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First round samples:

1. Declaration Grooming - TSM Fougere (bison base)
2. Lisa's Natural Herbal Creations - Coconut Oud
3. Tallow + Steel - West Indies

All three were great soaps. Not one of them ran away with the prize. I found all to be a little different from one another, each excelling in a different area. Here are my thoughts on the attributes of each:

1. DG Bison - The best attribute of this soap was its ability to make a great lather quickly and easily. The scent was great and had goo strength when lathered. The area I feel this soap could be better is with residual slickness.

2. Lisa's - This is an excellent soap with superior slickness and residual slickness. It takes more work than DG to get a good lather, so it's not the soap I use when I am in a hurry. Also, I find I can go through a tub of Lisa's soap faster than any other soap I use. The scent of this was AMAZING, but I wish it was stronger when lathered.

3. T+S - Another top tier soap, I found the post shave superior to be this soap's best attribute. Also, the scent is extremely interesting. I instantly ruled out some T+S scents, but West Indies is one I would consider purchasing. It lathered more easily than Lisa's, but not as easily as DG.

An interesting side note, the day before I started this sample box, I shaved with Lisa's previous premium line of soap (Florida Freeze). This is one of my top soaps and I actually like it more than the current line of soaps. To me, it combined what I liked most about her current line of soap with the "pasty" lather of the DG bison formula. If I had to pick a winner, this would be it. Unfortunately, it is no longer available.

Today's shave was with one of my top three scents, Rose Rock Apothecary's Cypress Lime. I planned on grouping this in another three soap showdown, but I felt this deserved a post of its own. The scent is terrific. It's simple and clean and smells more "natural" than most of the other soaps in the box. I noticed it looked a little different, too. I had high hopes, but moderate expectations.

I knew it would be a winner from the first brush stroke. It went on thick and pasty, just how I like it. For a vegan soap, it took a lot of water, but I got it exactly where I wanted it. The scent strength was terrific while lathered. The soap was slick and the residual slickness was also terrific. I was blown away by the performance of this soap. Honestly, it reminded me a lot of Grooming Dept's vegan base.

The one area this soap fell a little short was post shave feel. That is not something I worry about too much. I have oily Mediterranean skin and I can always get a good post shave feel with a great post shave product (my favorite being WK Bare Naked balm).

I was pleasantly surprised how much I liked this soap. Unfortunately, the maker is not currently selling it. I am going to email Rose Rock and see if there are any plans to make more. I'd love to buy a tub of it.

Tomorrow is the last of my three favorite scents in the box, Razor Master Ines...

Razor Master Ines...

This was the last of my top 3 scents. This one has a vanilla/mint type of scent. As good as it smelled, I was hoping for better performance. It is a fairly hard soap. It wasn't hard to lather, but it was lighter and airier than what I prefer (I like thick, pasty lathers...like the Rock Rose from yesterday). It doesn't need much water, but it's not the slickest soap. I will say, the post shave was very good. It sort of reminds me of SV, though I like SV more. I probably won't end up buying this, though the scent is one of my favorites in the box. Though it's not for me, I'm sure other people would like it, especially if scent and post shave are most important.

I just palm lathered Sudsy Soapery Uplift. I had never tried their tallow base before. Seems slick as heck, which I like. I probably should have shaved with it this morning since there is a 24 hour flash sale going on right now. But, I think it will work for me, so mission accomplished Sudsy.

Great reports, keep em coming.

Today, I used Black Tie Razor Company's "An Affair." At first, I was going to use Casino Royale, then I changed my mind to Sir Henrys Sandalwood, and finally settled on an Affair. All three smelled good. The scent of An Affair reminds me a lot of Sudsy Soapery's Sandalwood and Citrus, which I really like.

I was going to cluster all my reviews, but I started posting individual reviews after the first one. I can cluster this one with the last two, Rose Rock Cypress Lime (RR) and Razor Master Ines (RM). In terms of hardness, Black Tie fell between the two, harder than RR and softer than RM. Where RR stood out as the type of lather I like most, and RM had a nice post shave feel, Black Tie stood out as the easiest to lather of the three. In fact it might have been the easiest lather of all I've tried in this box so far, competing with Declaration Grooming bison in that regard. This was quick and hassle free lathering.

