Buying advice for people sensitive towards strong fragrance

[Fitkari]

Hi fellow wet shavers I'm new to buying soaps and sticks so I'm trying to buy few from US

Have added the Arjo,Speick and a vander hagen in cart
But after opening paa I'm puzzled as to which one to buy seeing the huge list of them and could only add a unscented cube in cart

As I'm sensitive towards strong smells so this made my task more difficult to buy

I prefer face lather over bowl and currently using only synthetic brush.

So how do you guys settle on buying when you are sensitive towards smell and don't want to settle with the unscented.

Thanks in advance

 

[Wgg2017]

One soap maker I'm aware of that actually lists the scent strength of each soap is Murphy and McNeil. They have at least a few soaps that are listed as light on scent strength. I've used a couple of their soaps in sample form and I would definitely put them in the lightly scented category.

As far as PAA soaps are concerned, the ones I've used aren't super strong on scent either but are a little more strongly scented than M&M. I would call them medium-light to medium for the most part.

I'm not sensitive to scent so I'm not much more help than that but I wish you luck in your search.

 

[Atlantic59]

Maybe try ordering some soap samples from a place like Maggard Razors in Michigan. That will save you a lot on shipping cost since they will all be combined in one shipment. Remember, you really don't need lots of different soaps, just a few different ones for variety's sake.

People can help you with recommendations, but there's no real substitute for trying them personally.

 

[BigJ]

You might consider Haslinger’s (all eight options have mild scents) or La Toja! Great performers!!

 

[Barbarian80]

So how do you guys settle on buying when you are sensitive towards smell and don't want to settle with the unscented.

First i think you need to have an idea of the types of scents you like (citrus, gourmand, fragrance based, etc). Blindly buying artisan soaps can be tricky because many can be polarizing scents. You might want to look at Stirling before you deep dive into other artisans because i find his scents more straightforward. Maggards also has samples of many soaps you can try before you commit. Or, make a blind purchase and take your chances. There are worse things you can blow 20 bucks on.

 

[Schnitzel52]

Try Captain’s Choice.
Generally mild scents and a rich durable lather.

 

[RenoRichard]

There are many basic soapy mild scent options- Haslinger’s as @BigJ noted, Mitchell's Wool Fat, LEA, Cella Extra Extra Bio, that perform well and come to mind. @Fitkari, VDH you mentioned, and there's always Williams, too.

 

[abershaver]

I have experimented over 12 years as I have skin that gets badly irritated by certain fragrances. But IF lanolin is not something that irritates you, that might be worth exploring. It works well for me. My thoughts below:

What didn’t work? I got irritation from both types of Cella. Many people said extra bio would be good but I got a fairly strong burn. La Toja REALLY irritated my skin - which was sad as I loved the lather. Arko stick gave me a burn. TOBS Lemon and Lime, standard Nivea Cream, and Creightons Ultra Rich Cream all gave me bad irritation after a couple of uses and were fairly strongly scented. These were all gifted to my dad who I swear has bulletproof skin.

What was acceptable? Euro Palmolive (green tube, no menthol), Body Shop Maca Root, Erasmic Tallow stick, TOBS Mr Taylor, Nivea Sensitive Shave Cream. Medium scents for me - mild tingling at times.

What worked? MWF, Lea stick (the latest version) and Wilkinson Sword stick give me great shaves. Zero irritation. They are all lightly scented - I suspect this is why. For creams, Proraso Blue and modern Erasmic are excellent for me (again both have really mild scents). These are all in my rotation. I plan to try Arko Sensitive cream and Haslinger lanolin soap next as many say these are truly great for those with fragrance allergies.

As you will note I am mostly focused on the budget side of things but if I wanted to spend more the Executive Shaving Fragrance Free cream looks excellent.

 

[StraightRazor97]

In regards to sensitive smell I would try Proraso white. It has an extremely light scent to the point that you almost can't smell it and it also comes in a cream form so that you can face lather like you mentioned.

