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Went on a buying spree today...

After a lot of reading, viewing SOTD, and other posts here/other forums/reddit/FB, I put together a list of soaps and products I really wanted to try. As mentioned in previous posts, I've never been one to slowly get into anything. Today I jumped in head first...

List of items I got either new or used that I am really looking forward to using. If any of you have experience with these products, I would love to hear your thoughts... Also just opinions in the items in general. Ill obviously be able to form my own opinion as they get delivered, but it always good to hear others thoughts!

Here is the run down of what came in or I ordered today:

Soaps/Scents:
Ariana and Evans Which Ones Pink
Ariana and Evans Which Spartacus
Ariana and Evans Which Ones Pink
Ariana and Evans Asian Pear
Barrister and Mann Cool
Declaration Grooming Unconditional Surrender Milksteak Base Chatillon Lux Collaboration
Declaration Grooming Gratiot League Square - Milksteak Base Chatillon Lux Collaboration
Declaration Grooming Massacre of the Innocents Shaving Soap Milkstreak
Declaration Grooming Chaipre Milkstreak
Murphy and McNeil Nantahala Kodiak
Phoenix Artisan Accoutrements Aqua D
Phoenix and Beau Shaving Soap Albion
Talbot Authors Ridge
Wickham Soap Co. 1912 Classic 24
Wickham Soap Co. 1912 Club Cola
Zingari Man The Magician

After Shave:
Ariana and Evans Post Shave Serum
Maol Grooming Marlogue Wood

Brush:
Wolf Whiskers custom handle with a 26mm TGN Grade A Silvertip
Wow. You jumped pretty far. Hope you enjoy all the products!

I know for me, I have sensitive snout so I can't smell all the scents without getting a headache. Samples serve me a lot better.
 
I will be curious to get your impression and comparison between the A/E soap base and the DG milk steak. I’m in the deep end with the number of A/E soaps and I am super satisfied with them. I was very curious about the milk steak hype so I picked up two tubs to try. As far as performance in my bathroom and on my face, I couldn’t really tell any performance difference between the two brands. I know the Asian pear soap has a modified base which in my experience was noticeably different for the better, but it was a thicker lather lather with less volume or puffiness to it. I found the milk steak to lather the same way. With as good as all these products are it’s hard not to reach for these top shelf artisans every time.

The Which one’s pink soap is definitely different in the scent area. Of nearly 2 dozen soaps I have bought from them, this is the only one I had to pass on. Gave me a pretty uncomfortable sensation when I lathered up. Never caused any irritation whatsoever but was just uncomfortable. I think it’s the pink peppercorns. My brother in law experienced the tingle to a lesser extent, and was happy to keep using his tub since he suffered no irritation either. Overall my favorite brand, great base and I love the over the top strength of the scents.

Khalifa is a must have, as well as the novelist and Grecian horse. These 3 are my most complimented.
 
Well, two days in and I have to say The DE Chatillon Lux I shaved with yesterday was wonderful! I have nothing but good things from lather, to scent, to overall performance! I bought a lot of these blind, and had no clue what I was getting into. This scent was something I didn’t love at first smell, but my wife said she loved it. The soap did feel softer than the other soaps I’ve tried in the past, but I didn’t have a lot to compare to. After the shave, my face felt great, smooth, and wow, the scent really grew on me! Honestly, really liked this a lot!

Tonight I used the B&M “Cool” and as much as I liked the DE soap yesterday, this was equally as impressive. Not as soft but that’s fine... it lathered nice! I will say, getting the right amount of water to get the proper lather did vary from the DE. Not better or worse-just different. The scent in this one... just wow! I think it will be hard to beat. Equally impressed with performance here however, the lather did seem a bit less “plush”than the DE I used yesterday. Maybe different load time and water in my brush... either way, marvelous!

I do want to add, the Wolf Whisker brush is amazing. I know for sure I do prefer the WW synthetic 25mm black wolf knot over this new 26mm TGN Grade A Silvertip knot. It’s not night and day, but I might just be a synthetic knot guy.

Both shaved I did use my newer brush, I can’t wait to revisit these soaps with the other knot to see what the difference is in terms of compatibility with the soaps.

I’m not an expert by any means, but so far, very impressive... esp compared to the TOBS Sandlewood cream I was using!

Update tomorrow!!
 

