I controlled myself for more than 1 year. I had a cupboard filled with a very nice mix of soaps including several European classics (Valobra and SMN) and a wide variety of American artisan soaps (Mickey Lee, TTFFC(Through the Fire Fine Craft), Soap Commander among many others). I was a very happy man without a soap care in the world. And then the dam broke. Over the last several months I purchased soaps from:
Mystic Water (Lemon Verbena; Bergamot, Lemongrass and Rose Geranium)
Declaration Grooming Icarus (Sweet Lemon; Contemplation)
Oleo (Pucker; PearBrrr Shoppe)
CRSW Select(Jardin d'Orange)
Wholly Kaw Donkey (Pompelo; Lav Sublime)
A&E (L'Orange Verte)
Sudsy Soapery Tallow (Lemon Rose Chypre)
I don't know why, but I decided to do a comparative review of these soaps. For anyone thinking about this kind of undertaking, I warn you that it is far more difficult than it seems, at least in part because all of these soaps are really good, and because there are variables that are almost impossible to keep track of and control. For example, the quality of a blade changes over time. Was the tugging that I experienced because of the soap or because the blade was one shave past its prime? Whenever something like that came up, I did a do-over and started again. While I kept notes, there were days when I thought this competition deserved a spread sheet to keep track of everything.
Background and Technique:
I am 64 and I have been shaving for a long time. I started out wet shaving but during the dark years switched to carts and then the dreadful Gillette Fusion stuff. Six years ago I returned to wet shaving and I have tried almost every variation of wet shaving except for a traditional straight razor. My beard is gray and grizzly. Beneath the tough beard is sensitive skin, especially around my chin. I face lather and my technique is to apply a fairly thick, pasty lather to my face and then add a few drops of water at a time to the brush until I have created a thick, pillowy lather. As I will explain later, this technique worked very well with all soaps but one. I do a two pass shave. The first pass is WTG. The second pass is a combination of XTG and AGT. Really more of a lazy man's 3 pass shave. My chin only gets a single WTG pass. At the end of each shave my face, except for my chin, is smooth in every direction. For the purposes of this study I did not use any aftershave. Each manufacturer got a minimum of 5 shaves. I used Mickey Lee and TTFFC soaps as my control. I have used both soaps for years and know them well. As per my normal routine, I used a blade 5 times before discarding.
Razor: Blackland L2 Sabre
Blade: GEM PTFE
Brush: Vintage restored with a Synthetic Tuxedo Knot
Grading Scale:
I decided to use the standard school scale. The highest grade I gave out was an "A" thinking that in the future perhaps a soap will merit an A+.
Because of my sensitive skin, I have always preferred a soap that moisturizes well. In fact the two soaps that won this competition had the best after-shave feel. I imagine that someone with normal or oily skin might grade things differently.
I tried not to grade based on the scent. There were some scents that I liked more than others but that is a totally subjective finding and not about the quality of the soap.
Results:
Mickey Lee; TTFFC
Final Grade: A-
Both of these soaps acquitted themselves very well and they will stay in my permanent rotation. I am not sure if Mickey Lee has a new formulation but I am certain that my TTFFC formula has been supplanted by the "Premier" line of soaps. I suggest you give them a try. They also represent great value.
Mystic Water.
Final Grade: Frustrating
I know that "frustrating" is not a grade, but that is how I feel about this soap. My lathering technique which worked so well for every other soap, failed me here. At times it seemed that a single drop of water was the difference between a lather that was too thick and one that was falling apart. (even though I live in an area with soft water, I used distilled water with the MW soap. It didn't help.) Here is the frustrating part. When I got the lather right, I was treated to a shave that was as good as the winners of this competition. On bad lather days this soap deserved a "C" while on a good lather day it deserved an "A." In other words: Frustrating.
CRSW SELECT
Final Grade: B+
Excellent soap. No complaints. Delicious scent. It failed to get a A- because the other soaps created a more explosive lather. Otherwise, I have no complaints about this soap. I understand the Select is not CRSW's premier soap and that and that a more fair competition may have been to compare the CRSW Glide to the other premier soaps. I accept the criticism.
A&E; Sudsy Soapery Tallow; Oleo
Final Grade: A-
Great soaps. Explosive lather. Oleo may have been the slickest. Sudsy may have the best cushioning. The differences are slight and perhaps a figment of my imagination. I could happily live with any of these soaps. In fact I plan on purchasing more of each in the near future.
Declaration Grooming Icarus; Wholly Kaw Donkey
Final Grade: A
The Best of the Best. Explosive lather. Slick. Cushioned. What separated these two from the crowd? There was a certain WOW factor with these soaps that the others didn't quite match. Several hours after a shave I could feel the difference between these two and the others - probably related to their amazing ability to moisturize.
Final Thoughts:
When I first started this trial, I was concerned that the differences between these soaps was so small that I would not be able to draw any conclusions. Over time the differences, however small, became clear. My dry skin really enjoyed the moisturizing properties of both the Declaration Grooming and Wholly Kaw. I certainly understand that someone with different priorities might have drawn different conclusions. A&E, Sudsy and Oleo were beaten by the slimmest of margins and deserve your consideration. Even my standards, Mickey Lee and TTFFC, deserve your consideration. All of these soaps are world class.
