sandalwood EO, Jasmine Absolute, Ylang Ylang EO, Leather FO, Chocolate FO, Benzyl Alcohol, Benzyl Benzoate, Eugenol, Farnesol, Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone, Linalool.

Here's a gif I crudely made in an attempt to show the label's texture:

Lather pic:

Another texture pic:

[120inna55]

Movie Night SOTD
Tallow + Steel "Morocco"
DrivenLegend Red & Black | APShaveCo Tuxedo 30mm
Ever-Ready 1912 | Delta Echo | Gem PTFE

[120inna55]

Catie's Bubbles - V
Ever-Ready 100T | Elite Razor Manchurian
Ever-Ready 1924 Shovelhead | Gem PTFE

I fully anticipated Catie's Bubbles' "V" to smell like reptilian extraterrestrials, but alas, it turns out "V" is the Roman numeral thus commemorating their fifth anniversary in the business.

Catie's Bubbles is among my favorites, and has firmly maintained "top artisans" league status for me since the first time I used it approaching one year ago, now. V utilizes their luxury soap base.  There's no need to belabor the performance of V, including the top-level slickness, protection, and post-shave it offers, because there are ultimately no strikes against it.
 
I purchased the full set of soap, splash, and eau de parfum, so my logic dictates that I convey my impressions of the EdP and then address how it translates to the soap.  V opens with a bright, sharp, slightly sweet citrus that is an unambiguous grapefruit and to a lesser extent lemon.  It's quickly flanked by a woodiness and gentle green botanic musk.  This, in a subtle way, is reminiscent of their masterpiece, Confiant, but with a grapefruit lean as opposed to verbena or lemon.  I estimate this stage sustains for a good hour or more.  However, the descent was quite lengthy.  The accord begins to take on some peppery and spicy attributes before they can clearly be defined.  This "limbo", as it were, is interesting and subtle.  With time, V gains even more complexity and depth becoming darker and more herbaceous and ultimately resinous, approaching syrupy.  Finally, in an ever so insidious fashion, breaches that familiar smoky Haitian vetiver requisite to any Catie's Bubbles commemoration. The smoky vetiver is downplayed such that it maintains its elegance. 

The lathered soap opens as a less descript citrus battle between something similar to lemon battling grapefruit.  Ultimately grapefruit wins out.  Halfway though the shave, the green notes actually remind me of freshly broken green fruit tree branches, starting with a camphor and impending medicinal note before rapidly being overtaken by green wood.  Unlike the EdP, the soap doesn't give the accord time to burn off the citrus before fully introducing the more resinous and dark sweet notes.  This is not a detraction, but rather an observation as to how the base hurriedly translates and mutes the heart fragrance.

I finished with the perfectly matching splash (formally denoted "Before and After Shave") which is difficult to evaluate performance-wise, since the preceding soap nourishes my skin more than adequately.  I use the splash for the full experience and the refreshing feel of an alcohol-based aftershave.  The fragrance is essentially a less potent iteration of the EdP devoid of any glaring conflict with the splash base itself.

This was a fragrant journey lasting a good 8 hours.  It was apropos for a morning shave coinciding with a day that began with an unseasonal muggy 78°F and, as a cold front blew through, is approaching 50°F.

V is an artfully blended and crafted fragrance opening with an unassuming light citrus and ending with a dark resin seemingly telling a story from morning to night or perhaps Summer to Autumn.  I'm a huge fan of Catie's Bubbles' Confiant, but I believe V may well have taken its place, or at least become it's colder counterpart.

[120inna55]

L&L Grooming - Darkfall
Kent V8   
Radio 1912 | Gem PTFE

This was my first use of the rare Radio razor.  It appears to just be a regular 1912 with "Radio" branding.  However, the blade sits back a bit further resulting in much less blade-feel, but surprisingly no sacrifice in efficiency.  Of course the stock solid handle is much heavier and longer than most 1912 iterations, also contributing to a different experience.  This was an outstandingly comfortable shave.

