a surprinsing find (pre-shave oil)

[Ockham]

I posted this earlier on the B&B forum, but I just thought it could interest members here nonetheless:

I took a few days holidays with my wife, visiting friends. I took my travel strop, my stainless straight razor, my GFT shaving cream and my after shave but forgot... my pre-shave oil.

It was not that terrible, but I was a little annoyed: the discovery of pre-shave oil changed my shaving routine for the best... so, in a place forgotten by the God of Shaving - in the middle of the Alps -, I began to look for oil that I could use in my routine. Having stepped into The Body Shop, my wife's sight was attracted by the Spa Wisdom products range, and especially by the Monoi Miracle Oil... she pointed me to the bottle... that was what was needed: a miracle oil; and it was a miracle one indeed. Very surprisingly, it turn out to be a very good pre-shave oil (in fact a really good all-purpose oil, also working against shave burn, dry skin, etc...), and worked great with my skin.

As it is far less expensive than the usual pre-shave oil, I thought it must be of some interest to drop a line or two to tell the story.

Hope this will be useful.

[tjiscooler]

I tried pure jojoba oil once, it worked ok but it was a little too thick to give good glide, did great on my chin tho!

[CloseShave]

Thanks for the tip. It turns out to be a 2/1 special so I 'll try it.

[Mike_ratliff]

I just looked up this Monoi Miracle Oil, and it looks to be mostly coconut oil, which is not terrible, but I understand it can irritate some people, and it can be comedogenic, so it can cause breakouts... I'm not saying don't try it, but use it sparingly.

[Ockham]

The main ingredient is not coconut oil, but Babassu oil, which has similar properties but is different (the palm tree name is Attalea speciosa).

But you are right Mike, as every natural oil (like almond oil, etc.), it could be comedogenic and, as with every oil, it must by try sparingly to see how your skin is reacting to it (without forgetting that allergies could come without warning, even if you had used a product during the last 20 years with pleasure and comfort: for instance, my wife had an allergy with a Dove soap she was using without problem the last 15 years).

List of ingredients of the Monoi miracle oil: Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Prunus dulcis, Orbignya oleifera, Cocos nucifera, Parfum, Linalool, Tocopherol, Hexyl Cinnamal, Gardenia tahitensis, Cananga odorata, Benzyl Benzoate, Benzyl Salicylate, Piper nigrum, Geraniol, Farnesol, Jasminum officinale, Benzyl Alcohol, Limonene, Eugenol, Amyl Cinnamal, Citronellol, Coumarin, Hydroxycitronellal, Isoeugenol.