Thread: Scents: why bother?

I currently use Proraso Green, Haslinger Sandalwood, ToOBS Eton, and Ogalla BRw/Burnt Orange.

I love all the scents, but after I rinse with cold water, splash with witchhazel, apply a bit of unscented moisturizer/balm, and a light dusting of Pinaud Talc under the arms, I can't smell the soap or cream.

Not that I like heavy scents, because IMHO there's nothing worse than a guy that slathers on Grey Flannel, Axe, or some other olfactory obscenity . You know the type, you can smell him before you can see him. Uggh. You feel like shaking them, screaming "Advertisers are selling you a myth! Girls like CLEAN, not overpowering!"

But I digress....

Since smell of soaps/creams seems to dissipate fairly quickly, if not immediately, wouldn't it make more sense to pick a soap or cream based solely on the your satisfaction of the lathering qualities and post-shave feeling of the skin? Even if it's unscented?

I guess if I wanted a post-shave scent, but don't want to use an after-shave, balm, or (gasp) cologne, I could always add a drop of the scent I enjoy to my moisturizer.

What do you think?

It's all about enjoyment for me if I use a soap partly because of the scent.

You figure a shave takes 10 to 15 mins so I get to enjoy the scent the whole time.

Also there are some scents that just seem to cling to me. I actually noticed it the other day. I shower after I shave so I really drown out any scent from my shave soaps but just the other day I used the real shave company cream and I kept getting whiffs all day.

Now I would not choose scent over performance but have two soaps the work as good and one with a more pleasing scent I'll take the scent

Means nothing to me,but I am old

I've often thought the same thing with some scents but I've found if the soap has a powerful scent that has a bit of staying power you can layer with the aftershave making the soap's scent an undertone of sorts making the scent more complex. I try to keep my scents sophisticated and subtle if I can. Some soaps I've found smell so strong that the scent really won't leave you. I love Mama Bear's frankincense and myrrh soaps because of their serious business staying power. Finding frankincense and myrrh aftershave is a real pain but said soap is so strong that I barely need a matching aftershave.

On the flipside there are those that are truly horrible scents that you can't stand to use because they offend you so much right? Well, for me anyway. Tabac was one of those. But yes, sometimes the scent lingers most of the day. Proraso red and blue are like that for me. And in some cases, you can have your cake and eat it too. DR Harris Marlborough is like that. I love the scent and love the lather.

I mainly in it for the lather, but I won't turn my nose up at something that smells good too.

I see your point and more or less agree. I don't care for the scent of Cella or Vitos Red but use them anyway no big deal. I do like the scent of Tabac and Arko. None of these last long after the shave. Never had a soap so awfully smelling it was not useable or interfered with my aftershave scent.

Bob

Originally Posted by Chuck

What do you think?

To me the scent adds to the whole experience. If I really like the scent, and want to carry it on on to the public past the shave, I may get the matching aftershave and/or cologne/EDT. But sometimes it entertains my olfactory to shave with one scent and wear a completely different one. But, your post now makes me want to try unscented to see if my nose would miss it.

I'm not big on aftershaves or cologne so I enjoy a nicely scented soap. The soaps do have to perform though, I won't use a soap that just smells good. My favorite soap these days is C&S Oxford and Cambridge, really like the scent and get wiffs of it through most of the day. You can get both performance and scent.

I like the scent of the soap or cream as I'm using them. I also find that some have great staying power (such as Proraso or O Melhor) so at times I don't use an AS over the top and find I can still smell the scent of the soap or cream at lunch time.

I get your point, though, that the cushion and glide properties of a soap or cream should possibly be more important to the user than the scent; esp if the cushion and glide aren't that great; even if the scent is.