I Colonial

[SplitHair]

Just used the Rhubarb Cream version this morning. Very close shave. Definitely creates more lather than the Mango Soap/Harder Cream version. Also found it was not quite as slick. If you tend to like lighter lather versus slicker think cream on the face you will prefer the Rhubarb. I suppose you can use more product than I did, but since the lathering is so easy you want to be careful not to whip too much. The mango version left me without a single nick, while the rhubarb created a few weepers. I'll have to go slower next time with the Rhubarb. I can say that the Rhubarb gave a very close two-pass shave though - effectively more aggressive. I can't say for certain, but it felt like the Rhubarb cream helped the hairs stand almost straight up whereas the mango allowed them to lie down 'in the slickness'. More time will tell.

As for the scent, I continue to be in huge respect for the I Coloniali offerings. At first I smelt it at the tube....Chocolate, dark and rich. Don't get me wrong, I love chocolate, but not so much on my face. I was concerned that this tube might not work out. I pressed a bit into my scuttle this morning and there was that chocolate smell. I began to whip and the chocolate smell exploded from the bowl, but wait....there was something else there. Spicy....Fruity....kind of like the Mango soap. I applied it to the face and while the chocolate smell was unmistakeable, wafts of smoky fruit with a light peppery spice filled my nostrils! Wow...what a variation! Like the mango, it was a sweet, smoky, fruity masculine scent, but unlike the mango the sweetness was toned down with a slight bitterness offered with the dark chocolate base. Wonderful!

I'm convinced that Atkinsons offers a very fine product in terms of effectiveness and skin care, but the sheer uniqueness of their scents and unmistakeable masculine attitude that it brings with it will keep me around for some time. I can't wait until the Mango Pre/After Balm arrives!!!

-Vince

[Phog Allen]

Dang it Vince I am trying to hold off till next month but the great reports about this soap make it VERY difficult to do so. The mango soap w/bowl is securely on the buy list. I am still on the fence about the cream.

Cheers, Todd

[SplitHair]

Go with the mango soap. It is definitely a winner. Very sweet and somewhat fruity with a spicy and smoky background. I find myself stopping by and getting whiffs on a regular basis!

[Seraphim]

The aroma:

I hated it.

Then I loved it.


Now I can't live without it!

[Seraphim]

Just broke through to the bottom of the bowl the past couple of days....

Probably last me until the end of the week. So, the puck of I Colonial lasted me a month of near constant use, but it should be noted that as a head shaver, I probably use 3x the product compared to face alone.


I'll be ordering a replacement puck.


Maybe 3.....

[gash]

They should sell it in brick form. Only $200 a pop.

[Judge Dredd]

For all those waiting to be enabled...

I put the rhubarb cream back into rotation today. I used the mango oil pre/post balm for each pass. Loaded the slant with a new Polsilver...

I'm calling it a DFS. I think it's close to BBS, but not quite there. But DFS is damn good. This was a really close shave - it actually feels like there's no stubble poking through the skin surface, and my face feels amazing.

I have a really tough beard and most days I feel unshaved even after 4 or 5 passes. But the I Coloniali with a really sharp blade - wow. It's slick, softening and conditioning.

The scent is very subtle, it's not a dealbreaker and, if anything, it's a really good transeasonal cream.

Unfortunately there is no longer an I Coloniali AS to match, but I found Paco Rabanne Ultraviolet to complement it really well - it's the ambergris in it I think.

[Seraphim]

I Colonial shave soap is still the reigning World Champion.

[VT_Hokie]

I can't get enough of this stuff!

[maich]

This thread isn't helping my USPS tracking checking disorder, shipped on the 21st still waiting : /

[VT_Hokie]

Well worth the wait.

[Seraphim]

Smoky mangoes.


Over ripe bananas in a chain smoker's gym sock.


Doesn't matter how you describe the scent, it grows on you to the point that you NEED it, and the shave you get from it is excellent.

[VT_Hokie]

The scent certainly does grow on you. Its craveable.