I thought I would post some additional thoughts on the fougère scented shaving cream released by Queen Charlotte Shave (QCS) a few weeks ago and to see if any others had additional thoughts about it. In the interest of disclosure, I received a free sample of it from Matthew. Also, I had mentioned the idea to him after there was a thread lamenting the lack of a good fern scented shaving soap after Penhaligon's reformulated their shaving soap and sent him my last puck of tallow English Fern so that he could have it in mind as he went to develop his own fougère scented shaving cream.
The performance is excellent and what I expected from QCS. The consistency is somewhere between a soap and a cream. Although I tend to prefer soaps as I have a perception that they are more economical and last longer, my small sample has lasted for several shaves and it seems like it would be a good value. It lathers very easily and provides a great cushiony shave and is very slick.
The big question for most is probably the scent. My initial reaction has remained pretty consistent: It is close to EF and within a general fougère family, but spicier than EF shaving soap. With that said, however, it also occurred to me that by now, what I have remaining is a few years old and I am sure it has lost some of its intensity. Moreover, on its own, it is a great scent. The scent works great for the shave, followed by a nice lavender aftershave like SMN, and finished with Penhaligon's EF EdC. In that lineup, it works great, nothing clashes, things go well together, and it is very enjoyable on its own. I would opt for it without question over the current Penhaligon's EF shaving soap. In short, if one is looking for a fern scented shaving cream or soap, it is worth a try.
The performance is excellent and what I expected from QCS. The consistency is somewhere between a soap and a cream. Although I tend to prefer soaps as I have a perception that they are more economical and last longer, my small sample has lasted for several shaves and it seems like it would be a good value. It lathers very easily and provides a great cushiony shave and is very slick.
The big question for most is probably the scent. My initial reaction has remained pretty consistent: It is close to EF and within a general fougère family, but spicier than EF shaving soap. With that said, however, it also occurred to me that by now, what I have remaining is a few years old and I am sure it has lost some of its intensity. Moreover, on its own, it is a great scent. The scent works great for the shave, followed by a nice lavender aftershave like SMN, and finished with Penhaligon's EF EdC. In that lineup, it works great, nothing clashes, things go well together, and it is very enjoyable on its own. I would opt for it without question over the current Penhaligon's EF shaving soap. In short, if one is looking for a fern scented shaving cream or soap, it is worth a try.
It's probably the most "aged" or "sophisticated" scent I own, as I'm normally a fan of citrus or lightly herbal scents. I typically dislike cologne or powdery scents.
