June 24th, 2025: All About That Base

• Brush: Omega - 10077 Boar
• Razor: Chiseled Face - Legacy Ti
• Blade: Gillette Silver Blue
• Lather: Catie’s Bubbles - Le Nude - Soap
• Post Shave: Zingari Man - Sego Unscented - Balm

Daily Theme Justification: “Our luxury shaving soap with no added fragrance or essential oils for those with sensitivities or so there is a blank canvas to build your own scent for the day.” - Le Nude ad copy

Daily Theme: This was my first time (at least to my memory) using an unscented soap. At first I really thought unscented soaps were a waste of time. After hearing people that still want to shave if they’re sick, can’t use fragrances due to medical issues, or just wanting to wear a fragrance with no other scent interaction, I finally understood the point behind it. Not much to speak of on this shave other than the Lux base is a great affordable base and finishing it with Sego Unscented makes this my first truly unscented shave. I could see myself using this soap more just to take breaks from others, or to really focus on splash or fragrance scent.

Daily Challenge: I really don’t think I have been around long enough to have seen bases come and gone and get really familiar with them. However, I would think I have to say the tallow Tabac base is surely missed. I know it is possible to get great lathers from the new vegan formula, but from my limited experience, the tallow puck did lather much easier and the quality was excellent. Thankfully, I have a barely touched puck that I can reminisce with. As for current favorite bases, it is hands down Catie’s Bubbles Premium Base. It is incredibly easy to work with and it a privilege to use it when I do. It is the base that I own the most tubs of.

June 23rd, 2025: Information Overload

• Brush: Omega - Bambino Boar
• Razor: Yates Precision Manufacturing - Merica
• Blade: Gillette Silver Blue
• Lather: Wholly Kaw - Twice as Spice - Soap
• Post Shave: Old Spice - Original - Aftershave
• Fragrance: Old Spice - Classic - EdC

Daily Theme Justification: Wholly Kaw Twice as Spice - Notes: Orange, Cinnamon, Tonka Bean, Vanilla, Lemon, Carnation, Cedar, Ambergris, Clove, Jasmine, Frankincense, Nag Champa, Clary Sage, which is 13 total.

Daily Theme: I got this soap from u/Cowzilla3 about a year and half ago through a Spice Off PIF. I have try and salvage an Old Spice shave since I went nautically themed on “Where Did All the Rum Go?” day. Everybody here is far too relaxed for having been put a list, we should all be panicking. (Cowzilla take me off, I am one of the good guys.) Anyway, a true nice and spicy software day. I haven’t smelled this soap in quite a long time and it is much better than I remember. The downsides of having a noob nose.

Daily Challenge: Instead of going for true aggressiveness (like a Blackbird OC) in a one pass shave, I opted for mild and efficient. The Merica fits that bill perfectly. A touch of blade feel, but not too much razor. It did just fine with one pass and fulfilled today’s challenge perfectly.

June 22nd, 2025: It Takes Two

• Brush: Omega - Bambino Boar
• Razor: Chiseled Face - Legacy Ti
• Blade: Gillette Silver Blue
• Lather: Catie’s Bubbles - Glace Herbe - Soap
• Post Shave: Catie’s Bubbles - V - Aftershave
• Fragrance: Catie’s Bubbles - V - EdP

Daily Theme Justification: I will defer to C Bubs himself on his thoughts about Glace Herbe being a two note soap, which includes Haitian Vetiver and menthol.

Daily Theme: Originally I was going to use Fanzine Saponifications Bubblegum and Rose. However, it feels like a million degrees in the midwest and I had just got done with yard work. As soon as I got done shaving, I saw u/TheStallionPartThree tag me for the rap battle and I will address that momentarily. Glace Herbe cooled me down and gave me that nice earthy, grassy, and nutty smell of Haitian Vetiver. I really enjoyed this soap that I got from u/BrokenJaw622, now I need to find a set of it. V splash and frag to follow up to follow the Vetiver train. You have that nice Vetiver base with V with a lot of top end complexity that really captivates me. It is probably my favorite fragrance to date.

Daily Challenge: u/TheStallionPartThree mentioned me earlier and this’ll be challenge entry and reply for a call out.

