DFS Horizons pass around list

Set shipped out today to jbreakfield.

List:

andrewjs18 (Pennsylvania)
Dave in KY (Kentucky)
Lbkindy (Indiana)
ewk (South Carolina)
wyze0ne (Michigan)]/s]
[s]Marhos24 (Michigan)
Nickytheweeper (Massachusetts)
ram57 (Idaho)
jbreakfield (Alabama)
Time Bandit (California)
Mthammer11 (Tennessee)
andrewjs18 (Pennsylvania)

I received the set last night, and the replacement splash the day before. I will post back soon.

I've had a couple of shaves with the DFS Horizons soap. First scent impressions are that it is somehow familiar, but I can't quite place exactly why. I can pick up the citrus top notes, and the bourbon vanilla, and a few of the other notes. It's complex enough that nothing really hits you hard, but the overall scent is pretty strong. It's a bit more complex than I like, so I'm not sure that I would purchase. I'm going to try it again to see if I change my mind. The after shave is also nice, but I can detect a difference in the scent from the soap. The aftershave does last, and it changes a bit as the day goes on. 

Soap performance is great, and it took a bit more water than I expected. Very nice slickness and cushion, comparable to some other top end bases that I've tried. The scent changes a bit as you build the lather, but not significantly so.

All in all, a nice experience. Ready to ship to the next participant as soon as I get the address.

The set is on it's way to Mthammer11 . Impressive collaboration.

I messaged Time Bandit a couple of times, but never got a response.

I received this set, packed thoughtfully, from jbreakfield . 

The DFS Horizons set is a handsome product.  Having not read the previous reviews and impressions (on purpose to not bias my opinion), I guessed that it might smell coniferous, or at least an interpretation of “outdoorsy”. The packaging screams “Northern outdoors” to me.  Not the case! To my unsophisticated nose, I was immediately reminded of Ethos’ Vetivert.  I smelled vetiver and bergamot right away.  Not at all what i was expecting, but pleasant and a nice surprise. 

I thought the soap lathered well.  My first shave was with a boar that I am still breaking in, and the lather wasn’t top notch - my issue for sure.  I switched to a trusty synthetic for the second shave and whipped up a really nice lather that built quickly and smelled great.

I’m an almost exclusive straight razor user, so I tend to gravitate towards soaps with the most slickness and cushion that I can find. I thought this one was somewhere in the middle. Not bad, but not amazing.  

For me, the post-shave feel was nice. I didn’t use the EDT, but did the splash.  Definitely alcohol-based, which I tend to like.  I thought the splash lingered for a long time. The residual smell - again to my unsophisticated nose - consisted of vanilla, tonka, and most notably - powder.  Benzoin is the closest thing listed in the base notes (that I could find) that can smell powdery.  i very much dislike this smell, and unfortunately, this is the smell that hangs around the longest.

All-in-all, I thought it was a great shaving experience.  Really an intriguing scent.  I would definitely consider the soap, but will pass on the splash and EDT.  

Thank you andrewjs18 for organizing and sharing this with all of us.  Will send back to you shortly!

thanks all, the set arrived back to me a few days ago.

I’m an almost exclusive straight razor user, so I tend to gravitate towards soaps with the most slickness and cushion . . .

What are your top five or seven soaps or bases based on these criteria?

I’m an almost exclusive straight razor user, so I tend to gravitate towards soaps with the most slickness and cushion . . .

What are your top five or seven soaps or bases based on these criteria?

Before I give you my list, I feel I must qualify it with the fact that prep, lathering method, water hardness, moon phase (kidding), etc… are all factors in getting the most out of a shave soap.  (BTW - You might be a very experienced wet shaver and know all of this already, but this is info. that took we a while to figure out. Hopefully this will help someone).  

When I first started wet shaving, I bought some pricey, well-reviewed soap and was disappointed with the results.  Turns out, now that I’ve gotten better at lathering, the problem was me. Over time, I have become a big fan of face lathering. It’s just not as aesthetically appealing/sexy as traditional bowl lathering, and I resisted for a long time.  Now, I feel strongly that the benefits/end results of face lathering are many - not the least of which are the face/beard prep that happens while lathering.  I now know that when get this certain sheen and texture (some refer to a yogurt or meringue), then it’s about right and I switch from lathering to “painting”, and it’s then that I’m ready to shave.

So….I say all of this to say that the following soaps are the ones that I have dialed in for my routine/method:

Zingari Man
Aion (Grooming Dept.)
Macduffs
A&E Ultima
Ethos

I use and enjoy several others, but these are the ones that i can really get an enjoyable, luxurious shave/post shave experience.

This morning, I posted my morning shave to another forum.  Here it is:
——————————

Shower
Brush: Fendrihan Synthetic - 24mm
Razor: Vintage Wade & Butcher Straight
Soap: Zingari Man - Mousse Illuminee
Toner: Thayer‘s - Unscented
Serum: Jack Black Protein Serum
Balm: Zingari Man Aftershave Balm - Unscented
EDT: None Needed!

3 Passes
No Knicks, Cuts, Irritation
Shave Rating: 10 - BBS!
——————————-

Nothing super-fancy, but it works incredibly well for me.

FYI - I can’t recommend Zingari Man’s Aftershave Balm (not the Sego one) enough.  As a final step, after a quality shave, it gives me the best post-shave feeling of any product I’ve tried.

OK - ridiculously long answer, but there you go!

Mthammer11:

That's a fine answer.  Many thanks.

I'm on board with you on MacDuff's.  Old Strathcona is a contender for my very favourite soap.