I think I'm as close to falling in love with a range of shaving products as is possible. I realise how sad that sounds, but this stuff just seems to have my name on it.
It's all Nathan @ Mensbiz fault. I was cruising along with my budget soaps – Tabac, Cella, Speick, and dabbling in some T&H creams (just samplers mind, I'm Mr Frugal these days). Then he throws some Arlington soap in my lap. "If you get a chance, tell me what you think", he says. He knows damn well I will (good or bad), he's got my number too.
Like all potentially long-term relationships, it didn't start well. A bit like meeting your future missus at her best friends' wedding and throwing up your hors D'oeuvres on the Ray Costarella dress she spent 8 months choosing and saving for.
First it was the scent. Straight out of the box I thought, 'Lemon Jif'. But oddly, I still really liked it. Sad as I am I went to smell some lemon Jif and the only thing they share is a citrus scent (and tbh, lemon Jif doesn't smell bad; lemon is probably the only thing that can mask the hodgepodge of chemicals in there). But Arlington is far more pleasant, and like a good wine, it mellows. The bright citrus of the soap becomes mossier. This seems to do what it says on the box and smell of citrus and fern, more reminiscent of lemon thyme.
The second hurdle (like trying to clean up future missus' dress, and getting half your hand stuck down her cleavage) was getting any frickin soap off this thing. It's hard soap. I used to think Tabac was hard. The R in Harris probably stands for Richard Harris; he was hard. Ever see that him in that old Western getting hoisted to the roof of a tepee by his own nipples skewered with falcon talons? They don't come much harder than that. Go on, try it and tell me I'm wrong.
I took the Semogues 830, 620 and the Big Frickin Boar to this puck (this was no place for badgers) and it laughed at me like a B grade villain. But I don't fuck around; no US-forum style intervention therapy with your soap: "Tell me, what do we have to do to work with each other here – a little warmer in the bathroom perhaps, do you need me to install a water softener, or get you some distilled Evian...?" No. Just dunk the fucker in some water for a while and let it drink.
Just like a new puck of Tabac takes a little while to get going, and the hard T&H soap I've not bothered with for a long time because I get the tingles from it - once you get a bit of moisture in there, it comes really good for loading up. It also lathers very nicely, takes on a lot of water and makes a lot. Even the boars give up plenty. Shaves are as good as you expect of a tallow soap. You can get good tallows for cheaper, but they won't smell of Arlington, and despite its price, I think Harris soaps are going to last longer than most, so you have to factor that in.
Then Jug tipped me an almost full tube of the Arlington cream. Apparently he has so much stuff he's stacking it up in the front room, and disguising it as wedding furniture. This is tops too. Smells just like the soap without the extra work (which I like). Works just as well, and I use less cream to get more lather than I do with TOBS or T&H. So I'm pretty sure there's value in the extra cost.
So the runaway train was unstoppable now. I ordered some samplers from Connaught. Still looking for that One Sandalwood, so I got the only one Harris does, which is an aftershave ('kin unreal it is too), Arlington cologne, some TOBS Shave shop, Victorian limes and St James. If you're looking to try colognes or even Aftershaves, have a look at Connaught's range. No tiny vials in matchbooks – they give you 5ml glass bottles, for about $4 ea.
The Arlington cologne is great too. Very medicinal going on, but quickly becomes mossy and citrus in that order; it's a wonderful scent, very addictive, masculine classy and subtle. It doesn't seem to stay terribly long on me, but I ordered a bottle anyway to try it properly, and it might go better in a spray bottle, as my TOBS Sandalwood did.
It's all Nathan @ Mensbiz fault. I was cruising along with my budget soaps – Tabac, Cella, Speick, and dabbling in some T&H creams (just samplers mind, I'm Mr Frugal these days). Then he throws some Arlington soap in my lap. "If you get a chance, tell me what you think", he says. He knows damn well I will (good or bad), he's got my number too.
Like all potentially long-term relationships, it didn't start well. A bit like meeting your future missus at her best friends' wedding and throwing up your hors D'oeuvres on the Ray Costarella dress she spent 8 months choosing and saving for.
First it was the scent. Straight out of the box I thought, 'Lemon Jif'. But oddly, I still really liked it. Sad as I am I went to smell some lemon Jif and the only thing they share is a citrus scent (and tbh, lemon Jif doesn't smell bad; lemon is probably the only thing that can mask the hodgepodge of chemicals in there). But Arlington is far more pleasant, and like a good wine, it mellows. The bright citrus of the soap becomes mossier. This seems to do what it says on the box and smell of citrus and fern, more reminiscent of lemon thyme.
The second hurdle (like trying to clean up future missus' dress, and getting half your hand stuck down her cleavage) was getting any frickin soap off this thing. It's hard soap. I used to think Tabac was hard. The R in Harris probably stands for Richard Harris; he was hard. Ever see that him in that old Western getting hoisted to the roof of a tepee by his own nipples skewered with falcon talons? They don't come much harder than that. Go on, try it and tell me I'm wrong.
I took the Semogues 830, 620 and the Big Frickin Boar to this puck (this was no place for badgers) and it laughed at me like a B grade villain. But I don't fuck around; no US-forum style intervention therapy with your soap: "Tell me, what do we have to do to work with each other here – a little warmer in the bathroom perhaps, do you need me to install a water softener, or get you some distilled Evian...?" No. Just dunk the fucker in some water for a while and let it drink.
Just like a new puck of Tabac takes a little while to get going, and the hard T&H soap I've not bothered with for a long time because I get the tingles from it - once you get a bit of moisture in there, it comes really good for loading up. It also lathers very nicely, takes on a lot of water and makes a lot. Even the boars give up plenty. Shaves are as good as you expect of a tallow soap. You can get good tallows for cheaper, but they won't smell of Arlington, and despite its price, I think Harris soaps are going to last longer than most, so you have to factor that in.
Then Jug tipped me an almost full tube of the Arlington cream. Apparently he has so much stuff he's stacking it up in the front room, and disguising it as wedding furniture. This is tops too. Smells just like the soap without the extra work (which I like). Works just as well, and I use less cream to get more lather than I do with TOBS or T&H. So I'm pretty sure there's value in the extra cost.
So the runaway train was unstoppable now. I ordered some samplers from Connaught. Still looking for that One Sandalwood, so I got the only one Harris does, which is an aftershave ('kin unreal it is too), Arlington cologne, some TOBS Shave shop, Victorian limes and St James. If you're looking to try colognes or even Aftershaves, have a look at Connaught's range. No tiny vials in matchbooks – they give you 5ml glass bottles, for about $4 ea.
The Arlington cologne is great too. Very medicinal going on, but quickly becomes mossy and citrus in that order; it's a wonderful scent, very addictive, masculine classy and subtle. It doesn't seem to stay terribly long on me, but I ordered a bottle anyway to try it properly, and it might go better in a spray bottle, as my TOBS Sandalwood did.
