Item Description
I've been interested in trying face lathering for a while and had heard many good things about Mama Bear's soaps around here, so I ordered this shave stick as my introduction to face lathering. I received the soap yesterday (December 8) and gave it a trial run this morning with a Mach 3 so that I could fairly evaluate the soap without worrying about my razor technique.
Price:
I paid $2.75 for the half-ounce sample stick; note that a full two-ounce stick is either $6.99 or $7.99 depending on the scent you choose. This seems to be fairly priced and mid-range compared to other brands of shave sticks I've seen on the internet from various vendors. In any case, the quality of goods received is well worth the price.
Quality:
Top-notch glycerin soap well-packed in a sturdy container, not much else to say here.
Scent:
Simply awesome, with the peppermint stronger and more readily apparent to my nose than the lavender. The scent exploded and filled the bathroom as soon as I started lathering, which was a very nice way to start the day. I'd prefer more emphasis on lavender than peppermint, but it's still a pleasing combination. My wife loved it as much as I did. Unfortunately, the scent faded all too quickly, which is pretty much the experience I've had with all of the soaps I've tried.
Lather:
The soap lathers quickly and easily, much more than any of the soaps I've tried to date. I may have rubbed too much soap on my face, but I easily produced enough slick, chilling lather for four or five passes. My razor glided over the lather with no pulling or tugging, just smooth easy shaving. The peppermint produced an even more intense cooling effect than Bigelow cream, effectively numbing my face for the entire shave; folks who don't like that "face freeze" effect may not like this particular soap. The lather rinsed from both my face and the razor cleanly and quickly.
Efficacy:
Whether it's because of face lathering technique in general or this soap in particular, I had no problems getting a BBS shave in just two passes. It felt like the whiskers were standing more upright than usual and stayed that way throughout the shave. As noted above, my razor glided through the lather smoothly and easily and seemed to yield an even closer shave than usual with my everyday technique (minimal skin stretching, only enough to present a flat surface to the razor when necessary).
Moisturizing:
I prefer glycerin soaps and this is probably the nicest glycerin soap I've used to date. The peppermint produced such an intense cooling effect that I couldn't really tell until after my post-shave rinse that the soap left my skin clean and smooth with no trace of dryness or tightness.
Conclusion:
Excellent shaving soap and a great introduction to face lathering. To borrow a phrase from Jerry Pournelle's reviews in Byte Magazine, "highly recommended."
EDIT: The discussion thread for this review is available here: http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?t=121471.
Price:
I paid $2.75 for the half-ounce sample stick; note that a full two-ounce stick is either $6.99 or $7.99 depending on the scent you choose. This seems to be fairly priced and mid-range compared to other brands of shave sticks I've seen on the internet from various vendors. In any case, the quality of goods received is well worth the price.
Quality:
Top-notch glycerin soap well-packed in a sturdy container, not much else to say here.
Scent:
Simply awesome, with the peppermint stronger and more readily apparent to my nose than the lavender. The scent exploded and filled the bathroom as soon as I started lathering, which was a very nice way to start the day. I'd prefer more emphasis on lavender than peppermint, but it's still a pleasing combination. My wife loved it as much as I did. Unfortunately, the scent faded all too quickly, which is pretty much the experience I've had with all of the soaps I've tried.
Lather:
The soap lathers quickly and easily, much more than any of the soaps I've tried to date. I may have rubbed too much soap on my face, but I easily produced enough slick, chilling lather for four or five passes. My razor glided over the lather with no pulling or tugging, just smooth easy shaving. The peppermint produced an even more intense cooling effect than Bigelow cream, effectively numbing my face for the entire shave; folks who don't like that "face freeze" effect may not like this particular soap. The lather rinsed from both my face and the razor cleanly and quickly.
Efficacy:
Whether it's because of face lathering technique in general or this soap in particular, I had no problems getting a BBS shave in just two passes. It felt like the whiskers were standing more upright than usual and stayed that way throughout the shave. As noted above, my razor glided through the lather smoothly and easily and seemed to yield an even closer shave than usual with my everyday technique (minimal skin stretching, only enough to present a flat surface to the razor when necessary).
Moisturizing:
I prefer glycerin soaps and this is probably the nicest glycerin soap I've used to date. The peppermint produced such an intense cooling effect that I couldn't really tell until after my post-shave rinse that the soap left my skin clean and smooth with no trace of dryness or tightness.
Conclusion:
Excellent shaving soap and a great introduction to face lathering. To borrow a phrase from Jerry Pournelle's reviews in Byte Magazine, "highly recommended."
EDIT: The discussion thread for this review is available here: http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?t=121471.