[120inna55]

Barrister and Mann - Citricuyá
BSB-Ti | HMW Extra Dense
Ever-Ready SE | Gem PTFE

I was a little disappointed about having missed out on the South Florida Wet Shavers' Barrister and Mann Citricuyá.  I mean, look at that label!  When I reached out to Brian Myers, he did what he does best and sniffed out an unused set for me.  I'm quite grateful to both Brian's legwork and to SFWS for letting me purchase it despite my only recently having joined the group.

Citricuyá utilizes Barrister and Mann's Glissant base that I have reviewed at length, so I will stipulate that this is one of the elite performers in the artisan realm.  As should be expected from B&M, Citricuyá is more than just a pretty face.  It opens with a bold and interesting blood orange and passion fruit.  I immediately began comparing it to Soapmakers of Awesometown, but that's because it's the only other soap in my den featuring passion fruit.  In reality, that's probably the only similarity. The blood orange and passion fruit seem to teeter until a subtle spiciness infiltrates the accord about midway through the shave.  It also takes on a floral note but never abandons the citrus for the entire two and half passes.  The paired B&M splash matches very well, but it does have more depth particularly with respect to the dry down.  The citrus burns off first, and then the passion fruit and floral note.  There is a brief period in which I could swear I'm detecting neroli, but I do not see that mentioned in the scent notes.  The dry down reveals an unexpected thick greenness becoming sharper as it fades about 3 hours later.

While Citricuyá is one of the least complex Barrister and Mann fragrances I've experienced, it's undoubtedly intentional and still has more depth than many of my other citrus products.  In terms of longevity, I place it somewhere between Adagio and Rhapsody.  This a very pleasant fragrance. If this is what South Florida smells like, I need to visit.

[120inna55]

Lather Bros. Soap Co. - El Jefè
DrivenLegend Red & Black | APShaveCo Tuxedo 30mm
Ever-Ready 1912 | Delta Echo | Gem PTFE

[120inna55]

Phoenix Artisan Accoutrements - CaD
Wolf Whiskers | Raptor | Black Wolf   
Radio 1912 | Gem PTFE

[120inna55]

Catie's Bubbles - 322
RazoRock 400 | Noir Plissoft
Radio 1912 | Gem PTFE

[120inna55]

Barrister and Mann - Citricuyá
Island Bladeworks "Stoya" | Elite Razor Manchurian
Star 1912 | Gem PTFE
Dapper Dragon "Naranja" Scale Polish (SFWS LE)

I've been a proponent of Dapper Dragon's Scale Polish since its inception.  In my early days of head shaving, I had the occasional bad shave and was in desperate need of what I call a "rescue product" to not only alleviate irritation and burn immediately, but also one that had more prolonged soothing effects.  I threw together a base of aloe gel and thinned it down with witch hazel and a few drops of tea tree oil.  It didn't smell great, so I tried adding a few drops of lavender essential oil.  It served its purpose, but it was certainly unrefined.  Then one day I saw a Dapper Dragon SOTD citing this "Scale Polish".  I inquired about it and was told it was still in development.  Ultimately, I received some of the final product, and it henceforth has remained my go-to rescue product.  It felt so good, I also used it on non-shave days.  Eventually, I requested an unscented version to provide more flexibility.  I bought up several tubs of that.  Fast forward to today.  I don't have bad shaves anymore, but Scale Polish still gets plenty of use from me simply because it leaves a unique silky feel to my scalp.

"Naranja" Scale Polish was included in the SFWS EOTYB bag along with Barrister and Mann's Citricuyá soap.  While Citricuyá is your usual complex accord from Barrister and Mann, one of the notes, blood orange, is emphasized in the Naranja Scale Polish.  It's an excellent complement to Citricuyá  while some people will go full tilt and use both the Citricuyá splash and the Scale Polish, that's overkill for me.  Naranja provides an excellent opportunity to let the blood orange sustain beyond the shave.  I'm a fan of menthol, and Naranja includes it, but apparently at 50% of the usual dose found in Dapper Dragon's other Scale Polish flavors.  The result is still a cooling effect, but in a gentle fashion.  The silky, non-tacky feel is still there, though.

