Thayers Witch Hazel

Discussion in 'Preshave and Aftershave' started by Adelio, Aug 16, 2012.

  1. Adelio

    Adelio Active Member

    I've been using Thayers Witch Hazel aftershave with alcohol followed by a bit of aftershave balm. The Thayers aftershave has disappeared from the store, but they have various bottles of Thayers Witch Hazel without the alcohol, not labeled aftershave. Has anybody used the latter? Do you recommend it?
     
  2. PLANofMAN

    PLANofMAN Eccentric Razor Collector Staff Member

    Moderator Article Team
    I have not used the latter, but I can tell you a bit more about it and what other people think. The alcohol content in witch hazel is a byproduct of the distillation process and is not added later. Thayers w/o alcohol is made using a different extraction process and as a result feels a bit different on the face. Users have said that it leaves a slightly tacky/sticky residue on their faces. Most large supermarket chains carry a "store brand" witch hazel that comes in the same type of container as rubbing alcohol and the two are usually placed side by side. If you don't mind using generic, that might be the route you want to go.
     
  3. richgem

    richgem suffering from chronic clicker hand cramps

    vitacost.com has very good pricing on Thayers if you want to go the on line route. Note that store brand WH can smell rather... interesting ... depending on how they make it and it won't come in different (pleasant) scents like lemon, etc.
     
  4. otherstar

    otherstar Rodney Dangerfield of TSD

    I think Thayers WH aftershave with alcohol is overpriced, so I "clone" it. I buy a cheap bottle of witch hazel at the whatever store I can find a bottle for $1.00 or below. Next I pour off about an 3/4 of an inch so I can add the following: rubbing alcohol, Master Bay Rum, and aloe vera gel. Shake generously and shelve. The alcohol and bay rum help kill the scent of the generic witch hazel and the aloe vera helps sooth the skin.

    I kept an old bottle of the Thayers (the small one) because it has the small opening that makes it easy to control how much I use and fill it from the bigger bottle until I run out.
     
  5. Ryan B

    Ryan B Knight of the Soapocracy

    I have Thayer's Rose (without alcohol). It has a very pleasant scent and does not burn (obviously.) The scent doesn't last either and is gone instantly. My sister loves it too and uses it daily.
     
  6. richgem

    richgem suffering from chronic clicker hand cramps

    I wonder if they re-forumulated. I found the rose scent way too strong and worse... lasted hours on me (and my skin tends to shred frags). I just couldn't go around smelling like an old church lady. :(
     
  7. Indiexsunrise

    Indiexsunrise Well-Known Member

    I use the Thayer's with aloe and no alcohol and the Thayer's peach. I like both of them very much.
     
  8. Ryan B

    Ryan B Knight of the Soapocracy

    I got it last week. It wasn't strong to me at all. I even asked other people if they smelled anything on me and they said no.
     
  9. richgem

    richgem suffering from chronic clicker hand cramps

    Good to know; thanks. I may have to give it another try. But, I think the peach will be up first.
     
  10. Indiexsunrise

    Indiexsunrise Well-Known Member

    The peach is my favorite. I buy the fuzzy peach shower gel from the body shop and the nights I use it, I use the Thayer's as well. It's a great summer combination.:)
     
  11. Metro

    Metro Well-Known Member

    I keep Thayer's unscented alcohol-free WH in my rotation and I think it's a must have! It is an incredible post shave treatment (following the alum for astringent) and the aloe keep the skin hydrated. It doesn't interfere with cologne but you can still pick-up the nice WH and aloe scent (resemble cucumber to me).

    I stay away from cheap WHs since the process is different. Thayer's is un-distilled. More like a Tea infusion. This way you're left with all the tannins (like in good wine!) and goodies that were extracted. Not that a WH distillate doesn't do any good, just not as powerful I find. They're also the kind that are added to aftershave splashes that are labelled as such.

    Simply put, it just works! Even though I have other splashes and balms, I use this one everyday as a toner even if I don't shave. I'm contemplating trying the aftershave since it's available online in Canada, all of them from Well.ca.
     
  12. Adelio

    Adelio Active Member

    Thanks for all the information.
     
  13. otherstar

    otherstar Rodney Dangerfield of TSD

    I honestly seldom use mine anymore. I did daily when I started DE shaving and again when I started using a straight. I only use it now if there is irritation, which is seldom. Post shave all I do now is warm rag, cold water rinse, and my A/S splash (balms irritate my skin, for some odd reason).
     
  14. Mitch

    Mitch Active Member

    Interesting. I don't believe that they reformulated, I just bought a bottle of the Thayers with alcohol from my local food co-op yesterday. Perhaps they just stopped carrying it at your location. Try online. Haven't used the other stuff yet.
     
  15. KLF

    KLF Doctorin

    I wanted to buy it from their site but the international shipping fees are outrageous. Is there some other sites who ship internationally with lower shipping fees ? Also, what is the difference between distilled and non-distilled witch hazel ? I have a locally made witch hazel product and I think it's has the distilled version.
     
  16. Norseman

    Norseman misunderstood Dark Lord of the Sith

    I purchased from Amazon UK. But I paid £10.00 shipping fee. That may be too steep, or maybe not.
    That's more than the price for the goods, but less than I would have to pay for domestic shipping, so I guess I am happy
     

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