Thread: The Great 2018 Mystery Soap Review

Originally Posted by markbignosekelly

Not just a pretty face!

I believe Creightons make the big 3; TOBS, Trumpers and T&H.
They also make St James of London too.
https://stjamesoflondon.com/about

For me nothing is finer on a Sunday than an old Sheffield, Neil Miller strop and a good ol easy to use English cream.

Damn! Not only not a pretty face, but a romantic too! Interesting mix LOL!

I've got to give the old English Stuff another run after this batch is done. Hopefully they are still making soaps in ten years lol.

Maybe I'm bias but some of the English creams are the best out there. Penhaligons and Floris are top performers but with the most exquisite fragrance.

Originally Posted by markbignosekelly

Maybe I'm bias but some of the English creams are the best out there. Penhaligons and Floris are top performers but with the most exquisite fragrance.

I've heard good things. I'm simply way behind - I still haven't gotten to a Penhaligon or a Floris. Sacrilege I know.

Honestly, all of the samples I've tried here have been tricky to differentiate given their fine performance. But on this particular shave, I specifically compared the lathering qualities of the Trumper's cream against my best stuff -- CF and XPEC. I felt the cushion may be lacking comparatively.

Slick stuff though, so I could surely see this cream blending well with MWF for a wonderful superlather.

Jumped backwards to sample #2 for tonight's wonderful shave. A medium dense, white croap, I once again got a lathering workout. Damn you, you devious bastard, David! I'm so looking forward to returning to the ease of brush loading from my adult-sized shave cream and soap containers.

Okay, so once I eventually got the lather going, of course I had way too much. No problem, let's slather the stuff all over and even clean up the rear of the neck before calling it good. I can't even describe the scent other than to say it was very refreshingly pleasant. Performance was great all around with nothing to knock, especially the post-shave feel without a hint of skin tightness.

I did my usual 2 passes but this time with the Tanifuji Maxfli Gold and managed a wonderful BBS shave.

After finishing with some Trumper's Indian Limes skin food, I eagerly tossed some sample splash David paired with this soap like he did with samples 1 and 2. Man, what a wonderful slap of menthol tinged with various woodsy/floral notes.

Loved the stuff like the other splashes. He's got me hooked! I may have to scrounge some coin to treat myself to some splash this upcoming holiday season.

Okay, so I think that does it for this review. Great soap, great splash, and a wonderful shave.

Samples 1, 4, and 5 still left to go...

Nice!!

You sir, just sampled Fine’s American Blend! And sir, you aren’t kidding about that scent nom, nom.

Here is what they say about their American Blend:

“Our flagship fragrance, Fine Accoutrements American Blend captures the essence of a barbershop shave. Similar to Rive Gauche Pour Homme (2003) by Yves Saint Laurent, the scent calls to mind warm cream accompanied by tonic, leather and chrome, leaving the wearer feeling distinctively clean and renewed. Generously scented yet never overpowering, our Mr. Fine American Blend fragrance is a recreation of one of the most beloved masculine designer fragrances of all time..."

Now I recently reviewed this soap. See below link:
https://straightrazorpalace.com/soap...nd-review.html

I still have no clue why I ran into trouble with it! You know I’m going to try again. It’s a tallow soap - usually I do great with tallows!


Glad you liked it Mark - many men do.

Well, if you don't care for the Fine American Blend, be sure to consider me your disposal expert in the matter.

Originally Posted by Speedster

Well, if you don't care for the Fine American Blend, be sure to consider me your disposal expert in the matter.

Lol! I most certainly will.

I had a rather hurried shave yesterday morning with Sample #4. After digging some out of the container, I smashed it into my pre-warmed GP20 scuttle following my typical shower warmup. Surprisingly, I found the stuff rather easy to lather with a very sophisticated, gentlemanly scent. Given my checking account balance, I wasn't really sure I deserved such luxury.

I went back to the Oakwing G and found the sample soap to be a very solid performer with what I imagine would be a British scent although this is purely based on inexperienced imagination.

Post-shave feel was excellent (Trumper's Coral skin food post-shave), and I received a DFS on 2 day's growth. Given the fact I was short on time for the shave and still managed a great outcome helps me place this at or very near Tier 1. Since I barely used much of the sample, I have enough left for 2-3 more shaves. I plan to return here with more detailed feedback soon.

Correcting my last post, I see that I have one sample left to shave....#5 (a rather empty container made me realize I had already tried #1).

I think it will be interesting for me to return to my solid Tier 1 performers after this extended break to see if I gain renewed appreciation for their performance.

Originally Posted by Speedster

I had a rather hurried shave yesterday morning with Sample #4. After digging some out of the container, I smashed it into my pre-warmed GP20 scuttle following my typical shower warmup. Surprisingly, I found the stuff rather easy to lather with a very sophisticated, gentlemanly scent. Given my checking account balance, I wasn't really sure I deserved such luxury.

I went back to the Oakwing G and found the sample soap to be a very solid performer with what I imagine would be a British scent although this is purely based on inexperienced imagination.

Post-shave feel was excellent (Trumper's Coral skin food post-shave), and I received a DFS on 2 day's growth. Given the fact I was short on time for the shave and still managed a great outcome helps me place this at or very near Tier 1. Since I barely used much of the sample, I have enough left for 2-3 more shaves. I plan to return here with more detailed feedback soon.

Correcting my last post, I see that I have one sample left to shave....#5 (a rather empty container made me realize I had already tried #1).

I think it will be interesting for me to return to my solid Tier 1 performers after this extended break to see if I gain renewed appreciation for their performance.

I look forward to you returning with a little more insight afterwards. It'll be a whole new insight again!

By the way, best line in a review ever lol!!

Given my checking account balance, I wasn't really sure I deserved such luxury.

But you nailed it. This is a "rich" scent and one of the greatest scents of all time I feel! Warm, but not winter-centric, inviting, but not in your face, manly, but clean all the same.

The soap itself really does lather pretty well in it's own container, but I've tried taking bits and adding it to my "bowl" - I can never get it all used up. It really pays to give this soap a good swirl or ten thousand!!

Anyway, your shave today friend, was brought to you by:



A true classic!!