I'm grateful to the South Florida Wet Shavers Facebook group and Dapper Dragon for allowing me to get in on the Naranja Scale Polish.  It's an excellent accompaniment to round out the Citricuyá package.

[120inna55]

Talbot Shaving - Howick Hall
Ever-Ready 100T | Elite Razor Manchurian   
Radio 1912 | Gem PTFE
Jeeves of Hudson Street - Black Tea Aftershave

A Talbot Shaving soap has been eluding me for some time.  This is due in part to the limited batches along with scent profiles that weren't quite in my wheelhouse.  A very kind fellow wet shaver received "Howick Hall" in a lot, and the scent off the tub wasn't for him.  He'd noted my long-shot post requesting an unused tub of this soap in the B/S/T (I'm weird and don't purchase used soaps). He sold it to me at cost which was right at retail.  I'm quite grateful to this gentleman.

I'm a huge Earl Grey tea fan, such that I might be considered, in some circles, to be a connoisseur.  As a result, I tend to be unfairly critical of wet shaving products that claim the Earl Grey tea accord.  That said, I'm also a purist.  In my mind, Earl Grey tea is not Earl Grey tea when you toss in flowers as some tea artisans do.  Howick Hall lists Earl Grey tea as a note, so I can forgive the fact that I don't really make the connection.  Earl Grey tea is quite simply black tea that's been flavored with bergamot oil.  The moment you add anything to it, it ceases to be Earl Grey tea.  Are you starting to get a glimpse of that unfair criticism?  Howick Hall most certainly has a bold and forward black tea note which is natively smoky without smelling burnt.  Bergamot is also present, but it's quite understated especially when compared to the actual beverage.  Rose hips, violet, and dried lily are the remaining documented notes.  I can't say I can pick those out among the black tea, but there is a creaminess that holds it together.  In short, this is a smoky, creamy, black tea with gentle hints of bergamot---not Earl Grey tea.  Even though Howick Hall doesn't make me think of Earl Grey tea, it is without question a very pleasant, well-crafted fragrance, and one that I place highly on my list of favorites. 

The real reason you need to search out a Talbot Shaving soap is the performance.  Talbot elbows its way to the front of the line in the company of my favored artisans.  This is certainly competitive with any other soap I've used.  Talbot loads a moderately damp knot with ease.  The loading aspect and the ensuing creaminess is actually reminiscent of Catie's. Despite my hard water, an uber-dense (L&L-grade) lather is effortlessly achieved. Slickness is top shelf.  I achieved a complete second pass on my scalp solely from the residual slickness.  A stunt that is usually ill-advised if not downright risky, but it was a very comfortable pass.  The post-shave is equally phenomenal.  I simply cannot find a single mark against Talbot's performance.

It's my understanding we won't soon see this soap flood the marked as the Talbot artisan/proprietor apparently approaches soap making solely as a creative outlet, selling 3 oz. tubs for $12 plus first-class shipping.  Once a batch is sold, the artisan donates $1 per tub to "The Trust for Public Land" whose mission is to, "...create(s) parks and protect land for people, ensuring healthy, livable communities for generations to come."  An honorable endeavor, indeed.

[120inna55]

Crown King - "Cane! Northpole Barbershop"
Wolf Whiskers | Raptor | Black Wolf   
Radio 1912 | Gem PTFE

How is it I'm just getting around to trying the Crown King base?  I'm apparently oblivious even to Smythe's marketing. I'd assumed it was all the same PAA base, which is a nice performer itself.  However, Crown King performs markedly better for me.  In all aspects (ease of lather in hard water, density, first-pass slickness, residual slickness, and post-shave) CK is easily competitive with my top 5 favorites artisanal soaps, with possibly an advantage with respect to the post-shave.

Cane was a good choice for today because, despite being December, the high temperature today was 85°F here in East Texas. The soap offers a pleasant crisp cooling effect falling just short of cold, and it's fragrance is a very accurate singular peppermint candy aroma.  The splash's cold effect is a bit more powerful, but still pleasant to me.  The splash loses a bit of its candy cane identity in favor of a nonspecific and unsweetened mint.  It's a relatively short-lived fragrance that can be completely attributed to the very nature of the note.  I've used the splash twice, now, and each time just as the fragrance fades I pick up on a peculiar but faint sense of thawing iced aluminum.

