Aftershave

My very first post on this blog was some of the razors I have in my collection.  I have acquired some more and will be posting some pictures of the new additions later, but for now I thought I would post my rather modest gathering of aftershaves.  I know it seems strange to some, but I prefer the less expensive stuff.  To me it smells the way a man should smell.  I like the classic barbershop scents, not the latest and greatest from the hottest rapper at the moment.  The thought of smelling like some of those people makes me cringe.  Most of them look like they smell bad anyway.  So anyway, here is what I currently have on the shelf.

A few aftershaves

Front Row, Left to Right:  Pinaud Clubman Citrus Musk in sample size, Pinaud Clubman Special Reserve in sample size, Pinaud Clubman Lime Sec in sample size.

Middle Row, Left to Right:  Pinaud Clubman Classic Vanilla, Pinaud Clubman Lilac Vegetal, Pinaud Clubman Virgin Island Bay Rum, Pinaud Clubman Musk.

Back Row, Left to Right:  Osage Rub, Lustray Bay Rum, Pinaud Clubman After Shave Lotion.

As you can see, I am a big fan of the Pinaud Clubman line.  For one, it has the classic scent I like and hardly anyone else I know of uses it.  Two, it is not expensive at all.  As a matter of fact, nothing you see in that picture costs over $10.  Seriously.  I ordered most of the Pinaud Clubman stuff from this website: http://www.clubmanonline.com/ which sells the full line of Pinaud Clubman products.  The Osage Rub and the Lustray Bay Rum came from Atlanta Barber and Beauty Supply.  They have a website: http://stores.atlantabarber.com/StoreFront.bok but the actual store is only a couple of blocks from where I work, so I just visited the store during my lunch hour and saved on shipping costs.

The fine gentlemen over at http://badgerandblade.com  have written personal reviews on every one of the after shaves I have shown and hundreds more for that matter.  There are two that I have not used yet; the Osage Rub and the Lilac Vegetal.  The Osage Rub hasn’t been used yet simply because I haven’t had a reason yet.  It is recommended for summer time when it is extremely hot and a man’s face is more susceptible to razor burn.  Osage has been referred to as “frostbite in a bottle”  but one of the more poetic among the Badger and Blade crowd describes it as follows:  “mentholated Chuck Norris in a bottle just waiting patiently to spring out and deliver a refreshing roundhouse kick to your coconut the moment this wonderful viridian elixir comes into contact with your freshly shorn kisser…”  How can you not want to try this stuff after reading that?

The other one I haven’t tried is the Lilac Vegetal.  Plain and simple; I don’t like the way it smells.  I should have ordered a sample of it rather than say the Special Reserve.  I like the Special Reserve.  The Lilac Vegetal or the “The Veg” as it is referred to over on Badger and Blade is a very unique scent.  You either love it or hate it.  In the bottle it smells like an old folks’ home or creeping death to be blunt.  I haven’t worked up the courage to splash any on yet.  My wife has forbidden me to even try it.  But here are a couple of the more humorous reviews from Badger and Blade:

“This Pinaud blend is not very good at all. When I applied it, it smelled like someone urinated on me (not that it happens often ).” – Coche_y_bondhu

“I took one sniff and gave it to our secretary for use as ‘office mace’ to spray over the cubicle of the gaseous one next to her. It smells like something a dog would roll in.” – bbqncigars

“Legends say the Veg will magnify your true essence…on some, it smells like cannon smoke and raw courage, on others, like an involuntary bodily reaction caused by the sudden unexpected appearance of cannon smoke and raw courage.” – Topgumby

I’m not sure what it would smell like on me.  I may find out some day, but for now I will leave it on the shelf and take a occassional whiff and try to build up my courage…or I may just trash it.

If you are looking for something classic and affordable, I recommend any of the after shaves I have, with the exception of the Veg.  Try that one at your own risk.  I have a bottle if anyone is interested.

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