Saponificio Bignoli Reviews

Boycie83

Boycie83

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This is another Italian soap maker that doesn't seem to have many reviews on the internet. Like the Extro thread, I though it useful to start something that can be used as an easy reference. I have 6 Saponificio Bignoli (SB) soaps to try:

IMG_20201014_181615.jpg

  • Mora e Muschio - Blackberry and Moss
  • Sandalo Indiano - Indian Sandalwood
  • Aghi di Pino - Pine Needles
  • Agrumi del Mediterraneo - Mediterranean Fruits
  • Antica Ricetta - Ancient Recipe (the only tallow soap among this batch)
  • Arancia Solido - Orange (triple milled)
As per usual, my reviews will be inconsistent, incoherent and provide barely enough useful information to inform your decision making. You're welcome.

First soap up is Mora e Muschio which will be used for tomorrow's shave
 
Boycie83 said:
This is another Italian soap maker that doesn't seem to have many reviews on the internet. Like the Extro thread, I though it useful to start something that can be used as an easy reference. I have 6 Saponificio Bignoli (SB) soaps to try:

View attachment 60559

  • Mora e Muschio - Blackberry and Moss
  • Sandalo Indiano - Indian Sandalwood(y)
  • Aghi di Pino - Pine Needles
  • Agrumi del Mediterraneo - Mediterranean Fruits
  • Antica Ricetta - Ancient Recipe (the only tallow soap among this batch)
  • Arancia Solido - Orange (triple milled)

" incoherent and provide barely enough useful information to inform your decision".
You have won the advertising award for this year or so due to the fact that this award is,
Incoherent and provides barely enough of any information to inform my decision :cool: (y) (y).
Ps, I like your reviews. (y)
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IMG_20201022_185936.jpg

Razor: '67 Gillette Slim Adjustable
Blade: GSB (2)
Brush: Dscosmetics 2B
Soap: SB Mora e Muschio
Pre: Proraso White
ASL: Floïd Suave
ASB: LEA

I've decided to stick with the Slim for this thread as I really enjoyed my last shave with it. I'm pleased to report that it maintained its excellent performance.

Now, the reason you're all here - the soap - Mora e Muschio. It performed flawlessly. It can just about claim soap status as it's very soft so loading a brush is incredibly easy. The lather exploded into life in no time at all and kept getting better with each pass. This can take a fair amount of water.

The scent (blackberry and moss) from the tin smells a little artificial but not overly strong. I'd describe it as the smell of artificially sweetened blackcurrant squash. The scent strength decreases once lathered and the smell mellows in to something much more light and pleasant.

Slickness was excellent and there was plenty of residual slickness for touch ups. There was also a nice level of post-shave feel but I can personally take or leave that.

I've used some of these soaps before and enjoyed them on previous occasions. The performance of this one.did not disappoint and I'm looking forward to using the others.
 
Thanks for a nice review.

I have three of these (Lavender, Agrumi and Violetta) and can confirm it is a very good soap.

My personal complaint is that this (soft) version is kind of 'sticky', i.e. it is soft but not that soft so as to dilute or get agitated by water easily. Therefore one needs to preferably press and disperse it inside a shaving bowl with grooves (for example) or alternatively put a dollop inside the heart of the shaving brush and then press the bristles so that the soap actually gets 'thinner' and ready to work as should in the lathering process.

If one puts it in between the brush bristles or in the shaving bowl (or even directly into the face) and without any other action tries to do bowl or face lathering, this particular soft yet kind of dense/stiff in consistency soap will not automatically get agitated; the danger here is that on the face there may be dense spots of soap left, and if these are unattended this may cause the razor to get stuck during any stroke of the first pass.

That kind of 'dense' consistency / texture of this soft soap resembles the consistency / texture of RazoRock's 'The Dead Sea' and 'Santa Maria del Fiore' soaps.

The newest, stocked by Connaught, more hard in texture SB Solido soaps I have not tried yet.
 
N_Architect said:
Thanks for a nice review.

