Razor: Joseph Allen & Sons 11/16 near wedge
Brush: Spiffo Two Band Badger
Soap: Wholly Kaw King of Oud
Aftershave: Wholly Kaw King of Oud
Other: Thirsty Badger prototype lather bowl, Zoha Aroma Royal Oud
Today, I opted to have a shave fit for a king. This recent addition to the den seemed to fit the bill.
This King of Oud offering from Wholly Kaw is in their Premium base of Donkey Milk and Tallow. The soap itself is quite firm so I opted to bloom the soap while I did my prep. The scent was on the milder side of medium off the puck but blooming and lathering really brought the strength out. This is a really nice take on a cologne oud. Everything blends quite well so it is a bit difficult to pull specific notes but it doesn’t come off as overly complicated either. I quite enjoyed the fragrance, although I wish the strength was dialed up a touch. With my 2 band Spiffo, the soap itself generated a lower structure lather. Very rich a creamy. Slickness was very good both lathered and residual, post shave was good as well. I still find the lathering technique is a bit different with the 2 band vs my synthetics but the sure reward with with a little patience.
The bowl I used today was a 3D printed prototype I’ve been playing with. It is very similar to my travel bowl but I’m tweaking a couple things for a non-travel design. So far performance is really good but I want to work on a few aesthetic things as well. This is one of the things I love about 3D design and print, you can tweak and play with designs quickly and efficiently.
For the razor, I opted to use a straight again today. I still struggle with this straight a little bit. Being a near wedge, this shaves differently than the hollow ground straights I have. Feedback is almost none existent so finding the proper angles takes a bit more patient. Everything from stropping to shaving with this guy all feels very different. I might have to put this guy away for a while until I’m fully comfortable with the straight. Man she is a beauty razor though.
I finished off the shave with the matching splash. A bit of a burn and a really nice complimentary scent. This is a pretty straight forward alcohol based aftershave that just does the trick. Strength was good but the scent didn’t have a tonne of endurance. I opted to compliment it by layering afterwards with a Zoha Aroma Royal Oud fragrance oil, a really nice take on a classic.
