Showing posts with label preshave. Show all posts
Showing posts with label preshave. Show all posts

Monday, July 10, 2017

King Of Shaves AlphaOil Cooling Menthol Shave Oil

July 10, 2017 0
Some time ago, I received a box of shaving supplies as a gift.  This wasn’t one of those wet shaving subscription boxes, but a very generous selection of shaving cream, gels, soap, and aftershaves selected by my girlfriend to support my hobby.  One of the items was the King Of ShavesAlphaOil Cooling Menthol Shave Oil.
King of Shaves AlphaOil Menthol Shave Oil
The directions on the bottle indicate this oil can be used by itself or with a shave foam/gel.  The King of Shaves website indicates it can also be used as a Beard Oil. I don’t have a beard, so I can’t say how effective a mentholated oil is for maintaining a beard.  But as a shaving supplement, I prefer to use this Menthol AlphaOil as preshave oil.  Admittedly, I have yet to use it with a shaving foam or gel; but I find that it works just fine with a shaving soap or cream.

The King Of Shaves AlphaOil Cooling Menthol Shave Oil is a clear blue-ish color and (to my nose) smells like an olive oil mixed with Fine Accoutrement’s Snake Bite Aftershave. Personally, I don’t find it to be the most appealing of scents.  But when using only a few drops I think the aroma is barely noticeable and it gets overpowered by the soap that I’m using.  Because of the menthol, I get that distinct mentholated cooling feeling a few seconds after applying.  I don’t find that mentholated sting to be very intense; it isn’t like Captain’s Choice Cat O’Nine Tails aftershave.  But it does yield a nice, cooling, feeling.

The King of Shaves AlphaOil bottle is a 15ml (.5 oz) container.  It’s a small size and I find that it’s a good size for my travel dopp bag.  My girlfriend is a big Doctor Who fan and she is amused that from the side it could resemble a Dalek.  
GF thought the bottle loosely looked like a Dalek

The downside is that for a shave oil it is generally priced at a premium.  As of this writing, a .5 oz bottle of AlphaOil sells for roughly 8.00 USD.   By contrast a 2 oz bottle of Taconic’s Unscented Preshave Oil for about $15.00 (about 3.75 USD per .5 oz) and Art Of Shaving’s 2 oz Unscented  Preshave Oil for about $25.00 (about 6.25 USD per .5 oz).  Though, if the Mentholated AlphaOil is something that one uses regularly, some sites have been known to sell them in bulk and some have had flash sales on them.   I really like this shave oil and try to keep an eye out for any deals that I can find.

The Mentholated AlphaOil is a clear, blue-ish color
Have you tried the King of Shaves AlphaOil Cooling Menthol Shave Oil?  Leave a comment below; let us know what your thoughts are.
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Sunday, August 21, 2016

The Fanciful Fox Shaving Oil

August 21, 2016 0
I think I discovered The Fanciful Fox at the Craft and Vendor Fair on Scranton Courthouse Square a few years ago.  The Fanciful Fox is a company that makes vegan soap, shampoos and other vegan bath and body products; including a line of products geared towards gentleman with some wet shaving staples such as shaving cream, shaving soap, and aftershave.
The Fanciful Fox Shaving Oil: Label has been updated since purchased my bottle.
While I didn’t buy anything at the fair, I did go back to their store located (at the time) in downtown Scranton.  One of the items that I purchased from that visit was their shaving oil. According to the directions on the bottle, the product was designed to be used as a standalone lubricant for shaving.  Admittedly, I use it as a preshave oil rather than a just a shave oil.
While directions indicate to use as standalone shaving lubricant, I use it as a preshave oil.
This shaving oil is currently available in three varieties:
  • Dapper: Patchouli based blend mixed with spicy notes
  • Spiffy:  Bergamot based blend with herbal and lavender notes
  • Rakish: A woodsy blend with a cedar base and herbal notes

I opted for the Dapper blend. It definitely smells “herbally.” I like it and I feel it’s a pretty distinct aroma; it doesn’t smell like anything else that I currently have in the den. Because I use it as a preshave oil, I find that the scent is doesn’t linger. It isn’t a strong aroma. But because of the distinct herbal scent of the Dapper Shave Oil, I do feel that I have to be selective with the soap or cream that I use with it.  While I’ve used it with a variety of soap and cream scents, I find that lavender, lime, lemon, or even menthol (like Proraso Green Shaving Cream for example) varieties mix better with the Dapper Scent..

The ingredient list from the label
The Fanciful Fox has since relocated to Brooklyn, NY. While their products sold at a few nearby shops, as well as being available online, I’m a little sad that I can't go “up da line” (in Northeastern Pennsylvania speak) and walk in their store to buy a few wet shaving favorites.  Since I’ve purchased my shaving oil, The Fanciful Fox has redesigned their labels and has also expanded the line of men’s products. As mentioned previously, they have a shaving soap and shaving cream that is now on my personal want list.  I’m going to have to keep checking to see what else they’ll come out with.
The Fanciful Fox Shaving Oil in the Dapper variety is a yellowish color. 
Have you tried any of The Fanicful Fox products?  Please leave a comment below and let us know. 




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