This Crown King base was truly a surprise to me.  I have Black Bot en route as well as another CK soap in my cart while I await the release of Magi in the same base.

[120inna55]

[120inna55]

Barrister and Mann - Promises
Wolf Whiskers | Raptor | Black Wolf   
Radio 1912 | Gem PTFE

Complexity is almost synonymous with Barrister and Mann fragrances, but Promises is deceptively complex.  The fragrance is loaded with notes that could easily become weighty, but instead, this is what I categorize as light.  Yet it easily remains present for at least six hours.  I probably confused the matter by using the splash first without the reference of the soap.  In my experience, in most cases, paired soaps are simply a muted, less complex representation of the envisioned fragrance. I shave every other day, and on non-shave days, I often apply an aftershave on my head following my shower.  Doing this with Promises resulted in experiencing a very pleasant fragrance for a good portion of my day, but giving me expectations from the soap that were quite different---not just muted.  The splash opened with surprising honeyed bourbon-esqe note.  It’s surprising because Barrister and Mann refused to release a paired splash for the now discontinued “Fireside” citing the lingering fragrance of cognac would not be well received.  I would be fine with it, but I see the point.  That being their stance, bourbon was the last thing I expected from the Promises splash.  However, just as I was trying to explain it away, the note became less familiar.  I suspect the combination of the denatured alcohol and whatever this peculiar note was yielded only a fleeting resemblance to honeyed bourbon and thus destabilized as the alcohol burned off.  This is good because while I’m a fan of honey and bourbon, I’m not particularly a fan of honeyed bourbon.  You already know my layperson’s version of a review are often meandering, describing the fragrance as I experience it, but ultimately having a point.  Unfortunately, this one may not, because after having used this splash twice, I simply can’t succinctly define the notes.  Instead, Promises, following the initial fleeting boozy stage, begins warm and festive. Certainly non-alcoholic Winter beverages come to mind---suggestive of, but not definitively nog, wassail, and spiced tea. I do not detect cinnamon, although given the accomplices, it was expected, and my mind kept trying to insert it in much the same fashion I insert imaginary clove into bay rum fragrances that are noted to be devoid of said oil.  This warm festive beverage stage is the longer plateau before dropping off the sweeter honey notes in favor of the bitter citrus and finally resin.  It never descends into a dark fragrance, but rather a colder one.  With regard to the splash, it’s in the company of B&M’s “First Snow” and even “Fireside” (if it had a splash) without sharing much more than their evocation of memories and feelings.

I like to use complex products without having the ad copy fresh in my mind.  If I had recalled the term “rubbery” from B&M’s blurb, it would have ruined what happened next.  As I lathered the Promises soap, I anticipated at least a brief opening of something similar to Fireside’s cognac, but instead, I was met with a very pleasant surprise.  G.I. Joe and Star Wars action figures (NOT dolls) of my youth, and to an extent the glossy comic book covers and trade paperback collections all flooded my memory with this distinct opening note.  Thankfully, it sustains for a fair portion of the shave before acquiescing to the warmer, spicy notes with a slightly sweet and bitter finish.

Promises simply must be paired to be fully realized.  I did it backwards, but ultimately I understand it.  The soap represents the holidays from my childhood perspective without being novel, while the splash is more adult without being dull.  The transition from one to the other, while holding onto common elements is beautifully done.

In reviewing the description on Barrister and Mann’s site, apparently the saffron is the culprit for what is described as a “strange, rubbery, industrial character” intended to evoke the feeling of “being out on the trail with idling sleds…”  Personally, I’ve never ridden a sled.  In fact, where I grew up, in the off chance we had enough accumulation, the vehicle of choice was either a galvanized steel trash can lid or a rusty till blade disc---neither of which hold a candle to the joy of opening those action figures and comics.

[120inna55]

Crown King - Black Bot
RazoRock 400 | Noir Plissoft
Radio 1912 | Gem PTFE
Black Belt Cologne (Leeming Pfizer,1968)