The man with a plan who cooks for Fanzine

He’s down with the brown which we call Ween

Could’ve lathered up some bubblegum and Rose

Instead Glace Herbe left me all froze

The Stallion whips up the Candi

His releases are sure to be dandy

Whether its Part one, two, or three

He made sure the Roses are Free!

June 21st, 2025: K.I.S.S.

• Brush: Rubberset - 400 w/ Maggard SHD Badger $DOORKNOB
• Razor: Equate - 2 Blade Disposable Cartridge $RAINBOW
• Lather: Catie’s Bubbles - Literal Lilac - Cream
• Post Shave: Catie’s Bubbles - Literal Lilac - Aftershave

Daily Theme: Today is keeping it simple. Lilac is the only note in my software today.

Daily Challenge: I really thought I was gonna do better than this today, but that is what I get for using a brush and base I am not very familiar with, a seemingly eternal two minutes and 46 seconds. I will say I got an incredible lather and was very pleased with the result. It made this cartridge feel decent, but I did get some redness and more pronounced splash feedback.

June 20th, 2025: The Clash

• Brush: Rad Dinosaur Creations - Emerald Peak TnS v9 Tip Badger
• Razor: Schick - Injector
• Blade: Schick Yellow
• Lather: Catie’s Bubbles - 322 - Soap
• Post Shave: Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! Sea Spice Lime - Aftershave
• Fragrance: Brut - Classic - Splash On

Daily Theme: 322 is a dark, dank, and even in soap form lingers on the skin, at least I get faint whiffs of it in the hour or two after shaving. Notes of Hatian Vetiver, Patchouli, Oakmoss, and and black currant, it does not exactly inspire images and feelings of zest and life, which is where Sea Spice Lime comes in. Following 322 up with Sea Spice Lime was like slamming and locking up the brakes to make a U-turn. While I can’t pick out each note specifically in this, the lime, sea spray, and pink pepper are the key notes that I notice and are a stark contrast to 322. It goes straight from walking out a underground cellar to strolling on the boardwalk with waves on the horizon, the olfactory experience matches this imagery. I finished my shave off with Brut Classic. It is green like SSL, but to me it is not in the same category. The anise hits hard up front and the woodiness sneaks in, a nice green fougere. Some notes are shared between these scents, and everybody’s experience of these scents will be different, but to my nose these do not go together well. Each successor steals the show.

Daily Challenge: Here is my entry for today’s challenge. I was really racking my brain on figuring something out for today, but I think it is a tasteful photo given my gear and available photo backdrops. The different shades of green are enough to stand on their own, but remain coordinated. The knot, SSL label, and Schick all have that creamy sail/ivory color and lends well to the leaves and stones. Don’t forget the black caps. I think this is a nice photo.

June 19th, 2025: Juneteenth

• Brush: AP Shave Co. - Black Butterscotch w/ AP Pure Bliss Synthetic
• Razor: Schick - Injector
• Blade: Schick Yellow
• Lather: Declaration Grooming - Convergence - Soap
• Post Shave: Catie’s Bubbles - Top of the World - Aftershave
• Fragrance: Brut - Classic - Splash On

Daily Theme: According to Harvard Medicine, “the ability of odors to bring to mind past experiences has intriguing scientific and therapeutic implications”. A Harvard neurobiology professor reports that our sense of smell is intricately intertwined with our cognitive, memory, and emotional cents. Okay, what does this have to do with the theme? The first time I ever smelt Convergence, I was immediately brought back to my childhood elementary library. Why? I have no clue. It brings to mind the charging boxes of the old clamshell MacBook laptops we used. Speaking for myself because I know not everybody is fortunate of this, but I had an incredible childhood. Playing outside for recess with my friends, had no responsibilities, very little expectations, and experienced freedom like not every child gets to. I was free to be myself, have fun, and be a kid. As we all know, that illusion wears off eventually and we learn the ways of the world. It is so strange how a random soap sample conjured up these old feelings of freedom and wonder that I used to experience on a daily basis. I used Top of the World because it reminds me of going to Colorado as a graduation gift/family vacation after high school. Seeing and hiking mountains for the first time was a true eye opener and the freedom I felt when I got to hike mountain sides and seeing the vast views is certainly inspiring.

