Review - Smith Family Soapworks

Company: Smith Family Soap Works

Product: Lime Shaving Soap

Location:  Murrieta, California

Website: http://www.smithfamilysoap.com

Every wet shaver when buying shaving soap knows if you see “Olive Oil” listed in the ingredients you normally would shy away from the product. The reason for this is olive oil tends to kill lather and if you find one that does have great lather it fades away very quickly. Well this has all changed now since finding Smith Family Soap Works. A family own company out of Murrieta, California that specializes in creating an array of Olive Oil products including a line of shaving soap. 

Pacific Shaving Company / Caffeinated Shaving Cream

Company: Pacific Shaving Co.

Product: Caffeinated Shaving Cream & Aftershave

Website: http://www.pacificshaving.com/

When I saw this shaving cream on the shelves at target I thought why caffeine? Why would I need caffeine in my shaving cream?  As it turns out, you really don’t. They do say it reduces redness but does it really? I think it has more to do with the packaging and product targeting then how it helps your skin.

Pacific has been around for a while since 2000 and has done very well with the original offerings starting with after shave oil and moving toward shaving scream. In that time, you’ll always see a redesign when products start to lose momentum on the shelf. I think this is what’s happening here. The caffeine infused shaving cream is nothing more than a gimmick in my opinion. Just like the new single use shaving cream minis. The casing is encapsulated in a food-grade, 100% water-soluble film they dissolved when they touch water. Nice idea but I think this would appeal to a younger crowd.

Review - Mystic Water Soap / Lemon Verbena

Company: Mystic Water Soap

Product: Lemon Verbena Shaving Soap

Founder: Michelle Burns, Soap Artisan

Location: Riverdale Park, MD 

Website - http://www.mystic4men.com

Ok, let me start off by saying I screwed up. I ordered a refill instead of tub and because of that I can’t really say much about the packaging. I did however create my own out of a Pine Brother plastic case for cough drops. It was the perfect size after I sliced the puck down the middle and the label fit just right.

Michelle runs her shop out of Riverdale Park, MD where she’s been making artisan soap for over fifteen years. Her first foray into shaving soap was an eye-opening experience she quickly found out that it’s not as easy as making bar soap. So, after many failed attempts and reformulations Michelle got it right and lucky for us because her shaving soap is truly outstanding. 

Review - WSP Formula T BarberShop

Company: WSP

Product: Formula T BarberShop

Founder: Lee

Location: Chandler, Arizona

I’ve always been impressed with the vegan rustic line of shaving soaps from WSP. The performance and value are outstanding. We now have FormulaT with shea butter and tallow. Lee has taken the existing rustic line and over time has transformed them all into Formula T which in my opinion has increased the performance of the outstanding shaving soap.  

This impressive barbershop scent is typical of classic America from years gone by. The scent includes a base of powdery musk, some bergamot, orange zest, oakmoss, patchouli, and finished it with a hint of geranium. The full list of natural ingredients includes: stearic acid, water, tallow, coconut oil, potassium hydroxide, glycerin, butyrospermum parkii (Shea butter), fragrance, & sodium hydroxide. Free of synthetic dyes & preservatives.

Review - Through The Fire Fine Craft Bay Rum Shaving Soap

Company: Through The Fire Fine Craft

Product: Bay Rum Shaving Soap

Location: Alanson, MI

Website: http://www.TTFFCraft.Com

A few weeks back I was given some items to try and sell on my flea market. I present yet another shaving soap called Through The Fire Fine Craft Bay Rum. I’ve never used this before and last week I was so impressed with this soap I wanted to keep it for myself but I did promise to put it up so I will.

The soap comes in a clear 4.0oz tub with screw on lid. The labels have a great color combination of red, gold and black. Each tub has a simple but direct statement of what the scent is. At the time of this writing the website seems to be under construction. I can’t figure out if this Bay Rum is part of the of the Premium collection for $14.99 or the classic at $12.99 because it wasn’t listed on the site for sale. I even tried Maggard Razors and found lots Through The Fire soaps but no Bay Rum.