July 8, 2023

• Brush: Yaqi – Evil Zebra #TOLL
• Razor: GR100B #KAMISORI
• Blade: Feather – Professional SoftGuard AC Blades
• Lather: Maggard Razors – Mango Sage Tea Soap
• Post Shave: Stirling Soap Co. – Mountain Man Splash
• Fragrance: Giorgio Armani – Code
• Music: Snoop Dogg, Fabolous, Dave East - Make Some Money

Happy Maggard Day!! Maggard Razors has become the premiere place to buy any and all shaving related items. What started as Brad Maggard renting a space to service straight razors has turned into a small Mecca for those of us who consider our daily grooming routine a hobby. I still haven’t been to the storefront in Michigan, but I’m hoping the stars align and my schedule allows me to go to the World Famous Meet-Up next year. Being able to meet so many artisans, talk with those on the sub, and sniff so many products sounds like a wonderful time for me and an awful time to be my bank account.

There are other places to buy shave stuff, but none reach the level of Maggard's when it comes to service, selection, or knowledge. If you email them, odds are it will be Brad who responds. This community is a better place because of Brad's small business. So I'm happy to continue to support his small business and hope one day it becomes a large business.

I actually just Googled what the definition of "small business" is: it's 500 employees!! Holy cow! That's a lot bigger than I expected. If that's the case, I'm not sure Brad would want to grow that much. But if that's what he wants, that's what I want too. And if not, I hope he keeps chugging along and doing things the right way.

So lets take a ~~minute~~ entire day and raise a glass to one of the guys who enables us the most: Brad Maggard!

Today, I used the Maggard’s House Brand Mango Sage Tea Soap. I this is a wonderful, slightly sweet scent that is perfect for a July day. The Mango is there to lift the soap up, the sage brightens the scent, while the tea bring everything back down to earth. It’s a great, well-balanced scent and the soap performed brilliantly. It provided a smooth slick lather that was easy to build.

I used Stirling’s Mountain Man aftershave splash because the bergamot and tea go great with the tea in the soap. And it also has an orange note that I thought would complement the mango from the soap. Because oranges and mangos go together like peas and carrots.

For my fragrance, I went with Armani Code because it’s bergamot and lemon notes would play nicely with the tea and citrus fruits from the soap/splash. If the soap and splash were like peas and carrots, this fragrance was the mashed potatoes. Everything was brought together for a #FOF win and I am feeling fresh to death.

For the #photocontest, I have wildlife! I saw a rabbit in my backyard, grabbed my shaving stuff and took a pic just quickly enough before he ran off.

CHALLENGE

Ask a question? The challenge is to ask a question? Aren’t the challenges supposed to be… A challenge? Here’s a link to the thought provoking question I asked.

I absolutely recognize that some challenges are easier than others and the challenge announced tomorrow could very well be “Shave blindfolded, while balancing on one leg, humming the theme song to ‘The Golden Girls’, and wearing a tutu” so I’m just gonna take the W with this challenge and mentally prepare myself to shave my legs in a couple weeks.

Continuing on with my “10 Questions with…” Series, I touched base with Brad Maggard, founder of the World Famous Maggard Razors. He gives a lot of insight into is business and the wetshaving industry as a whole. This one is definitely worth a read! Thank you so much for taking part, u/undream22!! So, let’s get into it:

10 Questions with… Maggard Razors

1) You started your store in 2012, what did you see in the marketplace that made you think this was a good idea?

Service was always the driving force that got me thinking about renting a space that wasn't my garage. At some points in 2011-early 2012 I would have 20, 30, even 40 straight razors waiting for work in my queue. The store idea didn't really come until AFTER I had rented a space in our downtown to move my workshop to so I could be more efficient at servicing straights. I figured - if I was there working, why not have the door open and sell a few items? Of course, that part snowballed, so, I kind of "fell into" the market - it was not a calculated effort to open a store.

2) At the time, did your friends and family think you were crazy to open a store dedicated to shaving like our Grandfathers?

Everyone thought I was nuts. But, my first storefront lease was $350/mo, and at the time I was doing $1500/mo in service and $1000/mo in ebay sales (pin kits and various selling of vintage razors). I knew if I got myself out of the house/garage and into a heated space so I could focus on pumping out a couple more razors, the bills were paid. Thank goodness I did this - as who knows what would have happened had I stayed at home.

3) If you had to guess, how many straight razors have you honed over the years?

I'd have to estimate around 6,500. tough to say. At one point I was averaging 4/day (1200+/yr). Things have significantly cooled off in the SR market---and now I might average 5 a week (250/yr)

4) If your storefront had a theme song, what would it be?

No clue. lol!

​

(INTERVIEW CONTINUED IN THE REPLY)

July 8, 2023 – Buttering toast for the first time

• Brush: Maggard Synthetic
• Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24 #brassing
• Blade: GEM (1)
• Lather: Maggard Razors – Lilac
• Post Shave: Stirling Soap Co. – Bergamot Lavender
• Fragrance: Chatillon Lux – La Petite Prairie

Today I used the MM24. And tied that directly into my DQ thread question.

