#1
(This post was last modified: 11-10-2018, 08:36 PM by summerbreaksoaps.)
Hello everyone!

My name is Kyle. I, along with my wife, make up Summer Break Soaps. We both work in and are passionate about education. You can see that theme running throughout our products. We opened our doors on 3/1/18.

I, like many of you, originally started wet shaving to save money because I was sick of paying the ridiculous price for cartridges. I was automatically hooked and shaving quickly became my hobby. I loved the process, but the thing that I loved the most was smelling different scents and combining different products to mix their scents and create unique profiles. It didn't take me long make the jump to soap making. My wife enjoys cosmetics so it was a perfect hobby for us to do together.

We currently make shaving soap, alcohol based aftershave, and bath soap. We currently have 4 "permanent scents," unscented soaps and splashes, and seasonal scents. You can find out more about our products at www.summerbreaksoaps.com. You can also follow us on Instagram and Facebook @ summerbreaksoaps and Twitter @summerbreaksoap.

Please don't hesitate to let me know if you have any questions.

Thank you!


Scent Descriptions:

Teacher's Pet:
When we decided to go with the name Summer Break Soaps it was obvious that we would need a fantastic apple scent. Teacher’s Pet is what came out of that idea. Much like a real teacher’s pet, it is sweet, with a touch of tartness. The apple (Macintosh apple to be exact) is firmly in the driver's seat here. Brown sugar and white musk contribute some sweetness while orange zest boosts the tart side of things. Patchouli provides the base.

History 101:
History has always been a subject that I was passionate about. History 101 is the result of me asking myself, “what would history smell like?” That is a very broad and difficult question to answer (not to mention strange). History 101 is what resulted from me experimenting with this question in mind. It consists of a blend of individual notes that remind me of history, leather, gunsmoke, smoke, dirt, tobacco, and sawdust. Clary sage and allspice also are present as top notes.

Brain Break:
Lavender is one of my favorite scents, so I knew immediately that I would be building a scent that featured lavender. I decided to pair the lavender with other smells that are considered to be calming, vanilla and a touch of peppermint. The result is difficult to describe with any word other than, fantastic. This is the perfect scent to get you focused and ready for the day or to help you relax and wind down in the evening.

Picture Day:
Everyone has to look their very best for picture day, which may include a stop at the local barbershop. This is my interpretation of a barbershop style scent, which was developed with my barbershop in mind. It starts off with lavender and bergamot, which quickly fall in with the rest of the accord. Rosemary and black pepper are present as middle notes. The base is oakmoss, patchouli, and tonka bean. The result is a fantastic scent that is both familiar and different at the same time. Picture Day will leave you not only looking your best, but smelling great too. Say Cheese!

Field Day (spring seasonal):
Spring is my favorite time of the year. Everything is turning green, the weather is getting nicer, and, for school children, the end of the school year is near. Field Day was one of my favorite days growing up. It was every kid’s opportunity to compete against their friends in such events as the softball toss, frisbee throw, standing long jump, and race around the playground. This scent was created with the smell of a spring morning in mind. The scent starts with the smell of green grass and floral notes, Iris and floral aldehyde, as well as water from the fresh morning dew. Finally, dirt and cedarwood provide the base notes.

Cannonball! (summer seasonal):
Cannonball! Is your chance to experience a tropical day at the pool from the comfort of your own bathroom. Not only will this soap leave you smelling great, but it will cool you off and give you the sensation of relaxing in a pool on a hot day. I spent many summers as a kid at the swimming pool nearly every day. I loved it so much that I worked as a lifeguard for many summers when I was older. The smell of a pool is something that will always brings back memories for me. Knowing that not everyone would probably want to smell like a pool all day, I decided to introduce some tropical fruits into this scent. The result is an initial burst of of Pineapple and Orange, but the sweetness is quickly cut by the scents of Water, Ozone, and Chlorine, creating a unique and complex scent that is truly perfect for summer. I’ve used a synthetic alternative to menthol in this soap. The result is a cooling sensation that will set in after a minute or 2 and last for long after your shave. If combined with the aftershave, the cooling sensation may last for 30 minutes + for some people.

Back to School (fall seasonal):
Ah fall, I’m sure everyone remembers the sights, scents, and feelings of returning to school. Back to School captures that feeling of fall. It is a fresh take on a fall scent. Think of taking a hike through the woods after school is out for the day. The leaves on the trees changing colors and falling to the ground around you. Hay and leaves keep this scent fresh while cedar grounds them. Dirt is present in the background to round out the soap, but I would not describe this as a dirty scent. This is a very fresh take on a fall scent.

Winter Break (winter seasonal):
Winter Break, Holiday Break, Christmas Break, it doesn’t matter what you call it. What matters is the memories tied to this time of year. The goal of Winter Break was to make a scent that helps you take a trip down memory lane. The core of this scent consists of Balsam Fir and Evergreen. A touch of dark chocolate provides the base while Nutmeg provides a bit of spiciness. Finally, the scent is finished with the perfect amount of Peppermint, which rounds out the accord and makes it the perfect fit for this time of year.

Everything Nice (limited edition):
“...Sugar and spice and everything nice, that's what little girls are made of…” This scent was created to celebrate the gender reveal of our 2nd child. Everything Nice is a complex, just like little girls. At the very core of this scent is the beautiful blend between peach and freesia, which is a combo that my wife loves. From there vanilla and amber provide a well balanced base. Brown sugar adds the sweetness which is balanced out by a touch of cinnamon. Finally, baby powder completes this complex blend. This scent may have been created to celebrate our upcoming baby girl, but it is far from a “girly” scent.

