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Phoenix Artisan Solstice, a great favorite
I really like Phoenix Artisan’s Solstice shaving soap a lot. Partly it’s the fragrance (which certainly is why I also like Solstice aftershave), but more than the fragrance is the extremely good...
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The Monday Shave: Always with a slant, always good
Since I have resumed skipping the Sunday shave, Monday mornings always are pleasant: not only do I get to resume shaving, I have the pleasure of removing from my face a two-day stubble. This morning I...
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RazoRock shave: Keyhole brush, Zi’ Peppino, and Baby Smooth
The Keyhole synthetic brush is a little gem: a 22mm Plissoft synthetic knot (I prefer brushes that are 20mm or 22mm—24mm starts to feel big, and 26mm is way too large for me) and a comfortable and...
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Fine Marvel and Martin de Candre
The aluminum-handled synthetic is new and is a RazoRock brush: the RazoRock 400 (also available with the same shape handle in black, matte black, and butterscotch). It’s only $20 and is a very nice...
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Orange-label Doppelgänger
I couldn’t resist getting another of the CK6 shaving soaps, and this orange-label version has a fragrance profile modeled on Chaps: On the whole, I like this fragrance somewhat better than the Oxblood...
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Omega Pro 48 and Tcheon Fung Sing
I haven’t used my Pro 48 (10048) for a while, but I find I still like it and for me it works fine for face lathering. I loaded it well with Tcheon Fung Sing’s Tobacco Verde, and the Charcoal razor did...
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Phoenix Artisan shave, with KC6 and DOC
I had to get more of that KC6: very, very slick when I rinse after each pass and leaves my skin feeling very nice indeed. The Green Ray brush (from Phoenix Artisan as well) made a superb lather, and...
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LA Shaving Soap and Stirling Lemon Chill
LA Shaving Soap Company’s Vanilla/Eucalyptus/Mint has a wonderful fragrance, as special as the fragrance of Nancy Boy shaving cream but with a different palette, as it were. The lather, too, is...
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It’s never too early for dark chocolate
Phoenix Artisan got dark chocolate exactly right in this Valentine’s Day special soap from a while back. The lather this morning was exceptional, and credit must be given not only to the soap but to...
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A suitable shave for Hallowe’en: Organism 46-B
Organism 46-B: Organism 46-B was an enormous 33ft (10m) long, 14-tentacled squid-like creature which lived in Lake Vostok, a subglacial lake located under two miles of ice beneath Vostok Station in...
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Avocado day
This soap was, I think, a one-off, but a very nice soap it is, with avocado oil in the formula, of course. The Green Ray brush worked up a very nice lather, and my Maggard V3A head (here on a UFO...
View ArticleThe History of Shaving and Beards
Interesting article from The Old Farmer’s Almanac: Methods of shaving have changed significantly throughout history, and perceptions of facial hair like beards and mustaches have changed with them....
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Return to Barrister & Mann Reserve
The brush is the Phoenix Artisan Starcraft ($15), a 24mm synthetic whose knot (which is very nice) is just at the upper limit of knot size for me. I prefer brushes in the 20mm-22mm range. This one...
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Lavender Saturday
Chuck Falzone talked me into getting the Barrister & Mann Reserve Lavender shaving soap, and I’m glad he did. The Reserve shaving soaps I’ve tried (this one and the spice) have an odd and...
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Starting the week right with a great shave
I love starting the week with a great shave. Wholly Kaw’s Premium Shaving Soap produces a superb lather, and the fragrance of Monaco Royale is pleasing: Top notes: Lavender, Bergamot, Neroli,...
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Bay Rum Day
Meißner Tremonia’s Bay Rum does contain cloves, which seems to be an issue for some. For me, the soap is a natural (heh), and the lather, created this morning with the little Vie-Long brush (horsehair...
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Starcraft brush meets Vetiver de Haiti
Phoenix Artisan’s Starcraft synthetic brush has a 24mm large—for me, that’s large—but it does a good job and the lather fro Eufros Vetiver de Haiti was excellent. Three passes with the Fatip Testina...
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Cavendish in CK-6 formulation
I really like Phoenix Artisan’s new CK-6 formulation, and they are now releasing some old favorites in that formula. I bought Cavendish CK-6, Cavendish being an old favorite of mine, and the RazoRock...
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J.M. Fraser and Thayers Lemon
J.M. Fraser is a fine shaving cream, low-cost and effective, with a light lemon fragrance. With the Simpson Emperor 3 I made a good lather, and the extremely nice iKon stainless open-comb deliver a...
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Spice shave
Barrister & Mann’s Reserve Spice shaving soap has a great lather and a great fragrance, with the fragrance particularly attractive this morning. The lather was created with my Rod Neep brush, and...
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