PAA’s soaps and post shave are as always a joy to use. Croma blade its on its third use. Its still sharp but I think this is its last shave. I’ve found them to be relatively sharp, about the same as Astras though not as smooth.
I’ll want to burn through some of my razor blades though. Have a buttload of Derbys, but since I use them only for one shave, at most 2, they’ll get burn up fast. (I’ll keep a few to to have them if I ever feel I want to use them)
Brush : Frank Shaving Silvertip Badger Preshave, cream and Post Shave : Proraso White (For sensitive skin) Weapon of Choice : Rockwell 6S w/Croma Blades
So my face got a little irritated using a 2nd use Derby chasing BBS in the evening so, yeah, that’s why I keep this stuff around the house for times like this. Love Proraso white, great scent, feels great and the balm, putting it on is like skin food haven. Trying new blades out too, heard conflicting reviews so only one way to find out if this blade is good for me.
Brush : PAA’s Atomic Rocket Preshave : Prep Soap and Post Shave : Body Shop’s Maca and Aloe Weapon of choice : Vikings Blade The Emperor Augustus w/Derby Extras (yes….Derbys you blade snobs!)
I think that this soap and post shave is very much given the cold shoulder just because its a mass produced and from a company that is not known to make products for men, much less shaving.
To be fair the soap is not something that I’ll sing praises to, but it is easy to find, and while priced a little on the higher end of the spectrum, is still a relatively good soap. It has a fairly good scent and it lathers very well, if a little thirsty. It does have post shave slickness, assuming you gave it enough water, otherwise the lather is thick and a little starchy, so if it goes on thick wet that brush a little more, not too much as when its too thin, it looses its slickness. And a little of the soap goes a long way, an index finger first digit sized dollop will make you enough lather for 5-7 passes easy.
The post shave gel is actually something I’d use with other soaps that don’t have a matching counterpart usually after applying a moisturizer (Nivea), it’s mentholated, goes on easy and dries to form a protective layer on your skin that last the day unless you wash your face. Good stuff.
Brush : Frank Shaving Silvertip Badger Preshave : Prep Soap and Post Shave : WSP Matterhorn Rustic (Vegan) Shaving Soap, matching Tonic Splash Aftershave (Mentholated version), EDP. Weapon of Choice : Rockwell 6S w/Rockwell Blades
After yesterday’s Gaelic Tweed shave, today’s WSP’s Matterhorn did not disappoint. They were all made by the same person judging by the signature so thank you for my bottles of joy. Soap performed same as the Gaelic Tweed, exploding with lather almost as soon as I started loading the brush and this time I went with a bowl lather till I got the texture I wanted, having learnt from the last time, I didn’t load as much soap as yesterday, I still had enough lather for a full three pass and cleanup with yet still enough lather to spare.
WSP claims that their soap will last a long time. I believe them. I’ll will probably need to buy one more bottle of aftershaves for each of the soaps I have and maybe the EDPs, though the EDPs do go a long way. Had another great shave.
Brush : Frank Shaving Silvertip Badger Preshave : Prep Soap and Post Shave : WSP Rustic Shaving soap (Vegan) Gaelic Tweed, Afershave Splash Tonic (Mentholated version) and EDP Weapon of Choice : Rockwell 6S w/Feather Blade (1st)
When I first saw products from this company, and looked at what they had, I was intrigued that it is one of the few accouterments artisans that made EDP strength colognes. I am a frag head, I admit that. To me, scent is a huge part of the experience, and if a product gives me a total experience, including after the shave itself, I am more likely to buy it.
Unfortunately, there were not many people who show off or review WSP’s stuff. Even WSP themselves are rather mum about their own products, which is confusing, because they do make great stuff. Perhaps its because they aren’t as flashy as other brands such as Phoenix Artisan Accouterments and lets face it, Douglas is a hoot of a salesman, being one once myself, I see his showmanship in all his products.
But WSP is the quiet guy in the corner, doing his thing and trusting that people who are happy with his product will let others know. Kind of reminds of that Molly Ringwald movie, Pretty in Pink. She’s not all that pretty but you know a good product when you see it, and goddamn she’ll make you feel good.
The other thing you’ll notice when you buy a WSP product, is that it really hits home that you are buying customized handmade stuff.
On the label, you have someone handwritten, with a sharpie, what you ordered with his (or her) signature on the label. Handwritten, not printed on. I had to take a closer look and I could see the tell tales of someone pressing down on the sharpie, where the ink gathers a little more, and the flow of the ink as the tip moved along the label. Someone actually took the time to write his or her name on your bottle of joy. That is something that I appreciate and happily paid for. 🙂
Which is all for naught if the products didn’t perform. Thankfully they did. Boy, do they perform. I bought the vegan soap, though I will be buying their tallow version next time but even so, lathering with the soap is ridiculously easy. Lather just explodes from the puck when you are loading the brush and it doesn’t take much for you to go straight to face or if you prefer, bowl to work your lather to texture you want. Lots of slickness, lots of cushioning, and post shave slickness that stays on your face. The Rustic version (vegan) soap is a little thirsty and it dries off a little faster then tallow soaps that I have used before but I think it is very good nonetheless.
The other part of the WSP experience? Scent. Glorious scent.
Gaelic Tweed is a homage to Creed’s Green Irish Tweed and while I have used Creed’s extremely expansive perfumes, I no longer buy them. I no longer have “true blue original” samples to compare WSP’s scent against. However WSP’s stuff do jog the memory and if there is a difference, I can’t tell.
I don’t know how long the scent will last though, I’ll know later in the day. 🙂 But for now, I have had a really enjoyable shave and WSP’s products delivered with flying colors both on the practical, that is soap that gave me a great smooth shave, and scent that made it all the more blissful.
WSP’s Gaelic Tweed is definitely going to me one of my favorites in my permanent rotation of soaps, aftershaves and body scents.
Udate : Past 6 hours, and I still get a whiff of the scent. Having the solid cologne would be great at this point to refresh and keep you smelling great. 😁
Brush : Frank Shaving Silvertip Badger Preshave, cream and post shave : Proraso Green : Menthol and Eucalyptus Weapon of Choice Rockwell w/Feather Blade (3rd)
Nothing like a morning menthol face bomb to wake you up. Proraso is nothing like some of the more aggressive menthol nukes out there but still a great way to feel refreshed and ready to face the day. Rockwell 6S and Feathers are made for each other. Glass BBS shaves easy without irritation.
Brush : Frank Shaving Silvertip Badger Preshave : Proraso White Soap and Post Shave : Proraso Blue : Aloe and Vitamin E Weapon of Choice : Rockwell 6S w/Feather Blade
Going through soap rotation as the package I was expecting didn’t arrive yesterday and being a holiday today, probably won’t be delivered. Still gotta go to work, still gotta shave. Could do worse then a Proraso shave.
Steve's Wet Shaving in Singapore 