What Are Your Soap Buying Habits?

Great answers, did you learn something about your buying habits from answering those question?

Yup. I learned that I'm not driven by an addiction or a disorder. Right now I'm simply curious about shaving soap, and I like to learn all about it. I suspect at that some point this curiosity will wane, just as my former passions for Indian food, typefaces, and hiking boots came and went. None of these temporary obsessions has done me any harm. In fact, they've enriched my life over time. I have to admit, though, that when I was wrapped up in them, both my wife and I started to question my good judgment.  

Great answers, did you learn something about your buying habits from answering those question?

Yup. I learned that I'm not driven by an addiction or a disorder. Right now I'm simply curious about shaving soap, and I like to learn all about it. I suspect at that some point this curiosity will wane, just as my former passions for Indian food, typefaces, and hiking boots came and went. None of these temporary obsessions has done me any harm. In fact, they've enriched my life over time. I have to admit, though, that when I was wrapped up in them, both my wife and I started to question my good judgment.  

When you say typefaces do you mean typefaces such as Helvetica, Courier, Garth, Times New Roman etc?

Great questions, Tidepool!

Q. Do you purchase soaps as backups so you will always have them?  
A. No. I'm using the soaps I have so slowly that I will most likely always have them. No need for backups.

Q. Are you interested in acquiring all the soaps offered by a single manufacturer?  
A. Yes, but only one soap maker, Le Père Lucien, has got its hooks in me that deep. I'm attracted by LPL's scents. They're usually simple and yet they trigger something nostalgic in me. Maybe it's that great smelling wet cedar note, which reminds me of the shake shingles that clad the homes I grew up in.

Q. If you feel you have more than enough soaps, what will make you purchase more?  
A. Curiosity. Lately I went on a bay rum binge. I bought five soaps and as many aftershaves because I wanted to learn as much as I could about bay rum. Since we can't smell through the internet, and verbal scent descriptions often miss the mark, we've got to get some real soap in our hands before we understand what a fragrance is all about.

Q. What do you rely on, manufacturer's hype, reviews, suggestions from acquaintances, etc?  
A. Online reviews are usually the most helpful, but manufacturers' note lists are also useful.

Q. Other criteria?
A. Sometimes I want to try a medley of soaps from a certain country or region. I'll order a handful of French soaps, for instance, or Italian soaps, or English soaps, to discover what passes for good lather in those parts of the world. To hold my interest, wet shaving has to be more than just scraping hair from my face. For me much of the pleasure of this hobby comes from collecting useful artifacts from around the globe.

Bouki,

Since you've done the research, I have to ask...

You said you went on a Bayrum spree of sorts... Did you come across Ogallala and how did it compare, scentwise, to others?

Theirs is among 2 or 3 (at most) I've ever smelled. Love their spicy soap scents, but don't know if it's typical BR or if it's a completely different take.

I'm kind of timid to try any others, as the only other I remember the smell of is Men's Soap Company and it was an almost pure (light) bayleaf scent. Not even close to Ogallala, imo. Not my cup of tea, either.

Thanks.

Great questions, Tidepool!

Q. Do you purchase soaps as backups so you will always have them?  
A. No. I'm using the soaps I have so slowly that I will most likely always have them. No need for backups.

Q. Are you interested in acquiring all the soaps offered by a single manufacturer?  
A. Yes, but only one soap maker, Le Père Lucien, has got its hooks in me that deep. I'm attracted by LPL's scents. They're usually simple and yet they trigger something nostalgic in me. Maybe it's that great smelling wet cedar note, which reminds me of the shake shingles that clad the homes I grew up in.

Q. If you feel you have more than enough soaps, what will make you purchase more?  
A. Curiosity. Lately I went on a bay rum binge. I bought five soaps and as many aftershaves because I wanted to learn as much as I could about bay rum. Since we can't smell through the internet, and verbal scent descriptions often miss the mark, we've got to get some real soap in our hands before we understand what a fragrance is all about.

Q. What do you rely on, manufacturer's hype, reviews, suggestions from acquaintances, etc?  
A. Online reviews are usually the most helpful, but manufacturers' note lists are also useful.