Daily Challenge: What do mirrors do? They reflect light. No mirror day ≈ no light day? Well, the logic isn’t there, but that’s what I did. I took my shower and then turned off all my bathroom lights, and did my best to cover all the door gaps letting it any bit of sunlight. I dug through my smush dopp bag and smelled each container until I found it. Luckily, it a Maggard sample and the shape of their containers are distinguishable and only picked through 4 or 5. Then I had to feel for the brush I was gonna use. Then the splash, by smelling nearly every C-Bubs splash I have because I went through 5 or 6 of them. I sat down in my old man shower chair and did everything my feel and memory. Surely the lather was bad because it felt weird on my face and felt a lot of the blade and tugging with an injector. After a few passes, I rinsed off and took my initial unflattering SOTD picture and then the original. Then as I was putting my Brut on, I accidentally knocked it into my sink feeling for it, but thankfully it was plastic and I don’t think I lost much. Lather Games is doing a number on me and I think I am losing the plot.

Notes: I do not have a shower mirror and the pics were taken after the shave.

June 18th, 2025: Canned Shave Goop featuring a Canadian pharmacy’s intercom music playlist

• Brush: Chisel & Hound - Cherry w/ v25 Fanchurian Badger
• Razor: Merkur - 34C
• Blade: Gillette Silver Blue
• Lather: Barbasol - Extra Moisturizing Shaving Cream
• Post Shave: Catie’s Bubbles - Tonsorial Parlour - Aftershave
• Fragrance: Catie’s Bubbles - Crangère - EdP

Daily Theme Justification: Barbasol is canned goop.

Daily Theme: Well well well… canned goop day. Goop maybe the catalyst why we have fallen into this hobby type of shaving. It is cheap, accessible, and gets the job done, sort of. You can certainly shave with this stuff, but a brush and soap will always be better. How about using a brush with goop? Nope. I did that today and it still sucked. While this Extra Moisturizing formula of Barbasol is better than Original, it still leaves room to be improved. The slickness is just not there and can prove a chore to add just the perfect amount of water to get it just right. Lack of slickness brings about unnecessary tugging and dragging, keeping the razor and blade from doing its job. I would consider using this on vacation, but there are just too many wet shaving travel options out there that are much better.

Daily Challenge: ¡ʞɔɐʇs sᴉɥʇ ɹoɟ slǝqɐl ǝɥʇ ʇɐ ǝsolɔ ʞool oʇ ǝɹns ǝʞɐW ¡ƃuᴉʞɔɐʇs ʎddɐH ˙ʞɔɐq ʎɯ uᴉ uᴉɐɹʇs ǝlɔsnɯ ɐ ɥʇᴉʍ dǝǝlsɐ ɟlɐɥ ƃuᴉǝq ǝlᴉɥʍ op plnoɔ I ʇsǝq ǝɥʇ sᴉ sᴉɥ┴

June 17th, 2025: Don’t have a Cow, Man!

• Brush: Chisel & Hound - Cherry w/ v25 Fanchurian Badger and Omega - 10077 Boar
• Razor: Blackland - Blackbird and Van Der Hagen - Traditional Safety Razor
• Blade: Gillette Silver Blue
• Lather: Catie’s Bubbles - Azure - Soap
• Post Shave: Catie’s Bubbles - 322 - Aftershave

Daily Theme Justification: I ASKED THE SPONSOR AND ARTISAN HIMSELF IF PREMIUM BASE IS VEGAN AND HE SAID YES.

Daily Theme: This has been said before and I will say it again. If you have not tried u/C_Bubbles Premium Base, you need to. It really does go to show that tallow is not the defining factor in making a great soap. There are shitty vegan and shitty tallow soaps. There are great vegan and great tallow bases. Please do not fall prey to the idea that vegan automatically means a lesser product.

Daily Challenge: There will be three parts to this challenge. If you are reading this, it is extremely likely you have a fair amount of different wetshaving gear and I want to explore if more money spent is better.

Inexpensive vs. Expensive Brushes: First up is the C&H badger brush versus the cheap Omega boar brush. I’ve always had sort of a love/hate with badger knots. A really good knot will be super plush and soft like this Fanchurian, but a lot of the times I have difficulty with lathering, as I did today. Load, load, load, and load some more, but right before you think you’re done, you’ll need to load some more. Once you do get the soap loaded, a lot of the times I experience lather that is good, but not as good as I know it can be. In comes the Omega boar brush. Yes, they are cheap, light, and can literally stink like a pig’s asshole. But I have never had issues with it picking up soap. Sure, they can eat lather when new, but that almost always subsides and the knot softens as well. This knot released the lather way better than the badger, which is normal in my experience. Which one is better? Neither, it is totally up to preference, but if I was forced to choose between these two, I’d honestly enjoy using the Omega more.

