I am sure some of you are aware of the history of D. R. Harris, Taylor of Old Bond Street and Geo F. Trumper with regard to the history of shaving and gentleman's grooming. As these shops started become more prevalent in London and England in general, providing personal hygiene products, some customs (such as wigs) died out while other customs, such as getting barber shaves and caring for one's hair came into the spot light. This time period of the late 1700's to the early 1900's is a time of particular interest to me. This interest is what sparked my initial interest concerning wet shaving.
While I was spending my time in London, stoping by Jermyn st. was a absolute must! This street is renowned for Gentleman's style as well as grooming. On Jermyn st. you find shops like T. M. Lewin, Hawes & Curtis, Harvie & Hudson and many other great Gentleman's tailoring. Also on Jermyn st. (or just off it) you find Taylor of Old Bond Street, Geo F. Trumper and D. R. Harris.
First, I had scheduled a traditional barber shave at Geo F. Trumper. While waiting I sampled every scent I could in the shop. To be honest I was disappointed when I found that I did not like the scents offered by Trumper. The few I found to be acceptable were their coral/rose, lavender and their lime scents. Luckily the coral is what the barber used for the shave. What an experience! Starting with the skin food and a hot towel; my face was prepared very well. The coral cream felt great on my face. I was actually surprised that the barber seemed a little heavier handed with the razor than I was expecting, which at first did make me a little uncomfortable. But over all the shave was great! Post shave the barber used their lime scented skin food and AS, with a cold towel between the two. Getting a shave in one of the old time barber shops was a great experience. I loved it. (as a note I must clarify that the reason I disliked the scents was because I dislike musky smells, which musk was VERY prevalent in all the scents except the ones I specified. Because I have a sensitive sniffer I just didn't connect with any of the scents.)
Second, I stopped by Taylor of Old Bond Street. I already have their Jermin Street soap (of which I absolutely love the scent). I found the scents offered by TOBS to be more acceptable to my sensitive nose. Though, again, I didn't connect very well with the musk heavy scents. So, some of the traditional scents, such as the Sandalwood, I just had a hard time with. I did find Jermyn Street, Lavender, Mr. Taylor, coconut, peppermint and Rose scents were all quite nice. Eton college scent was on the verge of okay for my nose. The avocado scent was unpleasant and I found that the Almond, though not offensive to my nose, made my stomach feel queasy. I was very surprised at what scents I was liking the most, as they seem to be the ones a little less popular on the forum, as sandalwood and other musky scents tend to be the more popular. As expressed by many of you just because some are not as talked about as other products does not necessarily mean they are not popular, but everyone's mileage may vary with scents.
Third, D. R. Harris was next on my list. Before this trip I was very excited to purchase a soap from D. R. Harris, as many of you have nothing but great reviews for the soaps from D. R. Harris. I realized that because all the scents commonly spoken about like Sandalwood and Bay Rum, some of the popular scents from D. R. Harris would end up the same for me. However the musk in the D. R. Harris scents were not as bad. the only one I didn't particularly like was Arlington. Their Lavender and rose were the best out of the three, and Marlborough was okay. But I fell in love with the Windsor scent! Though it does have a faint musk to it the underlying scent is so wonderfully complex and sophisticated I couldn't resist it. That was the soap I chose to purchase.
So after smelling all of the scents offered by GFT, TOBS and DRH what are my favorites? Jermyn Street from TOBS is still my top choice of scent, followed by DRH Windsor. TOBS Mr. Taylor, DRH Lavender and Rose all three take third together.
(I understand that most of you will disagree with my choices for my top scents, but as usual YMMV. I hope my post wasn't to dreadfully dull.)
What are your top favorite scents for your soaps & creams? Or what was your experience with a barber shave?
While I was spending my time in London, stoping by Jermyn st. was a absolute must! This street is renowned for Gentleman's style as well as grooming. On Jermyn st. you find shops like T. M. Lewin, Hawes & Curtis, Harvie & Hudson and many other great Gentleman's tailoring. Also on Jermyn st. (or just off it) you find Taylor of Old Bond Street, Geo F. Trumper and D. R. Harris.
First, I had scheduled a traditional barber shave at Geo F. Trumper. While waiting I sampled every scent I could in the shop. To be honest I was disappointed when I found that I did not like the scents offered by Trumper. The few I found to be acceptable were their coral/rose, lavender and their lime scents. Luckily the coral is what the barber used for the shave. What an experience! Starting with the skin food and a hot towel; my face was prepared very well. The coral cream felt great on my face. I was actually surprised that the barber seemed a little heavier handed with the razor than I was expecting, which at first did make me a little uncomfortable. But over all the shave was great! Post shave the barber used their lime scented skin food and AS, with a cold towel between the two. Getting a shave in one of the old time barber shops was a great experience. I loved it. (as a note I must clarify that the reason I disliked the scents was because I dislike musky smells, which musk was VERY prevalent in all the scents except the ones I specified. Because I have a sensitive sniffer I just didn't connect with any of the scents.)
Second, I stopped by Taylor of Old Bond Street. I already have their Jermin Street soap (of which I absolutely love the scent). I found the scents offered by TOBS to be more acceptable to my sensitive nose. Though, again, I didn't connect very well with the musk heavy scents. So, some of the traditional scents, such as the Sandalwood, I just had a hard time with. I did find Jermyn Street, Lavender, Mr. Taylor, coconut, peppermint and Rose scents were all quite nice. Eton college scent was on the verge of okay for my nose. The avocado scent was unpleasant and I found that the Almond, though not offensive to my nose, made my stomach feel queasy. I was very surprised at what scents I was liking the most, as they seem to be the ones a little less popular on the forum, as sandalwood and other musky scents tend to be the more popular. As expressed by many of you just because some are not as talked about as other products does not necessarily mean they are not popular, but everyone's mileage may vary with scents.
Third, D. R. Harris was next on my list. Before this trip I was very excited to purchase a soap from D. R. Harris, as many of you have nothing but great reviews for the soaps from D. R. Harris. I realized that because all the scents commonly spoken about like Sandalwood and Bay Rum, some of the popular scents from D. R. Harris would end up the same for me. However the musk in the D. R. Harris scents were not as bad. the only one I didn't particularly like was Arlington. Their Lavender and rose were the best out of the three, and Marlborough was okay. But I fell in love with the Windsor scent! Though it does have a faint musk to it the underlying scent is so wonderfully complex and sophisticated I couldn't resist it. That was the soap I chose to purchase.
So after smelling all of the scents offered by GFT, TOBS and DRH what are my favorites? Jermyn Street from TOBS is still my top choice of scent, followed by DRH Windsor. TOBS Mr. Taylor, DRH Lavender and Rose all three take third together.
(I understand that most of you will disagree with my choices for my top scents, but as usual YMMV. I hope my post wasn't to dreadfully dull.)
What are your top favorite scents for your soaps & creams? Or what was your experience with a barber shave?
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