Xotics grooming essentials

These past few days, I got to work with a new brand called Xotics.  This is an extensive care/grooming line breaking down in the following groupings: Beard, Face, Shave, Hair, Body as well as some tools.

Xotics is the brain child of Curtis Smith world renowned Barber.  Here is an interview that gives excellent context of who Curtis Smith is in the Barbering community.

My friends at Classic Barber Products were kind enough to send me a few items to try out and share my usage experience with you.  Classic Barber Products is the North American distributor for Xotics.

Here are the products I am working with:

• Blue Water – Wake up & Stringent Facial Spray
• 5000 BC Beard Oil
• 5000 BC Beard Balm
• Skin Rescue – Corrective Skin Treatment
• Sweet Jamila – Shea Glaze Hair/Body

As you know, I have recently developed a growing interest for beard oils.  These simple and yet incredibly healthy products are having unexpected and impressive effects on my mug.  I have gone with the rationale that you might not need to have a kick a** beard to appreciate beard oils.  In fact, a few days worth of stubble might benefit from that serious moisturizing. Take thing from totally dry and itchy to feeling refreshed like you just walked through a water fall. With that positive realization I set out to try as many beard oil as possible.  The side effect has been that my regular/daily shave has gone to the wayside. 🙂  With that said, I was obviously thrilled to find 2 beard oriented products in the Xotics product line.

The beard balm is essentially a butter.  Rich and thick!  The scent is similar to the Blue Water facial spray but less potent.  We get into that aroma a bit lower.  Choosing between a beard butter or a beard oil, really just comes to personal preference of the delivery mechanism.  I will admit that the butter is perhaps an easier solution as the product is solid at first and becomes creamy when relaxing it.  If you are new to caring for a beard or stubble’s the balm might be the better first product to work with.  As you get accustomed to caring for your beard, the oil will make more sense as it will be easier to apply and blend.

For my first test, I tried the beard balm.  It is initially firm, but quite easy to scoop out.  It relaxed very quickly and blended in my 6 day old stubble beautifully.  My mug was hydrated and comfortable. The scent elements my nose can detect are: coconut, lemon/orange.  Making it very fresh and pleasant.  The fragrance is nicely gauged and it is really only for the intimate circle.  The comfortable hydrated feeling lasted a good number of hours

As excited as I might be about the beard products, the bottle that stood out from the pack was the “Blue Water”. I have been on the look-out for an in-between product, something like a face tonic.  So, not a beard oil and not really an after shave balm.  Something lighter and possibly in a spray format.  Here comes the Blue Water!  It is a facial spray that can be used for two purposes!  First, as an aftershave and second, as a toner.  At this time, I was specifically after the toner mandate and it turned out to be exactly what I was looking for and then some.

The ingredient list says it all: Aloe vera juice, lemongrass, avocado, tea tree essential oil blend, jojoba, shea olein, carrot seed oil,  fragrance and polysorbate 20.  Read that as all star skin care casting!

The pump dispensing makes it incredibly easy to work with.  The product is a light liquid that is quickly adsorbed by the skin leaving a fantastic lemongrass scent and a refreshed and soothed skin.  This one product is the deal maker for me.

If you are using this as an after shave, your mug will love the aloe vera and jojoba oil participation.  And that lemongrass sends out a fresh, clean and summery vibe!

I have yet to try the rest of the product line, but at a high level here are their purpose.  The Skin Rescue is an irritated skin soother.  Think razor rash, but also insect bite. The next jar is the Sweet Jamila shea glaze hair/body.  This is essentially a hair conditioner that can also be used as a skin cream.  Yeah, I know it’s a bit surprising.  If it wasn’t for another similar hair conditioner I have been using for about 2 years, I wouldn’t believe it either.  Our hair and skin need very similar types of love. This is not a product to be used in the shower, but rather after.  In my case, I would use something like this before blow drying my hair.  The heat will help it be absorbed by your hair and scalp and with the incredibly nutritious ingredients like: shea butter, argan oil, jojoba oil and hempseed oil, your hair and scalp will love it.  The tropical fruit aroma is also a nice touch.

In short, the Xotics brand is a complete grooming range for an established Barber. These are interesting and high quality products that agreed with my skin and made my nose happy too.