I have three of these (Lavender, Agrumi and Violetta) and can confirm it is a very good soap.

My personal complaint is that this (soft) version is kind of 'sticky', i.e. it is soft but not that soft so as to dilute or get agitated by water easily. Therefore one needs to preferably press and disperse it inside a shaving bowl with grooves (for example) or alternatively put a dollop inside the heart of the shaving brush and then press the bristles so that the soap actually gets 'thinner' and ready to work as should in the lathering process.

If one puts it in between the brush bristles or in the shaving bowl (or even directly into the face) and without any other action tries to do bowl or face lathering, this particular soft yet kind of dense/stiff in consistency soap will not automatically get agitated; the danger here is that on the face there may be dense spots of soap left, and if these are unattended this may cause the razor to get stuck during any stroke of the first pass.

That kind of 'dense' consistency / texture of this soft soap resembles the consistency / texture of RazoRock's 'The Dead Sea' and 'Santa Maria del Fiore' soaps.

The newest, stocked by Connaught, more hard in texture SB Solido soaps I have not tried yet.
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That's a really good point and something I forgot to mention.

I assumed it would operate similar to a cream due to its consistency but also got caught out by its 'stickiness'. The same issue you described occured when transferring a blob from the tin to the brush or in to a bowl. I now load directly from the tin and face lather.
 
Nice review. Got to say, I don't rate them personally... Tried the Agrumi and disliked both scent and lather. I find the market overly saturated with Italian croaps, all using similar formulas, providing similar mediocre lathers and usually poor scents (to my fussy nose!) I could forgive them if they were £6 per tub, Goodfellas Smile are the only brand who seem to know their own value.

That said, I've become a jaded git so YMMV :p
 
Rohleder said:
Nice review. Got to say, I don't rate them personally... Tried the Agrumi and disliked both scent and lather. I find the market overly saturated with Italian croaps, all using similar formulas, providing similar mediocre lathers and usually poor scents (to my fussy nose!) I could forgive them if they were £6 per tub, Goodfellas Smile are the only brand who seem to know their own value.

That said, I've become a jaded git so YMMV :p
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:ROFLMAO: you know I always love and value your input. You're right - the market has become saturated. It never ceases to amaze me how we all enjoy such different things from an act as simple as shaving.

An important note for anyone reading this thread and considering a purchase - these may not tickle your pickle!
 
Boycie83 said:
  • Antica Ricetta - Ancient Recipe (the only tallow soap among this batch)
  • Arancia Solido - Orange (triple milled)

First soap up is Mora e Muschio which will be used for tomorrow's shave
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Fine first review Chris. I'd be intrigued to how the tallow one performs in comparison to the other ones and if it has the tallow funk when the lather's on your face.

Rohleder said:
I could forgive them if they were £6 per tub, Goodfellas Smile are the only brand who seem to know their own value.
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The Solido ones, like the Orange one above is the same soap as Razorock WTP Orange one, as shown in this thread and also the Goodfellas Smile hard pucks, use the same base as the Solido Base

Eg
Saponificio Bignoli “Arancia”:

Ingredients: Potassium Palmate, Sodium Palmate, Potassium Stearate, Potassium Palm Kernelate, Sodium Stearate, Potassium Cocoate, Sodium Palm Kernelate, Glycerin, Aqua, Parfum (Fragrance), Palm Kernel Acid, Glyceryl Caprylate Caprate, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Lanolin, Pentasodium Pentatate, Tetrasodium Etidronate, Limonene, Linalool, Citral, Geraniol.

Goodfellas - Lemon
ingredients: Potassium Palmate, Sodium Palmate, Potassium Stearate, Potassium Palm Kernelate, Sodium Stearate, Potassium Cocoate, Sodium Palm Kernelate, Glycerin, Aqua, Parfum (Fragrance), Palm Kernel Acid, Glyceryl Caprylate Caprate, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Lanolin, Pentasodium Pentatate Etidronate, Alpha-Isomethyl ionone, Citral, Limonene, Linalool

The latter are a bit smaller 60g, opposed to 100g but are around £6 or so.
 
donnie_arko said:
Fine first review Chris. I'd be intrigued to how the tallow one performs in comparison to the other ones and if it has the tallow funk when the lather's on your face.



