- Joined
- Dec 11, 2019
- Location
- Chalong, Thailand
MOD NOTE: this SOTD post was too good not to have its own (searchable) thread.
Pre-shave: Hot Shower
Brush: WCS - Honeycomb white 26mm tuxedo
Soap/Cream: Ariana & Evans - Peaches & Cognac
Razor: Homelike Shaving - Colibri (SB 1.5mm)
Blade: Astra - Superior Platinum (1)
Post-shave: Ariana & Evans - Peaches & Cognac AS splash / Skin Food Nourishing Cream
WTG, XTG, ATG = BBS. First use of the Homelike Colibri razor with the SB 1.5mm head. I wont go into much detail about the razor itself, as @Errol already has a detailed review of quality, finish, feel for the 1.3mm OC as part of his review. I have posted some pictures of a comparison of size and finish of the razor compared to the Homelilke Start satin finish, and the Razorock Gamechanager SB 0.84.
The shave, consisted of 3 passes to get a feel for the 1.5mm head loaded with a new Astra SP blade.
WTG pass felt very smooth, with the ever so slight blade feel. Just as smooth as the Start razor, although the slightest bit of blade feel to let you know you actually are shaving. My big critisim with the Start razor besides the handle, were all the plates not being effcient enough for my shaving needs, although a very smooth razor, It felt like I was not shaving at all, and the constant checking with face feel to see if the razor was doing its job.
XTG the razor was very efficient and very smooth. Again a very light feel of the blade to let you know your shaving.
ATG for me is where this razor stood out. An unbelievably smooth shave and very efficient. Normally I have to buffer a few times with any razor to effectively to have a smooth finish, This razor I was able to do larger and fewer strokes from the bottom of the neck up to the stopping point on the upper sides of my face, chin, and lips. Under the nose was no problem at all, cut through those hairs like butter with no pulling or irritation. Also shaved the pronounced bridge under my nose effortlessly. This is an area I normally need to buffer with any razor. Not this one, it did it in about 3-4 strokes.
Interesting observations about the razor I noticed.
The polish is really good. Some machining marks under the top cap around the posts, that's it. I compared it to other polished razors I had and iI could not find a difference in the polish level of this razor and a polished SS Timeless I have.
The razor handle is very solid and has plenty of grip, with almost neutral weighting. The detailing at the end of the razor handle is really nice, and like the head, the polish is also really good.
The pronounced blade tab exposure. Yes it very visible once a razor is loaded, and I am normally really critical of uneccessary blade tab overhang. After using the razor and intentionally try to cause self harm with the exposed tabs I was not able too.
Typically XTG under my bottom lip, between my chin, under my jaw, and tidying up around the nostrels are the areas where excessive blade tab exposure most often irritates me if it happens. I suppose there is a tradeoff for having a 40mm wide head . At least those annoying wax dots should not cause too much of an issue with the tabs to grab hold onto taking the blade out.
The smaller than usual 40mm wide head does have an advantage for my face. That is I feel the smaller head on the Colibri very much contributed to being more efficient in tackiling growth around and under my chin, neck, nasal bridge area as I was able to manouvuer more effectively around my facial contours and make a more efficient contact path of the blade to the skin.
Overall first Impressions, I like the razor (smoothness/effciency), don't love it, tried to hate it, but I can't. I will spend some time tinkering with blade combinations. All the other milder plates are a waste of time for me as I don't like milder than mid aggressive razors. In reality Most people would be fine just two plates the 1.1 for a milder shave and the 1.5 for a more efficient shave.
For me, slightly smoother and slightly more effcient than the SS Timeless 0.95, and Gamechanger 0.84.
Has the smoothness of the SS Karve SB C plate with effciency of around the SB D/E plate ( depending on the blade you use).
Around the same effciency as the Rocca, slighly smoother ATG using the Astra SP in both razors, and more manoeuvrable. I was surprised the Astra gave a really good first shave on 1.5 days growth no irritation or weepers.
Overall to be fare with judging the razor I need to have more razor time. If the Astra gave me a really smooth efficient shave, I would like to see what this razor can do with another blade such as a wizamet/polsilver or my grail blades. As it stands I will rate this razor "slighly better than just another razor".
The soap, Ariana & Evans - Peaches & Cognac. Scent strength strong for the soap and medium for the splash. Scent notes, Top notes, Bergamot, Lemon, two different Peach notes, Dried fruit, Middle Notes, Orange Blossom, Mimosa, Base notes, Cognac, Tobacco Absolute, Leather, Vanilla, Dried Fruits, Oakmoss, Sandalwood, Himalayan Cedar.
Complex list of scents, that sort of work well together. Fresh, sweet, with a hint of wood, spice and booze, best described as gourmand. The dried fruits are a really nice sweet and spicy note with apricot and fig scents, mixed with the peach, and light nuances of lemon and bergamot for that initial top note. Mixing over middle notes of the florals of the orange blossom and mimosa, grabbing those scents and mixing with the base notes of cognac, tobacco absolute, leather, vanilla, oakmoss, sandlewood, cedar. I pick up the cognac, vanilla, sandlewood, leather, with tobacco absolute adding some warmth in the base notes. On the dry down the peaches, dried fruit, vanilla, and cognac have the most staying power, with splash a little stronger on the cognac scent than the soap. Again I had slight reaction to the splash which passed in about 30 seconds. I will put that down to the sandlewood EO.
To me this an ok scent, the dried fruit, cognac are great additions to the scent profile, though I do find the scent initially a little cloying and lacking masculinity for my likes. The dry down is nice and I enjoy, that part of the scent. If I could have that scent from the start with a little less vanilla, remove the leather, and be able to smell the oakmoss for a darker note, I might actually enjoy all of the scent. For now, I have better soaps that I would prefer to use.
