SOTD "FREE WEEK" October 22nd - October 28th, 2018

[PJO]

Patti

 

[Bobcat]

Saturday
Prep: Warm Shower-Stirling Scots Pine Sheep
Soap: Stirling Gentleman
Razor: Gillette NEW Short Comb
Blade: Rapira Platinum Lux (8)
Brush: John’s Brushes Silvertip-22mmx48mm
Aftershave: Stirling Gentleman w/Menthol

WTG-XTG-ATG (adjusted angles for my beard)

Stirling Gentleman today. 20 seconds to load the John’s Brushes Silvertip brush. Easy, thick, slick, lather. Rapira Platinum Lux still in the Gillette NEW SC. Excellent smooth, close, shave. I finished with Stirling Gentleman aftershave.

Bob

 

[cmh737]

Merkur Progress w/Persona Red//Tuxedo synthetic//Stirling Executive Man

 

[ValdySky]

Razor - iKon X3 slant
Blade - Feather
Brush - Stando Shaving A.
Soap - Kent

 

[primotenore]

Saturday, October 27

MW Sandalwood Rose~~DG/Thäter Beehive B5~~1938 Senator~~Personna 74~~St. Charles Bulgarian Rose
Have a great day!​

 

[rlroadie2004]

Buongiorno!
Sotd 102718
Straight Antonio Pedrosa 7/8 silversteel
PantaRei Chris fanshape 26mm manchurian badger, handmade buffalo horn brush + ram’s inlays/pottery
IBLA shaving soap by PantaRei
Layrite n. 9 Bayrum Aftershave

Inviato dal mio iPhone utilizzando Tapatalk

Great photo...great looking brush!

 

[jmudrick]

Apollo Mikron Mk2/Gillette Super Thin

 

[eezee]

10/26/18
Chiseled Face "Midnight Stag"
Muhle 21H 220 Rytmo w/Black Fiber
Feather (6)
RazoRock Alum Stick
Clubman "Virgin Island Bay Rum"
Art of Shaving "Sandalwood" Balm
Zoologist "Rhinoceros"

10/27/18
"Cade" Shave Soap by L'Occitane
Vie-Long 14080
6/8 Art of Shaving by Thiers-Issard
Tony Miller 3" Premium Fast Bridle Strop
RazoRock Alum Stick
Pitralon "Classic"
Nivea Post Shave Balm
Versace "Pour Homme"

​

 

[Smooth Steve]

10/28/18 Shave of the Day
Face Wash with The Sudsy Soapery Sandalwood and Citrus with Charcoal and Cocoa Soap
Crown King Planet 9 Shampoo/Conditioner Puck with Cider Vinegar, Yucca & Manuka
Phoenix Artisan Accoutrements CUBE Mentholated Preshave Soap
Barrister and Mann Hallows Shaving Soap (Limited Edition)
Wolf Whiskers Blue Train Custom Fluted Bishop TGN 24mm Silvertip Grade A Badger Brush
Creative Flame Pottery Stoneware Shaving Scuttle
Wolfman WR1-OC .74mm Gap Polished Stainless Steel Razor with Darwin Handle
Feather New Hi-Stainless Blade - 1st Shave
RazoRock Alum Block
Thayers Cucumber Witch Hazel Toner
Barrister and Mann Hallows Aftershave (Limited Edition)
Stirling Soap Company Glacial Unscented Post-Shave Menthol Balm
The Sudsy Soapery 100% Natural Rain Deodorant​

 

[Tallapoc]

27-10-2018

Agua y jabón :: Proraso :: Semogue, TSN 2018 LE :: Gillette twist, astra :: Epsilon, Blue

Salut!


Enviado desde mi iPhone utilizando Tapatalk

 

[picturerock]

Spring Snow Melt badger by Wild West
Stirling Satsuma soap
Portland Cascade Steel straight razor, freshly stropped
Stirling Red Delicious aftershave

One and a half passes, no nicks or cuts, great Saturday morning shave.

 

[cryhavoc]

Saturday SOTD

Gillette NEW LC
Gillette Silver Blue (10)
Haslinger Schafmilch
Yaqi 24mm 2 Band Badger Fan
Aqua Velva Ice Blue​

 

[120inna55]

Southern Witchcrafts | Autumn Ash
Leo Frilot Tru-Stone Copper Matrix | AP Shave Co. SynBad 30mm
Ever-Ready SE | Delta Echo | Gem PTFE

Once again, I'm trying out a product from an artisan who's new to me. This would seem to be the right season to break this one out, too. Southern Witchcrafts, hailing from Tucker, Georgia, have some peculiar scent notes for the products in their catalog. It's my understanding their packaging has recently undergone a revamp, and unless I'm mistaken, the soap base has also experienced an upgrade. Honestly, several of the offerings were enticing, but I settled on "Autumn Ash" and "Alchemist" as my introduction to this artisan.

No complaints on the packaging from me. The labels appear to be vinyl and arrived (from Maggard) without blemish or bubble. The soap tubs are your standard all-black PET, and the splashes are plastic as well and resemble those used by Storybook Soapworks. I've not seen these EdP bottles before, but they fit the motif and look cool.

