I've had a sneakin suspicion about the quality of my shaves for a week or so, so I decided to try a "cheek vs cheek" comparison today...
The short form is this: I alternate between $bucks Taylor's Rose cream and $cheap Proraso-in-a-tube. And what surprises me is that while the end result of both shaves is pretty similar, the difference in irritation is very noticeable--the Taylor's pulls more, nicks more, and results in more weepers, while the proraso is much cleaner and ends with much less bleeding.
Now, I have to say this surprises me, and leads me to wonder one of two things; 1) if I'm mixing my Taylor's lather incorrectly (too little water, maybe? It is always a very thick lather, much thicker than the Proraso) or 2) if Taylor's just hates hard water more than Proraso (we have fairly hard water).
I know there's an awful lot of personal preference involved with creams, etc--but I've heard so many folks rave about Taylor's that, even though I know Proraso is a good brand... well, I had expected the Taylor's to at least perform well. As it is, rather than it being my luxury indulgence, it's the cream I avoid using, and that seems weird.
The short form is this: I alternate between $bucks Taylor's Rose cream and $cheap Proraso-in-a-tube. And what surprises me is that while the end result of both shaves is pretty similar, the difference in irritation is very noticeable--the Taylor's pulls more, nicks more, and results in more weepers, while the proraso is much cleaner and ends with much less bleeding.
Now, I have to say this surprises me, and leads me to wonder one of two things; 1) if I'm mixing my Taylor's lather incorrectly (too little water, maybe? It is always a very thick lather, much thicker than the Proraso) or 2) if Taylor's just hates hard water more than Proraso (we have fairly hard water).
I know there's an awful lot of personal preference involved with creams, etc--but I've heard so many folks rave about Taylor's that, even though I know Proraso is a good brand... well, I had expected the Taylor's to at least perform well. As it is, rather than it being my luxury indulgence, it's the cream I avoid using, and that seems weird.