Razor: Gillette Fatboy on 9
Blade: Gillette Wilkinson Sword
Brush: Aloha Shaving 26mm Cashmere Synthetic
Soap: E&S Rasage Traditionnel Solstice
Aftershave: E & S Rasage Traditionnel Solstice Splash
Other: Thirsty Badger Lather Bowl, Burberry London
Today I’m featuring software from a lesser-known artisan from France, E&S Rasage Traditionnel. I always like trying out artisans that are off the beaten path so when Stonefield Shaving added this to the lineup I wanted to pick one up. All of the offerings sounded interesting but Solstice seemed like the safest bet scent-wise and had come recommended from a friend. It is described as an “Oriental Aromatique” and it features notes of mandarin, jasmine, violet, cedarwood, sandalwood and patchouli. Scent strength is about a medium. I’d say it is a very well blended scent and to my nose, I get warm sweetness over this rich cedar and sandalwood base. The scent blends very well together but if you keep going back to it, you can pick out each note. I appreciate that. Very nicely done on the scent.
The soap base is tallow and goat milk with a lot of skin-enhancing ingredients in it. I had high hopes for the base, goat milk bases tend to be my jam. Not that this is a bad soap, but it didn’t quite live up to the expectations for me. It loads and lathers easily enough but I didn’t find it took as much water as I was expecting. It really felt like I was going to break the lather if I hydrated more but it never got to that luxurious rich glossy lather I was expecting based on the ingredient list. It was still protective and had very good slickness but I just didn’t get that luxurious feel like some of the newer bases. I’d say it was very good but not excellent.
I used my old Fatboy today and while I love the history of this razor and am happy to have it in my den, I can’t say it is a great shaving razor. I just never find I get the blade engages the way I’d like regardless of the setting. It feels like the blade is just set a touch too far back from the safety bar. On certain spots of the face (right under my nose for example) I can never seem to find an angle to feel like it is actually shaving. As such the razor only gets used on the odd occasion and purely for nostalgia reasons. Of all the razors I own, it is the least effective.
After the shave, I used the matching splash and while it does have some skin food ingredients in there, it is very alcohol forward and my skin was not impressed. I got a much sharper burn with this than I was expecting. It also felt very thin and light. The scent was great and it had enough strength to carry for a bit, but the formulation just isn’t a win for me. If you like old-school alcohol splash formulas I’m sure you would dig it but I can’t see myself using this a lot.
I was digging that warm sweet scent vibe from the lineup so I decided to add on a fragrance that would push that forward. I grabbed Burberry London. That scent is a warm, somewhat spicey and sweet tobacco-style fragrance. Honestly using Solstice I thought it had a tobacco note because of how it comes off so this fragrance works perfectly with it. This was a match made in heaven scent-wise and is perfect for the cold weather we are having right now.
Not the best shave I ever had but certainly good enough. Somedays, that is all you can ask for. All for now – J
