I won a PIF from Ryan B which consisted of a couple stick soaps and a cream. I promised Ryan I would let everyone know my thoughts on each. I tried ARKO Stick for the first time in my life just a few minutes ago. My results: I love the stuff! Very-very easy to make a lather, has a good cushion and a nice slickness also. I did bowl lather in lieu of face lathering only because I prefer the bowl. IMO it has the aroma of Ivory bar soap. So if anyone out there doesn't like ARKO you are more than welcome to send it my way. Ryan B also sent me a very small sample of "Lavandin & Eucalyptus" shaving soap. Now this is a whole different story. I gave it a try yesterday. It has a very nice aroma and also lathers very well. The only problem I found was that I'm ALLERGIC to it! lol I reacted to it just like the Proraso Green. I was ready this time though and injected myself with an Epipen. All is well. With Ryan B's help I am now almost 100% sure I am allergic to Eucalyptus. So now I will start referring to Ryan as Doctor Ryan B. MD. lol
Arko is some awesome stuff. I think you are right about your allergy. I would stay away from Koalas if I were you!
I'm glad you liked the Arko. I hate it, but glad it found a good home. I'm sorry you had to find out that you are mega allergic to eucalyptus though!
I'm glad I finally found out what the cause was. It won't stop me from trying new products but I will read the ingredients a little closer now. Going to try the BonD cream tomorrow. Do you like the BonD? I'm thinking you don't or you wouldn't have PIF'd it. Is it the smell? Lather?
LOL. I'm kinda hoping I don't like it because I don't think I could ever get any more unless a took a trip to Poland.
Lol, if you like it I'm sure I can hook you up. Or you could always take a field trip to Poland and invite me. After we find some BonD, Wars, Lider and other cool stuff; we'll down some Zubrowka in celebration.
Arko and BonD both are great! Enjoy! And sorry to hear of your Eucalypthus allergy. Glad you were ready for it!
I'm glad to hear you are enjoying the Arko... I'm more of a "melt and pour" bowl lathering kind of guy, but I also love Arko in stick form and enjoy face lathing with it for a change of pace..
Tried ARKO stick for the first time about a month ago. A lather bomb to say the least. The creams are great as well.
The Arko stick works well, and when I first smelled it I actually liked it quite a lot...unfortunately it seemed to upset my olfactory senses more and more with each successive sniff. Eventually it actually made me physically ill when I smelled it. I suppose it's possible that I developed a sensitivity to its scent. I dunno exactly why I became so averse to it, but now whenever I even think about the smell I gag a little. It's too bad, it really does work quite well.
Leaving it unwrapped does dilute the scent, mine had been aired out for a while before I received it in a trade. I don't know what a fresh stick smells like, but mine was not too strong and, as I said, I initially liked the scent. My issue wasn't so much with the scent as it was my physical reaction to the scent. Something in it actually made me ill. I have had that happen only once before, with an antibiotic that I am violently allergic to. Just inhaling minute particles of dust from the suspension would make me feel ill and even begin to close up my airway. Unfortunately for me I had to make up batches of the antibiotic (Azithromycin) to use in my clinic on a daily basis. It was so bad that I actually had to wear a respirator when I handled the powder. My reaction to the Arko wasn't nearly that bad, but it was enough to make me trade both of my sticks away.