The Solido ones, like the Orange one above is the same soap as Razorock WTP Orange one, as shown in this thread and also the Goodfellas Smile hard pucks, use the same base as the Solido Base

Eg
Saponificio Bignoli “Arancia”:

Ingredients: Potassium Palmate, Sodium Palmate, Potassium Stearate, Potassium Palm Kernelate, Sodium Stearate, Potassium Cocoate, Sodium Palm Kernelate, Glycerin, Aqua, Parfum (Fragrance), Palm Kernel Acid, Glyceryl Caprylate Caprate, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Lanolin, Pentasodium Pentatate, Tetrasodium Etidronate, Limonene, Linalool, Citral, Geraniol.

Goodfellas - Lemon
ingredients: Potassium Palmate, Sodium Palmate, Potassium Stearate, Potassium Palm Kernelate, Sodium Stearate, Potassium Cocoate, Sodium Palm Kernelate, Glycerin, Aqua, Parfum (Fragrance), Palm Kernel Acid, Glyceryl Caprylate Caprate, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Lanolin, Pentasodium Pentatate Etidronate, Alpha-Isomethyl ionone, Citral, Limonene, Linalool

The latter are a bit smaller 60g, opposed to 100g but are around £6 or so.
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I did ponder this Shubs. I bought the Lime WTP from Italian Barber a few weeks ago and I'm intending to use it straight after the SB Solido for comparison (and avoided buying the orange WTP for duplication). The ingredients in the WTP are in a slightly different order to the Solido but I think you're right about them being made by SB. If I find the performance is the same, it will mean the the SB variant is considerably over priced compared to RR and TGS.
 
Boycie83 said:
I did ponder this Shubs. I bought the Lime WTP from Italian Barber a few weeks ago and I'm intending to use it straight after the SB Solido for comparison (and avoided buying the orange WTP for duplication). The ingredients in the WTP are in a slightly different order to the Solido but I think you're right about them being made by SB. If I find the performance is the same, it will mean the the SB variant is considerably over priced compared to RR and TGS.
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I look forward to reading your reviews of both.
 
IMG_20201024_081049.jpg
24/10/20

Razor: '67 Gillette Slim Adjustable #5
Blade: GSB (3)
Brush: Yaqi Barber Pole 2B
Soap: SB Sandalo Indiano
Pre: Proraso Red
ASL: Proraso Red
ASB: LEA
Scent: TOBS Sandalwood

I'm really enjoying the Slim. Such a smooth razor.

On to the soap. Today I used the Sandalo Indiano which translates to Indianapolis Flipflop which makes no sense given it smells of Indian Sandalwood. The scent from the tin was a subdued combination of sweet and dirty spice. I like it. Once lathered, it explodes in to something much stronger and gains a powdery note and a bit more spice, in addition to those notes from the tin. Again, I like it. Scent wise, this one is a keeper.

Performance and slickness was excellent - just like the Mora e Muschio. Loads of lather that was easily created. The blade glided over my skin and it was a really comfortable shave. I didn't bother to check the post-shave today as I rinsed my face well and applied ASL. These seem to have a common base so I imagine it's good, like the Mora e Muschio.

This is my favourite of the two I've tried so far.
 
IMG_20201025_192254.jpg
25/10/20

Razor: '67 Gillette Slim Adjustable #5
Blade: GSB (4)
Brush: AP Shave SynBad 24mm
Soap: SB Antica Ricetta
Pre: Proraso Azur Lime
ASL: Signature Soaps Hibernia
ASB: LEA

Today was the turn of the tallow SB variant. The smell from the tin is bitter orange and this scent remained during the shave although some of the lavender started to come through. I'm convinced there was a light note of tallow among it as well. It's potentially more pronounced to me as I'm used to the veggie variants. This is the official scent profile:

Head notes: orange, bergamot
Heart notes: bitter orange, orange blossom
Base notes: lavender, thyme, natural Marseille soap

The soap is of a similar consistency to the veggie base but has a shinier look to it - I'm assuming due to the fat.

