The Art of Shaving Lemon Pre-Shave Oil

I couldn't imagine a better pre-shave oil than this one, but straight grapeseed oil is pretty good. There is supposed to be additives that open pores, but I really didn't notice them. Slight smell that's not unpleasant, and disappears after shaving.

Forget all the over priced high end shave oils.Coconut oil is WAY better than any of this over hyped junk.Just try it.

I've read a number of mixed postings about Art of Shaving (AOS) products, including the Pre-Shave oils, but decided to try them myself because there's such a dearth of quality men's shaving products here locally. I tried rubbing the oil on my skin in the store using the provided tester and it seemed pretty nice, so I decided to buy one for further testing at home.

Once I began my regular shaving routine and began to spread the AOS Lemon Pre-Shave on my face, I immediately noticed that the AOS oil didn't respond like my usual grapeseed oil treatment. The AOS was much thicker, much stickier, much more resistant to water. End result? I'm sitting here with razor burn, something I never get when using plain food-grade grapeseed oil.

Price: At $22 for 2 fl.oz, it's a king's ransom! As a comparative example, the grapeseed oil I normally use is $4.79 for 16 fl. oz.

Quality: The product appears to be top-shelf. The oil is consistent throughout, has nice spreading qualities and a wonderful lemon aroma. It's just not for me.

Performance: On my face - coarse pores, very oily skin, whiskers like tree trunks - the performance of AOS Lemon Pre-Shave oil is marginal at best. It *is* better for me than plain lather, but less so by a long margin compared to grapeseed oil.

Usefulness: Usefulness to me is quite low. Even though the scent is heavenly, I won't be buying it again.

Durability: The bottle it comes in is really robust and looks able to tolerate falls to our bathroom linoleum without breaking. Didn't actually try that of course, but the glass is *very* thick. Don't know how the oil would hold up on the shelf for a long period.

Packaging: Top-shelf; the box is nicely constructed and has a secure corrugated liner that the bottle is placed inside for shipment. The bottle itself is a little tank with a really nice lip and secure top. Excellent presentation.

Ingredients: The list on the side of the box is as follows:

• Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil
• Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil
• Natural Aroma