Inexpensive vs. Expensive Razors: This Van Der Hagen DE was my first safety razor and this Blackbird was one of my more recent razor purchases. One is chintzy, cheap, and mild. The other is precise, heirloom-esque, and aggressive. Two opposite sides of the razor spectrum. The VDH has hardly any blade feel, while the Blackbird is very blade forward and needs a careful touch. Again, which one is better? blah blah… preferences… blah blah. I enjoy milder razors more and I will move on from this section.

Light vs. Dark Software: Azure has been described as a “barbershop in the sky”. Airy, light, and somewhat reminiscent of the blue barbershop style scent. 322 has been described as a wine cellar with a bottle smashed in the corner. Both conceptually opposite and in literal terms. I just recently learned from the man himself that the specialty extract of labdanum in Azure smells resinous and has amber like qualities. The 322 scent smells very dark and dank with the slightest hint of fruitiness from the black currant. Applying the 322 splash grounds you into something darker after just having your head in the sky during the shave. The Yin and Yang of Catie’s Bubbles software.

June 16th, 2025: Where’s the Beef?

• Brush: Rad Dinosaur Creations - Stars w/ AP G5C Synthetic
• Razor: Schick - Injector
• Blade: Schick Yellow
• Lather: Red House Farm - No Scrub - Soap
• Post Shave: Catie’s Bubbles - Tonsorial Parlour - Aftershave

Daily Theme Justification: No Scrub soap contains North American Black Bear tallow.

Daily Theme: Today’s theme was relatively easy for me. I have a few soaps that contain duck fat, but I realized I hadn’t used No Scrub yet during the Games. My lather sucked today, but 100% my fault due to today’s challenge.

Daily Challenge: I’m not sure if this is a new challenge, but man this was not that enjoyable. The splash was nice to start out with, but building a lather on a dry face proved to be really difficult. It doesn’t help that this soap can be difficult to load with a big brush. After two passes and a rinse, I was finished up. A very unsatisfying finish to a shave. I am looking forward to tomorrow for something a little bit more normal. Happy Monday!

June 15th, 2025: Father’s Day

• Prep: Proraso - Eucalyptus Oil & Menthol - Pre Shave Cream
• Brush: Omega - Bambino Boar $JETSETTER
• Razor: Merkur - 34C
• Blade: Gillette Silver Blue
• Lather: Mäurer & Wirtz - Tabac - Soap
• Post Shave: Mäurer & Wirtz - Tabac - Aftershave
• Post Shave: L’ Occitane Homme - L’Occitan After Shave Balm
• Fragrance: Brut - Classic - Splash On

Hardware Scavenger Hunt: I got this Bambino from my Proraso Travel Shave Kit. It is explicitly marketed as a travel sized version of the classic boar brush.

Daily Theme Justification: Tabac was first introduced in the early 1950’s. I was born in the 1990’s.

Daily Theme: What else is there to say about Tabac? It is stinky, it is good, and it heals the mind body and soul. I was lucky enough to find a tallow puck from our friend u/frankieivfingers and the lather was great today. All of my other gear was also consisted of brands that are older than me. Judges can look up the rest if there curious, but since it is just the lather that matters, that’s all ya get. Participants can’t be doing all the heavy lifting and work, right???

Daily Challenge: While I wasn’t able to dim lights and had no candle handy (nor safe space to put it in my bathroom FWIW), I made sure to put on some tunes (MGMT) and took my sweet ass time. After my shower, I started with a hot towel, which I never do, but it was nice to feel that for a few minutes. To balance that out, I used some Proraso Green Pre Shave and massaged it in for a good minute and let it sit while I was getting everything else ready. I used my Bambino on my Tabac puck and this was by far the best lather with Tabac I’d ever gotten. With hard pucks, using light pressure and just the tips (giggity) produced an excellent lather, thank you for the wisdom u/KerblimeySkal. The lather was damn near perfect for all passes and the Tabac splash was refreshing as well, dank yet clean. Finished with some balm that I also never use, but it has a nice calming scent to it. Brut Classic to finish it off. This Classic scent is seriously good and cheap and I would urge people to give it a try.

