I gave Fu Dao another go this morning and I'm still confounded by this scent. Maybe it's my pedestrian nose or maybe it's the fact that I only have a sample, but I have no clue as to what I'm smelling beyond the firecracker. I don't get any of the brighter notes out of this soap that it allegedly has. My brain doesn't want to spend that much time parsing scents while shaving. Thankfully Ocean Grove doesn't give me too much to think about ("Oooohhh, I smell like the ragosa rose bushes all over my house that's three blocks from the ocean!).
Monday's here already? That sneaky bastard. Time to caffeinate and slay dragons. Have a great day all!
福 (Fú Dào) is a little flatter smelling in the soap and the firecracker notes dominate. The complexity is easier to pick up in the aftershave and fragrance, though I wouldn't call any of the versions bright.
Razor: Raido Star 9/8, Near Wedge Barber's Notch (on loan)
Lather: House of Mammoth - Embrace
Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Embrace Aftershave Splash
Fragrance: House of Mammoth - Embrace EdP
The chance to try this massive chopper comes courtesy of j33p. He picked this beast up and sent it to me to hone. I gave it a jnat edge and it feels wonderful. Surprisingly easy to get light and consistent pressure. This blade moves with conviction. Very nice shave this morning.
I'm using this Gen 2 Guerilla on loan. I have a Gen 1 and the differences are interesting. On initial impression, the Gen 2 fixes two problems that the OG has; difficulty loading the blade, and efficiency. The Gen 2 is much easier to load, and gives me a closer shave albeit with more blade feel.
Also different is the overall finish. The newer version appears to be slightly darker, and it's possible that it was tumbled in order to improve the appearance. If only there was someone I could ask!
Both heads have machine marks all over the place, so if that's a deal breaker for you then give this razor a pass.
Another Maggards Meet Up sample today as I tried Through the Fire’s The Lake for the first time. As person who lives on a lake I can confirm that this scent is pretty lake friendly. It’s definitely aquatic, though on the whole a little too cologne-like for my tastes. Somethign I might take out for a night sitting out with friends by the water. The base is crazy soft, leaning into a cream or croap, I’d say. I hadn’t scooped something this soft in a bit and probably took a little too much but what a fantastic, thirsty lather. With a bit more dialing in I think it could be stellar.
I hadn’t used my Clog-Pruf in a long while as I had a bunch of new razors to try, including a 1912, but going back to it I’m reminded of why I love it. Aggressive and yet such an easy shave (once you’ve mastered it), with heaps and heaps of audible feedback. Got nice and close.
Same goes for the G5, which I always forget how wonderfully scritch it is.
Brush: Mammoth x Voigt & Cop Smash 28mm VC01 Super Badger
Razor: Charcoal Goods Level 2
Blade: Astra SP (11)
Lather: House of Mammoth - Kryptonite - Shaving Soap
Post Shave: Fine Accoutrements - L’Orange Noir - Aftershave
Fragrance: Chris Rusak - Timbre
Passes: WTG, XTG
Coffee: Colombia. Piendamó, Cauca - v: Tabi - p: Sterilization with ozonoated water and ultraviolet light, anaerobic yeast fermentation, controlled drying
Music: Wye Oak - Civilian
I forgot that I have a very limited window for mentholated soaps—hot enough to want the cooling, but not so hot that the air conditioning is on—so I should be using Kryptonite as much possible. Excellent Mammoth Monday shave.
Post Shave: English Leather - Timberland - Aftershave
Post Shave: Declaration Grooming - Unscented - Liniment
This shave last night was about five days growth. The power went out while I was lathering my face. I shaved my phone flashlight propped up reflecting off the mirror.
Brush: Munnin Woodworks w/AP Shave Co 24mm Titanium Synthetic
Razor: Blackland Razors Vector
Blade: Feather Artist Club ProGuard (5)
Lather: Gentleman's Nod - Musashi - Soap
Post Shave: Thayers - Lemon - Toner
Post Shave: Unilever - Brut - Aftershave
2 passes. Bowl lather. Excellent shave.
Thanks to @[email protected] for this generous sample of Musashi. I really like this scent. The jasmine tea, florals, and spice really come through. There's a calm comforting feeling to this fragrance.
As I thought, I was able to get a very nice shave from the Vector. It was comfortable, and almost as close as my shave with the WR4, but I find that I have to work at it a little more, and there's just no area for lather accumulation so attentiveness to what's happening at the edge gets interrupted a lot by rinsing accumulated lather from the razor.
Now, the Vector has an extremely clever design and the geometry between the handle and the blade's edge are unusual. I'm certain that if I used this razor more frequently I would adjust my shaving pattern so that rinsing occurred at convenient intervals, and I would hunt a little less for small adjustments to the edge angle. As it is, though, even with only two shaves, the WR4 just feels right to me. It provides a surprisingly close shave effortlessly.
This blade was one that I really liked but I hadn't used it in a while because I've been trying lots of other blades. I wasn't sure if I would still feel the same about it before today's shave. Well it turns out I still really like it. Smooth and Plenty sharp for me. It's also fortunate I still like them because I have loads of them left.
Pleased with this shave today. The ProPro is a great brush and has become my daily driver. It just lathers up so quickly and so well, make it easy on days I don’t want to wrestle the MOAR.
Thanks to /u/TheStallionPartThree for the smoosh. I didn’t smell much fragrance, but the soap was good. I’m not a fan of the Premium base. It makes an airy lather. I don’t own any tubs of the standard luxury base, but it’s decent. I do wish there was some secondary slickness. However, it is easy to use.
Brush: Declaration Grooming B9A+ Jefferson “Summer’s Gone”
Razor: Gillette Post-War Fat Handle Tech
Blade: 7am Hi Platinum Durablade (2)
Lather: Murphy and McNeil – Trinity
Post Shave: Stirling Soap Co. – Executive Man
Fragrance: Creed – Aventus
A few years ago, I was prepping for Lather Games and I bought a couple of Murphy & McNeil samples for “New To You” day. And then I never used them. They’ve just been sitting in my sample drawer for years staring at me. Well, “New To You” day is back (with some fancier labeling) and I’ve now officially tried M&M for the very first time.
Prep this morning was a 10-mile run followed by a dip in the pool to cool off and further cooling off in a cold shower with Stirling Glacial Lemon Chill bath soap. Then I scooped what I thought was a fair portion of Trinity into my scuttle and began lathering up. I think I may have under-scooped because I didn’t manage to get quite as much lather as I was expecting. Anyway, I got just enough (with a bit of brush squeezins) to manage 2 passes with the post-war Tech an 7am blade. Got a really good, close shave.
I didn’t look up the scent notes on Trinity before shaving, but if it’s not an Aventus dupe, I’ll eat my left running shoe. I picked my Executive Man balm and a bit of actual Aventus to finish up the shave. I may be sitting in this chair all day waiting for my legs to stop aching, but I’ll smell like a pineapple god while I do so.
Haslinger Calendula irritates my skin slightly, and is rather drying to the skin. It's also quite difficult to get it to the optimal level of hydration with a boar.