Razor: Karve CB on B
Blade: Gillette 7 O’Clock SharpEdge Yellows
Brush: Copper Hat 24mm Tuxedo Synthetic
Soap: Tallow and Steel Madagascar
Aftershave: Tallow and Steel Madagascar Splash
For my #CanadaWeek shave yesterday I highlighted a couple newer artisans I discovered in the past year. Today I will be highlighting one of the more established artisans, Tallow + Steel. T+S is a Winnipeg, MB based artisan that has been making soaps and splashes since, as best I can tell, 2015. Products are created from organically sourced ingredients and scenting is done purely with essential oils and natural extracts. Packaging is always stunning. I can always pick out a T+S product based on the visuals and the scent profiles. Their scents are unique, and at times can be polarising.
This particular offering, Madagascar, could be considered one of those scents. Scent notes are Ylang Ylang (54%), Katrafay (28%), Vanilla (10%), Rose Geranium (5%), Ravensara (3%). Yes, I give percentages. That is one of the things I really like about T+S is that on their labelling (well most of them) they include scent notes and the percentage that creates the scent. I don’t know any other artisan that does that. All combined, the scent on this I would describe as heavy, robust, bold. There is just the slightest hint of floral but at it’s core it is herbaceous, woodsy and green. Scent strength is quite strong on this. I wasn’t a big fan when I first smelled this but it has really grown on me.
Performance on T+S is outstanding. It loads and lathers quite easily and gives great cushion, slickness and post-shave. This base easily holds its own amongst the other tallow bases and exceeds many of them. Pretty much the only place to acquire T+S is from the source (there are a couple exceptions) so that does make it a little trickier for many to pick up. Unfortunately, I liked it back when they were carried by a few retailers.
The brush today was a no-brainer choice, I grabbed this anodised aluminium handled synthetic from The Copper Hat. The Copper Hat is based out of Victoria, BC. Along with making great bushes (aluminium and natural wood) they also have a line of shave soaps worth checking out. I love the handle on this brush. It is a tall barber-style handle with nice heft. The Tuxedo knot is soft and makes a great lather.
I finished off with the matching post shave splash from T+S. The scent on this is a perfect match to the soap and is plenty strong. The splash base itself gets top marks across the board and in my opinion is one of the best aftershave splashes out there. The skin is left feeling uber hydrated and scent will carry for hours.
A great shave today. No complains. All for now – J
