I recently purchased 8 soap samples from Van Yulay and I'll be reviewing them as I use them. I first used the Fougere soap , (Emu and Babbusu based) for a face shave using a carbon blade in a Gem 1912 razor. It was on it's fifth use and the soap performed decently. On a scaling side this is what I found. Slickness: 7/10 Cushion: 6/10 Fragrance Strength: 5/10 Fragrance Longevity: 5/10 The performance was moderately okay. It wasn't the best soap I've used but it did the job. Of course, this was my first time using a Van Yulay product, so my lathering technique may be off. The second soap sample I used was the Spiced Mahogany, (Tallow based). This one performed a little better. Slickness: 7/10 Cushion: 6/10 Fragrance Strength: 7/10 Fragrance Longevity: 7/10 This scent was very nice on this one. Spicy and woody. Nice combination. Out of the two, this was my favorite. The lather was better but still need to work on my technique with this brand of soap. More reviews to come. Added what the soaps are based on as far as oils to give a better idea.
Nice detailed review. The. I've used the black dragon (can't remember the exact name) the build up of this soap as soap of the gods elevated my expectations. I thought it was very good but haven't used it in a while. Your review may get it back into my rotation.
Van Yulay offers several different formulas which may explain a difference in performance. They offer a ton of scents to choose from, a bit similar to Ginger's Garden in that respect. So there is good odds you can find a scent that suits you. Some of her soaps I found to have this underlaying earth tone, a bit reminiscent of the old tallow AOS soap. But thankfully this was not the case with all of the samples. Scent favorites include: Achilles, Grand Lodge- this one smells similar to L&L Cuir Et Espices, Peace love & Citrus, Rack em Up,Dior Sauvage, Clubman type. Van Yulay samples come pressed from a icing bag, so they have this cool star shape. Samples usually contain 4 stars and come in a small plastic dish (similar to the ones you would get salad dressing in at a resturaunt). The samples are probably the best way to try different scents and find which soap base you like best. Ingredient wise, some of their products contain Emu oil which is something you don't see often. Soaps have excellent skin food, You can tell from the ingredients that it is a good soap. The aftershaves are quite good as well.
Tried out Enter the Dragon last night for a three pass face shave. Spicey oriental notes is the general description. Smelled pretty good. Slickness: 8/10 Cushion: 7/10 Fragrance Strength: 6/10 Fragrance Longevity: 6/10 I noted that I had an increase in all categories. First two is probably because I'm getting used to their soaps. This one was Emu oil based mainly if I can remember right. Made the Heckel's single edge razor glide nice and easy over my skin while cutting away the whiskers. The fragrance was a little strong and long lasting. Maybe a couple of hours. Medium strength at first then lighter towards the last two hours or so. Very nice soap. I'm thinking I'm going to be building a nice collection of Van Yulay. So far Spiced Mahogany is at the top of the list, followed by Enter the Dragon and lastly thus far is the Fougere.
I always look forward to using one of my Van Yulay soaps.... top performers, as far as I'm concerned..
Van Yulay Gentle Sauvage is right up there with Catie's Bubbles. Darn near a '10'. The only thing it could have been better at is "residual" slickness. I noticed that after a pass it dries a bit quickly and using my hand with a tiny bit of water doesn't re-activate much slickness for a minor touch-up. I end up having to grab the brush to apply a new dose of lather for those minor cleanup touches. Other than that I think the soap is very hard to fault.
I agree. So far, I find the same thing with the residual slickness aspect. But I do like the post shave feel. Not quite MWF by still respectable.
Today for a face shave I decided to go with Black Dragon sample. Their rendition of Dragon's Blood, one of my favorite scents in the world! It is based on Emu and Babassu oil. Slickness: 8/10 Cushion: 7/10 Fragrance Strength: 7/10 Fragrance Longevity: 5/10 So far most the samples have been pretty consistent in the slickness and cushion area now that I have gotten the Van Yulay soaps water tolerance down. So the slickness and cushion were very nice. The strength of the Black Dragon was a tad stronger than the other scents but it is quickly fading out. (About 30 mins later and I have to cup my hands to my face to get a whiff of a hint.)
Today's sample try out was the Arabian Nights sample that I ordered. (Notice: Have about 7 more samples coming from Van Yulay in about a week or so. This is gonna be one long review list. lol) As far as the stats go for this Tallow based soap: Slickness: 8/10 Cushion: 8/10 Fragrance Strength: 8/10 Fragrance Longevity: 7/10 This is one fragrant soap! It's definitely high up there on the strength and thus far the longevity is pretty good too! About the same time as the Black Dragon, it's still holding it's own where as the Dragon's scent faded down quickly. I haven't tried a sample that I haven't liked, had a reaction to or wouldn't purchase a larger version instead of sample. Spicy, exotic...oh yeah. This is one happy guy right here.
