Item Description
This morning was my first experience with this cream, courtesy of Scotto. My impression of it leaves me... longing...
Right out of the tube the first thing I noticed is this cream is fairly thin. It reminds me more of a hand lotion then a shaving cream. It turns out, this is because it's apparently intended to be used brushless, or at least a lot of places that carry it state that it's easier then the old "soap and brush" routine while still giving a great shave. The scent in this state is "good" but not overpowering.
Before we go on, let's talk about the scent for a moment. The entire time I was using this cream, I kept having the same thought occur... Running through my mind over and over. I'd get a good whiff of the scent and think to myself, "Where have I smelled that before???" My wife walked into the bathroom and said, "Mmmmmmm, that smells really good. It smells familer to me." Arriving at work, one of my co-workers smelled it (I also used the AS splash), commented on how good it smelled, then immediately stated the same thing, "I've smelled that somewhere before, but I can't place it." So that seems to be the theme of this scent. "It's familier, yet mysterious"
A lot of creams that are intended to be brushless can often times be whipped up into a lather. This cream is no different though I must admit it doesn't whip up very well. The lather it generates is very light and airy. You won't get any dense thick lather out of this stuff no matter what you do. The lather you can generate also seems to be very prone to getting "cold" much quicker then any other I've used in the past (perhaps this is because it's so light and airy).
It's lubricity when in lather form is pretty good WHEN you get the right water/cream mix, however, getting that right mix seems to be VERY difficult with this cream. Mostly because, you initially keep trying to get it with too little water because your expecting it to be thick and rich. Once you get enough water in it it works reasonably well, though because of it being so light and airy, it tends to "foam down" pretty quickly as well.
The scent while whipping this cream is nothing less then intoxicating. It's one of those scents that just seems to evoke a flood of emotion. You'll start thinking back to great moments in your life, the "good old days", etc. Really hard to explain since the scent doesn't seem to have anything to do with such things. The bottom line is though, EVERYONE I have asked about it has told me the same thing. "It smells great!"
While the cream itself did a great job of lubing my face, the shave I got from it was sub par. Partially because it was cold before I really ever lathered the first time. Passes made after the first didn't seem to have as much glide either.
Using the cream straight from the container provides a different experience alltogether. VERY slick, VERY moisturizing. It "feels good" going on AND shaving off.
As you can see, as an everyday cream it has it's ups and downs.
The bottom line is this. Because of it's great scent this will DEFINITELY find it's way into my cabinet. Most likely it won't be used as a regular cream though. Rather I will likely use it for those moments when I'm running a bit late and don't have time to soak my brush/bowl, whip up a good lather, etc. With the excellent protection it provides I'll be able to use the razor much quicker then normal and not have a fear of losing a nose, lip, ear, etc...
It will also come in handy for traveling as I'll be able to get a terrific pampering shave without the use of my bowl and brush.
Right out of the tube the first thing I noticed is this cream is fairly thin. It reminds me more of a hand lotion then a shaving cream. It turns out, this is because it's apparently intended to be used brushless, or at least a lot of places that carry it state that it's easier then the old "soap and brush" routine while still giving a great shave. The scent in this state is "good" but not overpowering.
Before we go on, let's talk about the scent for a moment. The entire time I was using this cream, I kept having the same thought occur... Running through my mind over and over. I'd get a good whiff of the scent and think to myself, "Where have I smelled that before???" My wife walked into the bathroom and said, "Mmmmmmm, that smells really good. It smells familer to me." Arriving at work, one of my co-workers smelled it (I also used the AS splash), commented on how good it smelled, then immediately stated the same thing, "I've smelled that somewhere before, but I can't place it." So that seems to be the theme of this scent. "It's familier, yet mysterious"
A lot of creams that are intended to be brushless can often times be whipped up into a lather. This cream is no different though I must admit it doesn't whip up very well. The lather it generates is very light and airy. You won't get any dense thick lather out of this stuff no matter what you do. The lather you can generate also seems to be very prone to getting "cold" much quicker then any other I've used in the past (perhaps this is because it's so light and airy).
It's lubricity when in lather form is pretty good WHEN you get the right water/cream mix, however, getting that right mix seems to be VERY difficult with this cream. Mostly because, you initially keep trying to get it with too little water because your expecting it to be thick and rich. Once you get enough water in it it works reasonably well, though because of it being so light and airy, it tends to "foam down" pretty quickly as well.
The scent while whipping this cream is nothing less then intoxicating. It's one of those scents that just seems to evoke a flood of emotion. You'll start thinking back to great moments in your life, the "good old days", etc. Really hard to explain since the scent doesn't seem to have anything to do with such things. The bottom line is though, EVERYONE I have asked about it has told me the same thing. "It smells great!"
While the cream itself did a great job of lubing my face, the shave I got from it was sub par. Partially because it was cold before I really ever lathered the first time. Passes made after the first didn't seem to have as much glide either.
Using the cream straight from the container provides a different experience alltogether. VERY slick, VERY moisturizing. It "feels good" going on AND shaving off.
As you can see, as an everyday cream it has it's ups and downs.
The bottom line is this. Because of it's great scent this will DEFINITELY find it's way into my cabinet. Most likely it won't be used as a regular cream though. Rather I will likely use it for those moments when I'm running a bit late and don't have time to soak my brush/bowl, whip up a good lather, etc. With the excellent protection it provides I'll be able to use the razor much quicker then normal and not have a fear of losing a nose, lip, ear, etc...
It will also come in handy for traveling as I'll be able to get a terrific pampering shave without the use of my bowl and brush.
