Floris No. 89 Shaving Soap

This was my first high end English soap, that is above the three Ts. It was purchased from a new shave shop in July 2013 and appears to be yet another reformulation. The scent is fantastic as would be expected at this price point. I shave with a straight and found the lather to be easily made and to posses all the qualities desired to give a great shave. It was so good that I went out and purchased a bowl and puck of Floris JF shortly after. I put it head to head against a new shipment of MdC. I rate it ahead for performance although I prefer the MdC scent. Very close call and a product well worth the high cost. If you have the means, and want something special, give it a shot.

A luxury soap, I happen to love the scent, triple-milled so it will last a long time, nice wooden bowl.

As it is a veggie soap it does not offer very rich lather, but as one would expect it is very slick. Floris had quality control issues with these over the last few years, you can read these if you take a look at the relative threads and/or the reviews.

My puck & bowl were purchased April 2011 in Europe, and the soap lathers easily, no problems whatsoever.

Highly recommended, especially if you do have an affection for quality products.

I bought this product a while back (2009) and got a disastrous puck which I complained about. Customer service at Floris works very well and all I had to do was to send back the bad puck and they sent a new one free of charge. When I shaved with a DE I loved this product, it lathers up quite easily into a moderately dense lather with a slickness which is absolutely fabulous. Since I moved over to straights however, I have become disappointed with its performance on account of the surprising lack of cushion it offers making it treacherous to shave with in combination with straights. Obviously, YMMV and it might just be that i have not hit the core of the soap since I have only used it a dozen times. Apart from that, packaging is very stylish and although I have been working this product heavily with a stiff boar brush I can still see the letters around the edge of the puck. The scent is divine.
For my part, I will keep it and use it to make superlather or on its own together with safety razors but when it is gone I do not think I will buy it again. In conclusion I would say that aside from the lack of cushion, this is a quality product which is well worth a try. I cannot compare it with any other british soaps because I do not have any other except for a vintage puck of Yardley which is in a different league entirely.

Optometrist;2935012 said:

Floris No.89 has been in my possession for nearly a year now, and what I consider to be one of the most underrated soaps from the UK, is now back in regular use. At the outset, the price is a little off-putting, but this non tallow soap can more than stand its own ground amongst other offerings from this Isle.
The packaging is exquisite. Open a high quality box and your eyes are instantly drawn to a bowl that exudes quality. A hard soap, the Floris No.89 scent, as written in previous reviews, is flowery in nature and I do not find it overpowering. The scent remains throughout the shave unlike so many other soaps I could mention. Many have reported Floris lather to be on the thin, airy side, and, if you compare it to say Cella and the likes, this is true to an extent. But this soap is rich in oils, and the appearance of the lather is very deceptive. I have no problem whatsoever producing enough for 3 passes and a 4th touch up.
Razor glide is up there with the very best in my opinion, and the after-feel of using this soap is a pure delight, thanks to the oils it contains. I am approximately half way through my puck of No.89, and will I be buying another when it's exhausted? That is an emphatic YES! It may be expensive but the shaving pleasure I receive from Floris No.89 is worth every penny spent.

Click to expand...

When approximately did you purchase this cake of No 89?

Chris

Floris No.89 has been in my possession for nearly a year now, and what I consider to be one of the most underrated soaps from the UK, is now back in regular use. At the outset, the price is a little off-putting, but this non tallow soap can more than stand its own ground amongst other offerings from this Isle.
The packaging is exquisite. Open a high quality box and your eyes are instantly drawn to a bowl that exudes quality. A hard soap, the Floris No.89 scent, as written in previous reviews, is flowery in nature and I do not find it overpowering. The scent remains throughout the shave unlike so many other soaps I could mention. Many have reported Floris lather to be on the thin, airy side, and, if you compare it to say Cella and the likes, this is true to an extent. But this soap is rich in oils, and the appearance of the lather is very deceptive. I have no problem whatsoever producing enough for 3 passes and a 4th touch up.
Razor glide is up there with the very best in my opinion, and the after-feel of using this soap is a pure delight, thanks to the oils it contains. I am approximately half way through my puck of No.89, and will I be buying another when it's exhausted? That is an emphatic YES! It may be expensive but the shaving pleasure I receive from Floris No.89 is worth every penny spent.

This stuff is starting to grow on me. The lather is ridiculous. I get heaps of thick cream barely trying. It's a more expensive soap but I haven't regretted the purchase at all. The smell is a little strong and I do wish it was a little lighter, but I'm also anti-fragrance. It's not a bad smell, it grows on you, but it is pretty strong. It doesn't linger obnoxiously like some others I've tried though. My skin feels wonderful after. I smelled Elite and JF before getting this. It does lean to a floral quality but not like a rose soap or something, it stays masculine. I enjoy it.

*Also I should mention I have very sensitive skin. Lately I've been using things that don't lather quite as nice because they don't irritate. Most of the soaps that lather as well as this bother my skin. I recommend it, maybe not to newbies though, because once they try it, I think many soaps will fall terribly short. There are absolutely no issues with the shave, it's soooooo good.

I tried a Floris shaving soap (Floris No. 89 to be exact) for the first time this last week and I must say I am very impressed. My first attempt introduced me to a slight difference in building a lather with this soap, but failing all else I read the instructions which called for much less water. And when re-lathering to "touch the tips of the brush to the water and continue on the face" not to re-wet or rinse the face. I normally build a the lather in a scuttle and rinse between passes, leaving my face wet, going back to the scuttle to pick up some lather and return to my face. Following the instructions that came with the soap; I rinsed then towel dried my face, just touched the tips of my brush to the hot water in the sink and applied the brush to my face. It lathered up with a very thick, slick lather that was more like the response of one of Charles QEDman shave sticks. Resulting in a fine BBS shave in 2 passes. The soap felt so good (and smelled so good) that I wanted to make more passes just to put more soap on my face.

If you have not tried the Floris soaps, you are missing a great shave! You owe it to yourself to give them a try.

Price: For me it was high as I had to purchase a Floris Ironware scuttle to get this particular scent. Anyone interested in purchasing a genuine Floris shaving scuttle PM me.

Quality: Like all Floris products in my experience it is well made. A fine English triple-milled soap.

Scent: This is very subjective. I like it a lot. It is a little flowery with hints of lavender and jasmine.

Lather: Very easy to add too much water and become airy. If you follow the instructions, it makes a long lasting, thick very lubricating lather.

Efficacy: Glide is outstanding. Lubrication is very good. Protection is very good. Very long life in the lather. I had enough time to strop the razor, go into the living room and fire up the computer, turn up the music, and get back to the bathroom.

Moisturizing: My face felt very smooth and supple after the shave. No irritation and no dryness.