I owe the thread a double header, as I missed out on a previous shave, despite taking the photo etc. Real life intervened, so here we go with the most recent two shaves.
Back on Monday, I was finally able to replace the sample of Stirling Gentleman, which I didn't like at all, it being to floral, with a sample of Stirling Blu, in my Patum relish jar. Polo Blue is one of my long time favourite scents and I was keen to try the soap. The soap's scent is reminiscent of the aftershave but not as close, say as their Old Spice (Stirling Spice) or Hermes Terre D'Hermes (Arkadia) clones. It was a strange one, as the scent grew after the shave was over, as it wasn't that strong during? I liked it but I'll give it some more use before I decide whether a full tub should join the collection. By way of contrast, Stirling Spice was an immediate "Yes, I'm buying that!"
As usual the Merkur 34C, Voskhods and Yaqi performed brilliantly.
Razor: Merkur 34C
Blade: Voskhod (1)
Soap: Stirling Blu
Brush: Yaqi Purple Haze
Pre-shave: PAA Cube
Post-shave: Polo Blue
Bowl: Face Lather
Yesterday, I enjoyed this little lot.
The full tub of Stirling Spice is representative, as I managed one final shave from the sample I've been using for a while. The brush is also wrong, as I used my Semogue 830 which lathered up the remnants of the sample to a beautiful, whipped cream consistency. Even if the scent is not to your taste, the soap is always a winner.
The Giesen and Forsthoff 1353 just works so well with my face and with every blade I've tried from Feathers to Voskhods, it offers a lovely smooth, trouble free shave. It's a zamak head on a stainless steel handle and I'm definitely thinking of ordering another, just in case. Three passes, with neck pick ups and plenty of Old Spice gave me no burn at all. Nice!
Stay safe and enjoy your shaves!
Razor: Giesen and Forsthoff 1353
Blade: Israeli Crystal (3)
Soap: Stirling Spice
Brush: Semogue 830 Boar
Pre-shave: PAA Cube
Post-shave: Old Spice
Bowl: Captain's Choice Copper