After all the stress surrounding my grandma's passing, I needed some "retail therapy". Yes, I know that's not an optimal coping mechanism; but here we are.
So since we had our first BVWSC shave with Abbate Y La Mantia soap, I was curious about the great soap quality and @[email protected] mentioned that they transitioned fully to hard soaps. Even more curious, I was able to find the first soap in a german webshop that started their shift towards hard soaps: Blue Tobacco, a scent that spoke to me as a former menthol cigarette smoker. Originally, I only wanted some extra items to get free shipping - and then this happened. Clearly I've got no self control...
THE GOODS:
- Abbate Y La Mantia Tobacco Blue (Blue Tobacco) shaving soap ๐ฎ๐น
- E&S Rasage Shaman shaving soap, plus 3 body soaps (Solstice , Barber and Azur) ๐จ๐ต
- HAGS Barberwood soap, witch hazel toner and beard oil ๐ฌ๐ท
- Los Jabones de Joserra Masala Connection shaving soap ๐ช๐ฆ
- Saponificio Varesino sample pack (ALL of their aftershave balms, one beard wash and balm respectively plus a "Pro Victis" skin repair cream) ๐ฎ๐น
- Meiรner Tremonia Dark Limes beard soap ๐ฉ๐ช
- Freebies: Proraso beard wash sample, some self-made thank you stuff and candy
Not going to talk about the body soaps and beard stuff, since this is a wetshaving instance. But I am really curious about the performance of all the shaving soaps! Blu Tobacco is really as I envisioned: a pack of (unlit!) menthol cigarettes on the beach. The aluminium tin is really nice. Shaman by E&S could be quite something for colder months, off the puck it's already dark. Barberwood is a take on a barbershop scent with lots of wood notes added, so a full set was a no-brainer. After my initial scepticism, barbershop scents have really grown on me in the last years. Finally, only from reading the notes on the label, I knew I had to get Masala Connection. It's kinda like someone had taken all of my favourite individual scent notes, threw them together in a fragrance oil and made a shaving soap out of it. Voilร ! Off the puck, it already smells divine. Never had anything by Los Jabones de Joserra before, but as I wanted to try as many european artisans as possible from different countries it made sense to me.
Even though I reside in Germany, I have to admit that I used more American wetshaving soaps than european ones. Unfortunately, artisans from "the old continent" tend to be overlooked. I'll try to put more of a spotlight on wetshaving software from the EU in my upcoming SOTDs... But needless to say, this concludes my wetshaving purchases for this year and the next year probably too. I can really recommend the seller AboutBodyCare though, very friendly thank you card, fast shipping and my package was even perfumed with E&S Solstice EdT.
00.00.2024 - Barberwood on the face
-> 2 pass face shave around the goatee. Two weepers in total, but a very comfortable shave regardless.
At the time of writing, there was no post in this thread. So it seems to be my duty to avoid a barren thread today!
The second use of Barberwood, this time on the face... but with better hydrated lather today! I'm still a bit rusty when it comes to face lathering, but it's getting better. Today's brush is possibly my favourite for the even spread of lather it can achieve, so that helped a lot.
This time the soap smelt a bit sweeter, similar to my other HAGS Creatures of the Night . Performance was way better though, the lather was very slick and also hydrated my skin well. The toner continues to impress on the face, as it really feels rich enough that I didn't feel the need for a balm. Since my skin is sensitive and dry in the jaw area, that's rare!
I now have an interesting barbershop scent to compare tomorrow's BVWSC soap against - really looking forward to tomorrow's shave!