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Well, two days in and I have to say The DE Chatillon Lux I shaved with yesterday was wonderful! I have nothing but good things from lather, to scent, to overall performance! I bought a lot of these blind, and had no clue what I was getting into. This scent was something I didn’t love at first smell, but my wife said she loved it. The soap did feel softer than the other soaps I’ve tried in the past, but I didn’t have a lot to compare to. After the shave, my face felt great, smooth, and wow, the scent really grew on me! Honestly, really liked this a lot!

Tonight I used the B&M “Cool” and as much as I liked the DE soap yesterday, this was equally as impressive. Not as soft but that’s fine... it lathered nice! I will say, getting the right amount of water to get the proper lather did vary from the DE. Not better or worse-just different. The scent in this one... just wow! I think it will be hard to beat. Equally impressed with performance here however, the lather did seem a bit less “plush”than the DE I used yesterday. Maybe different load time and water in my brush... either way, marvelous!

I do want to add, the Wolf Whisker brush is amazing. I know for sure I do prefer the WW synthetic 25mm black wolf knot over this new 26mm TGN Grade A Silvertip knot. It’s not night and day, but I might just be a synthetic knot guy.

Both shaved I did use my newer brush, I can’t wait to revisit these soaps with the other knot to see what the difference is in terms of compatibility with the soaps.

I’m not an expert by any means, but so far, very impressive... esp compared to the TOBS Sandlewood cream I was using!

Update tomorrow!!
I have a couple of black wolf knots and they are probably my favorite synths. Before I got those and the CH2 I really didn't care for synths and I still greatly prefer good badgers. If you get used to the synths you may end up making your lather too quickly when you use a badger. Be sure to load plenty of soap, I think you have enough to do that, use more water than you do with synths, add the water slowly, a little bit at a time, work the soap in between adding the water. If you take your time the badgers will serve you well. Of course, we are all different and like you said, you may just prefer synths. The black wolf is a very good one.
 
I will be curious to get your impression and comparison between the A/E soap base and the DG milk steak. I’m in the deep end with the number of A/E soaps and I am super satisfied with them. I was very curious about the milk steak hype so I picked up two tubs to try. As far as performance in my bathroom and on my face, I couldn’t really tell any performance difference between the two brands. I know the Asian pear soap has a modified base which in my experience was noticeably different for the better, but it was a thicker lather lather with less volume or puffiness to it. I found the milk steak to lather the same way. With as good as all these products are it’s hard not to reach for these top shelf artisans every time.

The Which one’s pink soap is definitely different in the scent area. Of nearly 2 dozen soaps I have bought from them, this is the only one I had to pass on. Gave me a pretty uncomfortable sensation when I lathered up. Never caused any irritation whatsoever but was just uncomfortable. I think it’s the pink peppercorns. My brother in law experienced the tingle to a lesser extent, and was happy to keep using his tub since he suffered no irritation either. Overall my favorite brand, great base and I love the over the top strength of the scents.

Khalifa is a must have, as well as the novelist and Grecian horse. These 3 are my most complimented.


The A&E scents purchased by the OP represent several different soap formulations. Asian Pear is the latest (updated) formulation. I presume the other soaps are from the older version of that base. I have some older A&E soaps that lack the strained yogurt. They are still excellent soaps, but not quite as good as the newer ones.
 
Ariana & Evans is great soap. Barrister & Mann is my favorite though. I don't see any Bay Rum on your list so while you're shopping grab B&M's Bay Rum soap and a bottle of Phoenix Artisan's Atomic Age Bay Rum aftershave.
It’s ok to not have no bay rum. It’s ok. I don’t and I’m just fine.... my wife and kids say I’m a good boy all the time. They is gonna take me out for my birthday this year because I’ve been such a good boy.
 
lol
Nice purchase

I honestly don’t have a bay rum or a classic barbershop (whatever that means).

It looks like you took time an picked up a good mix of classics and new options without going nuts with blind recklessness.
 
The only one from your impressive haul I tried is Albion by P&B. Summer scent, definitely. Performance wise - top for me.
Enjoy!
 
