I just finished a tin of Saponificio Varesino Opuntia. I'm not really big on soap fragrance, but this was quite nice to my nose. "A fruity and aromatic fragrance with top notes of bergamot, pineapple and blackcurrant that give way to floral body notes of birch, rose and jasmine. Woody, musky and slightly amber base notes anchored by patchouli, vetiver, white musk and oak moss."
My inspiration for this test was a comment on the forum something like, "I'll use SV, but MdC is just too expensive." That struck me as fundamentally incorrect, but I wasn't sure.
METHOD: The SV, strangely enough, didn't hold up well to the heat of the scuttle, so I ended up doing 2 pass face lathers, rather than my usual 3 pass scuttle lathers. I started with the SOC 2 band badger soaking wet and shook out a few drops of water (how's that for exact?). I loaded for 6 seconds (truth in advertising, as a conductor I know what 60 BPM is on a metronome, and these were slightly slow "seconds" - around 56 BPM).
I added more water in the usual fashion and the lather was lovely.
Obviously my load time is not exactly the same as your load time. You may not use my brush, or water, or speed/pressure on the loading swirls. But comparing it to MdC (and WK) my usage is consistent, so if you've used any of those you can adjust the numbers to fit your usage. I do make a reasonably robust lather. Some will like thinner, while some will think mine a little thin. I'm pretty sure I'm in the middle, looking like most lathers I've seen in videos. There is always a bit left in the brush, but certainly not nearly enough for another pass.
I did 175 2 pass shaves. Assuming another 3 seconds of load time that would be about 116 3 pass shaves. The soap is $49 on the SV website, but I got it on Amazon for $45 free shipping. If you like to think of usage as a daily weight this is a 150g tin. I prefer to think about what the cost would be for a year of daily shaves. For me this would be $135 a year for 3 pass shaves.
I use Nature MdC, which is currently $43.95 without shipping for 200g (significantly more). I always purchase them in pairs, which cuts down on the shipping (directly from Martin de Candre). A jar of MdC lasts me 13 months of 3 pass shaves. With shipping that brings the cost to about $45 a year.
I also like WK Pasha's Pride. That runs $25, but I need 3 to get through the year, so $75.
SV - $135 a year.
MdC - $45 a year.
WK - $75 a year.
Clearly, SV is not cheap. But I will buy it again. Lovely scent and a richness to the feel that's hard to describe. It may not add anything to the shave, but it's totally enjoyable and I'm going to die someday - I deserve to have some things purely for the enjoyment factor.
I waited an extra day to report so I could have another MdC shave. It seems to be a little closer, but today's shave did coincide with the need for a new blade, so I'm not really putting any stock in that feeling. I get very similar shaves with all three of these soaps. MdC is my favorite, but not by much. Obviously dollars and cents leans heavily toward MdC, but nothing's too good for me and I will no doubt continue to buy all three. I use MdC most days, but like a change once or twice a week.
I hope you find this helpful.
My inspiration for this test was a comment on the forum something like, "I'll use SV, but MdC is just too expensive." That struck me as fundamentally incorrect, but I wasn't sure.
METHOD: The SV, strangely enough, didn't hold up well to the heat of the scuttle, so I ended up doing 2 pass face lathers, rather than my usual 3 pass scuttle lathers. I started with the SOC 2 band badger soaking wet and shook out a few drops of water (how's that for exact?). I loaded for 6 seconds (truth in advertising, as a conductor I know what 60 BPM is on a metronome, and these were slightly slow "seconds" - around 56 BPM).
I added more water in the usual fashion and the lather was lovely.
Obviously my load time is not exactly the same as your load time. You may not use my brush, or water, or speed/pressure on the loading swirls. But comparing it to MdC (and WK) my usage is consistent, so if you've used any of those you can adjust the numbers to fit your usage. I do make a reasonably robust lather. Some will like thinner, while some will think mine a little thin. I'm pretty sure I'm in the middle, looking like most lathers I've seen in videos. There is always a bit left in the brush, but certainly not nearly enough for another pass.
I did 175 2 pass shaves. Assuming another 3 seconds of load time that would be about 116 3 pass shaves. The soap is $49 on the SV website, but I got it on Amazon for $45 free shipping. If you like to think of usage as a daily weight this is a 150g tin. I prefer to think about what the cost would be for a year of daily shaves. For me this would be $135 a year for 3 pass shaves.
I use Nature MdC, which is currently $43.95 without shipping for 200g (significantly more). I always purchase them in pairs, which cuts down on the shipping (directly from Martin de Candre). A jar of MdC lasts me 13 months of 3 pass shaves. With shipping that brings the cost to about $45 a year.
I also like WK Pasha's Pride. That runs $25, but I need 3 to get through the year, so $75.
SV - $135 a year.
MdC - $45 a year.
WK - $75 a year.
Clearly, SV is not cheap. But I will buy it again. Lovely scent and a richness to the feel that's hard to describe. It may not add anything to the shave, but it's totally enjoyable and I'm going to die someday - I deserve to have some things purely for the enjoyment factor.
I waited an extra day to report so I could have another MdC shave. It seems to be a little closer, but today's shave did coincide with the need for a new blade, so I'm not really putting any stock in that feeling. I get very similar shaves with all three of these soaps. MdC is my favorite, but not by much. Obviously dollars and cents leans heavily toward MdC, but nothing's too good for me and I will no doubt continue to buy all three. I use MdC most days, but like a change once or twice a week.
I hope you find this helpful.