June 14th, 2025: Near Death Experience

• Brush: Pepto Bimsol Handle w/ Boti HMW Silk Badger $SILVERTIP $TOLL
• Razor: Weck Sextoblade - Med Prep $WECKONISTA
• Blade: Fromm - Hair Shaper
• Lather: Chicago Grooming - Irving Park
• Post Shave: Equate - 91% Isopropyl Alcohol
• Post Shave: Zingari Man - Unscented Sego Balm
• Fragrance: Noble Otter - Barrbarr - EdP

Hardware Scavenger Hunt: Just to appease the judges, here is a picture of my brush with the loft sitting precisely at 60mm.

Daily Theme: At first I thought I was going to have a difficult time deciphering which tub I was gonna use because I had been offloading some stuff I wasn’t using as much, so must of my tubs have fairly few shaves out of them. Thankfully, I sent out a load of smushes of this Irving Park tub, and I would estimate there’s probably one ounce left.

Daily Challenge: With it being World Blood Donor Day, I felt nauseous so of course I decided to down a whole bottle of Pepto Bismol pills. As I was staring blankly at the bottle questioning what I had I done, I figured this would actually make a good handle. I stuck one of my loose knots in, set it with silicone, and BOOM, new brush!! Keeping in theme with blood donating, I made sure to use my Med Prep Weck to ensure complete sterility. I hadn’t used any open blade for a hot minute now and I anticipated on this being a blood bath. However, it turned out to be an extremely smooth shave and only had ONE teeny tiny little weeper, but there was BLOOD! You can never be too careful though. I made sure to follow up my shave with some isopropyl alcohol and did not bother with a silly splash. Being clean with wounds is of utmost importance and it felt surprisingly nice. I had to finish off with something super sweet like Barrbarr to bring my sugars back up and on the mend!

June 13th, 2025: Frugal Friday

• Brush: Omega - 10077 Boar
• Razor: Gillette - Tech $STAINLESSLESS
• Blade: Gillette Blue
• Lather: Van Der Hagen - Luxury Scented Shave Soap
• Post Shave: Mennen - Skin Bracer - Aftershave
• Fragrance: Old Spice - Classic - EdC

Daily Theme: I was originally going to use Proraso today, but found this puck of VDH soap for like $4 and that makes it cheaper. It actually lathered surprisingly well given the price. I need to give it another shot.

Daily Challenge: I used all my cheapest gear today of stuff I actually purchased and not just given to me. I used the loose Gillette Blue blade that came with this Tech. I don’t think the blade actually cut anything because it was extremely tuggy and then I never actually saw any stubble removed, nor does it feel like it. Can’t complain about the smells tho. The soap, Skin Bracer, and Old Spice are all classic scents that you can never go wrong with.

I’m always down for monkeying around on discord🐒

June 12th, 2025: Accountabilibuddies!

• Brush: Rad Dinosaur Creations - Cavern Dream w/ AP Pure Bliss Synthetic
• Razor: Chiseled Face - Legacy Ti
• Blade: Gillette Silver Blue
• Lather: Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! Sea Spice Lime - Soap
• Post Shave: Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! Sea Spice Lime - Aftershave
• Fragrance: Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! Sea Spice Lime - EdT

Daily Theme: Originally, u/snoo-ting and I agreed to use our SSL sets today, but u/brokenjaw622 joined forces and so did u/djundjila and u/sahenders. Although BrokenJaw was originally supposed to use SSL with us, some djudges pushed his buttons and he has officially gone rogue. I used Catie’s Bubbles for Wildcard Wednesday and he’s since been holding my razor hostage, threatening to use it for devious acts!!! Somebody get control of this man!!!

Daily Challenge: I’m sure as soon as he saw the challenge yesterday, he probably knew it would be about him. After recently joining the discord last year, I was asking questions about brushes and u/KerblimeySkal gave me sage advice. I DM’ed asking more questions because I didn’t want to blow up the server and he was more than helpful offering me different options to help me with my brush and explained things in smooth brain level of understanding. To be honest, I don’t even know what the heck I was asking about and he can attest to my memory issues. Since then, we converse on a regular basis about nonsense, talk each other off ledges when we want to impulse purchase shaving gear, and talk some more nonsense. I consider him a very good friend of mine and that is something I cherish considerably of this hobby. Come for the shaving and stay for the company and the laughs. Thanks man for welcoming and answering a noob’s questions and being a friend.

