Van Yulay’s Black Dragon evokes some of the best scent images for me. Earthy, rich, deep wood resin, with grapefruit and blood orange giving it a very bold scent.
Lather and performance is like most of Monica’s soaps is top notch, great slickness, great residual and post shave will make any shave very enjoyable.

Paired it with Davidoff’s Amber Blend.
Nutmeg, cinnamon, warm amber, sandalwood notes meshes so well with Black dragon turning the scent into something very sensual, very sexy.
Love this combo.
Go easy on the EDP, its 10/10 on strength, projection and longevity, you can easily overpower a room if you go nuts with the application … but it is a very, very beautiful spiced amber scent.

• Bowl : Van Yulay Resin
• Brush : Friendship Shaving Macy G4 Synthetic by Frank Shaving
• Pre-shave : Shower, Bluebeard’s Revenge Pre-Shave Oil
• Soap : Van Yulay’s Black Dragon
• Razor : PAA’s Copper Ascension DOC w/Supermax Diamond Blade
• Post Shave : Van Yulay’s Black Dragon Aftershave and Balm
• Others : Davidoff Amber Blend EDP

Blue Fougere’s scent definitely has that Dior DNA and I do think that it was meant to be closer to Dior Sauvage due to its slight pepper notes but for today, I thought I’d pair it with Dior’s Dior Homme EDT’s cardamom, iris and vetiver scent.
Blue Fougere could swing both ways I think, since its not a perfect take on Sauvage being more fougere.
YMMV.

PAA’s Ascension and the Supermax Diamond Blade (third use) gave a great glass BBS shave.
I know the Supermax Diamonds in the past had some bad QC issues but these new repackaged (new box art) blades are performing beyond expectations for me. Still smooth, and not leaving micro stubble behind.
Good stuff.

• Bowl : Van Yulay Resin
• Brush : Oumo SHD Silvertip Badger
• Soap : Razorock Blue Fougere
• Razor : PAA’s Copper Ascension w/Supermax Diamond Blade (3)
• Post shave : Razorock Blue Fougere Aftershave, Prep
• Others : Dior Homme EDT

Oud.
Agar wood resin is a wonderful and very old scent base used in scents especially in the east and only recently crossed over to the west.
Creed’s Royal Oudh carries that Middle Eastern DNA of oud and spice and Monica’s take on it is pretty much spot on.
(I need to remember to get her Cologne for this one)

The good news or perhaps bad for Creed is that the scent DNA has been in use by Arabian / Middle Eastern perfumers and while today I am using an Attar roll on made in the West in Canada, you can buy “Royal Oud” oils and attars from Middle Eastern scent houses that are more “loud” and more heavily spiced, in their presentation of that scent DNA.

Its a damn fine scent.

• Bowl : Van Yulay Resin
• Brush : Friendship Shaving’s Macy G4 Synthetic by Frank Shaving
• Pre-Shave : Shower, PAA’s The Cube Mentholated
• Soap : Van Yulay Royal Oudh
• Razor : Rockwell 6S-R4 w/Supermax Diamond Edge Blades
• Post Shave : Van Yulay’s Royal Oudh Aftershave and Balm
• Others : Perfumery Oil’s Creed Royal Oudh Impression

… tobacco, then added some cherry, vanilla, patchouli, cloves, and other spices.

Really love WSP’s stuff.
So far I have only three of their soaps and scents and they are 3/3 hitting each out of the ball park.
Blackbeard’s scent profile is loud, masculine and full of zest and life. Tobacco forward, cherry and vanilla riding strong with the wind on their backs and earthy patchouli and spices add depth to the scent.
This is not a gentle flower.