Tonight's sample to try out was Reggae Rumberry, a vegan soap. Stats for the review: Slickness: 7/10 Cushion: 6/10 Fragrance Strength: 6/10 Fragrance Longevity: 5/10 A very nice berry scent with a hint of rum to it, that my nose can detect. Not a very strong scent or long lasting but it was made a productive lather was a little thinner than the other soaps I've tried but it was a very smooth shave still. So far Van Yulay has a solid production that I'm happy with. No products have really left me feeling disappointed in it's performance. Post shave, a little dry but that's what my Aftershave balms are for.
Today's sample was Black Tea & Amber. It's an Emu & Babassu oil based soap. I liked the blended scent of fresh black tea and a midly warm/musky scent of amber. It's sort of fresh and rejuvenating. Stats for the review: Slickness: 7/10 Cushion: 6/10 Fragrance Strength: 7/10 Fragrance Longevity: 7/10 As far as the performance goes, it's a slick soap with a mild amount of cushion (a little thinnier of a lather kind of like the Vegan Reggae Rumberry). But the slickness made up for the average cushion. Might of have one nick but that's just a user error not an error on the soap performance. The fragrance is definitely stronger in this sample. Amost as strong as the Spiced Mahogany and almost as long lasting. Post shave feel is where the Emu & Babassu oil shine a bit better than the other soaps. Just a grade or two below the feel of Mitchell's Wool Fat. Not too shabby!
This afternoon I gave the Ylang Zu soap a shot at the old noggin' shave. It's a vegan based soap that has mainy ylang ylang, vetiver and sandalwood as it's main scents. Here are the stats I gave it after a nice SE head shave. Slickness: 7/10 Cushion: 6/10 Fragrance Strength: 7/10 Fragrance Longevity: 6/10 A nice slightly down the middle of the road to above average in most the departments. Slickness was still very nice when using an SE Treet blade in a G Bar. A unqiue fragrance that I kind of like. It's a different scent but very aromatically appealing.
I've tried a sample of Black Tea & Amber and love the scent. I will definitely be purchasing a tub from her.
Just received my tub of Spiced Mahogany, ahhh good stuff, along with 9 other samples. Stay tuned for sample reviews!
This evening I went with my new New York sample. Definitely a cologne scent. Tallow based. I can't describe the scent so here is the description from the website. Description of Shaving Soap Scent: Unique essences of this fragrance are based on contrasts of East and West, of Dubai and New York, ancient and modern. Seductive and erotic composition with intense and passionate essences of Oud, which, in a blend with other ingredients show the Eastern world with earthy and sultry accords in a modernist way. Sweetness is accomplished by feminine rose, highly esteemed both in the East as in the West. South-American tonka warms the whole fragrant composition with its caramel-almond aromas, along with Asian deer musk which finishes this precious fragrant saga. Bond No.9 Type incorporates Aromatic fragrance for men or women Slickness: 8/10 Cushion: 7/10 Fragrance Strength: 7/10 Fragrance Longevity: 6/10 Still getting great slickness and cushion from Van Yulay soaps with a definite edge going to the tallow based soaps by a notch. The scent I'm not sure about. It's not bad but it's not standing out for me. I'll wait for my wife to get a whiff and see what she thinks. Not sure if it would be on my to buy list but it's still a soap that gives a great shave. (Update) Seems like the fragrance is giving me a headache. Certain fragrances' will get my head spinning and I've found my first Van Yulay soap that has done it. Putting the sample away to give away in the future.)
Early this morning I went for a face shave and decided to use the Wrack Em UP sample. A tallow based soap. The description is as follows: Description of Shaving Soap Scent: Vetiver, leather, lavender, patchouli, smoky amber, and bourbon! Vetiver in all the colognes, Patchouli in the burners, Amber from the clean cut guys, Because you smell Leather from all the bikers, Bourbon on every breathe and Lavender for all the beautiful gals! Slickness: 8/10 Cushion: 7/10 Fragrance Strength: 5/10 Fragrance Longevity: 5/10 The body of the lather was almost identical to that of the other tallow based soaps. Great slickness and cushion to make a very pleasant shave. The scent is hard to pick out certain scents as it almost blends together into a nice harmony. It wasn't a strong scent and longevity of it has been a couple of hours and is very light. Nice to use for certain!
