Irisch Moos, Cella, a bunch of good soaps out there. Tomorrow I'll start a week with TSD Egyptian Spice, nice scent.
Valobra almond shaving soap, for me a little on the expensive side compared to Arko and TSD products I normally use but well worth the extra bucks for occasional use during the week :happy088, the smell is terrific and the lather fantastic.
Proraso, even though its all I really know I love it. TSD Signature Scent should be in my mail box tomorrow though
My faves INPO are: Trumper's Violet & Rose La Toja Cuenco Jabon de Afeitar (Wood Bowl Spanish Version) TSD Violet Sandalwood custom scent Proraso White Yardley Vintage...MMM Good! Van Der Hagen Pink Harris Arlington
Since this thread keep getting resurected, I'll reaffirm I still find MWF as my favorite. Speick shave stick and TSD Sginature are tied for my #2. Pre De Provence Verlain derserves an honorable mention.
My two favorites are Carecini and Castle Forbes. Both made huge suds with tons of cushion. They are not cheap, but fortunately, they last a really long time. Have fun, Lynn
My fave list for the moment… I Coloniali Mango – the Divine….no soap smells like her… L`Occitane Cade – La Noble…..smells elegantly restrained, lathers absolutely perfect Trumper Rose – just a beautiful scent combined with excellent shaving attributes DR Harris Lavender – followed closely ToOBS – Lemon – imho the one and only in citrus fragrance Arko, Erasmic & Palmolive Stick`s as my daily workhorses lookin`forward very curious about the american stuff......
Art of Shaving Sandalwood & Lemon Tabac Prairie Creations Queen Charlotte Soaps Speick Stick Palmolive Stick Irisch Moos Stick Arko Czech & Speake soaps MWF
There is a soap from Russia called "Dl'ya Br'it'ya", which means for shaving, and it is awesome. The lather is so rich and luxurious, and it has WONDERFUL skincare. The scent is a bergamot/lemon. Very, very nice stuff.
I have tried only two soaps so far, VDH Deluxe and Col. Conk - Almond and I think I like Col. Conk better than VDH. Although, being Turkish and all, I had lots of straight razor shaves at barber shops that used Arko stick, but that was years ago and I was not paying particular attention to soaps at the time. So, put me in for Col. Conk.
You might want to grab a stick of Arko. I can't claim the scent is a favorite, but you'll be hard pressed to find another soap that shaves so well at a comparable price. Even at a much higher price most soaps don't shave as well, IMHO.
I recently learned that Old Village Barber is retiring and taking down their site soon. They make $5 glycerin based bay rum and alpine shave soaps which I used for years and loved, so I am stocking up while I can. I have not used it since I have cultivated my favorite list above, so I am curious how they stack up now. The scents were excellent for sure. http://www.oldvillagebarber.com/Products.htm
The short answer to the question is: whatever soap I'm using But seriously, competition for the starting soap line up is pretty fierce but my favorites at the moment (in no particular order) are: VDH Deluxe Arko Shavestick Speick Shavestick Omega Mitchell's Wool Fat and TSD English Fern are well on their way to being Fall/Winter favorites. In fact, my $10 says that Mitchell's Wool Fat will likely become a year round core soap before it's all said and done happy096 this stuff is what they call "the bar-none poo" where I come from) TSD Coconut Lime Verbena and Iced Subzero are Spring/Summer Favorites
Actually, I have already asked a friend who's in Turkey right now to grab a stick for me. If you go to a barber shop in Turkey, Arko shave soap is all you will ever find; no competition whatsoever...