Thread: I'm number one!

Good Morning Gentlemen,

Clarman, I must admit there was an extra bottle after all the boxes were sealed....and I just didn't have the heart to open them all back up, because you KNOW that it would have been the very last box I would try as "Murphy's Law" would have it.

I'll send you something else today, thru the Postal Service....so it will be traveling ground. I am happy to do this, as to satisfy my curiousity to the length of time it takes for items to travel surface thru the USPS.

XXWarm Regards, Colleen

Honestly, I’ve been struggling with how to describe my feelings about an aftershave… how to rate it in a way that’s meaningful to someone else. I'm an engineer by trade... so I tend to want to classify everything into succinct and/or quantifiable terms. So, I started to think about the things I could evaluate… following are my ramblings...

Almost immediately I realized I'm not qualified to do this! For most of my shaving life I've not felt the need for an AS, so I feel somewhat handicapped in this endeavor. Yes, I've received all those cliché type gifts sets as presents... you know, the things like Old Spice or Avon, or Hawaiian Surf, etc. Most of these I used a couple times (so the giver thought I liked their gift), and then they were quietly disposed of. Mostly what I remember about them is that they all seemed to be made the same... alcohol, color and scent. Eventually I gravitated to using Bay Rum, and when I wanted a little kick, a Cologne.

So now that I'm faced with having to say something semi-intelligent about an aftershave, I thought I'd better see what others say about such things. So I did what I always do when I need info... I Googled! And I found some things others talked about related to aftershaves...

One was the scent… is the fragrance pleasing, is the strength strong or light, and how long does the scent last (in hours)? And, there’s the myriad of things you read on basenotes.com… it's floral, spicy, earthy... it smells like powder, lavender, roses, musk, bergamot, vetiver, etc. ad infinitum? I don’t think I even know what half of those smell like... Bergamot?? Vetviver??? Not a clue. So I can’t accurately report in those terms. About as good as it could get from me is it's floral, citrus, spicy, musk/earthy. If I recognized something else I’d report it too... eg, "it smells like turpentine", even though I'd be pretty sure that WOULDN'T be an actual ingredient, lol. And finally, there's the I like/dislike it.

Other attributes I found… Astringent? Soothing? Cooling? Moisturizing?

All that got me to thinking about "why the hell do people use aftershaves anyway?". I concluded the following might be the trends:…

1. if you have sensitive skin or allergies you might want an aftershave with lots of soothing cooling moisturizing attributes and most likely not heavily scented. I guess you wouldn't want astringent qualities, but I don't really know since sensitive skin issues seem mostly an individual thing.
2. If you don’t have sensitive skin then you probably want an AS that’s either heavily scented (and you don’t use an EDT/Cologne) or lightly scented (and you do use an EDT/Cologne). Both of these are probably astringent as well.

Well geeze Einstein, isn't all this pretty obvious! Well, it wasn't to me. Yes, all the buzzwords were in my vocabulary, but they really held no particular significance until I tried to justify them to myself... then they took on real meanings.

So I guess the following is what I'm going to try to report on unless someone has a better idea and/or can add things to evaluate. I'm certainly groping in the dark, so all inputs are welcome and encouraged.

To summarize:

Scent:

• strong/weak
• lasts X hours
• smells like
• like/dislike it

Skin Conditioning:

• soothing
• cooling
• moisturizing

Astringent:

• yes/no

Thanks Joe, That was insightful. This way all the reviews should have the same flavor or should I say scent..

WoW Joe! thats pretty good....I'll have to put you on the Payroll

I will try to sit down this evening with a better responce, but no time at the moment. Colleen

Good Morning Gentlemen,

First....with the delivery of packages to Post Office last evening I had to go to main branch because the little one down the street closes at 4:30 pm. along with my remaining orders, is the small brown box for Clarman.....

I set it on the counter and the first words out of the Postal Clerk's mouth was "Mam, you can't mail that"......coughs.....uhhh No Sir, you're wrong about that! If you'll check your DMM manuel under the Hazardous Materials section under subsection 10.1 (or whatever it was...damn it sounded good though...lol ) you'll find that YES, I am indeed to allowed to mail this little box. Clarman your other bottle of AS is on it's way along with a #4.....

I'll be the first to step up to the plate and say that the testing of an Aftershave is not an easy task because it IS difficult to define....

I have no idea of what an Aftershave should feel like, even though I've used each one....and yes I have a favorite of the three, but how it feels on my face has ZERO to do with how it would feel to a Man after he has just removed the top layer of skin....

Joe, I feel like your post was exactly what was needed from a Man's point of view and it will be helpful for everyone to more clearly define the different attributes of each AS. Which in turn helps me to figure out where to make adjustments. Your skill for setting down items in an easily understood manner is much appreciated....Thank you!!

I will say this Gentlemen, I do not expect any of the three to be brilliant. What I'm hoping for is at least "one" positive comment on something....be it the scent itself, or if one of them felt more soothing than another, or quite frankly "constructive criticism" about what you don't like, is every bit as valuable for me in trying to understand the right ratios.

From our current test round.....will come another test round of 2 or 3 AS that should come closer to what a Man is looking for in an AS. I fear that currently I am simply bummbling around in the dark.

One one last note.....you will observe that upon resting overnight the #2 aftershave will be a clear brown liquid, like a tea....but with a layer of oil on top. It is only when you shake it up that the color changes to that of coffee with cream. This occurs because the essential oils do not want to mix or emulisify with the hydrosol and alcohol. It is important to shake it up before using.

For #1 (menthol) and #3.....I have no idea if they perform better after shaking ??? or if it makes no difference. This would also be an important thing for me to know.

Colleen

Colleen,

I recieved my package today (actually last night but I had left already). I will say this wow can you pack. Can you come up around Christmas time and help get out packages out.. lol. I can't wait to start being a guinea pig. It's true though #2 looks just like the coffee I am drinking right now. I will say right out Desert Ironwood soap smells outstanding.

Colleen,

I know this has been discussed but I can't remember so as a person with scents I'll ask you. Can you tell me what the difference is between after shave and cologne. Thanks.

Originally Posted by RichZ

Colleen,

I know this has been discussed but I can't remember so as a person with scents I'll ask you. Can you tell me what the difference is between after shave and cologne. Thanks.

Good question Rich... maybe we could add balms to the list too?

Anyway, all I know is what I read... here's two sources I found interesting:

http://reviews.ebay.com/Fragrance-Co...00000001741040

http://www.thecologneguy.com/

Thanks Joe that's what I thought but wanted to be sure.

I received my box today , and will commence testing tomorrow morning. I plan on keeping a writen record covering the criteria that Joe laid out, and then apon completion I'll email them to Colleen. I can't wait to try the stuff.