Upon cracking open the tub of Autumn Ash, I was immediately met with a powerful sweet maple syrup note that overwhelmed anything else that may have accompanied it. Needless to say, it needed to air out as is often the case with a new tub. After giving it a few minutes, I revisited it, and as expected, the maple settled down and musky damp earth with a suggestion of mushroom was faintly detected. Despite their sharing very few common notes (smoke and cedar), off the puck, Autumn Ash reminded me of Chiseled Face's "Ghost Town Barber". Upon lathering, this drastically changed, and was actually closer to Barrister and Mann's "Fougère Gothique". Autumn Ash is it's own thing, mind you, but if you like fragrances in the vein of Fougère Gothique, you'll likely enjoy this.

Upon lathering, Autumn Ash opens with a warm syrupy and smoky maple that's immediately mitigated by damp earth. Again, I feel like there's a faint mushroom note, but it may well be my brain filling in for the expected, given the convincing damp earth note. Specifically, the image of damp earth is that of rich, black spongy soil rife with ancient tree litter remains. As the shave progresses, the fragrance continues to descend to a muskier and thicker fragrance that stops just short of becoming murky. I can not pick up the documented ash note in the lather, but the overall fragrance does lift up towards the end with a slightly edgier resin and spice.

The soap in the puck is of medium firmness such that pressing a finger in the middle causes very little crumbling followed by a smooth dent. This vegan base doesn't seem to have any quirks in terms of loading and lather building. A 45-second load in my damp 30mm synthetic knot provided more than adequate yield for a 2+ pass head and face shave. It did require a fair amount of water to optimize which, as always, is an observation and not a detraction. Test lathers the night before proved it can be drowned if you try, but there's plenty of room before you reach that point. In practice, the lather-building is intuitive and results in a hyper-white, voluminous and moderately dense substrate with a bright even sheen. You cannot brush away the lather when it's optimized, thereby making this quite the paintable lather. First-swipe slickness is very good, and residual slickness is such that hasty sweeping passes can safely be pulled-off in the absence of visible lather. Post-shave is on-par with today's medium to upper-grade soaps, but not yet select status. I will note, 18 months ago, this post-shave would have been considered elite.

In terms of fragrance, the splash unfolds in similar fashion to the soap, but the maple is much more forward and longer lasting. I would prefer this be toned down a bit, but that's just my personal aversion to sweet fragrances. Ultimately, after about 30 minutes, the sweet aspect does indeed burn off, relenting to the rich damp earthy heart and base. Unlike the soap, the ash does make a presence that is surprisingly pleasant and well-blended among the ensemble. Just a touch more smoke or birch tar would have stifled this fragrance, but instead a fair bit of artisanal skill is exhibited in taking Autumn Ash to the edge without stepping into the offensive.

The paired splash is water-based and contains witch hazel, aloe gel, vitamin E, Polysorbate 20, and glycerin. It is water-thin and has a pale milky amber color. It distributes easily. It's soothing, and I detected no tackiness or greasiness. I can't say if it's particularly moisturizing or not, because the soap wasn't drying to begin with.

This fragrance is so nice, I'm happy I picked up the EdP. After priming the bottle, I applied a single pump to the solar plexus. The EdP never completely abandons the maple, but the sweetness does abate after about an hour or so. Six hours out, I continue to enjoy the full complement of Autumn Ash's dark but pleasant earthy, resinous accord.

Ultimately, I'm quite pleased with this base's performance. After just one use, I feel like the only aspect that could improve more than incrementally would be the post-shave. That's not to say it lacks, but rather the current upper-tier artisan soaps' post-shaves have recently attained ridiculous heights. As of this writing, I've taken a whiff of my "Alchemist" tub along with extensively reviewing the fragrances offered by Southern Witchcrafts. It would seem this brand will make its mark by way of thoughtful, complex, edgy, and daring fragrances while still offering the crowd-pleasers like lavender, sandalwood, and cedar. I anticipate continued and long-term success from this artisan.

​

 

[prometeo]

 

[120inna55]

Alternate SOTD Pics

 

[billmota]

Gillette Tech Regente B2 made in Brazil
Shave 63/64

 

[ram57]

Sunday's SOTD

Razor: Wilkinson Empire
Blade: Wilkinson Wedge
Brush: Zen Shave Crossbones 24mm Romera Manchurian
Bowl: Creek Road Pottery 5½”
Pre-Shave Scrub: MRGO Lime
Pre-Shave Oil: Black Ship Grooming Unscented
Shave Soap: Beaver WoodWright Jolly Rodger
Post: Monster Block Alum
Aftershave: Beaver WoodWright Jolly Rodger
​

 

[sandstone]

.

ATT Windsor C R / Gillette Super Platinum
Omega 10098 Professional Boar
Tabac Shave Soap
Fine Platinum ASL with added menthol​

 

[SilverBlue16]

A very Nordic/alpine theme for this SOTD:
Mühle Birch Bark Rocca Razor
Mühle Birch Bark Rocca Silvertip Fibre Brush
Mühle Matte Rocca Stand
Fitjar Islands Stubble Softener
Fitjar Islands Fjellheim Shaving Soap and Rosewood Bowl
Fitjar Islands Fjellheim Moisturizer

 

[DblD]

Proraso Green Pre/Post
Erskine 24mm Strike Gold Shave Motherlode
Chiseled Face Civet
FASAN Ghost / Gillette Super Silver (9)
Witch Hazel - Proraso Green Pre/post - Chiseled Face Cinnawood Boroka