The A&E scents purchased by the OP represent several different soap formulations. Asian Pear is the latest (updated) formulation. I presume the other soaps are from the older version of that base. I have some older A&E soaps that lack the strained yogurt. They are still excellent soaps, but not quite as good as the newer ones.
Yes, the Asian pear is the same base but an optimized formulation, changing the amounts of certain ingredients. It’s a noticeable change. The soap seems to desire even more water, which I like, there is not a narrow but rather a broad sweet spot for hydrating the lather to your preferences. All existing scents he is putting out now are going to be in the modified formulation. And he apparently has a new base he’s fine tuning that’s supposed to be even better.
 
The Which one’s pink soap is definitely different in the scent area. Of nearly 2 dozen soaps I have bought from them, this is the only one I had to pass on. Gave me a pretty uncomfortable sensation when I lathered up. Never caused any irritation whatsoever but was just uncomfortable. I think it’s the pink peppercorns. My brother in law experienced the tingle to a lesser extent, and was happy to keep using his tub since he suffered no irritation either.

Man... so yeah. I used the A&E which ones Pink today. I have to tell you, I got that same strange feeling. At first I thought I was getting irritation, but that want it. Very strange mild burn and uncomfortablewhen using it.

I’ll post more thought tomorrow a.m as I am beat. But I thought I was going nuts there for a sec.
 

JCarr

More Deep Thoughts than Jack Handy
Ariana & Evans is great soap. Barrister & Mann is my favorite though. I don't see any Bay Rum on your list so while you're shopping grab B&M's Bay Rum soap and a bottle of Phoenix Artisan's Atomic Age Bay Rum aftershave.

As good as Phoenix's Clasico and Atomic Age Bay Rum aftershave are, I prefer Barrister and Mann's Bay Rum aftershave to either one of them. Barrister and Mann Bay Rum smells so good! It's become one of my favorite Bay Rum scents. After I purchased my first bottle of it...I knew right away I had bought something that was going to be a staple in my rotation so I immediately bought two more bottles.

I have Barrister and Mann's Bay Rum soap. It's ok. Lather is a little lackluster. Smells fantastic though. I use Ogallala's Bay Rum soap often. Lathers well and smells nice.
 
P&B is one of my favorites. I don’t have Albion thou. Summer is right around the corner....
Rightly so.
P&B does everything correctly: soap quality, scents and package design - all boxes checked.

Come summer, go for Albion when wet, and Trafalgar for sunnier occasions.
 
As good as Phoenix's Clasico and Atomic Age Bay Rum aftershave are, I prefer Barrister and Mann's Bay Rum aftershave to either one of them. Barrister and Mann Bay Rum smells so good! It's become one of my favorite Bay Rum scents. After I purchased my first bottle of it...I knew right away I had bought something that was going to be a staple in my rotation so I immediately bought two more bottles.

I have Barrister and Mann's Bay Rum soap. It's ok. Lather is a little lackluster. Smells fantastic though. I use Ogallala's Bay Rum soap often. Lathers well and smells nice.

Barrister and Mann Bay Rum along with Cologne Russe have not yet been converted over to the Excelsior base. Thus, if you have Bay Rum, it would be from the older Glissant base. While still an excellent soap, I compared to the performance of Excelsior and other top soaps available today, the lather is somewhat "lackluster". In its day, however, it was one of the better products.

Maggard Razors still has some B&M Bay Rum in stock, but it is sold out one the artisan's web site. We will have to wait to see whether the scent will be converted over to Excelsior or allowed to fade away in favor of newer scents.
 
Barrister and Mann Bay Rum along with Cologne Russe have not yet been converted over to the Excelsior base. Thus, if you have Bay Rum, it would be from the older Glissant base. While still an excellent soap, I compared to the performance of Excelsior and other top soaps available today, the lather is somewhat "lackluster". In its day, however, it was one of the better products.

Maggard Razors still has some B&M Bay Rum in stock, but it is sold out one the artisan's web site. We will have to wait to see whether the scent will be converted over to Excelsior or allowed to fade away in favor of newer scents.
I've never used a B&M soap that didn't give me a beautiful slick lather. That includes Bay Rum.
 
Man... so yeah. I used the A&E which ones Pink today. I have to tell you, I got that same strange feeling. At first I thought I was getting irritation, but that want it. Very strange mild burn and uncomfortablewhen using it.

I’ll post more thought tomorrow a.m as I am beat. But I thought I was going nuts there for a sec.
It’s just a sensation, no visible or felt irritation afterward right?
 
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