Razor: Karve CB on C CC
Blade: Astra Green
Brush: Sloyd Synthetic
Soap: Like Grandpa Wild Rose
Aftershave: Like Grandpa Wild Rose Balm/Splash
Other: Thirsty Badger lather bowl
Today is a Western Canadian shave, I’m using products from Alberta and Saskatchewan, right out my back door. I was inspired to do this because my new Wild Rose Aftershave from Like Grandpa has arrived. For those that have followed along, I have always been a big fan of the Wild Rose offering. Sure it is awesome that it is a vehicle to send $5 an order the Ronald McDonald house in Edmonton, but it also smells freakin awesome. This isn’t your grandma’s rose. This Wild Rose take has some zip to it, like perhaps a citrus sharpness. It is wonderful, a winner with the wife and the strongest of the Like Grandpa scent offerings to my nose.
I have long bugged Ken at Like Grandpa to hook me up with a splash. His aftershave balm is great but it is on the heavier side. I LOVE it in the winter but in the summer it is a bit much. A splash would be perfect. Well not long ago, he reached out to me and asked if I would be a tester. He provided a bunch or unlabelled samples and an evaluation form. I wasn’t compensated at the time (although after the fact he said he was sending something as thank you). I went through a thorough test period giving him my thoughts on each. The Wild Rose I’m using today is the culmination of that hard work and the testing response from myself and several others. I did purchase it, but to be clear, I will be receiving something in the future as a thank you for assisting. So take my thoughts on it with that in mind.
The soap whipped up a great lather as always. With the Like Grandpa vegan formula I get a higher structure lather that is easier to come by. Cushion is very good, slickness (lathered and residual) good, and post shave is about average. It can be a bit drying on the skin so it is perfect they now have a couple matching post shave options. Like Grandpa tends to have lighter scents but this one is the strongest I’ve used of theirs and comes in about a medium. I followed the shave up with the splash. I’ve very happy with the result, the scent strength is stronger than the soap and balm, a bit on the stronger side of medium. It does carry for a little while as well. First impression, performance is very good. There is a bit of alcohol for a slight burn, but then you are left with a nice skin food splash. There is a touch of tackiness that does absorb fairly quickly. I’ll report more in this as I use it more but I’m very happy with how this came out.
I didn’t need the balm to finish but opted for the trifecta today. This balm is probably the most hydrating of all balms I have used, but it does go on a bit heavy. As such, I typically use this for the days my skin has taken a beating. It is a godsend for Prairie Winters. Today, it finished off the shave just fine and my skin is left feeling WAY hydrated. No complaints today. In fact I had an awesome live shave with another friendly wet shaving on the Canadian Wet Shavers group. Had a great chat.
Can’t start a weekend better than that! All for now – J
