After using a good chunk of a tub of Stirling Christmas Eve last year, I decided to try their other seasonal offerings this year (although still enjoying what I have left of Christmas eve).
Stirling Candy Cane- Phenomenal. It's not a straight up peppermint scent, as it has a chocolate vibe to it. It reminds me more of mint chocolate / perhaps hot chocolate with a candy cane mixed in. More of the peppermint scent comes out when lathering though. It just feels right this time of year. This will be a repeat purchase. When I initially scooped out a chunk to press into my bowl, I noticed it was white underneath the initial brown color, so I thought it was a layered soap but it's not. The white discolored into its regular brown color over night. This won't be just a seasonal soap for me. I'll totally dip into it throughout the year.
Stirling Frankincense and Myrrh- I couldn't help myself in this sample purchase. This one is a real oddity. I wrote about it in another thread and my initial feeling was "this should not exist". The scent opens up quite a bit after lathering though and I like it more than I thought I would. I wouldn't go straight into a full tub, so if you're curious get a sample. This scent does not conjure up any Christmas memories on my end however, but I'll certainly keep it in the seasonal rotation if they release it again next year if I end up killing the sample this month.
Stirling Candy Cane- Phenomenal. It's not a straight up peppermint scent, as it has a chocolate vibe to it. It reminds me more of mint chocolate / perhaps hot chocolate with a candy cane mixed in. More of the peppermint scent comes out when lathering though. It just feels right this time of year. This will be a repeat purchase. When I initially scooped out a chunk to press into my bowl, I noticed it was white underneath the initial brown color, so I thought it was a layered soap but it's not. The white discolored into its regular brown color over night. This won't be just a seasonal soap for me. I'll totally dip into it throughout the year.
Stirling Frankincense and Myrrh- I couldn't help myself in this sample purchase. This one is a real oddity. I wrote about it in another thread and my initial feeling was "this should not exist". The scent opens up quite a bit after lathering though and I like it more than I thought I would. I wouldn't go straight into a full tub, so if you're curious get a sample. This scent does not conjure up any Christmas memories on my end however, but I'll certainly keep it in the seasonal rotation if they release it again next year if I end up killing the sample this month.
I just heard Santa is bringing this... 
Virginia burley, whiskey, smokey drydown. Almost a Roam-lite, but light enough not to set off fire alarms, stampede the herd and wrinkle spouse noses, a la the classic B&M Roam. Outstanding MacDuff performance, silky and slick as expected, with a soothing non-alcohol AS. Not actually a holiday scent (unless you spend Christmas in the backwoods cabin playing poker with the boys, smoking cigars and drinking shots of Canadian Club, which is not totally a bad idea all things considered!), but I actually like it. Guess I'm on the naughty list. Again.... 
Slightly softer than other PAA offerings I've used (although not a full croap), it requires a softer touch loading. Speaking of loading, this is not one you'll want to be haphazardly flinging around your bathroom - 
"Oh by gosh, by golly, ac-ti-va-ted char-coal in-stead of holly." 
It's probably the slickest soap I've used - still CK-6, but this one seems slippery-er (a word?) than anything else out there (maybe rivaled by B&M's new Omnibus base). A great performing soap by any standards though, and one I could use outside the holidays in the rotation. Fragrance-wise, a winner for me. There is a lump of coal - but waaaay back in the back. Enough to let you know that even though you were naughty, you have time to make it up before Christmas. Barely. 
