And here it is, my SOTD SOLN (Shave Of Last Night) as why change a habit of a lifetime? And for yesterday night my particular theme was 'I know what you did last evening'
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Last night's razor - Colonial General in brass
A blade to remember - Kai Captain
A brush with fate - Cadman 30mm Tuxedo
New Soap on the block - Signature Soaps Hibernian
The night before tonight - ESC Duine Fon
Choill
A new nation arises - Banana Republic Neroli Woods
So last night I had every intention of scribbling some useless rubbish together, but then work rang and my night at home turned in to '0330 onboard for a job at 0430 please'. Excuses, excuses, excuses but I am just a slave to work and a slave to Mrs Satanfriendly when not subservient to others. 58 years a slave. Wasn't that a film?
So a couple of new items out on trial here, Signature Soaps and Banana Republic to join the ever expanding shaving library.
I have already said sufficient in reference to the Brass General and the more I use this baby the more I am thinking 'Top of the tree?'. It continues to amaze and continues to deliver in a most efficient and pleasing manner. And if REM ever had a song about shaving it would be called 'Shiny Happy Razors'. The Kai because until the point when a change of blade to a Proline happens (in a few days yet) I will remain single minded and ignorant to everything else out there in the world of SE blades. A nice pair.
Righty Oh. So just when I thought I'd found the new OSP in my favourite soap of the moment Extro, up pops a bunch of happy folk from Bolton with a whole host of tantalising soaps and a name to remember for the future, 'Signature Soaps'. Their description is a hybrid soap or I guess to use the commonly known name, a croap. I was rather expecting something down the lines of Extro with their 'hard jelly' approach, but I think the best I could describe this is 'chewable porridge'. Hard but soft and not a soap as we know it Jim. In this case being their Hibernian soap and in their own description:
Fragranced with a careful Balance of Lime, Lemon, Lemongrass, Sweet Orange and Lavender Essential Oils A natural vegetable shaving soap Vegan No Lanolin
And they are not kidding. I reckon I would smell every bit of their description in this soap and it certainly lives up to what it says on the very nice aluminium screw top tin. With the Cadman doing its brush thing this croap is easily picked up and distributed in to my Mexican cereal bowl for lathering. A few swirls later and a very nice and thick lather is produced with the scent really starting to come to life. Applied to ones face and one instantly knows this is way above average. Not only that, it stays there the whole shave and not absorbed by the skin. Some big ticked boxes here. Apply a razor and there is a wonderful sense of glide and of the razor being allowed to do its job as against to doing something.
I am very impressed by this new soap on the block and as good as anything else I have tried before. I am more than happy to put it on par with Extro for performance and very pleased for it to share the same cabinet shelf. For you guys who have the samples on their way I am quite positive you will find much the same results.
A stonkingly good soap and I think
@BrianH and his team have arrived on the scene with a real bang and I wish them all the best. They deserve it. Impressed
So one very smooth as porridge shave later and time to apply scent. In this instance first a splash of ESC's Duine Fon
Choill followed by a spray of Banana Republic's Neroli Woods. for £25 this is about the best thing I have bought from Debenhams for years. I am currently obsessed with any scent Neroli or orange and so this one fits the bill perfectly. The Neroli is not instant and takes a few minutes to expose itself, but shit, when it does so it does it with great effect. Not a bright edged scent and rather more a 'dirty orange' with a beautiful pizzazz in its air. Combines brilliantly with the citrus and woody angle of the Duine Fon
Choill to have the fresh sweet air I rather like in a scent.
Altogether last night produced a wonderful shave with everything which I look for to give me that big fresh sensation. Pity I had to get up at 0230. But hey I must have been the closest shaven and best scented tug driver on the river last night. Like every other night and day.
Have a great weekend ahead you forum folk and be well one and all