Paul Mole Shave Cream

[FLTiger]

First off, this shaving cream is...different. I opened the container and was a bit surprised that the product was very "loosey goosey," in that I could pour it out if I chose to. I'm not sure if that is intentional, but then, a look at the label indicates that the first two ingredients are water and mineral oil.

I spent many fruitless minutes trying to whip it into a lather using my Merkur Silvertip and my shaving bowl, to no avail. After giving up on that, I just applied it directly to my face from the tub. It went on very thin, almost like runny whiteface stage make-up.

I used a fresh Feather in my SS and did a single WTG pass. I rinsed with hot water, reapplied, and then did a second WTG pass (but using the "slide" on my cheeks). Given that the stuff is mostly oil, it made for a very slick shave.

The oil in this product is apparently meant to stick with you post-shave. I rinsed, then rinsed with Thayer's, but the oil remained. I applied a wet alum block, and still the oil remained. I gave up and just rubbed in some Nancy Boy Replenishing Balm.

I'm really not sure if I was using the stuff correctly, or if my experience is intended to be typical. I will say that I didn't care for the post-shave oiliness of the product, or the fact that I couldn't whip it into a proper lather. Barring some clearer direction, I won't be using it again. It might be perfect for my wife to use when shaving her legs, but I can't cope with the post-shave feel of this product.

I'd like to thank the folks at Paul Molé for giving me the opportunity to try their product. I don't mean to denigrate it in any way--my shave seemed fine--it just isn't my cup of tea.

 

[joshmpdx]

to thier credit, it sounds like a very unique product.

 

[arghblech]

Packaging: The cream's directions say to apply the cream with a sharp blade?! Oil's pkg doesn't really match the tub. Both logos look fine. When using oil for the first time, the bottle seal was stuck up in the cap (likely the oil destroyed the adhesive holding the seal to the bottle lip). Needed tweezers to retrieve it. Also, cream gets a bit soupy in the hot bathroom during shower.

Scent: Oil smells somewhat spicy/exotic... made me think of curry. That's not a bad thing IMHO. Cream smell like cheap suntan oil from the 80's. Mostly coconut.

1st shave:
Used the preshave oil after a shower. Applied cream on top.

Cream didn't lather at all and it was hard to tell if my coverage was good or not. Problem: really hard to wash off of my hands... had to use soap (first two ingredients... water and mineral oil... this won't get anywhere near my brushes!). Used a Knack with a Kai on it's 4th shave. This cream is ultra-slick. no lather==no cushion. First pass was a breeze although the cream can really clog a razor. I had to really swish the hell out of it in the sink to get it clear again. Razor *really* hard to hold because of oiliness in cream. This could be bad with a smooth handle.

Rubbed face to check progress. Tried to rinse but the oily stuff was all over me by now. Reapplied for 2nd pass. Went smooth XTG.
Rubbed face to check progress. Man this stuff is oily. ATG pass went better than ever before using Kai blades.

Hot water rinse. Rinse not cutting cream at all... white stuff all gone but the film of funk will not go. Washed face with bar ivory to get rid of it.

Alum bar. Yeouch! Cold rinse. Ahhh! Thayer's witch hazel toner/astringent. Very nice and soothing. Redness fading. 4711 A/S. Holy crap that burns! I must have gotten a bit aggressive since the cream was so slippery.
Clean up: Film of gunk on everything... razor, sink, towel. Cleaned razor with dish soap, sink with scrubbing bubbles, towel in the hamper.
Very good shave. Face feels pretty good though I got a bit too close in places.
Note: Wife tried it on her legs in the shower with Gillette Venus. She loves the cream! She says the oily residue is great for leg shaving but she can see where it might be unpleasant on one's face.

Further notes: When I jumped on this deal I wasn't aware this would be a brushless cream. I'd never used a brushless until today so they may all have similar issues to the ones I've raised. I really like the quality of the shave and I may grow to appreciate the scent after a few uses. The mineral oil thing is really problematic for me.

I'll continue to use the product for awhile. If my wife doesn't steal it and I can't get to like it, I'll pass it on to someone else to review.

 

[FLTiger]

@arghblech:

Your experience was very much in keeping with mine.

Your idea of passing it on is a good one. If anyone in the contiguous 48 is interested in trying my sample, please send me a PM. I'll ship out the sample package as I received it at my own expense to the first to send me a PM with a US address, though I may not be able to ship it out until Friday. I'll post the user name of the expected recipient in this thread, so please check further down the thread before sending me a PM.

 

[Jim]

If its not to much trouble would you Gents post copies of these reviews in the review section?

