One week with Pre de Provence

[MrMoJoe]

After one full week with Pre de Provence, I have to say I'm hooked. The scent is perfect for spring - light and fresh. Sage and Rosemary are the predominant notes, and while the descriptions I've read of laundry detergent are not far off, there is no "chemical" effect or scent at all; it's very fresh and natural. It lathers very easily for me. Using my Semogue 620, I let it soak, give it one shake, and load on the puck for about a minute. The result is an abundance of thick, rich lather. As with many good soaps, you gotta give it plenty of water. Results so far have been great with excellent cushion and close shaves. PdP has moved straight to the top of my rotation and will get a lot of use this spring. Highly recommended.

 

[edgerunner]

It's an excellent soap indeed, with a fresh green refreshing scent. After using mostly Cade for the last two months, I just started a PdP week the other day. I hadn't used it since the last summer, and was impressed how better and easier it was to lather than Cade. I find it's very much alike another favourite soap of mine - Provence Sante Green Tea. The lather is dense and doesn't require a very thick layer to protect the skin from the razor. The biggest benefit of these soaps though is the post-shave effect; the skin feels soft and moisturized.

 

[Danricgro]

One of my favorites. What I use to test out new brushes.

 

[djh]

Photos. We need photos, man!

 

[LazycatEB]

I picked it up a while back to push an Amazon order over $25 for free shipping, and am really glad I did. It is easily the most moisturizing soap/cream on my shelf. I've been using it almost daily all winter and it's really helped in keeping my face from drying out too much. PdP definitely has a permanent spot in my rotation.

 

[Mandina]

No matter what I tried--wetter vs. drier brush, boar vs. other brush, distilled vs. tap water, 60 vs. 120 seconds of loading--I couldn't get PdP to lather well until I chopped it up and re-packed/mashed down the chunks. (It's such a hard soap that doing so was no easy task.) Now it provides really nice lather. I'm still baffled by my previous problems with PdP, since pretty much everyone says it lathers easily. By contrast, Cade and Provence Sante have always lathered easily and well for me, but of these three excellent soaps PdP's lather is my favorite.

 

[wstruth]

That's great to hear. Have you tried Institut Karite and if so, how does it compare? I love Cade for the way my face feels when I'm done shaving and Instiute karite is a close second but it lathers a lot better than Cade[FONT=arial, sans-serif].[/FONT]

 

[Jayk]

I love this soap too, though we had a shaky start. The scent is amazing and that kept me working at it. I found that a dry boar brush ( the B&B essential is great witht his soap for me) loaded for a minute and then water added slowly makes a nice thick and protective lather.

 

[LazycatEB]

I love this soap too, though we had a shaky start. The scent is amazing and that kept me working at it. I found that a dry boar brush ( the B&B essential is great witht his soap for me) loaded for a minute and then water added slowly makes a nice thick and protective lather.

Interesting…it's the complete opposite for me. I find I get the best results from a soaking wet brush – a couple of taps to let a bit of the excess out – and then working the puck for a minute or so and face-lathering from there. Kind of similar to the way I use Cella. It starts out a little sloppy, but thickens up nicely from there.

YMMV I guess.

 

[Sunflake]

Fantastic scent and one of my favorites as well.

 

[chron67]

Shaved with it this morning. Great soap.

 

[InfernoOrangeSS]

I shaved with this wonderful soap this morning. Great shave and amazing lather! I really love the scent as well. Very light. My B&B Essential boar brush lathered this up amazingly well! I highly recommend this soap.

 

[bowlturner]

Used it this morning. Great scent and performance.

 

[Dick Solomon]

I have the ASB and it is just fantastic. I want to try the soap but I just can't justify another purchase at the moment. I have a drawer full of product that I need to work through.

 

[Sunflake]

I do wish they made a AS splash. I don't really care for balms.

 

[InfernoOrangeSS]

I do wish they made a AS splash. I don't really care for balms.

I agree.

 

[alpster]

It is high on my list also.

Ronnie

 

[groovyd]

Those having trouble lathering harder soaps try emptying a tablespoon of hot water from the brush onto the puck and let it set while you shower. Pour off the water into your bowl and load the brush from the wet puck for just 10 sec or so and whip the lather up in the bowl. Using this method you simply cannot fail with any soap.

 

[Mandina]

Do you have soft water? There's no soap--out of my 25+--that yields any reasonable lather with just 10 seconds of loading (I use an Omega boar brush or an HJM black fibre brush), including after putting water (hot or cold) on the surface while I shower and including when I use distilled water. The minimum for me is 30-35 seconds for Razorock XXX. Pre de Provence used to take me a full 2 minutes of loading until I chopped it up (not easy!) and then pressed the pieces together; it now takes 60-75 seconds. Most of my soaps require 60+ seconds (Cella, D.R. Harris, Cade, etc.; MWF takes longer).

 

[nemo]

This thread prompted me to pull my tin out, great shave today!