HighSpeed, andrewjs18, TheHunter and 4 others like this post
#2
Hi Kyle, and welcome... I'm currently waiting on History 101... can't wait. :-)

summerbreaksoaps likes this post
#3
Hi there. Where can your soap be bought besides directly? Asking because of international shipping...

Sent from my PRA-LX1 using Tapatalk

summerbreaksoaps likes this post
#4
Great question, our shaving soap and aftershave lines are both also available from www.topofthechain.ca.

pimple8 likes this post
#5
Added a couple upcoming scents to the descriptions above. We will also be releasing an unscented synthetic menthol aftershave that has a cooling feeling of up to 30 minutes post shave.

ksn2273 likes this post
#6

Member
NYC | Singapore
Necessary Disclosure: I won this set of Everything Nice + samples + Icy Stare aftershave as a result of a giveaway organized at another online wet shaving community. I am not affiliated to Summer Break Soaps in any way, and all opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

What are little boys made of?
What are little boys made of?
 Snips and snails
 And puppy-dogs' tails
That's what little boys are made of

What are little girls made of?
What are little girls made of?
 Sugar and spice
 And everything nice
That's what little girls are made of


The proprietor behind Summer Break Soaps, Kyle, created Everything Nice to celebrate his wife's pregnancy. The rhyme above should clue you in to the gender of their impending happy addition to the family. (Congratulations again, Kyle!)

Since I am no shave meister, and I do not pretend to be, I am here to give a layman's view of what my impression of the scents, and their execution. Besides Everything Nice, I also got samples of Teacher's Pet, Picture Day and Cannonball!.

Teacher's Pet: I had envisioned this to smell like straight apple juice, but this is much more than that. This is sitting under a apple tree, in the middle of an apple orchard. A soft breeze passes, carrying with it, a touch of earth , a touch of tree bark, a touch of crushed leaves - "earthiness" brought on by the patchouli. The execution is very natural and smooth.

Picture Day: Barbershop a la B&M Reserve Classic / Gillette Sundown. Classic, timeless. Enough said.

Cannonball!: This one made me do a double-take. Out of the sample, it smells like marshmallows. However, on second sniff, the notes start separating. This is not a fruit-forward scent at all, and it does an excellent job of creating the impression of "cool pool water" - the tinge of menthol that follow each sniff is genius. There are a ton of "aqua" fragrances out there that are supposed to give the impression of water. Sure, but Cannonball! comes really close. I love the progression, but cannot help thinking if a lemon opening that quickly fades into the base notes would be more appropriate.

Everything Nice: This is quite possibly the first shaving soap in my collection that I would classify a gourmand. This is very much a unisex scent. Refreshing peach and freesia quickly give way to cinnamon-laced vanilla, ending in a sweet vanilla dry down. A very comforting scent for the cooler months ahead, and if you have a significant other with a sweet tooth, this might be the one to get. Very smooth transition of notes to the base.

Hope this was useful!

[Image: wTxqzZd.jpg]

Freddy and summerbreaksoaps like this post
- Shi Yuan
#7
Our winter seasonal, Winter Break, will be available on November 15th from our website. The notes are balsam fir, evergreen, dark chocolate, nutmeg, and peppermint. The full scent description is listed above.

Additionally, I'd like to announce our Black Friday/Cyber Monday deals. All shaving soaps and aftershaves will be marked down by $2 Friday through Monday (23-26). Bath soap and shaving soap samples will be $1 off. The free shipping threshold will also be lowered to $30. No discount code will be needed for any of this.

Str8 Shaver likes this post
#8

Member
New York
(This post was last modified: 06-27-2019, 12:47 PM by mrdoug.)
Received a tub of Teacher's Pet soap yesterday evening. I won't be able to shave with it for a few days. However, I wanted to comment on the scent.

I had a sample of Stirling Red Delicious. Initially I was not a fan of the scent, but it grew on me. Unfortunately, I couldn't get anymore of their Red Delicious, as it's either discontinued or on hiatus.

I did some homework, discussed Teacher's Pet with Kyle, and even bought a Macintosh apple at my local grocery store to get an idea of the scent.

Well, first of all, Teacher's Pet is such a perfect example of an apple Soap. The scent is Apple, through and through. Not some cloyingly sweet apple candy, but a real apple smell.

Again, I smell apple through and through. There's a fair amount of rich sweetness that really makes me think of natural apple, not granulated sugar / fake addatives. There is a tart tinge, perfectly befitting a Macintosh Apple. Finally, an undercurrent of what I assume is the white musk to hold it together? I even feel like I can detect a tinge of the muted, almost waxy tone of the peel (maybe attributed to the musk ingredient?).

I am not great at picking out different scents in a soap. This soap is exceedingly difficult to do such to. This is absolutely a testament to how well this soap is made. This is not a soap of scents that pair well together, this is the building of one scent 'picture' by putting just the right pieces in to make it smell too real to be true. I am blown away... this is absolutely artistry, imo. You'll want to take a bite out of your soap. Please don't, lol.

I'll come back and post my shave review in a few days. However, if it shaves anywhere near competent, this is a great soap to get... Especially since it's on discount right now.

Matsilainen and summerbreaksoaps like this post
#9

Member
New York
And now for the Shave...

Using a Synthetic west coast Shaving brush and my timeless shave bowl, it was easy to build the lather.

I used my Razorock 6s, plate 3, with a Gillette 7 o'clock Black blade. The shave was smooth with enough glide and protection. After 3 passes and some clean up, I rinsed.

Post shave was very nice, without any noticable dryness. I finished with a splash of glycerin, alcohol, and water. At this point I noticed a bit less sting than typical.

I am very happy with this soap and would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a nice true apple scent.

Matsilainen and summerbreaksoaps like this post


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