The Obie Memorial First Tier Soaps and Creams Thread.

[petercp4e]

Just a quick FYI that if you go to the Wholly Kaw website you can pick from a couple different sample packs. I did and have found several great scents. So far Oud and Dark Vetiver are my favorites.

Just pulled the trigger on the Dark Vetiver and the Oud.
I'm a big fan of Vetiver and have always been curious about Oud.

Pete <:-}

[Obie]

Thoughts on Wholly Kaw . . .

What is especially noticeable about this soap is its creamy lather. Squeeze it in your hand and let it run between your fingers. You really feel the cream in the lather. I like this about this soap. I like it a lot.

The lather is easy to produce and takes little time. As a rule, I like loading my brush heavily no matter the soap or cream. About 30 second of swirling and you have a robust brush ready to make luxurious lather. And the lather is exceptional: silky smooth and moist.

From there, the lather cushions the skin remarkably well, as well as produce the ideal glide for the razor to sweep comfortably across the skin. Some of the ingredients in these soaps include donkey milk, Shea Butter and JoJoba Oil, among others. All contribute to this soap's quality.

Another important element in determining the shave soap or cream's quality is to consider its aftershave properties. Some products might have good lather, cushion and glide but fall short in on the aftershave feel on the face. This is important stuff in adding to the overall shave enjoyment. If a product fails short in wrapping up the shave with its sweet face feel, that is a big disappointment for me.

Wholly Kaw meets all the criteria to achieve the First Tier status. Is it a good as, say, Martin de Candre or Castle Forbes? Well, nothing is as good a those two legends. Still, I feel Wholly Kaw belongs in their neighborhood.

The fragrance on any shave soap or cream is personal. There is no right or wrong in preferring fragrance. I dislike bay rum. So do my wife and daughters. I passed on the last bottle of bay rum to a friend and he loved it. So, yes, it is personal with fragrance.

I had a sample of the Wholly Kaw King of Oud and it was thumbs down for me. In some respect, it gave me the same unpleasant nose feel as bay rum. Fortunately it was just a sample.

The scents I have used, in addition to the King of Oud, are Jamesestown Gentleman, Man From Mayfair and Monaco Royal. I like all three, though I like Monaco Royal the most. I need to spend more time with the others to give my opinion.

Monaco Royal blends lavender, Bergamot, Neroli, oakmoss, vetyver, sandalwood and musk, among other notes, to produce a subtle fragrance that reminds me of coffee-cherry liquor. Love that that drink after a fine dinner. Throughout the shave the fragrance continues to tease the senses with this sensual fragrance, adding a treasure to the joy of traditional shaving.

Good stuff, gentlemen, although, as always, only my opinion.

[Gasman]

Very nice write-up Obie. I too am not a bay rum fan. Guess 8 might need to 0ut this on the list to pick up. Thanks for the review.

[Steve56]

Depends on the specific bay rum for me but I don’t find myself reaching for or buying bay rums much.

If you don’t care for mainstream bay rums, give Green Mountain Soaps Spiced Rum a whirl. It’s very nice but contains no bay I believe. I like the scent a lot.

Cheers, Steve

[evnpar]

Nice review, Obie. Wholly Kaw donkey milk soaps and Oleo Soapworks have been my favorite new soaps of 2018. I do like King of Oud and Merchant of Tobacco, but I think Washington's Blend, Man From Mayfair, and Monaco Royale are my favorites. I'm looking forward to his release of Fougère Bouquet in a donkey milk formulation.

[petercp4e]

Excellent written words Obie. Very informative indeed. Thanks for taking the time to do this.
I had to order the Oud just out of curiosity as I don't ever remember experiencing it's scent. I love Vetiver, so ordering it was a given for me.
I will post my thoughts after it arrives and I get a chance to try it.

Pete <:-}

[nessmuck]

Nice review Obie.....but you left out an important catch phrase or Obieisum..... Wholly Kaw left my "Hollywood Face" ....feeling great....lol

[Obie]

Nice review Obie.....but you left out an important catch phrase or Obieisum..... Wholly Kaw left my "Hollywood Face" ....feeling great....lol

Hollywood Face, indeed.

[ScoutHikerDad]

Wholly Kaw has become my favorite soap(of course, I haven't tried MDC yet-it's a bit pricey for me; it's on my list, though). But I got a sampler of WK, and was just especially blown away by the performance and scent of all of them, but especially loved Dark Vetiver and Fougere Bouquet. For me, the vegan offerings are equal to the donkey milk versions.

I just got a full tub of the vegan King of Oud in the mail yesterday. Love the scent, can't wait to try it tomorrow!

[ScoutHikerDad]

Wow is all I can say about King of Oud- About 15 seconds of light swirling yielded gobs of pillowy lather (I face lather, dipping the brush tips until the consistency is right). Very slippery and a nice cushion for a 3-pass shave with my laser-edge Boker "Our Own" Hollow Ground. The scent is exotic and intoxicating, and the post shave moisturizing is noticeable hours later. I can't get enough of this Wholly Kaw!