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modern barbershop cologne?

YSL Rive Gauche
GFT Eucris
Paco Rabanne Pour Homme
Tabac edt (although I thought the aftershave was a little more "barbershop" than the edt and nearly as strong.)
 
It kind of depends of what evokes "barbershop" to you.

But for most North Americans, I'd say Pinaud Clubman is as barbershop as it gets. It's an inexpensive product that's been around for many, many years and hangs in to this day. It has been used by barbers for years because it's mass produced, inexpensive and frankly it smells good. If you're of a certain age, you can't smell the AS or Clubmand talc and not be taken back to sitting that big chair with a dusting of that powder on the back of your neck after a cut.

Other newer scents mentioned above: Rive Gauche Pour Homme and Pens Sartorial have a bit of the same vibe- just more refined and elegant. Both of these smell a bit like Brut which is a fourgere and similar to Clubman imo. Pens Racquets Formula is another I have that somehow evokes barbershop to me.

Profumum's Antico Caruso ($$$)
is heralded by Lucky Scent as a supreme barbershop scent. I have it. I love it. But I have to say it must be "European barbershop." While very nice and pretty strong, it has a smooth creamy almond kind of scent, like a pricey almond soap or shave cream which I've never run into in US.

I think I've read some people think Domenico Caraceni 1913 is barbershop, but I don't get that vibe from it at all.
 
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Isaac

B&B Tease-in-Residence
It kind of depends of what evokes "barbershop" to you.

But for most North Americans, I'd say Pinaud Clubman is as barbershop as it gets. Pens Racquets Formula is another I have that somehow evokes barbershop to me.

I couldnt agree more with this statement. Racquets is absolutely one of my favorite traditional type smells. I pair the Pinaud with the Penhaligons on a regular basis.
 
Some may disagree, but I would put T&H Grafton in that category. Not quite barbershop maybe, but definitely a 'classic' type of scent.
 
I think it's Turin in "Perfumes: The Guide" who says JPG Le Male strikes him as a modern barbershop fragrance.
 
I think it's Turin in "Perfumes: The Guide" who says JPG Le Male strikes him as a modern barbershop fragrance.

Can't agree here, unless smelling like a spent powder puff from an 80-year old English dowager is what is meant by "barbershop."

Just stick with the Clubman - or perhaps try some Caswell Massey gear. They're another favorite of mine.

But Pinaud Clubman is the bedrock barbershop scent - best ever and has been for a long long loooooooooooooong time.
 
I think it's Turin in "Perfumes: The Guide" who says JPG Le Male strikes him as a modern barbershop fragrance.

Yeah, I've seen that Dennard, but I know you must be familiar with that scent. Do you think it's "barbershop" in the way most of us would think of it?

I don't think Le Male is a bad scent really- but I completely associate it with young club goers wearing way too much. Maybe if the dose were very low, it would be tamer.

I think it's barbershop in the same manner as Antico Caruso. Barbershop in Europe perhaps.
 
When I think of barbershop scents the following come to mind:

Pinaud Clubman - of course.
C&M Jockey Club
Canoe - sort of an upscale Clubman.
TOBS - Mr. Taylor and Shaving Shop.
Campbells Liquid Shave Soap for the good old Lather King - love the smell when my barber uses this to trim the back of my neck and sideburns with a shavette.
Proraso
Floid - either the Italian or Spanish version.
 
Brut is good stuff. I buy the "Splash-On Original Fragrance" (not the AS) and decant it into an atomizer ($4 at whole foods) so my hands don't get all stinky. Surprisingly good longevity and sillage for a $6 cologne (okay, $10 including atomizer).
 
Pinaud Clubman
YSL Rive Gauche
Azzaro pour Homme
Canoe

I'm still waiting for my Spanish Floid (Suave) to arrive. Er, I mean I can hardly wait...

Portugal is so far away.
 
I worked on 5 "flavors" of aftershaves in my humble barber shop when Lucky Tiger told me they were getting out of the hair tonic business.
Yep, I started making hair tonics, but my customers wanted better aftershaves, and since I never could figure out what to put in a useful hair tonic, I experimented and came up:

1) Bay Rum - had just a little bit of clove. Asked a lot of customers, and figured out what was "Just the right amount. "Favored by drunken sailors around the world."
2) Bergamot -- a lime fragrance, short duration. Federal law regulates how much lime you can put in this stuff, because if you wear in in sunlight, it can speed up whatever it is that generates skin cancer. It's fine at night time. But to be on the safe side, I made my stuff without the troublesome bergaptines.
3) JazzMen -- "The Musical aftershave from the Orient." Intensely favored by some folks, strongly disliked by others. Not much middle ground.
4) Clovala -- "King Barber Clovala is an historic blend of European lavender and other enticing delights never before arrayed in luxurient olfactory spendor. Its brisk yet soothing aromas harken back to the extravagent opulence of the Roman emperors, but without the worrisome bacchanalian decadance that might bring one into public disdain.
To tone and condition the skin after shaving, annount your face with just enoufh King Barber to linger for 15 seconds. It's a wonderful way to greet every morning with bright optimism and a Chesiric smile."
5) I don't remember the other one . . . hmm . . . but I was working on "African Violet." As it turns out, African Violets have no fragrance of their own, so I still have to come up with a nice smelling aftershave. I had a nice photo of one for the label, and it was purple, so it seemed like a good idea.


For barbershop use, I make it with the same % of alcohol found in better skin antiseptics. And of course, I use grain alcohol instead of isopropyl alcohol, primarily because it's not a good idea for a barber to have that much isopropyl on his skin (applied after every customer, 5 days a week, 50 weeks a year) because isopropyl gets broken down in the liver into acetone, which isn't a good thing. Of course, grain alcohol is heavily taxed by the feds, so it costs more to use.

I made one batch of stuff with a bit of water from the Shrine of Lourdes in France. Made it with frankencense and myrrh, added a bit of gold leaf, sold it at Christmas. It didn't smell as nice as I thought it would, and to make things worse, my shop flooded the month before Christmas, so didn't get to offer it to my customers. But I did get a lot of interest from some folks who used it to spray away "evil influences." Gave a box to a psychic who sold a lot of it to her clients.

It's an interesting activity . . . mixing your own bay rum & etc.
 
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