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The holy black

Just placed my order for the soap sampler from Theholyblack.com. total came to $8.05 with free shipping and 10% dicount for posting on facebook. I'll update with a review when it comes in. I'm not affiliated, just intrigued by the descriptions.
 
Order status is still listed as unfulfilled. Website states that it may take 2-4 days as orders are made on demand. If the status is unchanged tomorrow, I will call. Order placed on 1/15
 
I am interested in how they perform too. Their shaving cream seems a bit pricey, I would love to try a sampler pack from them for the cream, but fifteen dollars for a 1 oz can seems a bit much.
 
I have sampled the Smoke Sandalwood, very nice scent. The soap lathers up very nicely, good moisturizing.

I also have sample of the Gunpowder aftershave, the scent is hard to describe. It smells a little woodsy and smokey
 
I ordered and received a sample set of the soaps and the aftershaves. They seem to have their shipping issues figured out -- ordered on a tuesday, received in NH on friday.


Very different scents. Most of which I like.
The Aftershaves come in four small vials -- enough for maybe 2 applications. Scents: Bay Whisky Lime, Sandalwood Smoke, Mountain Man, and Gunpowder Spice.


Bay Whisky Lime -- easily the winner, a really nice take on a Bay Rum style scent. The whisky adds a sharpness/tang so it's not as sweet as a typical bay rum, and with much less cinnamon/clove than Ogallala (my usual go-to). This was my favorite of the bunch.
Mountain Man -- this smells like what a forest-firefighter would smell like after putting out a fire in a pine forest. Sharp pine/balsam mingled with a heavy smoke. Another winner if you like that sort of thing.
Gunpowder Spice -- a soapy scent with spice and smoke. I like this, but not as much as the first two.
Sandalwood Smoke -- I'm not a big sandalwood fan, but this seems nice -- a strong sandalwood base with a smokey aspect.


The Shaving Soaps:
The soaps are 4 small pucks of black-colored soap -- It's an interesting gimmick. (It lathers up white though!) The scents are the same as above. I've only used them a couple of times. They seem to lather very well, with a creamy result. I'd prefer it to be a little richer since I had to work the lather into my face a bit more than I normally do, but regardless with a few extra swirls of the brush it provided a good coverage and lubrication. It seemed easily equivalent to other shaving soaps in this price range.


I will probably be buying some full-size pucks of soap and some aftershave.
 
I have been using their products for about a year now. I don't want to step on toes, but I figured Id give my two scents, as well and this would be the correct forum.
I thought the sandalwood smoke was the clear winner. Made with liquid smoke if I remember right it has a very masculine smell…oe of my favorite sandalwood scents ever. Mountain Man was nice, kind of like a completely coniferous English Fern idea. Gunpowder spice (made with gunpowder?) appears to be an attempt to replicate Shulton Old Spice. Their AS splashes are really dependent on individual taste. Most are made with a bit of whisky for alcohol content and the Bay Whisky Lime was a little overpowering in sweetness. The sandalwood smoke AS was much more consistent with the soap. Glad this company is getting around, great gents. They upgraded my AS to a huge bottle and gave my friend a free brush. Best of all, they are able to be melted into any bowl you want! :p

Max
 
Thanks for your review. You're not stepping on any toes. From what I have seen here, there are no "verboten" subjects, and opinions are encouraged. Your experience with any product isn't "wrong" and you are welcome to post them here. Thanks again.
 
I ordered the soap and AS sampler along with the full-size limited run AS back in October. I liked all of the scents and they even got SWMBO approval, but the Bay Whiskey Lime was my least favorite. I think their aftershaves are best for colder weather though as they are a little "oily" IMHO. I really liked the performance on all of their products, but I had some issues. This is a first for me, but something in their soaps did not agree with my skin and burned me a little. The only other real complaint I had was that their full-size AS bottles don't have a very good orifice reducer. The reducer on these bottles has a hole in the middle like normal, but then all along the outer edge has elongated holes as well. If you're not paying attention (and sometimes even if you are), you can end up wasting a lot of AS. Also, be sure to shake the AS up before using it; it has alum in it IIRC.
 
I will stick to my no buy
I will stick to my no buy
I will stick to my no buy

and will check this site in January 2015

You'll hate me for this, but right now they have a limited run aftershave...it may not be there next year. :devil2:

Edit: Never mind, I just checked and they're sold out so you're good.
 
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I shaved with the Mountain Man sample puck today. Very strong pine aroma. Stuck around awhile, too. Even smelled it an hour or so later, over the Clubman AS. The lather was slick and comfortable. I got a great shave even with a four shave old blade.
 
Got my soap sample in on Friday. I have been in the hospital, and hopefully going home Tue. I'll have a 4 day growth to test out.
 
I started with the gunpowder spice soap tonight. I used my omega boar. Loaded up for around 20 secs and was surprised by how easily the brush picked it up. More than enough for 2 passes and a touchup.

The scent is not what I expected, but I am very happy with it. Its a Smokey/ clean smell.

A little more water was needed than I am used to (vdh) but the lather was very comfortable and protected quite well. 2 hours later, and the scent has maintained. This might be why some had reactions. Maybe a high EO or FO content.

SWMBO was very interested in the scent, and noted that my skin felt softer than usual. I will use this scent up before moving to the next scent.
 
I used most of the Mountain Man sample puck. The scent was very strong, but faded after a few days. I felt it dried out my skin a bit, going to use some other soaps and creams for a bit then go back to another sample puck scent. The lather was very nice, no complaints there.
 
How many shaves did you get from your sample puck? I feel like I am using far less product than I am used to in order to get the same lather.
 
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