I liked yesterday’s shave so much I decided to use another Van Yulay soap today: Aphrodite, with the fragrance of roses and chocolate (really quite a nice combination). Van Yulay varies their soap ingredients quite a bit from soap to soap, and today’s has these ingredients:
Stearic Acid, Aloe Vera, Coconut Fatty Acid, Castor, Glycerin, Potassium & Sodium Hydroxide ,Coconut-Babassu-Argan-Abyssinian-Oils, Cocoa Butter, Calendula, Extracts, Ground Rose Petals, Hersery’s Cocoa, Poly Quats, Sodium Lactate, Allantoin, Silica, Amino Liquid Silk, Rose Clay, Essential Oils and Fragrance.
The Rose Clay in this soap required quite a bit more water while loading the brush than yesterday’s soap (which had two different kinds of clay). One the brush was fully loaded, the lather was extremely nice in both fragrance and effectiveness.
The razor today is the original Rockwell Model T, and it did a very nice job, leaving my face smooth for the aftershave splash. Van Yulay aftershaves are witch-hazel based, and they have a good list of ingredients:
Aloe Vera, Witch Hazel, Abyssinian Seed-Emu-Red Castor-Evening Primrose-Rosehip Seed Oils, Comfrey, Calendula, Tepezcohuite, Oat, Marshmallow, Green Tea Extracts, Liquid Silk, and Fragrance
The ingredient “Marshmallow” is normally spelled “marsh mallow,” a species of mallow that grows in marshes and whose extract is often used in skin care. The confection marshmallow is so named because originally it was made from marsh mallows. More info.
I have not received word back on when Van Yulay’s aftershaves might again be available, and in fact their site was down for a while yesterday, but it’s up and running again now. I do like their shaving soaps, and I hope the aftershaves return soon. Since they are not alcohol-based, they can be shipped internationally with no problem.
The tea this morning is Murchie’s Ceylon Kenilworth: “a bright and oaky Orange Pekoe, with body and strength. The Kenilworth Estate is known for producing creamy teas with rich, full body.” (As I’ve mentioned before, “Pekoe” is pronounced “PECK-oh” and the “Orange” is not the color but refers to the Dutch royal house. More info.