"Artisan" Fragrances/EdTs - What's the Consensus?

http://perfumeconnoisseur.blogspot.com/2...au-de.html

Just for comparison sake, what is the % aromatic compounds in a typical medium strength soap and aftershave - not necessarily specific to your soaps.

I could be wrong, but I don't think any artisan would answer this question. I personally couldn't tell you. I'm sorry.

No problem at all  

PS I posted the above without reading the previous posts. I have read the previous posts and, well, my post doesnt add value so it should be removed for continuity / off-topic reasons.

Depends totally on my nose. I don't really distinguish between artisans and big houses. If it smells great to me--great enough to buy--I'm in. Speaking of great smells, I wish Soap Commander would turn Fortitude into an eau du cologne.

Fragrance is one reason that I really don't do most North American artisan soaps - they're too sweet, too wierd, too candle-shoppy, too strong. You would never confuse any of them with a Floris or Penhaligon's scent/product, at least I wouldn't. This is not saying that some are not pleasant.

Freddy, you have good taste in Dior Eau Sauvage - a friend of mine in France sent me some of the Eau Sauvage shaving cream which is not imported to North America I believe. Good stuff and next time I'm across the pond I'll grab a few tubes of it.

Cheers, Steve

+1 I'm also really tired of the "mixing stuff in the bathtub/basement" depiction of artisan soapmaker/cosmetic makers.

Must be nice to be so wealthy. We still mix ours in an old toilet. Outdoor type, of course. ;-)

+1  I'm also really tired of the "mixing stuff in the bathtub/basement" depiction of artisan soapmaker/cosmetic makers.

Must be nice to be so wealthy. We still mix ours in an old toilet. Outdoor type, of course. ;-)

Rod, isn’t that why it’s called Toilet Water?

All kidding aside, meeting the folks of Chatillon Lux, Stirling, Black Tie Razor, Sudsy Soapery and others puts a different perspective on things as to the scents they make and why they make them.  Steve56tated that he felt that many of the scents coming from artisans were too sweet for his taste and he preferred those from older houses like Dior, Penhaligon’s or Floris.  I can appreciate that to a degree but there are plenty of scents coming out of Dior and others that I find beyond dreadful.  Again, I use the example of Dior’s Sauvage (not Eau Sauvage) that I simply cannot get near.  Scent, for me, is too personal an aspect of eau de toilettes, or even shaving soaps, to say that the older houses are, across the board, better than artisans.  I mix and match all the time.  For example, a favorite combination of mine is ezlovan’s Gin & Tonic shaving soap and Penhaligon’s Juniper Sling, an artisan/traditional house combination.  Another one I really like, and admit it would be too sweet for a lot of folks, is Soap Commander’s Love (True Rose) and hawns’ still in testing stage Yuzu/Rose/Patchouli Eau de Toilette, which is not a pure rose scent.  That, of course, is an artisan/artisan combination.  I honestly don’t think there is any right or wrong here and there are certainly no joe (or jane) blows here.  That’s just insulting and misses the point completely, as far as I’m concerned.

Gentlemen et al,

We are all different, have different experiences and different backgrounds and just because we may be considered "artisans" by those in the shaving community doesn't mean that we all will be creating the same type of products or that our abilities in the fragrance area are poor! I have been in this industry since 1998 and opened my company in 2003. I started as a soapmaker then got into the shaving arena and began with shaving creams then with shaving soaps. One of my interests became the art of working with fragrance. I taught myself to create fragrances based on my soapmaking needs and my shaving product needs. I spent time online reviewing scent descriptions and observing fragrance online communities. In a short time I was hooked! I began writing formulas based on ingredients I had access to and ingredients I have worked with. I started to write formulations for my business but it also became quite a hobby for me! Hespéride and Fougere are two of the formulas I have written and became scents for soap, then shaving cream and now shaving soap. Every time I got an idea, I put it down on paper and my list of formulas grew and grew! I now have a file with.... 6,658 formulas in it! So, some of us have a keen interest in fragrance and others may not have that as one of our strong points. It is probably not a good idea to make assumptions about anyone who is an artisan as "pigeon-holing" any artisan is unfair to them and the rest of us. We don't need to be classified or characterized but just accepted for whom we are and what we create!

I have a couple of Artisan fragrances and I rather enjoy them, I think that Artisans can tap into their creativity and do something different than a large houses and as for cost, I believe that their costs must be much higher than buying by the metric ton, that being said price per ounce is less than any Creed, Tom Ford Private Blend, or Xerjoff, so they have a relative value.

So just to preface: I am making this thread out of pure curiosity. There is no malice intended at all even though my wording may suggest it.

So a year plus ago there were no wet shaving "artisan" fragrances on the market. It seems there was a big rush among them to transfer their most loved scents to fragrance form (and they all developed EdTs, which I guess people refer them as).

Since there has been a good amount of time since everything has been released, I'm wondering what people's thoughts on scent and performance quality is. To me, for upwards of $50+ (in some cases), I'd rather purchase a complimentary scent from an established company. Or if I want to support a small operation, I'd buy an interesting scent from a niche house, rather than joe blow mixing chemicals and oils in his basement. It seems to me, wet shaving vendors selling fragrances is akin to the level of an amateur Etsy seller.

It's hard to believe no malice was intended after reading those last two sentences.

I happen to like a few of PAA's aftershave/cologne scents. If he is mixing them in a bathtub/toilet then I hope he keeps doing it. I like other EDTs that cost a lot more also, but I guess I'm more low brow according to some post here.

Oh well..................

I happen to like a few of PAA's aftershave/cologne scents.  If he is mixing them in a bathtub/toilet then I hope he keeps doing it.  I like other EDTs that cost a lot more also, but I guess I'm more low brow according to some post here.  

Oh well..................

I'm with you on this one, Dan. If I like it then that's what counts.