I'm aware that this brush is highly regarded on here and what I'm about to say has been said thousands of times, but given the shave I've just had, I thought I had to post.
After hearing good things about it, and how well boar brushes go with Cella, I took the plunge and ordered myself a Semogue SOC (thanks to the people over in the Skincare subforum who recommended me this, apologies for not remembering exactly who you were). It came yesterday, and to get rid of any smell (not that there was a great deal) and to begin the break in process I did a practice lather with some TOBS Jermyn street because I love the smell of that stuff, and if I want my brush to smell like anything it would be that.
Today I decided to give the SOC it's first proper use, and matched it with Cella. I followed Marco's method (many thanks to Marco for this
) and heavily loaded a wet brush in the red tub and lathered directly on my face. First thing I was struck by was how good the brush felt on my face. From reading on here, I'd gathered that boars, particularly those that aren't broken in, can feel a bit scratchy. I experienced none of that. the SOC had a different feel to my existing badger (An EJ BB), but I much much preferred the feel of the SOC. It felt really dense and when using painting strokes, very silky. When using scrubbing motion, it felt firm and exfoliating, which I liked.
What was most impressive though, was the lather it produced. It wasn't massively thick, but looked less aerated than what I produce with Cella and a badger. Most importantly, it was incredibly slick. Once I feel I'm at a good point with the lather, I picked up my Merkur 34C loaded with a Crystal blade (Personna blues if I remember rightly?) and start shaving. I start to wonder what's going on, because I can't feel the blade, and half way through my first pass, I realise why: the lather is just so much slicker than anything else I've used. This is a 3rd use blade on 3 days of heavy growth and it's gone through it like a hot knife through butter. The lather was so slick and lubricating, I think if someone has been throwing knifes at my face, they may have just slid right off.
Once I get to the end of my shave, I rinse hot and cold, and apply some alum. I get a shock. Whenever I've shaved before I apply alum, and when it gets onto my Adams Apple it stings. Even with the great lather I've been getting from Proraso and my EJ BB lately, I still got a little bit of irritation there. Whatever I do, I can't seem to avoid irritation on and around it, and despite the great shave I was getting, I braced myself for the inevitability of some sting there. I apply the alum, and nothing. No sting at all. Not even a tingle.
I was amazed. My skin feels smooth, soft, moisturised and completely unirritated.
The only criticism I have of the brush is that it didn't quite make enough lather for 3 passes, but it's not even broken in yet, and it's my first time using a boar, so my water/product balance may have been off so I'm willing to forgive it that. Seeing as I was face lathering anyway, I just reloaded a bit, dipped my brush into the water and lathered again, getting the same slick stuff as I did on my first pass.
The best thing about this, is that from all I've seen and heard, boars keep getting better and better with use. I like my EJ BB, but with the shave the SOC has just helped me achieve, and the prospect of that getting even better, I don't think the EJ is going to see my face for quite a while.
After hearing good things about it, and how well boar brushes go with Cella, I took the plunge and ordered myself a Semogue SOC (thanks to the people over in the Skincare subforum who recommended me this, apologies for not remembering exactly who you were). It came yesterday, and to get rid of any smell (not that there was a great deal) and to begin the break in process I did a practice lather with some TOBS Jermyn street because I love the smell of that stuff, and if I want my brush to smell like anything it would be that.
Today I decided to give the SOC it's first proper use, and matched it with Cella. I followed Marco's method (many thanks to Marco for this
) and heavily loaded a wet brush in the red tub and lathered directly on my face. First thing I was struck by was how good the brush felt on my face. From reading on here, I'd gathered that boars, particularly those that aren't broken in, can feel a bit scratchy. I experienced none of that. the SOC had a different feel to my existing badger (An EJ BB), but I much much preferred the feel of the SOC. It felt really dense and when using painting strokes, very silky. When using scrubbing motion, it felt firm and exfoliating, which I liked. What was most impressive though, was the lather it produced. It wasn't massively thick, but looked less aerated than what I produce with Cella and a badger. Most importantly, it was incredibly slick. Once I feel I'm at a good point with the lather, I picked up my Merkur 34C loaded with a Crystal blade (Personna blues if I remember rightly?) and start shaving. I start to wonder what's going on, because I can't feel the blade, and half way through my first pass, I realise why: the lather is just so much slicker than anything else I've used. This is a 3rd use blade on 3 days of heavy growth and it's gone through it like a hot knife through butter. The lather was so slick and lubricating, I think if someone has been throwing knifes at my face, they may have just slid right off.
Once I get to the end of my shave, I rinse hot and cold, and apply some alum. I get a shock. Whenever I've shaved before I apply alum, and when it gets onto my Adams Apple it stings. Even with the great lather I've been getting from Proraso and my EJ BB lately, I still got a little bit of irritation there. Whatever I do, I can't seem to avoid irritation on and around it, and despite the great shave I was getting, I braced myself for the inevitability of some sting there. I apply the alum, and nothing. No sting at all. Not even a tingle.
I was amazed. My skin feels smooth, soft, moisturised and completely unirritated.
The only criticism I have of the brush is that it didn't quite make enough lather for 3 passes, but it's not even broken in yet, and it's my first time using a boar, so my water/product balance may have been off so I'm willing to forgive it that. Seeing as I was face lathering anyway, I just reloaded a bit, dipped my brush into the water and lathered again, getting the same slick stuff as I did on my first pass.
The best thing about this, is that from all I've seen and heard, boars keep getting better and better with use. I like my EJ BB, but with the shave the SOC has just helped me achieve, and the prospect of that getting even better, I don't think the EJ is going to see my face for quite a while.
