Art of Shaving Lavender & a boobie trap...

Hi!

Just got some AoS Lavender and it worked great the first time. Nice, thick lather, wonderful smell and zero irritation. I used a Gem-G bar with a Coated SS blade. 2 wtg, 1 xtg & 1 ATG (my usual). I would have been a great shave, except for some blood blotches on the neck (not cuts).

Tried the cream again 2 days later with an E3 Injector/german schick. Man! BADD BURN! .
Tried it again for a third time with a Super Speed...I honestly tought to grow a beard from so much irritation.

I was recommending the cream to other people because I liked it so much at first, but stopped after today. Has anyone had a similar experience with Art of Shaving OR Lavender creams?

I found this in Wikipedia, under "Lavender":

"Health precautions: There is scientific evidence to support the effectiveness of some of these remedies, especially the anti-inflammatory effects, but they should be used with caution since lavender oil can also be a powerful allergen. Ingesting lavender should be avoided during pregnancy and breastfeeding.[1].
A preliminary finding presented at the Endocrine Society's conference in June 2006 had suggested that shampoos, soaps and body lotions containing lavender and tea tree oils may cause "hormonal imbalances and breast growth in young boys"[2]"

AOS Lavender is one of my favorite creams. I also heard of the report about lavender causing abnormal breast growth in children. I had my daughter stop using lavender lotions and soaps on my grandson.

One of my favorite creams. I am sorry you had a bad experience with this cream.

Raf

OK,

If many of you are having good success with the cream, then it could be just me having a reaction to the Lavender...

I'll head to downtown tomorrow and get another tube in the Scent-free version. I think is worth trying again, like I said I got a first shave that was head and shoulders over my usual Proraso...just wasn't able to reproduce the results... typical T2 sensitization reaction, so right now will be the time to test if it's something in the cream other than the Lavandula...

THANKS!

Its probably a reaction to the lavender. Especially if the cream feels like it is burning a bit (or a lot)

Unfortunately, I can't use a lot of Bay Rum soaps out there because they irritate my skin. The same for a lot of the QED soaps, which have high EO content (esp pine/cedarwood).

Never tried the lavender but the unscented AOS cream is awesome.

I am on my second day of Art of Shaving Scent-Free and
no sign of irritation yet.
Paired with a G-injector, a no name Pure Badger and a German Schick blade I got the most comfortable and close shave so far.
I've been struggling with the "E" & "G" injectors for a while, loving the smoothness but hating the irritation.
THis might be the ticket for me. The Lavender cream smelled wonderful but it might no be for everybody...

Man, does it feel good when you finally get it right...
Thanks for all the advice!

Odd, I have had irritation from other lavenders but not the AOS.

Doc Mottern said:

Odd, I have had irritation from other lavenders but not the AOS.

Click to expand...

+1.

I think it's probably not the Lavender EO, but for me -- it's more than likely something else that is in most Lavender products... no idea what those things may be.

vuelamanuel --

I have some thoughts, but you are constantly changing equipment, so who knows what the source of the problem is. Offhand, I suspect that you have a sensitivity to the Lavender shave cream. I have a bad reaction to Lavender, and I know of at least one case where the shaver had a relatively serious reaction to AOS Lavender shave cream.

But for now, pick one razor and blade, probably the Gillette SS, and stick with it until your problem is identified and solved.

The shaving issues resulting in razor burn arise from some pretty common causes; in order:

1. too much pressure.
2. improper blade angle.
3. overshaving an area.
4. using a blade past it's prime.
5. product sensitivity.

Understand, there can be other causes, but I'll bet you that you're suffering from one or more of the above five, and from what it sounds like, the issue is the lavender shave cream.

You just need to mentally review what you're doing and adjust if you are aware of transgressions of the first four items listed above. Make sure that your shaving strokes are unhurried and deliberate. A 'scuff' (improper angle) produces razor burn. A 'scrape' (too much pressure) will give a 'weeper'. Overshaving is making repeated strokes, shaving the same area, especially when done without re-lathering, and results in localized irritation. Make certain you are using a good blade, and swap for fresh as necessary.

One of the indications of a bad product reaction is the Sunburn-like hot-ness apparent to the touch of your skin. Razor 'burn' from poor shaving technique or use of a dull blade subsides rather quickly; but the Sunburn-like heat from a product reaction persists all day long, and in many cases will increase with continued usage of the offending product.

Cease using the suspected product, and assuming the first four items are OK, the burn should subside; although if it is a product reaction, this can take several days. Allow your face to recover. Use a different shave cream/soap. if reuse of the suspected product later on results in a recurrance of the problem, you'll know the the product in question was the culprit.

BTW, you can trade away the AOS cream in the buy/sell/trade forum later if this is the source of your problem.

Good Luck.

-- John Gehman

John brings up a good point. If you are having a problem it is best to eliminate all of the variables possible to determine where your issue lies. If it is the AOS Lavender you shouldn't have a problem selling or trading it.

Great advice.
I did get a long (24 hr+) reaction, so I am guessing it is the lavander.
I did get comfortable shaves from the SS with Proraso, but I use to have 5 PM shadow by 11 AM and the thin blade always "wobbles" when trying to cut my coarse wiskers (even with different razors, the Slant being the one exception), so I decided to try the Injector with it's thicker blade. I do get a much better shave, but I kept getting some burn afterwards. Someone suggested that the Injectors like a thicker lather, that's why I was trying the AoS.

Thanks to all of you, I'll have it down by the time I start my residency...