The scent when lathered was nice. Not overpowering, but not too weak. I could pick up traces of the scent after washing my face.

Other than the ease with which it lathered, nothing jumped out at me as being either mind blowing or deficient. It was a really solid performing soap in all respects. I took a look at the website and noticed that Black Tie offers free US shipping on orders $15 and up. That makes buying a "test tub" a really great deal. If I was introducing someone to wet shaving, I might point them in this direction for a tub of soap that offers little fuss and nice results...and for a good price.

Like I said, I really like the scent of Sudsy's Sandalwood and Citrus. I love balms, but the Sudsy balm can be too much for me except in the winter. I was hoping Black Tie offered matching splashes. I would have definitely bought one to pair with my Sudsy Soap (which I don't use enough). No splashes, only balms...it would have to be another fall/winter product for me unless the balm was thin.

Today, I used Black Tie Razor Company's "An Affair." At first, I was going to use Casino Royale, then I changed my mind to Sir Henrys Sandalwood, and finally settled on an Affair. All three smelled good. The scent of An Affair reminds me a lot of Sudsy Soapery's Sandalwood and Citrus, which I really like.

I was going to cluster all my reviews, but I started posting individual reviews after the first one. I can cluster this one with the last two, Rose Rock Cypress Lime (RR) and Razor Master Ines (RM). In terms of hardness, Black Tie fell between the two, harder than RR and softer than RM. Where RR stood out as the type of lather I like most, and RM had a nice post shave feel, Black Tie stood out as the easiest to lather of the three. In fact it might have been the easiest lather of all I've tried in this box so far, competing with Declaration Grooming bison in that regard. This was quick and hassle free lathering.

The scent when lathered was nice. Not overpowering, but not too weak. I could pick up traces of the scent after washing my face.

Other than the ease with which it lathered, nothing jumped out at me as being either mind blowing or deficient. It was a really solid performing soap in all respects. I took a look at the website and noticed that Black Tie offers free US shipping on orders $15 and up. That makes buying a "test tub" a really great deal. If I was introducing someone to wet shaving, I might point them in this direction for a tub of soap that offers little fuss and nice results...and for a good price.

Like I said, I really like the scent of Sudsy's Sandalwood and Citrus. I love balms, but the Sudsy balm can be too much for me except in the winter. I was hoping Black Tie offered matching splashes. I would have definitely bought one to pair with my Sudsy Soap (which I don't use enough). No splashes, only balms...it would have to be another fall/winter product for me unless the balm was thin.

Splashes are on the way. Casino Royale and the Sandalwood are coming first. We are currently shipping samples with every order.


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Splashes are on the way. Casino Royale and the Sandalwood are coming first. We are currently shipping samples with every order.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Great...mark me down for an Affair splash when you get to it. Great scent

Splashes are on the way. Casino Royale and the Sandalwood are coming first. We are currently shipping samples with every order.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Great...mark me down for an Affair splash when you get to it. Great scent

Order anything and you’ll get a custom sample of An Affair splash. FREE.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Rose Rock Apothecary's Cypress Lime ...The one area this soap fell a little short was post shave feel. That is not something I worry about too much. I have oily Mediterranean skin and I can always get a good post shave feel with a great post shave product...

This matters in a review, I specifically look for "fell short" in post shave feel or neutral or even drying for the same reasons you stated. I expect a shave soap to shave well. Not to leave my skin feeling like I took a header in bucket of TakiLube... But my face is odd.

Other than the ease with which it lathered, nothing jumped out at me as being either mind blowing or deficient. It was a really solid performing soap in all respects. I took a look at the website and noticed that Black Tie offers free US shipping on orders $15 and up. That makes buying a "test tub" a really great deal. If I was introducing someone to wet shaving, I might point them in this direction for a tub of soap that offers little fuss and nice results...and for a good price.

Good to hear. Once I whittle inventory down this is the next acquisition.

Your reports are quite useful. Thank you for taking the time!