Mystic Water (Lemon Verbena; Bergamot, Lemongrass and Rose Geranium)
Declaration Grooming Icarus (Sweet Lemon; Contemplation)
Oleo (Pucker; PearBrrr Shoppe)
CRSW Select(Jardin d'Orange)
Wholly Kaw Donkey (Pompelo; Lav Sublime)
A&E (L'Orange Verte)
Sudsy Soapery Tallow (Lemon Rose Chypre)
I don't know why, but I decided to do a comparative review of these soaps. For anyone thinking about this kind of undertaking, I warn you that it is far more difficult than it seems, at least in part because all of these soaps are really good, and because there are variables that are almost impossible to keep track of and control. For example, the quality of a blade changes over time. Was the tugging that I experienced because of the soap or because the blade was one shave past its prime? Whenever something like that came up, I did a do-over and started again. While I kept notes, there were days when I thought this competition deserved a spread sheet to keep track of everything.
Background and Technique:
I am 64 and I have been shaving for a long time. I started out wet shaving but during the dark years switched to carts and then the dreadful Gillette Fusion stuff. Six years ago I returned to wet shaving and I have tried almost every variation of wet shaving except for a traditional straight razor. My beard is gray and grizzly. Beneath the tough beard is sensitive skin, especially around my chin. I face lather and my technique is to apply a fairly thick, pasty lather to my face and then add a few drops of water at a time to the brush until I have created a thick, pillowy lather. As I will explain later, this technique worked very well with all soaps but one. I do a two pass shave. The first pass is WTG. The second pass is a combination of XTG and AGT. Really more of a lazy man's 3 pass shave. My chin only gets a single WTG pass. At the end of each shave my face, except for my chin, is smooth in every direction. For the purposes of this study I did not use any aftershave. Each manufacturer got a minimum of 5 shaves. I used Mickey Lee and TTFFC soaps as my control. I have used both soaps for years and know them well. As per my normal routine, I used a blade 5 times before discarding.
Razor: Blackland L2 Sabre
Blade: GEM PTFE
Brush: Vintage restored with a Synthetic Tuxedo Knot
Grading Scale:
I decided to use the standard school scale. The highest grade I gave out was an "A" thinking that in the future perhaps a soap will merit an A+.
Because of my sensitive skin, I have always preferred a soap that moisturizes well. In fact the two soaps that won this competition had the best after-shave feel. I imagine that someone with normal or oily skin might grade things differently.
I tried not to grade based on the scent. There were some scents that I liked more than others but that is a totally subjective finding and not about the quality of the soap.
Results:
Mickey Lee; TTFFC
Final Grade: A-
Both of these soaps acquitted themselves very well and they will stay in my permanent rotation. I am not sure if Mickey Lee has a new formulation but I am certain that my TTFFC formula has been supplanted by the "Premier" line of soaps. I suggest you give them a try. They also represent great value.
Mystic Water.
Final Grade: Frustrating
I know that "frustrating" is not a grade, but that is how I feel about this soap. My lathering technique which worked so well for every other soap, failed me here. At times it seemed that a single drop of water was the difference between a lather that was too thick and one that was falling apart. (even though I live in an area with soft water, I used distilled water with the MW soap. It didn't help.) Here is the frustrating part. When I got the lather right, I was treated to a shave that was as good as the winners of this competition. On bad lather days this soap deserved a "C" while on a good lather day it deserved an "A." In other words: Frustrating.
CRSW SELECT
Final Grade: B+
Excellent soap. No complaints. Delicious scent. It failed to get a A- because the other soaps created a more explosive lather. Otherwise, I have no complaints about this soap. I understand the Select is not CRSW's premier soap and that and that a more fair competition may have been to compare the CRSW Glide to the other premier soaps. I accept the criticism.
A&E; Sudsy Soapery Tallow; Oleo
Final Grade: A-
Great soaps. Explosive lather. Oleo may have been the slickest. Sudsy may have the best cushioning. The differences are slight and perhaps a figment of my imagination. I could happily live with any of these soaps. In fact I plan on purchasing more of each in the near future.
Declaration Grooming Icarus; Wholly Kaw Donkey
Final Grade: A
The Best of the Best. Explosive lather. Slick. Cushioned. What separated these two from the crowd? There was a certain WOW factor with these soaps that the others didn't quite match. Several hours after a shave I could feel the difference between these two and the others - probably related to their amazing ability to moisturize.
Final Thoughts:
When I first started this trial, I was concerned that the differences between these soaps was so small that I would not be able to draw any conclusions. Over time the differences, however small, became clear. My dry skin really enjoyed the moisturizing properties of both the Declaration Grooming and Wholly Kaw. I certainly understand that someone with different priorities might have drawn different conclusions. A&E, Sudsy and Oleo were beaten by the slimmest of margins and deserve your consideration. Even my standards, Mickey Lee and TTFFC, deserve your consideration. All of these soaps are world class.