Q. Other criteria?
A. Sometimes I want to try a medley of soaps from a certain country or region. I'll order a handful of French soaps, for instance, or Italian soaps, or English soaps, to discover what passes for good lather in those parts of the world. To hold my interest, wet shaving has to be more than just scraping hair from my face. For me much of the pleasure of this hobby comes from collecting useful artifacts from around the globe.

Bouki,

Since you've done the research, I have to ask...

You said you went on a Bayrum spree of sorts... Did you come across Ogallala and how did it compare, scentwise, to others?

Theirs is among 2 or 3 (at most) I've ever smelled. Love their spicy soap scents, but don't know if it's typical BR or if it's a completely different take.

I'm kind of timid to try any others, as the only other I remember the smell of is Men's Soap Company and it was an almost pure (light) bayleaf scent. Not even close to Ogallala, imo. Not my cup of tea, either.

Thanks.

I believe you sent this to me in error. You should have sent it to Bouki

Great questions, Tidepool!

Q. Do you purchase soaps as backups so you will always have them?  
A. No. I'm using the soaps I have so slowly that I will most likely always have them. No need for backups.

Q. Are you interested in acquiring all the soaps offered by a single manufacturer?  
A. Yes, but only one soap maker, Le Père Lucien, has got its hooks in me that deep. I'm attracted by LPL's scents. They're usually simple and yet they trigger something nostalgic in me. Maybe it's that great smelling wet cedar note, which reminds me of the shake shingles that clad the homes I grew up in.

Q. If you feel you have more than enough soaps, what will make you purchase more?  
A. Curiosity. Lately I went on a bay rum binge. I bought five soaps and as many aftershaves because I wanted to learn as much as I could about bay rum. Since we can't smell through the internet, and verbal scent descriptions often miss the mark, we've got to get some real soap in our hands before we understand what a fragrance is all about.

Q. What do you rely on, manufacturer's hype, reviews, suggestions from acquaintances, etc?  
A. Online reviews are usually the most helpful, but manufacturers' note lists are also useful.

Q. Other criteria?
A. Sometimes I want to try a medley of soaps from a certain country or region. I'll order a handful of French soaps, for instance, or Italian soaps, or English soaps, to discover what passes for good lather in those parts of the world. To hold my interest, wet shaving has to be more than just scraping hair from my face. For me much of the pleasure of this hobby comes from collecting useful artifacts from around the globe.

Bouki,

Since you've done the research, I have to ask...

You said you went on a Bayrum spree of sorts... Did you come across Ogallala and how did it compare, scentwise, to others?

Theirs is among 2 or 3 (at most) I've ever smelled. Love their spicy soap scents, but don't know if it's typical BR or if it's a completely different take.

I'm kind of timid to try any others, as the only other I remember the smell of is Men's Soap Company and it was an almost pure (light) bayleaf scent. Not even close to Ogallala, imo. Not my cup of tea, either.

Thanks.

I believe you sent this to me in error. You should have sent it to Bouki

Oops. Yeah, I meant to quote him message. Lol. Thanks.

---

Great questions, Tidepool!

Q. Do you purchase soaps as backups so you will always have them?  
A. No. I'm using the soaps I have so slowly that I will most likely always have them. No need for backups.

Q. Are you interested in acquiring all the soaps offered by a single manufacturer?  
A. Yes, but only one soap maker, Le Père Lucien, has got its hooks in me that deep. I'm attracted by LPL's scents. They're usually simple and yet they trigger something nostalgic in me. Maybe it's that great smelling wet cedar note, which reminds me of the shake shingles that clad the homes I grew up in.

Q. If you feel you have more than enough soaps, what will make you purchase more?  
A. Curiosity. Lately I went on a bay rum binge. I bought five soaps and as many aftershaves because I wanted to learn as much as I could about bay rum. Since we can't smell through the internet, and verbal scent descriptions often miss the mark, we've got to get some real soap in our hands before we understand what a fragrance is all about.

Q. What do you rely on, manufacturer's hype, reviews, suggestions from acquaintances, etc?  
A. Online reviews are usually the most helpful, but manufacturers' note lists are also useful.

