What soap/cream did you use today?

Colonia di Agrumi t. (Mickey Lee Soapworks) citrus cologne

This is a bright, bergamot cologne. The Italian word agrumi means 'citruses', so it's right to expect a medley of tart scents in the mix. I may pick up lime, orange, and grapefruit. But mostly I smell lemony fresh bergamot. When it burns off I get some wood and maybe a dusting of herbs that keep it from sliding into lemon dish soap territory.

The lather's excellent, as are the residual slide and finish.

I used the WCS Gatsby No. 1 for the third time and I like it more and more each time I use it. I'd say I have one, maybe two more shaves left from this sample and I'll definitely be buying a tub of this stuff.

Fine L'Orange Noir Shave Soap

B&M Bay rum

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Crabtree & Evelyn Sweet Almond Oil shaving cream (vintage), great lather with the best almond fragrance of any software - ever.

Last of a sample of Black Tie Razor's Black Velvet. Vetiver forward from a vendor here on the site.

Citrus Musk v. (Wickham Soap Co. 1912) bright musk

I haven't worn musk for thirty years, so this tublet of Citrus Musk comes as something of a rediscovery. Musk is a very complex aroma and can smell different to each person who tries to describe it. Some noses pick up chocolate and fat, others sense powdery florals, while still others swear it reeks of urine, hay, and mucky barnyard fetor. In that respect musk has a lot in common with oud. No one can really decide what it's supposed to smell like.

Musk also has this in common with oud: very few people have actually smelled the real thing. It's very hard to come by. Genuine musk comes from an endangered species of Himalayan deer. A male animal is killed for his solitary musk sack filled with potent smelling grains. Trade in these musk grains is strictly controlled. Small fragrance artisans occasionally acquire some. They may feature this real musk in a limited edition perfume, but they are generally hesitant to talk about sources and suppliers.

The "musks" that most of us know are manufactured in aromachemical laboratories. Unfortunately, within the last decade many of these have been limited or even outlawed in perfumery. What we now smell in fragrances like Musc Ravageur, or Kiehl's Original Musk, or in the downy sweetness of fabric softeners is a "musk" that's probably a million miles away from the scent of deer's post-testicular gland. I'm OK with that. When it comes to a scent that I'm going to smear all over my face, I think I'll go for the artificial clean sort of musk. That's what we get with today's soap. It's dressed up with neroli and orange blossom and makes for a fragrant, mellow shave.

This is probably the nicest non-artisan Soap/Cream that I have used. The scent is a very nice soft scent, and the lather has just the lightest cooling sensation to it. Excellent performance in terms of slickness and residual slickness. The matching Balm is a wonderful compliment to this Soap and leaves my face feeling soft and hydrated without being greasy. It’s expensive, but this Soap is well worth it in my opinion. I would like to pick up some SMN in the future to compare to this Soaps performance. Wonderful, wonderful Soap this is.

I have both Adp & SMN and if you ask me I find ADP better in all departments.


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Mammoth Soaps v24 Pinky Swear

This soap carries the scent of cotton candy, along with a slightly smoky note in the background. I paired it with Chatillon Lux’s Bon Vivant splash, and felt that the match was truly a good one.

The performance of this version of Mammoth is superb. All of the other ones I’ve tried have been wonderful, as well. The progression in soap base versions has not necessarily been about overall improvements, it’s been more about emphasizing certain qualities over others. The final base ended up being v32, which will be made available to the public in a few weeks’ time.