• Bowl : Van Yulay Resin
• Pre-Shave : Shower, Bluebeard’s Revenge Pre-Shave Oil
• Brush : Friendship Shaving’s Macy G4 Synthetic by Frank Shaving
• Soap : WSP’s Rustic Blackbeard
• Razor : Rockwell 6S-R4 w/Bic Platinum (5)
• Post Shave : WSP’s Blackbeard’s Aftershave Balm and Aftershave Splash
• Others : WSP’s Blackbeard’s Solid Cologne

Built on a trio of teas (white, black, and Earl Grey), Tenacity boasts a bright, flavorful blend of apples, ginger, cedar, spice, light citrus, and light florals…

Soap Commander’s Tenacity is going to be one of my top favorites for my evening shaves for the foreseeable future simply because this soap smells AWESOME!
Along with the holy trinity of slickness, residual slickness and post shave being superb, it’s going to be hard to beat.

• Bowl : Van Yulay Resin
• Brush : Oumo SHD Silvertip Badger 26mm
• Pre-Shave : Shower w/Soap Commander Tenacity Bath Soap
• Soap : Soap Commander Tenacity
• Razor : Rockwell 6S-R4 w/Bic Platinum (4)
• Post Shave : Soap Commander Tenacity Balm

• 

• 

I am no stranger to online purchases.
More so when doing so requires stuff to be sent to me half way around the world, and paying a premium in shipping for things I want.

So imagine my surprise when I received an email a day or so after making my order, that I am getting a refund.
My first thought was that something I wanted was sold out and I was given a partial refund. So I contacted Soap Commander (Carrie) and I expressed my concern, my email itself wasn’t properly constructed as it was around 2am or so for me and I wasn’t fully awake but I got my message across.

Then came my second surprise.
I was told that the reason for the refund was because I was overcharged for shipping.
They could have kept quiet, kept the money and I would not have known.
Instead, they took the high road and refunded the difference.

For showing Honesty, Integrity and most of all, that you rather take care of your customer first and foremost, I thank you Carrie of Soap Commander.
You have made me a life time customer.

ps:
Thank you for the hand written note and card, and yes, the package did take a while to get over here, but it is probably one that had to travel the furthest.
And just in time for my evening grooming routine.
Again, Thank you. – Steven

Future Fiction:
Citrus (Lemon, Bergamot & Mandarin Orange), White Musk, Jamaican Ginger, White Pepper, Haitian Vetiver, Hiba Wood, Honey Amber, Black Sage, Peppermint, Jerusalem Pine

Future Fiction is a bright scent.
I am not sure if the batch I got was a little light on the scent, but the stuff I received is the weakest compared to all my other PAA’s offerings.
I do need to be a little more liberal in application of both Cologne Aftershave and the Solid Cologne to get the same “scent cloud” effect than compared against say John Frum for example.

But that aside, this is a great scent. Very wearable, it’s not intrusive, it’s clean, bright and still comes forward as a male’s scent from the mix of citrus, spice and musk.
You definitely can wear this in place of a designer scent.
Personally I would like to see that the scent gets a boost up a notch in strength but that is my take.
YMMV.
For anyone looking for a good subtle scent to wear, highly recommend giving this a try. (get a cologne sample vial)


Brushes, bristles and price.

Having used both the G4 and the Manchurian Macy’s and comparing them against the Oumo SHD Silvertips, I have to say that the G4 is definitely the winner of the three.

While the Manchurian has really good backbone, the G4’s ability to just make lather explode whether you are bowl lathering or face lathering is just too awesome and at times I even feel that it edges the Oumo out somewhat by simply being able to paint your lather on evenly and easily without any scratchy feeling while still holding enough lather in its bristles to complete several passes.

I do however, prefer to go back to the bowl and generate a fresh brush full before each application.
Its the cheapest brush of the lot, and at $25 before discount, it’s definitely the “Best Buy”.
The Macy Dual band Manchurian Badger and Oumo’s SHD Silvertip badgers are $34.00 and $60.00 respectively.

Having said that, the Oumo is a larger brush at 26mm and the better brush if you need a brush that’ll hold a ton of lather. But price vs performance,

• Bowl : Van Yulay Resin
• Brush : Friendship Shaving’s Macy G4 Synthetic by Frank Shaving
• Pre-Shave : Shower, PAA’s The Cube Mentholated
• Soap : PAA’s Future Fiction
• Razor : PAA’s Copper DOC w/Bic Platinum Blades (3)
• Post Shave : PAA’s Future Fiction Star Jelly Aftershave and Cologne Aftershave
• Others : PAA’s Future Fiction Deodorant and Epic Solid Cologne

Together with Atomic Bay Rum, Al Fin was my first purchase from Phoenix Artisan Accouterments.
It was a blind buy, just the soap and aftershave set.
To say that I fell in love with the scent when I used it, is an understatement.

