Razor: ALE 9/8″
Brush: Tournure de bois 26mm Gelousy SHD Fan 2 band badger
Soap: Arsenal Grooming Jane Doe
Aftershave: Arsenal Grooming Jane Doe
I’m an idiot. I screwed up. Not too long ago (an image still burned in my brain) I was moving a few things around in the shave den, reaching for something when it happened, I bumped my ALE from it’s storage location. It spun in the air and I did my best to cushion it from the fall. I sliced the top of my wrist (nothing a bit of super glue and a band aide couldn’t fix) and the razor landed directly on the point. To my surprise, the razor didn’t break but it did suffer a bend. Well f*ck. I sat on it for a while, not sure what I was going to do. I ended up reaching of to Alejandro a little over a week ago to see what he could do. After seeing the pictures he said he needed to see it in person to give a recommendation but was confident we could do something. So I packed it up and sent it on it’s way. It took about a week to get there and like 3 hours after the tracking said it arrived I had a message saying it was fixed and ready to come back. He re-profiled it a bit, touched up the blade and said it was good to go. He promptly sent it back and I had it in like 3 days. Talk about customer service! And the blade? Well I think the edge is even smoother than when I bought it. All that, AND I had to convince him to take money for fixing my stupid mistake. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, everyone should have an ALE in their den. His work is top notch, his razors are a work of art and he is a top notch individual.
Anyways, on to the software. Today I’m using Arsenal Grooming Jane Doe. I picked this up using some credit I had from a recent raffle win. The Arsenal base doesn’t blow me away with performance but I do get a decent lather that gives me enough of what I need, even with a straight. If you like fragrance dupes, they are well worth a look. The scents are strong and true, and the packaging artwork is really top notch. I have never smelled the original frag this is based off of, Tom Ford Fougere Platine, but Tom Ford does some amazing scents and I’m a sucker for a fougere. Why the heck not?
I can say wholeheartedly, this scent is a win. I really dig it. This carries the scent notes of Bergamot, Clary Sage, Lavender, basil, olibanum, labdanum, honey, cedar, and tobacco. To my nose this opens bright, fresh and herbaceous fougere that dries down to a slight tobacco, slightly musky and woodsy base. You could wear this any season Strength on this is on the stronger side of medium and paired with the splash, I was able to carry the scent for at least a couple hours. Honesty, if I could afford Tom Form prices, I’d seriously consider picking this fragrance up.
No complaints today and I’m very excited to have my ALE back in rotation. I’ll try not to be so stupid with it this time around.
All for now – J
