Stirling Syndicate

[tankerjohn]

Maybe its the clay and the tallow together?

I guess I could e-mail Rod - honestly hadn't thought of it. I was trusting the collective brainpower of the B&B.

 

[tankerjohn]

Ben's pantaloons were not so terrible. Matches Sharp Dressed Man!

Sir, you amaze me with those photo's. Nicely done! That brush is to die for.

 

[alfredus]

First shave with Coniferous. After finishing a disappointing Electric Sheep sample (it just didn't have the usual stellar Stirling post-shave feel), this one is heaven again...can't stop stroking my face

 

[Vespasian]

I dunno what that particular aroma is in Stirling soaps, but that's one of the reasons I don't use the soaps. I have learned in my one year back at DE shaving that my scent likes and dislikes are really quirky, my preferences so odd that I almost never mention the misses, just the hits. Like TFS Bergamotto Neroli.

 

[sarimento1]

Sir, you amaze me with those photo's. Nicely done! That brush is to die for.

Thx, the brush was nicely restored by Nick in Shreveport.

 

[eyebright]

Not all tallow has a strong odor, and clay doesn't necessarily contribute to a scent in soap. I'm just saying this because lots of artisan soaps are made with the same basic ingredients and I don't think that they all have an underlying earthy smell. I would ask Rod for his opinion on anything regarding his soap and not rely on conjecture.

 

[mikelz777]

I bought several samples of Stirling soaps and the scents were very inconsistent if not almost non-existent in some samples. They smelled their best before being used. What I didn't like about them was that in nearly every sample I tried, I could detect what I'm guessing was the fat that was being used to make the soap, most likely the tallow that some are describing above. It's hard to describe. It's kind of a waxy, fatty smell. It would bring to mind slightly oxidized Crisco shortening. In any event, it was a deal breaker for me. I ended up trading or selling the rest of my Stirling.

 

[gwgrooms]

Now that you mention it it might not be the tallow but what others have said about the clay sounds like it could be a possibility... I've thought about it and to me it is sort of a greasy, plastic scent a bit like play-doh? Again I could be way off the mark!

Some colognes have a lavender + vanilla scent that is reminiscent of play-doh. I'm thinking of Caron Pour Un Homme in particular. Not sure about the greasy part though. See reviews on Fragratica for more opinions.

 

[BaldyCoot]

I'm new to shaving soaps so reading up lots of old threads -- I've read a lot of really positive stuff about Stirling Glacial soaps, but don't see any of them on the website. Are they seasonal and coming back or history?

I'll answer my own question - sent this to Stirling, Rod answered: "I have very limited shelf space, so I took the glacials down for the winter. I'm planning on having them back this spring in at least 4 scents. The Black Ice, Margaritas in the Arctic, Frozen Tundra, and Orange Chill all contain menthol, but not at the Glacial level"

 

[tankerjohn]

Second SDM shave yesterday. It went better than the first shave, as I thought it would. New blade definitely helped. I put in a little more effort on the lather and it paid off. SDM smells great on the puck, but different (and not as good) lathered up on my face.

 

[pbnj]

I wonder what hes bringing back in glacial......hopefully the lemon comes back. My favorite soap handsdown.

 

[vespergo]

First shave with Coniferous. After finishing a disappointing Electric Sheep sample (it just didn't have the usual stellar Stirling post-shave feel), this one is heaven again...can't stop stroking my face

Was your sample rectangle in shape? Don't make the mistake I made and try to lather the bath soaps, they don't really lather I've ordered twice from them and I've gotten only bath soaps, so you likely might have the same issue.

Just got my second order in today and WOW! This stuff lathers better than the first batch. I got SDM, Nag Champa, Ozark Mountain, Ben Franklin, Scot Pine Sheep. I can't wait to try these out tomorrow. I might be lucky but I can get a great lather with just loading for like 10-15 seconds. The best lather that I've seen in quite some time.

 

[vespergo]

Have made soap in the past and after smelling the new batch that I got in, the undertone 'earth' smell that I think you're smelling is likely the lye. It has a very distinct smell.

 

[vespergo]

I add water straight to the puck, probably 1-2 teaspoons and load on the top till it starts to turn white. It usually only takes me 10-15 seconds especially with this new batch. After that I'm guaranteed to get a good lather. I'm amazed that people have a hard time lathering this soap to be honest. Stirling can take a good amount of water before breaking down.

 

[Chumango]

If there is enough free lye left to smell it you probably don't want to use it. It would be pretty hard on your skin. For that reason I would think it is something else.

It has been a long time since I was around significant quantities of sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide (chemical plant) but I do not recall any real odor.

 

[JerYnkFan]

Tried Port-Au-Prince again this morning and it was much milder. No burn and left face feeling very nice.

 

[eyebright]

If the "earthy" smell that the OP detects in Rod's soap came from the lye, then why wouldn't every other soap you use have that undertone, since they are all made with lye? And there is no lye left over in a soap once it's made; if there was it would be very irritating and drying, and probably give you a chemical burn (not to be confused with the occasional reaction that some people have to certain fragrances).

 

[tromboneliness]

BTW, if you check out their facebook page you can see the state of their new "facility"--lots of work to do yet! Shelf space for more products on the agenda.

 

[bassman314]

Just got a new order in!


Aftershave samples are Port-Au-Prince, Barbershop, MITA, and Coniferous.

 

[vespergo]

While I agree with both eyebright and Chumango, I've actually made lots of cold process soap as well in the past that uses lye(NaOH). I'm just telling you that's what I think I get the hint from, not saying that's the smell that you're experiencing. I've made soap and put 0 scent in it and that is the smell that it has. It could be the smell after the chemical reaction(saponification) has taken place as you surely don't want to smell the fumes out right after dumping NaOH into water. Unless you're doing it outside, you will get a whiff for sure.

Try it yourself and you'll see, the ingredients are pretty easy to get. You could be smelling some other smell.

I have no experience with KOH, just NaOH.