I obtained a tub of Permafrost from another B&B member, prompted only by my morbid curiosity in the "ultimate mentholated experience." I was, however, skeptical until the day I tried it. Now, I know what cold is!
The only mentholated shave products I have ever used are Proraso, both the cream and ASB. As far as coolness goes, this stuff really kicks Proraso out of the ring. From the second I put it on my face, I could feel it going to work. The feeling only got more intense with each pass. By the time I finished my third lather, I was sure that my skin was going to start chipping away. That said, I'm not quite sure how I feel about the freezing sensation...it wasn't altogether unpleasant, just different.
As far as the shave itself goes, I have very few complaints. I feel like the Permafrost lather provided a good, slick cushion and my razor didn't really drag at all. However, whereas some soaps will leave a little bit of "film" that enables you to do some light touchups without re-lathering, this is not the case with Permafrost. When the lather is gone, the lubrication is gone. Not a big deal, you just have to re-lather in the spots that you want to touch up.
My biggest complaint about the shave is related to the level of menthol in this soap. It cools your skin almost to the point of numbing it, which makes it a bit difficult to receive the usual feedback that your face will give you in the process of shaving. There were points where I couldn't really tell how hard I was pressing down, and I'm lucky to have made it out without drawing some blood.
The final cold water rinse was really the peak of the Permafrost experience. It literally feels like you're dunking your head in iced water. Again, not altogether unpleasant, just different.
Irritation was little to none on this shave, and my face feels pretty wonderful now that a couple of hours have passed. The mentholated tingly sensation lasted for a good half hour after I was done.
Price: Tryphon soaps are not terribly expensive, but they're not the cheapest in the ring either. I gave this soap an 8 for price because, for the cost, you are getting a good deal of soap that will last a fairly long time.
Quality: I have no beefs with Permafrost as far as quality is concerned.
Scent: This soap smells like menthol, but the scent does not linger for long. If you like menthol, you will like the scent. If you don't, you will probably be miserable (and cold).
Lather: As the review states, the lather from Permafrost is really top notch. However, as also stated, when its gone, its gone. If you want to touch up certain spots, you will need to re-lather those spots.
Efficacy: What can I say, it gets the job done. As well, the goal of the menthol is to freeze your face...it does this as well, and with great efficacy.
Moisturizing: I found this soap to be really good in this department. I live in the midwest, and we are currently experiencing one of the worst winters in recent history...over the past week or so, since I started on the Permafrost, my face has felt great!
Bottom line: For those who like mentholated products, this is a great soap at a fairly reasonable price.
The only mentholated shave products I have ever used are Proraso, both the cream and ASB. As far as coolness goes, this stuff really kicks Proraso out of the ring. From the second I put it on my face, I could feel it going to work. The feeling only got more intense with each pass. By the time I finished my third lather, I was sure that my skin was going to start chipping away. That said, I'm not quite sure how I feel about the freezing sensation...it wasn't altogether unpleasant, just different.
As far as the shave itself goes, I have very few complaints. I feel like the Permafrost lather provided a good, slick cushion and my razor didn't really drag at all. However, whereas some soaps will leave a little bit of "film" that enables you to do some light touchups without re-lathering, this is not the case with Permafrost. When the lather is gone, the lubrication is gone. Not a big deal, you just have to re-lather in the spots that you want to touch up.
My biggest complaint about the shave is related to the level of menthol in this soap. It cools your skin almost to the point of numbing it, which makes it a bit difficult to receive the usual feedback that your face will give you in the process of shaving. There were points where I couldn't really tell how hard I was pressing down, and I'm lucky to have made it out without drawing some blood.
The final cold water rinse was really the peak of the Permafrost experience. It literally feels like you're dunking your head in iced water. Again, not altogether unpleasant, just different.
Irritation was little to none on this shave, and my face feels pretty wonderful now that a couple of hours have passed. The mentholated tingly sensation lasted for a good half hour after I was done.
Price: Tryphon soaps are not terribly expensive, but they're not the cheapest in the ring either. I gave this soap an 8 for price because, for the cost, you are getting a good deal of soap that will last a fairly long time.
Quality: I have no beefs with Permafrost as far as quality is concerned.
Scent: This soap smells like menthol, but the scent does not linger for long. If you like menthol, you will like the scent. If you don't, you will probably be miserable (and cold).
Lather: As the review states, the lather from Permafrost is really top notch. However, as also stated, when its gone, its gone. If you want to touch up certain spots, you will need to re-lather those spots.
Efficacy: What can I say, it gets the job done. As well, the goal of the menthol is to freeze your face...it does this as well, and with great efficacy.
Moisturizing: I found this soap to be really good in this department. I live in the midwest, and we are currently experiencing one of the worst winters in recent history...over the past week or so, since I started on the Permafrost, my face has felt great!
Bottom line: For those who like mentholated products, this is a great soap at a fairly reasonable price.