Pre-shave: Hot Shower
Brush: WCS - Honeycomb white 26mm tuxedo
Soap/Cream: Ariana & Evans - Peaches & Cognac
Razor: Homelike Shaving - Colibri (SB 1.5mm)
Blade: Astra - Superior Platinum (1)
Post-shave: Ariana & Evans - Peaches & Cognac AS splash / Skin Food Nourishing Cream
WTG, XTG, ATG = BBS. First use of the Homelike Colibri razor with the SB 1.5mm head. I wont go into much detail about the razor itself, as @Errol already has a detailed review of quality, finish, feel for the 1.3mm OC as part of his review. I have posted some pictures of a comparison of size and finish of the razor compared to the Homelilke Start satin finish, and the Razorock Gamechanager SB 0.84.
The shave, consisted of 3 passes to get a feel for the 1.5mm head loaded with a new Astra SP blade.
WTG pass felt very smooth, with the ever so slight blade feel. Just as smooth as the Start razor, although the slightest bit of blade feel to let you know you actually are shaving. My big critisim with the Start razor besides the handle, were all the plates not being effcient enough for my shaving needs, although a very smooth razor, It felt like I was not shaving at all, and the constant checking with face feel to see if the razor was doing its job.
XTG the razor was very efficient and very smooth. Again a very light feel of the blade to let you know your shaving.
ATG for me is where this razor stood out. An unbelievably smooth shave and very efficient. Normally I have to buffer a few times with any razor to effectively to have a smooth finish, This razor I was able to do larger and fewer strokes from the bottom of the neck up to the stopping point on the upper sides of my face, chin, and lips. Under the nose was no problem at all, cut through those hairs like butter with no pulling or irritation. Also shaved the pronounced bridge under my nose effortlessly. This is an area I normally need to buffer with any razor. Not this one, it did it in about 3-4 strokes.
Interesting observations about the razor I noticed.
The polish is really good. Some machining marks under the top cap around the posts, that's it. I compared it to other polished razors I had and iI could not find a difference in the polish level of this razor and a polished SS Timeless I have.
The razor handle is very solid and has plenty of grip, with almost neutral weighting. The detailing at the end of the razor handle is really nice, and like the head, the polish is also really good.
The pronounced blade tab exposure. Yes it very visible once a razor is loaded, and I am normally really critical of uneccessary blade tab overhang. After using the razor and intentionally try to cause self harm with the exposed tabs I was not able too.
Typically XTG under my bottom lip, between my chin, under my jaw, and tidying up around the nostrels are the areas where excessive blade tab exposure most often irritates me if it happens. I suppose there is a tradeoff for having a 40mm wide head . At least those annoying wax dots should not cause too much of an issue with the tabs to grab hold onto taking the blade out.The smaller than usual 40mm wide head does have an advantage for my face. That is I feel the smaller head on the Colibri very much contributed to being more efficient in tackiling growth around and under my chin, neck, nasal bridge area as I was able to manouvuer more effectively around my facial contours and make a more efficient contact path of the blade to the skin.
Overall first Impressions, I like the razor (smoothness/effciency), don't love it, tried to hate it, but I can't. I will spend some time tinkering with blade combinations. All the other milder plates are a waste of time for me as I don't like milder than mid aggressive razors. In reality Most people would be fine just two plates the 1.1 for a milder shave and the 1.5 for a more efficient shave.
For me, slightly smoother and slightly more effcient than the SS Timeless 0.95, and Gamechanger 0.84.
Has the smoothness of the SS Karve SB C plate with effciency of around the SB D/E plate ( depending on the blade you use).
Around the same effciency as the Rocca, slighly smoother ATG using the Astra SP in both razors, and more manoeuvrable. I was surprised the Astra gave a really good first shave on 1.5 days growth no irritation or weepers.
Overall to be fare with judging the razor I need to have more razor time. If the Astra gave me a really smooth efficient shave, I would like to see what this razor can do with another blade such as a wizamet/polsilver or my grail blades. As it stands I will rate this razor "slighly better than just another razor".
The soap, Ariana & Evans - Peaches & Cognac. Scent strength strong for the soap and medium for the splash. Scent notes, Top notes, Bergamot, Lemon, two different Peach notes, Dried fruit, Middle Notes, Orange Blossom, Mimosa, Base notes, Cognac, Tobacco Absolute, Leather, Vanilla, Dried Fruits, Oakmoss, Sandalwood, Himalayan Cedar.
Complex list of scents, that sort of work well together. Fresh, sweet, with a hint of wood, spice and booze, best described as gourmand. The dried fruits are a really nice sweet and spicy note with apricot and fig scents, mixed with the peach, and light nuances of lemon and bergamot for that initial top note. Mixing over middle notes of the florals of the orange blossom and mimosa, grabbing those scents and mixing with the base notes of cognac, tobacco absolute, leather, vanilla, oakmoss, sandlewood, cedar. I pick up the cognac, vanilla, sandlewood, leather, with tobacco absolute adding some warmth in the base notes. On the dry down the peaches, dried fruit, vanilla, and cognac have the most staying power, with splash a little stronger on the cognac scent than the soap. Again I had slight reaction to the splash which passed in about 30 seconds. I will put that down to the sandlewood EO.
To me this an ok scent, the dried fruit, cognac are great additions to the scent profile, though I do find the scent initially a little cloying and lacking masculinity for my likes. The dry down is nice and I enjoy, that part of the scent. If I could have that scent from the start with a little less vanilla, remove the leather, and be able to smell the oakmoss for a darker note, I might actually enjoy all of the scent. For now, I have better soaps that I would prefer to use.
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