$discord

As of this morning I think he plans on participating with us!

June 11th, 2025: Wildcard Wednesday

• Brush: AP Shave Co. - Black Butterscotch w/ AP Pure Bliss Synthetic
• Razor: Schick - Injector
• Blade: Schick Yellow
• Lather: Catie’s Bubbles - Tonsorial Parlour - Soap
• Post Shave: Catie’s Bubbles - Tonsorial Parlour - Aftershave
• Fragrance: Catie’s Bubbles - Crangère - EdP

Daily Theme: I used Catie’s Bubbles Tonsorial Parlour Luxury Shave Soap. A true dickhole shave with a truly niche artisan and scent!!! I decided to stay up late because I don’t feel like shaving with tax exempt red diesel or my own semen. Maybe a mix of both I would consider, but its not “It’s Alive!” day yet.

Daily Challenge: Compared to last year, my den has grown a substantial amount. Here is a picture of my dedicated shelf of shave wares and then a spread pic of almost everything I have. I missed a few brushes, a razor, and some other clutter I am surely forgetting. The dopp kit to the left is my bag full of samples and smushes, but I didn’t feel like dumping it out. We all know what kinda black hole our smush and sample containers look like.

June 10th, 2025: The Art of Shaving

• Brush: Rad Dinosaur Creations - Stars w/ AP G5C Synthetic
• Razor: Chiseled Face - Legacy Ti
• Blade: Gillette Silver Blue
• Lather: Mike’s Natural Soaps - Orange, Cedarwood, & Black Pepper - Soap
• Post Shave: Catie’s Bubbles - Tonsorial Parlour - Aftershave

Daily Theme Justification: See below.

Daily Theme: Good label art is 100% a subjective thing, and I 100% percent not pick this because of simplicity 👀. AI art is becoming prolific in this space. While it is not necessarily a travesty, it can certainly cheapen products and/or people’s perceptions of brands and artisans. The first thing you think when you see one is “Ugh, could they not hire somebody for this?” However, you can’t blame artisans for this because it creates incredible images for zero cost and shaving soap isn’t exactly the most lucrative business. Some AI labels border and exceed ugly and gaudy. Half the time you can’t even tell which artisan made the soap without reading the entire label.

In come Mike from Mike’s Natural Soaps (yes, this is actually a picture of Mike). Mike made one label ever and it is instantly recognizable. Mike doesn’t need rulers,1000 shades of blue pencils, sketching paper, photoshopping software, or anything frivolous as previously mentioned. Two different font types and a loon is all Mike needs to make his products stand out amongst the sea of overstimulating labels. Today, I pay homage.

Daily Challenge: Yes, I actually created this with my own hands. Do not mistake it for the OG artwork.

June 9th, 2025: Dupelgänger

• Brush: AP Shave Co. - Heritage Collection Ever-Ready 200 w/ Proraso Pro Omega Boar
• Razor: Manscaped - Plow 2.0
• Blade: Gillette Silver Blue
• Lather: Declaration Grooming - Massacre of the Innocents - Soap
• Post Shave: Chicago Grooming Co. - Irving Park - Aftershave

Daily Theme Justification: While Declaration Grooming’s website doesn’t explicitly state this is a dupe of Parfums De Marly Herod, they share the same scent notes and Herod in the Bible infamously is responsible for killing a bunch of baby boys, thus the name Massacre of the Innocents. It’s all connected. I promise.

Daily Theme: I enjoyed the scent of this soap on my first use, but glad I only have the sample. For me, it is the same vain as TF Tobacco Vanille, but evolved and more sophisticated and for that reasons I really like it. My mind my change when I use it more. I used Irving Park simply because it is the only splash that I have that’s a dupe. They have few if any similarities, but have a nice contrast.

Daily Challenge: Last year I made an album of memes. This year I decided to do the same. I hope they bring some laughs to your Monday. Note: there are a few gifs sprinkled in.

