I think so many people are too shortsighted regarding their expectations as to what a Pre-Shave Oil should truly provide. It should be much more than an improved shave. Also I think many people slather on oils that actually hinder their shave and dont even know it. For example olive oil breaks down lather, now the thing is you can generate lather fine, you can apply it fine, but where the rubber meets the road so to speak, the olive oil is breaking down the lather on your face making it less effective. It is deceptive, as you cannot even see this but it is occurring. Also grabbing random vegetable oils off the grocery shelf and combining them and slathering them on, clogging your pores, actually reducing overall skin health and tone etc and potentially impeding lather effectiveness is not the best approach. Its no wonder many do not even bother to use a pre-shave oil or they use one like I just mentioned and say it made no difference or it was actually worse and messed up their brush etc. A good Pre-Shave Oil is quickly absorbed into the pores, it conditions and protects your skin, improving skin elasticity. Not only would it not impede your lather it would add ingredients that make it perform better. Just my thoughts.
I don't want to be Mister Boring, but aren't you concerned with all this use of EO's? Whether it's EO's, fragrance, perfume or other stuff used to add scent, they're all allergenic potential. There are enough out there to harm us, so I kinda wonder why use all these scents? I know it smells nice, but I also know an allergy is not to mess with... So I figured, why not avoid where possible?
Thats logical, but as many product contain everyday oil, these oils may have some not strong but still less flattering scents. The EO is to mask this and to give the shave some character. Some scents even makes you relax. Why EO has this risk is because they are really concentrated. I'm having problem finding the right scent, plus some tell me not to put it on my skin. I don't know how I can see the difference between 2 oils to see if one is not skin safe. I've read to put 1 drop EO in 5 ml baseoil and try it on a small portion of the skin for about 24 H =P
I understand the reasoning behind, I just think it's an overlooked matter. I'd much rather try and combine some other oils. For instance I find that coconut oil smells awesome, so that could be an option if I didn't like another particular oil, eg. Olive. Pure shea butter is not something I'm overly fond if, scent-wise. But mixed with cocoa butter I get a nutty chocolate smell that's just great. No scent added. I know I'm in the minority. My friends/colleagues color me crazy for being so obsessive about it. I've for years tried to avoid perfume, scents and the likes on a daily basis. So I know I'm easily impressed by a "natural combined" scent, like the ones I mention above because I'm not used to an awesome EO combination of a great scent. But I think it should not be forgotten that the whole scent universe can be too much in the end of the day. Perfume / EO's in shampoo, hand wash, detergent, shave soap, after shave, house cleaning, toilet cleaning, auto shampoo, hand lotion, face lotion... you know where I'm heading. Can perfume/EO's be limited to just a few then we, as a human body, would be much better off in the long run. Some of you might never be troubled by it, but the day one of you develop perfume-allergy, you'd wish you'd payed attention sooner. But by then it's too late.
It's true that we should limit the use if scents. But I don't know, I think I like having stuff that smells nice.
I hear ya. Love a good smell myself. Maybe I should ease off. I dunno. I just think we're exposed to so many things.
To address the questions about scents; 1) EO=essential oil. This means it is a natural oil extracted from a plant. (This doesn't mean no one can be allergic to it, but I feel safer with these than with synthetic scents.) 2)FO= fragrance oil. These are synthetic. They may have multiple uses and should be labeled as such. If they are OK for skin, the label may say "skin safe" or list "bath & body" among their uses.
I've seen numerous studies that shows EO's are just as "dangerous" as the synthetic kinds. This is why I'm on guard about it.
http://www.crunchybetty.com/21-things-you-should-know-about-essential-oils Not a study but some info.
As old-school as it may sound it was articles in some danish local papers. I don't have anything saved online.
Is there a special brand some of you use that you use in the PSO? I was thinking about buying some on ebay.co.uk
So to answer about essential oils. Generally, I do not have a brand preference. Spearmint oil is spearmint oil. But there are a few varieties of Lavender (French & Bulgarian for instance) that have slightly different scents. If you like lavender, get some samples of different varieties to see if you have a preference (or can tell them apart at all.)
