The soap actually has a light yellow cast to it. Definitely not white. And it's opaque, unlike most glycerin-based soaps.
Join me for a week of French soaps.
- Thread starter Sullybob
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The soap actually has a light yellow cast to it. Definitely not white. And it's opaque, unlike most glycerin-based soaps.
I used to have Monsavon. I tried a couple of times with success, but I let it go.
The only French soap I have is Cade. I only used it once and I must confess I'm not impressed.
I'm used to tallow soaps, so maybe now I have more trouble getting lather from veggie soaps?
I'll definitely have to try it again.
Tomorrow!
I use CADE just like a tallow soap and get consistently great results. It is the only non-tallow soap in my top 6, and probably my second or third favorite all around (behind AOS and EF, about equal to Arlington and MWF, and ahead of Tabac).
I'm kind of in by default because L'Occitane CADE is my daily use soap and I just change things up on the weekends. Had yet another great shave with it this morning and I'm looking forward to tomorrow's shave.
- Thread starter
- #44
Today, used Pre de Provence, B&B Essential brush, first day on a Russian 7 O'clock green, Common bar handle NEW, and Aqua Velva.
Nice shave. Enjoyed the soap. Nice understated fragrance, soft lather.
-- John Gehman
Nice shave. Enjoyed the soap. Nice understated fragrance, soft lather.
-- John Gehman
- Thread starter
- #47
I used IK this morning instead of Lothantique based on this post. My IK is in a stick form and I got it as part of a package deal, this is the first time I have used it. I am not sure when I would have used it if not for starting this thread and for your mini review. Thanks Brian! I don't understand why this soap doesn't get a lot more praise around here. I had a really nice shave, gobs of lather, great smell, nice slickness, dense cushiony lather and it was very easy to lather. I see this soap having a permanent home in my den. It completely made up for Lothantique's sub par shave yesterday. My Lothantique just became my next bath soap.
Ik shaving stick with a B&BE
Merkur slant and a new Shark
Pitralon AS and Lothantique's EDT
Day Two:
Lothantique - Le Connectioneur (with the Tractor on the puck) and TI 6/8 Egyptian Sheaf
Another good shave but my face is starting to feel it because I typically shave every 36 hours instead of 24. We'll see how my mug is holding up by the end of the week. That's an experiment in itself.
Now... Lothantique. I double checked the ingredients on my pucks and no tallow or tallowate in them. I really enjoy the scent of this one. Lather didn't provide as much cushion as the IK, but a little more slick. Also not as moisturizing as the IK. Second and third passes were better than the first. I had a little too much water on the puck and didn't work the lather enough on my face.
I think I'm going to revisit this soap on Friday. Tomorrow, Pre de Provence!
Lothantique - Le Connectioneur (with the Tractor on the puck) and TI 6/8 Egyptian Sheaf
Another good shave but my face is starting to feel it because I typically shave every 36 hours instead of 24. We'll see how my mug is holding up by the end of the week. That's an experiment in itself.
Now... Lothantique. I double checked the ingredients on my pucks and no tallow or tallowate in them. I really enjoy the scent of this one. Lather didn't provide as much cushion as the IK, but a little more slick. Also not as moisturizing as the IK. Second and third passes were better than the first. I had a little too much water on the puck and didn't work the lather enough on my face.
I think I'm going to revisit this soap on Friday. Tomorrow, Pre de Provence!
I used the PS Green Tea soap today. In previous uses, I had gotten good, but not great results with it. The lather was nice and slick, but seemed kind of thin. Today, I spent a full minute loading the brush from the puck, periodically dipping the tips of the brush in hot water while loading. After face lathering, I got an amazingly close shave that held up to the cartridge I had to resort to because of time constraints. I am slowly coming around to the fact that Shea butter based soaps are awesome. They are still not as good as tallow-based in my hands, but it's nice to have some good alternatives when the Shaveapocolypse comes.
Today:
CF Pre-Shave
Rooney Heritage Beehive
PS Green Tea
L'Occitan ASB
Today:
CF Pre-Shave
Rooney Heritage Beehive
PS Green Tea
L'Occitan ASB
Used Lothantique Le Collectionneur this morning with better results than normal. I loaded the brush normally (I use Jim's damp/dry brush method) and then proceeded to face lather without being shy about dipping the tips of the brush in the wash basin. I think the extra water really helped the lather - still not top tier lather, but quite good.
So, how many of you use a soap or cream just because it smells great even though the lather may be fair to middling? I like the scent of Lothantique Le Collectionneur, although this isn't a scent I'm sneaking whiffs whilst passing through the bathroom, so this soaps future prospects in my shave den are still up in the air.