Rose, Bay Leaf, Lemon Myrtle, Vetiver, White Clover, Cypress, helichrysum, Ambrette, Geranium and Tobacco Absolute.

This is a bright tobacco scent. Open fresh, as it dries you get your floral and a herbs and then settles with tobacco, rose, a little sweetness and a light touch of vetiver holding the scent together. A balance of light and dark.

• Bowl : Van Yulay Resin
• Brush : Friendship Shaving’s Macy Dual Band Manchurian Badger by Frank Shaving
• Pre-Shave : Shower, PAA’s The Cube Mentholated
• Soap : PAA’s Al Fin
• Razor : PAA’s Copper DOC w/Bic Platinum Blade (1)
• Post Shave : PAA’s Al Fin Star Jelly Aftershave and Aftershave Cologne
• Others : PAA’s Al Fin Deodorant and EDP

Not much I can say about this other then it is different.
Personally, I would have preferred if the strength of the scent on the cologne to be a little stronger but that’s just me.
It is unique, kind of like sage, oud and smokey blackcurrants all got together and had a party.

• Bowl : Van Yulay Resin
• Brush : Friendship Shaving’s Macy Dual Band Manchurian Badger
• Pre-Shave : Shower, PAA’s The Cube Mentholated
• Soap : PAA’s Copalli
• Razor : Rockwell 6S-R4 w/Bic Platinum Blade (1)
• Post Shave : PAA’s Copalli Star Jelly, Cologne Aftershave
• Others : PAA’s Copalli Deodorant and Epic Solid Cologne

I needed this shave.
It’s a little over 32°c or about 90°f and its humid as heck.
Nothing beats a cold shower and just soaking in the cold on days like this.
And the notes of the soap are :

Woods, Vetiver, Sage, Mint, Green Grass, Cypress, Thyme, Ylang-Ylang, Mug-wort, Patchouli, Violet, Pine, Dirt, Cilantro, Eucalyptus, Sea Moss, Holy Basil, Cardamom, Sandalwood and Juniper.

The play on these “prime” notes though create a ton of scent notes within the scent imagery that you will smell.
Its a very fresh scent.
You’d smell ozone, grass, fresh water, ferns, wood freshly broken, rich wet earth, cold wind…
Its hard to describe unless you have smelt it or worn the scent for a day and you will probably need a day to catch all the notes. Heck I have worn this on more than a few occasions and I still sometimes think I smell something new as the scent dry down.
I do recommend however to get the mentholated version.
While the non mentholated version is fine, with menthol, holy crap, the experience is something else.

“Let there be life. ” She said.
With a breath, Mother Gaia breathed and her breath ran down the mountain gathering frost and snow till her breath reached the warm air of the lowlands bringing rain, wet earth, new life. And life bloomed, with all the beauty that is Mother Earth.”

Also a note of caution. Monica’s cologne is potent stuff.
Just a little will do.
I once went a little overboard and sprayed a little too much.
Pretty sure I got a little high from the scent fumes.

And finally the blade started to leave micro stubble behind. Minor issue, just an additional clean up pass and those were cleared.
No feedback from the Alum, glass BBS shave.

• Bowl : Van Yulay Resin
• Brush : Friendship Shaving’s Macy Dual Band Manchurian Badger by Frank Shaving
• Pre-Shave : Shower, Bluebeard’s Revenge pre-shave oil
• Soap : Van Yulay’s Gaia
• Razor : Rockwell 6S-R4 w/Bic Platinum Blade (7)
• Post Shave : Van Yulay’s Gaia’s Aftershave and Balm
• Others : Salt Grinder with Menthol Crystals, Van Yulay’s Gaia Colonge