 

[FLTiger]

If its not to much trouble would you Gents post copies of these reviews in the review section?

My only concern with doing so is that I'm not sure if this is actually a released product, or if the folks at Paul Molé are using the B&B recipients as something of a beta test. I suppose I can include a comment to that effect in my actual review.

Can one of the other recipients post some pictures of the products? If no one has posted such by Friday, I'll get some pics taken before I ship my samples out.

 

[FLTiger]

MrFusion has offered to give the stuff a whirl. He will be receiving my sample. I expect to get it in the mail on Friday.

 

[Jim]

My only concern with doing so is that I'm not sure if this is actually a released product, or if the folks at Paul Molé are using the B&B recipients as something of a beta test. I suppose I can include a comment to that effect in my actual review.

Can one of the other recipients post some pictures of the products? If no one has posted such by Friday, I'll get some pics taken before I ship my samples out.

Not a problem, we can always modify the review to reflect V1.0 or pre production ect.

 

[Trius]

I've been dithering on whether the feel of my face after the shave is oil/tackiness or just moisturizing effect. I suspect a bit of both, but I don't have as much trouble with the rinsing as others, including rinsing my hands before putting blade to face.

The shaves have been very, very good, however. A Swede (on shaves 2 & 3) gave a very close and smooth shave. I tried it with the pre-shave oil and without and the shave seemed the same. This morning I used it as a pre-shave before applying a "conventional" cream lather. The shave wasn't as good, but I'm certain that was just the Swede pooping out on shave #4.

I want to give this product some more time because I really think I haven't yet learned to use it properly. It has potential.

One comment about the scent: Add rum and you've got a piña colada!

 

[FLTiger]

I've been dithering on whether the feel of my face after the shave is oil/tackiness or just moisturizing effect. I suspect a bit of both, but I don't have as much trouble with the rinsing as others, including rinsing my hands before putting blade to face.

I wonder if the difference in perception might be partially regional. Down here in Florida, we have high humidity more days out of the year than not, and our "winter" is measured in weeks, not months. If my face was in danger of being chapped due to wintry weather, I might welcome the oily post-shave finish.

I tried it with the pre-shave oil and without and the shave seemed the same.

As oily as the stuff is, I cannot imagine the pre-shave oil as having much of any effect whatsoever.

One comment about the scent: Add rum and you've got a piña colada!

Unfortunately, that is also a major impediment to my continuing to use the product--my wife hates all things coconut.

 

[MrFusion]

I wonder if the difference in perception might be partially regional. Down here in Florida, we have high humidity more days out of the year than not, and our "winter" is measured in weeks, not months. If my face was in danger of being chapped due to wintry weather, I might welcome the oily post-shave finish.

Well, when I receive your samples (thanks for offering to do that!), I will let you know if I have a different perception since we are currently getting snow today! I've been using ASBs almost exclusively due to the dry air inside and the cold outside so maybe the oily post shave will be perfect for those further north?

 

[FLTiger]

first two ingredients... water and mineral oil... this won't get anywhere near my brushes!

I wish I'd had sense enough to not try to lather the shaving cream using my brush. I shaved tonight with my usual Body Shop old formulation, and the presence of the Paul Molé was still felt in spite of a thorough rinsing yesterday.

If its not to much trouble would you Gents post copies of these reviews in the review section?

If no one else has done it by Friday, I'll take some pics and post it myself. However, I write for a living (for the next couple of weeks, at least), so I'll want to put together something a bit more thorough than the initial impressions I've posted here.

 

[arghblech]

I was planning on keeping a journal for a few days and then hacking something together for a review.

 

[arghblech]

Review posted.

 

[FLTiger]

Review posted.

Thank you, sir! I intentionally sandbagged since I knew that you were being much more thorough than I was willing to be. I'll post a reply once I get a pic of the product uploaded. I'm working away from home right now, so I don't have all the tools I might otherwise have handy for such things.

 

[RichGem]

Review posted.

Thanks Argh!. Very thorough and informative.

Has anyone with sensitive/break out prone skin tried this stuff? It seems like all that oil might pose a problem.

 

[Jim]

Review posted.

Well done Sir!

 

[arghblech]

Well done Sir!

 

[MrFusion]

I got the following in the mail this afternoon. Thanks FLTiger!

Here's what the cream looks like - it's very liquid.

Ingredients of the cream.

Directions for use.

And a bit of history about the Paul Mole barbershop.

I'll report back once I have had a chance to give this a try. Oh, arghblech hit the nail on the head with the scent discription - coconut suntan lotion! (I kind of like it)

 

[FLTiger]

Hey, thanks for taking those pictures! I wasn't nearly that thorough.