Oh man, this thread is total soap prOn for me. I'm too soapmiscuous to list all my favs, so I'll just mention fragrance groups. I love citrus scents & don't enjoy wearing bakery scents aka "Gourmand fragrances" like Thierry Muglar's wildly popular Angel. Strong lavendar & cloves are a turn off for me. I'm wild about bourbon geranium essential oil, which is sadly priced like gold. It seems like there's a cat & mouse game w/fragrance preferences, at least in the U.S. Research will suggest that for example, citrus & citrus blends have wide appeal, then companies use those type of scents in cleaners & air fresheners & urinal pucks (Yes, you know where this is going... ). Then we associate those scents with cleaning & you can't enjoy many lemon scents w/o recalling Lemon Pledge. That's my theory why there's so much acrimony for Arko. Poor Arko Man, I still love you!
I think you're right about this. Arko, to me, smells just like Ivory bar soap. Ivory leaves my skin dry and itchy and the smell is pretty distinctive. So when I use Arko, I still expect my face to feel dry and itchy after shaving. Of course it doesn't. Arko leaves my face feeling great but apparently it takes some time for that memory to recalibrate. I like Arko enough that I'm going to use it until that happens. I'll have to report back on how long it takes.
It's a "lemony-soapy clean smell" to me (if that makes any sense ) Some people think it smells like citronella (mosquito candles). Others think it smells a bit like Ivory soap.
TOBS Eton College cream has a wonderful, citrusy scent. It's pretty awesome. I am coming around to Arko. The lather is excellent. I was prepared when I opened it for the "urinal cake" scent. When I used it the first time, I thought it was a bit unfair to denigrate the subtle, nuanced, delicate scent of a urinal cake by comparing it with the Arko stick. Once the stick dried out a bit, the scent was much easier to take and I find its growing on me a bit. Go figure.
SOAPS: Williams, Van der Hagan Delux, TSD: Lavender,Bay Rum,Florida Water(one of my all time favorites), Razor Rock: Classic and Cacao, Proraso, HoneyBee: Lavender,Violet,Orange Burst,Cherry Vanilla,Bay Rum Pyrates Cove: Lavander,Manderine,Bay Rum, Rays of Colorado Goat milk soap Lavender,Old Spiced,Bay Rum,Amber, Arko. CREAMS: C.O. Bigalow Herbs of Bulgaria "Lavender" I just noticed a pattern seems I like Lavender and Bay Rum...
I recently acquired the Proraso Read soap as well. It is downright fantastic, and I have been looking for an after shave or cologne to match it. After reading up on what people think of it I bought a bottle of DR Harris Sandalwood. It's good, and it's close to the Proraso Sandalwood, but it's not perfect. I won't be holding my breath waiting for a Proraso Red AS, but if it was to see the light of day I would be oh so happy!
P.160 - 'nuff said Well...and anything that JoAnna whips up. I do love the smell of my TSD Count Chocula soap and Root Beer Shaving Cream! Oh, and Irisch Moos.
AoS Sandalwood is nice, but a little rich for my blood. I used Van Der Hagen (VDH) for years before discovering Col. Conk on Amazon. I really like their Almond, recently got a 3 pack of their Bay Rum scent for $15. I like the change, it's a nice not too powerful a scent...more importantly my wife liked it!
As of right now my favorite smelling soaps are AoS Sandalwood, Shea Moisture Three Butters Utility Soap, and a bay rum and lime one I got off Etsy.