 

[MyOldKentuckyHome]

I am sensitive to strong smells (give me migraines).

I started out with unscented soaps and worked my way through a bunch.

So far these are the ones I've found that (to me) smell really good but aren't overpowering and have never given me any problems:

Cella	Crema Da Barba
Central Texas Soaps	Mr. Pepper - probably the strongest on the list but no headaches
Haslinger	Honig (Honey)
Haslinger	Schafmilch Rasierseife (Sheep Milk) - just a clean soapy smell
Mitchell's	Wool Fat - just a clean soapy smell
Shannon's Soaps	Pineapple Banana - also slightly stronger but no headaches
Sir Hare	Barbershop
Taylor of Old Bond St	Grapefruit - also slightly stronger but no headaches
William's	Mug Shaving Soap
WSP Rustic	Barbershop

 

[Tirvine]

I have migraines triggered by several things including cloying smells. I use MdC Fougere soap and 4711 cologne and am fine with both. Neither has a lingering quality, a plus to me.

 

[gwsmallwood]

Mitchell's Wool Fat and Haslinger sound like they might work for you.

 

[Lee93]

Arko has a very strong scent, and I don't like it.
Taylor of Old Bond Street Jermyn Street has a delicate scent.
Haslinger, Lea stick and La Toja stick and Wilkinson Sword stick are perfect, light fragrance.
Vitos smells like marzipan but if you leave it open for a few days the scent diminishes.

 

[drummer_boy]

Speick
Haslinger (Schafmilch and Sage)
Palmolive

 

[Squirrel]

Hi,

Van Der Hagen makes an uncented in the Luxury line. Decent glycerine type soap. Myself I think Williams and Arko smell like soap and I don’t consider them strong scents at all.

Let us know what you finally decide on.

 

[Chef455]

Phoenix Artisan Accouterments I would recommend CaD. Whilst you made no requests for aftershave I'll still throw Lucky Tiger out there. Just cuz it feels good and makes people happy.

 

[SydneyShaver]

Hi fellow wet shavers I'm new to buying soaps and sticks so I'm trying to buy few from US

Have added the Arjo,Speick and a vander hagen in cart
But after opening paa I'm puzzled as to which one to buy seeing the huge list of them and could only add a unscented cube in cart

As I'm sensitive towards strong smells so this made my task more difficult to buy

I prefer face lather over bowl and currently using only synthetic brush.

So how do you guys settle on buying when you are sensitive towards smell and don't want to settle with the unscented.

Thanks in advance

You my friend should definitely consider anything Aloe Vera scented or maybe floral scents as they are present but not long lasting and unless you are allergic shouldn't irritate. Avoid Wood scents and Almond scents, these seem to cause the most irritation among people. Proraso white is supposed to be for sensitive skin but I'm pretty sure it has menthol so Idk what they're thinking. Arko doesn't have a very strong scent in my opinion but it is polarising. DRH have great creams which aren't strongly scented at all comparative to others I've used but still pleasant and smellable. (is that a word?). I recommend the windsor scent. Artisan products will be on the higher end of scent strength as scent is where a lot of, if not all of the money goes.

 

[Fukushima Daiichi]

I'm sorry for your predicament. I would stay away from artisan soaps that mimic cologne fragrances and stick to more natural scents like lime or eucalyptus mint for example.

Stirling spice gave me a burning sensation when brand new. As the scent of the soap has mellowed down I no longer get that burning sensation. So letting the soap air out and lose that strong fragrance may work for you.

Good luck

 

[jdp93]

DR Harris soaps are not strongly scented IMO.
Same with Martin de Candre.

 

[Jayboz]

I think the only way is try, unfortunately. I have found that even some unscented soaps dont agree with me, and lately, even lightly scented ones that were previously ok. So no more scented soaps for me. The best unscented for me are any of Stirlings unscented offererings and TOBS Organic.