So, how many of you use a soap or cream just because it smells great even though the lather may be fair to middling? I like the scent of Lothantique Le Collectionneur, although this isn't a scent I'm sneaking whiffs whilst passing through the bathroom, so this soaps future prospects in my shave den are still up in the air.
CADE, my restored EverReady and Tech with Feather....got my standard excellent shave. CADE never fails me with a generous layer of creamy slick lather....close with zero irritation and with such a mild grand scent....how could that wrong.
Tomorrow PdP.
Tomorrow PdP.
I just tried PdP for the first time.
WOW.
smells "plantey" but it didn't irritate or burn at all. (I was worried since PS Verlaine burned me like a hydrogen facebomb.)
Gave me one of the smoothest shaves of my life. amazing.
WOW.
smells "plantey" but it didn't irritate or burn at all. (I was worried since PS Verlaine burned me like a hydrogen facebomb.)
Gave me one of the smoothest shaves of my life. amazing.
Really surprised to read that people are not that pleased with Lothantique Le Collectionneur. I got it about a month ago and have used it about five times and was going to start a thread about what a sleeper is was. For me it has similar characteristics to PdP but maybe a little better lather.
I will point out that the first time I used it, I swirled my brush on the puck and built the lather in a bowl with sub-par results. Then I switched to my preferred method of rubbing the soap on my face like a shave stick and face lathered and the results were top-tier in terms of lather (for non-tallow) and shave. I think you really need to be sure to use enough soap to get excellent results.
I just tried PdP for the first time.
WOW.
smells "plantey" but it didn't irritate or burn at all. (I was worried since PS Verlaine burned me like a hydrogen facebomb.)
Gave me one of the smoothest shaves of my life. amazing.
Same here. Used PdP again this morning with an HD Rocket/Feather combo and B&B Kent LE 08. Seems like PdP works best for me with a little less water than tallow based soaps. Soaked the brush while showering and shook it a few times. Loaded the puck for approximately 30 seconds and face lathered. All around great shave...20 degrees outside this morning and no need for a balm (perfect). Shame on any B&B member that hasn't given PdP a try
by the way...be sure to try the PdP balm. It's a great product at a decent price.
- Thread starter
- #55
To be honest, I have so many different soaps now that if it doesn't perform great then I'm not going to keep using it. If if smells really good that's a big plus, like MWF for instance, great soap with very little scent. I'm not becoming a minimalist by any stretch of the imagination but if it doesn't work really well for me, then I'm probably not going to keep it.
Day the second:
PdP
PdP
Second Day: Provence Sante Verlaine, Ball end Old Type with fresh Astra Platinum blade, and Aqua Velva.
Soft, full lather, became somewhat sparse by the third pass. Lived with it anyway. Shave was close, but a bit rough.
-- John Gehman
Soft, full lather, became somewhat sparse by the third pass. Lived with it anyway. Shave was close, but a bit rough.
-- John Gehman
I just picked up my first and only French soap, a puck of Cade, and shaved with it this morning. Really great shave. This soap is definitely a keeper. I'm looking forward to tomorrow.
Dave
Dave
First day today: Cade combined w/a vintage '40s Merkur slant. A winning combo. And I also used the Cade ASB for the 1st time today. Holy CRAP is that stuff rich! 
Perfect for a cold, dry day!
Perfect for a cold, dry day!
deux jours:
Merkur 12C with Crystal(3)
GN SuperBadgerFan with FireBrownAcrylic handle (Rudy Vey)
Provence Sante Green Tea
and a shower
This heavy open comb razor removes more whiskers on the first two passes than the EJ 89L, but the EJ is so much easier on touchup even though there's more to do. I'm convinced it's the weight, not the comb. Muhle R41 in transit. I think touchup defines the shave much more than all the other passes combined.
The best part of this shave is to rinse when I'm done shaving and then apply one more pass of lather - and leave it on while I clean and wipe up. I rinse it off in the shower. PSGT is the only soap I know of that I can do this with without it causing a redness. No need for AS treatment.
Merkur 12C with Crystal(3)
GN SuperBadgerFan with FireBrownAcrylic handle (Rudy Vey)
Provence Sante Green Tea
and a shower
This heavy open comb razor removes more whiskers on the first two passes than the EJ 89L, but the EJ is so much easier on touchup even though there's more to do. I'm convinced it's the weight, not the comb. Muhle R41 in transit. I think touchup defines the shave much more than all the other passes combined.
The best part of this shave is to rinse when I'm done shaving and then apply one more pass of lather - and leave it on while I clean and wipe up. I rinse it off in the shower. PSGT is the only soap I know of that I can do this with without it causing a redness. No need for AS treatment.
