Shoeshine Boy Review

Can you really believe that I come out of the barbershop once in awhile and try to say something intelligent ???

Yesterday I popped a new derby blade into my merkur HD and took it for a ride around my face using QED Wild Rose soap...remember this soap, the one that when we all got received it, most of us, including myself, had a reaction to it. It was a "burning" sensation for the lack of educated terms...

well...i got mine out. Actually I have two of these, one acquired in a trade...I thought why waste a good soap...I have the rest of Charle's original QED soaps, including the coveted Violetta....

The lather was very good for me, but the slickness of this stuff is incredible...it resulted in not one but two BBS in a row...and can you believe it...I have had no irritation from this soap at all !!!

Now I am wondering, what went wrong with this particular soap....this is not the first time that i have revisited this soap without irritation...it just makes me wonder, what is so different about my first reaction to the soap and now ???

For two days in a row, I have had no irritation...i know i have repeated myself, however...isn;t it strange that when it was a fresh soap the ingrediants caused a reaction and now that it has "aged" it is one great soap when compared with anything else that i have ???



QED Wild Rose...wo would have thunk it !!!

best regards,

mark the shoeshine boy

make sure you vote on tuesday and visit the Barbershop forum...

I actually had the same type of outcome with some SCS New Spice. I love the scent, but it would irritate/burn me if I leave it on too long, or get some shaving irritation during the shave with this soap.

Now, it's nowhere near the same feeling after I've had it for several months. I still enjoy the scent though.

yeah, i've revisited a few things over time and found that i was once initially displeased by them, either by reaction or some other reason, that when i went back to them after a few months they weren't so bad.

in fact, my current favorite cream (tom's of maine) i didn't like when i initially used it and didn't use it for over a month!

Maybe there is some molecule that caused a reaction initially but has broken down over time? I don't know, just positing a theory.

Funny you should post this Mark. I just shaved with this soap today and had no irritation as well. I've noticed that as I've progressed into the deeper levels of the soap that the burning sensation is gone as well. I too wonder if a chemical that was causing the reactions has broken down over time, or if the artificial fragrance used in the soap somehow gathered at the top of the soap as the soap cooled and thus the reason for massive irritation that we all initially had.

i've had the same experience with Classic Shaving's lavender shaving soap. the smell was too strong for me originally but in particular in burned my face.

i put it away for a year or so and now it causes no irritation and the smell has mellowed.

I have the second batch of Rose (from Tim's group buy). I had a very mild reaction the first couple of times I used it but none since. My first guess was that my skin built up a tolerance, becoming no longer allergic/sensitive to it. I've still barely scratched the surface of this soap but maybe enough to skim off that strong layer as Randy suggests.

The same thing happend to me with SCS Oakmoss Lavendula cream. I had some mild tingling the first few uses but the reaction eventually disappeared.

So it could be a common ingredient or general characteristic of all fragrance oils that something breaks down with age or it could be that perhaps your skin builds up a tolerance. I'm just glad I got over the hump with these products, especially rose which is THE most powerfully fragranced product I have. It fills the bathroom and halfway down the hall with rose!

Love to hear more about peoples' experiences like this and from some of the EO/FO experts....