Rockwell Shaving Cream and Aftershave Balm – Rocking my mug so well!

The Rockwell shaving products have been on my future test list since I became aware of them back when I joined the crowd funding program for the Rockwell 6C razor.  Le “Centre du Rasoir” is currently having a Rockwell sale and I figured that this was a good opportunity to pick up the Rockwell shaving cream and aftershave balm.  The products are being sold for some $17 as opposed to $20.

As a small note, you can buy directly from Rockwell but the shipping costs are such that simply picking the items up at the mall is a cheaper solution.  At the moment “Le Centre du rasoir” has the best price for Rockwell products.

This morning was test time for these nice looking products.  I certainly like the vintage looking label on the black jar and bottle.   Classy!

Out of the shower and onto the shave.  The cream is fluffy and thick at the same time with an appropriately retro-delicious fragrance.  My nose says something like pepper and citrus.  The claim is that the fragrance is a reminder of the old-school barber shop and yes, this does have elements that make this true.  But, I find that it is considerably better and more refined than the old-school stuff.

Another product that would have a fragrance in this neighborhood is the Dr Jon’s shaving soap for it’s peppery spice scents.

I will say that this is not a common fragrance and I am really enjoying this rediscovery of different scents.  Periods of time often have a defining fragrance.  For example, the 60’s and sandalwood.  At the moment, with so many products coming out in the hair and shaving space, it is fabulously exciting to see what the human imaginative mind is coming up with to amuse our noses and others around us.

Both the shaving cream and aftershave balm share the same fragrance.  As per the label, the olfactory notes are as follow: Leather, Neroli, Anise, Lilac and Cedar.  A lovely combination indeed.   I should say that I am also sporting a number of other scents that manage to work with it.  My pomade is the Henri et Victoria Cognac and Cuban cigar, my cologne is Dirty English which has a scent totally off the modern radars.  In fact I had never encountered anything like Dirty English before.  All this to say, that these scents all work together.  My asthmatic wife who is generally susceptible to strong fragrances, had no complaints.  Granted she is mostly just letting me have fun with all this stuff, but she wasn’t incommoded by the whole thing.

I don’t want to spend to much time on fragrance alone, but since it is a key motivator when choosing a body care product, I figure it has to be thorough enough. 🙂

Onto the shaving cream. This cream went on very well and it stuck to the skin without issue.  Perhaps the size of a Canadian dollar is what I used.  I tend to put allot.  It covered well and I felt insulated and protected.  It goes on white just like it is in the jar where it is a nice whipped cream looking product.  Very inviting.

While shaving it felt perfectly comfortable.  I did add dabs of water here and there to help the lubrication, but I can’t say that it was necessary.  I just like to have the best possible lube.  The water addition did not wash the cream off, but it did make it a tad messier.

TEST STAGE:

• State: Out of the shower
• Razor: Merkur 180
• Blade: Rockwell
• Pre-Shave: None
• Shaving Cream: Rockwell Shaving Cream
• Toner: Thayers
• After-Shave: Rockwell Aftershave balm

Rinsing the razor out between passes was trouble free as the cream came off under water without resistance.  Rinsing my own mug after the shave with a wet wash cloth was no trouble either. I did do something I probably shouldn’t have done as part of a first test, I introduced a foreign product to the party by using the Thayers toner to cleanse my skin before moving onto the aftershave.  I say that I shouldn’t have because a first test should be as neutral as possible in order to isolate the behavior of the new products under test.  Nevertheless, I did use the Thayers toner before moving onto the after shave.

I have to stay that I was thoroughly impressed with this aftershave balm.  It was considerably more refined than what I was expecting.  It has a texture somewhere between a 35% milk cream and a liquid yogurt. Not messy at all.  My skin drank this stuff up and it felt fabulous.  No oily residue.  It left my mug feeling grand.  My skin was totally refreshed.  And again the fabulous Rockwell fragrance.  I have to say that I enjoyed it very much.

The ingredient list for the aftershave balm is surprisingly natural. Some of the big players are: Witch Hazel wearing the # 2 jersey, Shea Butter is #3 and #6 is the forever impressive Argan Oil.  The only player without the natural credentials is: Phenoxyethanol wearing the #11 on a 12 player spread and playing defense.

• Witch Hazel: Astringent and anti-oxidant
• Shea Butter:  Anti-Inflammatory
• Argan Oil: Skin Moisturizer / Booster
• Phenoxyethanol: Disinfectant, Antiseptic – Antibiotic

Often enough products sets are not necessarily of the same caliber and you end up liking one more than the other.  Rockwell has done a splendid job and both the shaving cream and aftershave are of equal quality.  For my taste, they both fit on a top shelf.  I fully enjoy being able to report that these Canadian made products just rock!

I have now shaved 3 times with these products and have removed the cleansing step using the Thayers Toner as it’s not really adding anything when using the Rockwell cream and balm.

In closing, I will say that these products have surpassed my expectations by making my shave comfortable and fun.  I am already looking forward to tomorrow morning so I can shave with this stuff.

To the folks at Rockwell: Thank you for these shaving products. 🙂

PS – Earlier this week I was having a visit with another wet shaver enthusiast. We ended up touching on the topic of how shaving use to be an unpleasant morning chore which has now been transformed into a meticulous ritual.  Once you take a step back from the modern life and rediscover how thing “use to be”; the artistry of movement, the detailed way of doing things, just taking some pride and developing some skills in grooming yourself, you wonder if moving away from this way of shaving was really evolution.

– Head Pomade Guy

 

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