June 8th, 2025: Shave and a Haircut - Two Bits

• Brush: Omega - 10077 Boar $OLDWORLD
• Razor: Gillette - Tech $RUSTYBUTTRUSTY $MACHINEAGE
• Blade: Gillette Silver Blue
• Lather: Moon Soaps - Union - Soap
• Post Shave: Catie’s Bubbles - Tonsorial Parlour - Aftershave
• Fragrance: Noble Otter - Barrbarr - EdP

Hardware Scavenger Hunt: Omega boar brushes are made in Italy. For $RUSTYBUTTRUSTY and $MACHINEAGE, I bring forth this old Gillette Tech. I will be going by the date printed on the box that I purchased it in. While it not the most visually stunning patina, it is certainly there. This cloudiness is present on the baseplate as well as the neck of the handle.

Daily Theme Justification: “Union Shaving Soap is a sharp, cooling, and pungent take on a classic American-style barbershop fragrance. It’s a step back into the 1950s when the hard work of a craftsman was not only common but appreciated.” -Moon soaps Union ad copy

Daily Theme: Barbershop day… I love this day because I love barbershop scents, but a recurring theme asked by many people is “What is a barbershop fragrance supposed to smell like?” because none of them smell alike. To quote the great resident barbershop fiend and honemeister u/whosgotthepudding, barbershop scents are “an ill defined and faux genre.” If none of this clarifies barbershop scents and fragrances for you still, it is not supposed to. Nobody knows what the fuck a barbershop scent is. However, there is a vague pattern of barbershop scent profiles including citrus top notes, some herbal middles notes, and oakmoss and/or patchouli as base notes, maybe some powdery talc and sweet notes if the artisan is feeling saucy. Yet, some barbershop scents omit or add to this generic profile and can still be marketed as a barbershop. For example, Chiseled Face Ghost Town Barber is a barbershop scent which follows the generic profile, but adds leather, smoke, and gunpowder. Sounds like a barbershop that Blondie would smoke Tuco in after getting a nice straight razor shave. All of this to say, barbershops are probably my favorite scents because they are clean, fresh, and usable everyday. I have tried many of them and in using Union for the first time today, it may be my new favorite. Union, Tonsorial Parlour, and Barrbarr are all very different conceptions of a barbershop. Tonsorial Parlour is made using strictly essential oils and has a very fruity and bright profile, while Barrbarr is a darker, sweeter, and herbal iteration. Union bridges that gap (minus the sweetness) and made for a whole and transitioning experience of the “barbershop” profile.

Daily Challenge: Limerick day, tsk tsk. I would not consider myself a creative person, but here goes.

Barbershop, what is the scent you are?

To find this out, I mustn’t go far

Into the shop I will walk

The barber here I am to talk

“Fresh and Clean!” Now that’s on par!

Barbershop word count of this post: 17

June 7th, 2025: Small Business Saturday

• Brush: Rubberset - 400 w/ Maggard SHD Badger
• Razor: Schick - Injector
• Blade: Schick Yellow
• Lather: Summer Break Soaps - Rookie of the Year 2024 - Soap
• Post Shave: Catie’s Bubbles - V - Aftershave
• Fragrance: Catie’s Bubbles - V - EdP

Daily Theme Justification: As today calls, we are supposed to use something small batch. HOW ABOUT ONLY SIX TUBS EVER MADE???. Sorry u/rocketk455 for leaking super secret files from last year’s ROTY 2024 Research & Development.

Daily Theme: I was super excited last year to learn that my scent profile was chose last year and that I was going to be receiving a tub of ROTY 2024. The chef at Summer Break Soaps was super easy to work with and excited to help it come to life, so whoever wins it this year is in for a treat! The notes are lemon, lavender, cardamom, and vetiver. I would say it has a fairly unique scent profile, but it is relatively approachable. The closest thing I could match for splash and frag is V from our friend u/C_Bubbles. I ended up looking at the notes from V and noticed that it also contains lavender, cardamom, and vetiver. Maybe my rookie nose actually knows what a good fragrance, since a master chef of fragrance himself him used the same notes in one of my favorite fragrances (I had zero idea of what I was putting together last year).

Daily Challenge: I bowl lathered today. I really dislike bowl lathering and almost always end up ruining the lather. Today was no different. I almost always end up putting too much water in or aerating it too much. I will likely never learn because it is too much work for a lesser quality lather. It simply does not mater what soap or brush I use. Back to face lathering tomorrow. It was also nice to get a shave in today in my bathroom and not on a lake.