Q. Other criteria?
A. Sometimes I want to try a medley of soaps from a certain country or region. I'll order a handful of French soaps, for instance, or Italian soaps, or English soaps, to discover what passes for good lather in those parts of the world. To hold my interest, wet shaving has to be more than just scraping hair from my face. For me much of the pleasure of this hobby comes from collecting useful artifacts from around the globe.

Hey Bouki, please see my message above (quoted the wrong post in error).

Bouki,

Since you've done the research, I have to ask...

You said you went on a Bayrum spree of sorts... Did you come across Ogallala and how did it compare, scentwise, to others?

mrdoug: Very few wet shaving suppliers will ship products containing alcohol to Hawaii, so unfortunately I haven't been able to try Ogallala yet. I'd also like to sample Captain's Choice and Kramperts, but they too are limited by postal restrictions. It's sort of ironic that every grocery store, drug store, and country shack between here and Honolulu is well stocked with rum, vodka, and other boozes, but I can't get a 4 ounce bottle of aftershave. Maybe when I visit the mainland this summer I'll arrange to have some bottles sent to me there.

In the meantime I'm enjoying bay rums by Barberry Coast and St Johns, who managed somehow to get their juice through the US mail. How they did this remains a mystery, but I suspect postal permits are available to large firms that deal mostly with fragrances. Truth be told, I've had very few problems with having colognes and perfumes shipped by air. It's just the aftershaves that seem to be afraid of flying.

When you say typefaces do you mean typefaces such as Helvetica, Courier, Garth, Times New Roman etc?

Yup! I used to be a printer. Collecting and learning about typefaces was an interesting, useful sideline. Are you curious about them, too?

Bouki,

Since you've done the research, I have to ask...

You said you went on a Bayrum spree of sorts... Did you come across Ogallala and how did it compare, scentwise, to others?

mrdoug: Very few wet shaving suppliers will ship products containing alcohol to Hawaii, so unfortunately I haven't been able to try Ogallala yet. I'd also like to sample Captain's Choice and Kramperts, but they too are limited by postal restrictions. It's sort of ironic that every grocery store, drug store, and country shack between here and Honolulu is well stocked with rum, vodka, and other boozes, but I can't get a 4 ounce bottle of aftershave. Maybe when I visit the mainland this summer I'll arrange to have some bottles sent to me there.

In the meantime I'm enjoying bay rums by Barberry Coast and St Johns, who managed somehow to get their juice through the US mail. How they did this remains a mystery, but I suspect postal permits are available to large firms that deal mostly with fragrances. Truth be told, I've had very few problems with having colognes and perfumes shipped by air. It's just the aftershaves that seem to be afraid of flying.

Ahh, gotcha. I don't use aftershave, just an alcohol, glycerin, and water (scentless) concoction so I hadn't even thought of that.

I don't know how their AS smells, but if it's like the Soap, you'll likely enjoy it. As I eluded to... The soap is not top tier in performance. I dont think it's horrible, whatsoever, but people will not be signing ballads about it.

If you ever get to test some, please do post a review. Also if you could share your thoughts on how it compares to other Bay products, I'd be excited to read it.

Thanks Bouki.

... ok, so I haven't yet posted an answer to Tidepool. My buying habits...

I really don't have anything solid, yet. I am still fairly new... I think I'm just over my first year in. I have spent so much of that first year trying to find my groove. I read about soaps, I look for further info on the scent (probably my #1 motivation), then I order what I think I'll like. Over time I've kind of developed a soft limit of around 20 soaps I'd like to have max. That's a ton, imo, still. I still buy stuff through the luck /unluck of ending up with scents I just didn't like (despite the research). Also, as I see a wave of people singing the praise of this or that brand, I will look at them and see what they have to offer (again, In my scent wheelhouse). Also, I've unofficially set a limit of not shopping for soaps over $20-ish USD. To me, a $30 soap just seems too expensive for what it is.

Somewhat related, I have settled into a soap brush rotation. I am also finding my razor groove, so to speak. Thus, I suspect, I will likely figure out a system for buying, using and renewing my collection of soaps.

When you say typefaces do you mean typefaces such as Helvetica, Courier, Garth, Times New Roman etc?

Yup! I used to be a printer. Collecting and learning about typefaces was an interesting, useful sideline. Are you curious about them, too?

Do you know what Compugraphic Corporation was?