IMG_20201025_192323.jpg IMG_20201025_192341.jpg

Interestingly, I found that this soap underperformed when compared to the two I've already used. It wasn't a bad performance but I wasn't wowed like I was with the other two. Slickness was fine and the post shave was ok. I'd reach for the veggie base over this one though.

Now, it's probably worth noting that the GSB was on its 4th outing. This is normally fine for me but perhaps the deteriorating blade could have been slightly detrimental to this shave.

The shave was finished with a good splash of Signature Soaps Hibernia which brought some sweeter citrus notes to help close the shave out.
 
Boycie83 said:
View attachment 60684
25/10/20

Razor: '67 Gillette Slim Adjustable #5
Blade: GSB (4)
Brush: AP Shave SynBad 24mm
Soap: SB Antica Ricetta
Pre: Proraso Azur Lime
ASL: Signature Soaps Hibernia
ASB: LEA

Today was the turn of the tallow SB variant. The smell from the tin is bitter orange and this scent remained during the shave although some of the lavender started to come through. I'm convinced there was a light note of tallow among it as well. It's potentially more pronounced to me as I'm used to the veggie variants. This is the official scent profile:

Head notes: orange, bergamot
Heart notes: bitter orange, orange blossom
Base notes: lavender, thyme, natural Marseille soap

The soap is of a similar consistency to the veggie base but has a shinier look to it - I'm assuming due to the fat.

View attachment 60683 View attachment 60682

Interestingly, I found that this soap underperformed when compared to the two I've already used. It wasn't a bad performance but I wasn't wowed like I was with the other two. Slickness was fine and the post shave was ok. I'd reach for the veggie base over this one though.

Now, it's probably worth noting that the GSB was on its 4th outing. This is normally fine for me but perhaps the deteriorating blade could have been slightly detrimental to this shave.

The shave was finished with a good splash of Signature Soaps Hibernia which brought some sweeter citrus notes to help close the shave out.
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Great review Chris, I enjoyed reading it and thanks for posting it.

The tallow scent is an odd one in some ways, I find it for some soaps to not be much of an issue but for a few others I find on some days it can be a bit much. From the sounds of things for the SB the included tallow doesn't add much/anything to improve on the vegan base.
 
IMG_20201027_185043.jpg
27/10/20

Razor: '67 Gillette Slim Adjustable #5
Blade: King C Gillette (1)
Brush: Dscosmetics 2B
Soap: SB Aghi di Pino
Pre: Proraso Cypress and Vetiver
ASL: TGS Pino Alpestre
ASB: LEA

Initial impressions of the KCG blade is that it's a good blade. It happily took down 48 hours of growth with the epic Slim (what a razor!). I wouldn't rate the blade any better than the GSB I've just finished using though. On that basis, consider this: 10 KCG blades on Amazon are £11.28 but you can get 50 Gillette Platinums from Amazon for £9.95. That's a no brainer. Alternatively you can get 100 GSBs on Fleabay for £14. @Bogeyman - you can sleep easy tonight my friend. I've got your (wallet's) back!

Enough about the blades, all 3 of you are here to read about the soap. From the tin, the Aghi di Pino smells of nice fresh pine needles. The scent grows stronger once lathered. It's a real fresh scent - straight up pine needles. I can't detect anything else. Like the Indianapolis Flipflop, this one is a keeper as it's a unique scent within my den. It took me to the Swiss Alps or Lapland in my head (never been - they probably smell of reindeer shit - this soap doesn't).

Lather quality was excellent. Lots of glide and more than enough residual slickness. Initial check of post-shave feel felt good as well. I've found the loading time required for these soaps/croaps to be under 10 seconds and that provides more than enough lather for 3 passes.

Interesting isn't it that the tallow version appeared to be the poorest performer for me among these? It's the Agrumi del Mediterraneo next which I've used a few times and know to be good.
 
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