So no not a shit post but nicely tied together.

I want to thank u/EldrormR for the opportunity to grab that MM24 before he went public with it. It’s a beautiful unique razor. This one in particular because the plating was in such bad shape he removed it from the lid creating a two tone top. His picture is better than mine. I hope he won’t mind if I use it.

The shave was not my best but no worse than the first shave with the Parker or the kamisori. I titled a little too much in several places, nicked my chin 3x and mole once. But nothing serious, a little stypic and fixed. Some feedback on the balm and I feel a bit raw but I’ll get better and probably pretty quick if today’s start was any indication.

On to #fof. Now you’re thinking “wait wouldn’t Le petite prairie made more sense with wild flowers?” No. And let me tell you why. Because my grandparents and mom lived off a street aptly named “Lilac Road.” it’s the second to last Missouri exit on the bypass. They weren’t directly off it but that’s how we got there. Once it was a large farm but by the time I was born and we’d visit (most notably for the large annual family reunions that occurred outside) most of the land was unfarmed and while not quite fully restored prairie, pretty damn close. I used the bergamot Lavender to bridge these two scent profiles and I think I did pretty well. A trip down memory lane. I appreciate Shawn’s recreation of the prairies that became south stl, because I’ve stood in the ones that remained just 15 miles or so away. (that area won’t be developed so they’ll stay there for a while I’d bet).

Hard to tie today’s #photocontest to the challenge as I have been, so I turned my kids lose and this extinct animal is the result. The giant dinosaur may as well be alive with it’s roaring sound. You can see my daughter’s arm holding it up as she tries to get the perfect shot for me. #ROTY

I want to close by just giving my appreciation for Maggards. This hobby revolves around small businesses and Maggards is one of the best. Yes I try to buy from the artisans directly when I can. My sister also has a small business (a clothing boutique in Chicago) so I’m aware of wholesale problems, profit margin, inventory costs, etc. But artisans can’t sell everything and sometimes you need a broad variety of things and it’s more cost effective go get it all at one place. I’ve had to exchange emails with Brad over a few tiny order issues (one my mistake and one the stock counter) and he’s always been awesome. They ship faster than imaginable. There’s a reason they’ve managed to get the most of my shaving spending (though u/Mammothben is trying to overtake them, and he doesn’t sell much in the name of hardware, so that’s impressive.) Today’s shave used as much Maggards stuff as I could. Brush soap, that bottle of bergamot Lavender didn’t come from them but it’s almost empty and the replacement did. They were my first stop to prep for lather games and where I send my wife to get me gifts. Yes I gave away some of my sample to others did this which cost them a sale or too, but I also have spent enough there to offset that several times over. Thanks Maggards!

2023-07-08 Magnificent Maggard

• Brush: Maggard Razors - Black Resin Handle Black and White Synthetic
• Razor: Maggard Razors - MR18 with V3
• Lather: Maggard Razors - London Barbershop
• Post Shave: Epsilon - Blue Mediterranean
• Fragrance: Lulu & Bee - Soleil Blanc "Inspired"
• Blade: Personna Super (4)

Relevant Other stuff: Uh... samples! These clean, bright scents are all samples! I have no doubt that Maggard surely does very well by supplying samples to shavers for the games, so it feels germane to today's theme. Cop-out? Maybe, but I also tie the scents together more below. Also, Maggard razor and brush.

#FOF

Lather: I first tried this scent two years ago for the Games, and I cannot stress enough just how fucking clean this smells! I'm not going to talk, for the moment, about the "Barbershop" label; that's literally a topic for another day. But holy shit, this is the freshest, cleanest scent I've ever encountered.

Now, I know what you're thinking: "What the hell does 'clean' mean, man? Next thing you'll tell me it smells like sunshine; say what you mean!" What? No, it doesn't smell like sunshine. Nothing smells like light; that's stupid.

I will say, though, that this could easily be called something like "Fresh Linen" if that wasn't marketing suicide; that's the kind of fresh clean-ness I mean. It is a bright scent, and the only reason I don't have a full tub of the stuff is because a) I have too much soap and already b) I have another barbershop tub I barely use because I have too much soap already. Plural reasons. Come to think of it, I should get one for August... No, bad! Too much soap!

Post Shave: Chosen for today after seeing it described as "a clean, light" scent, this is exactly that. Sure, it looks like you could pour it in a Barbicide jar and not know the difference (thus making it right at home alongside the Barbershop lather), this is also a surprisingly apt follow-up to the lather. It is fresh and clean, and I am feeling super clean and fresh after rubbing it on my face. That may have come across as sarcastic, but it is not!

Fragrance: (disclaimer: freebie with the awful Magnolia scent from the other day)
This smells like sunshine! If it were a color, it would be a pale yellow. This is purportedly a dupe of Tom Ford's Soleil Blanc, and while I don't' know what cardamom and ylang ylang smell like (apparently it shares the latter note with today's aftershave), but this is a lively, bright scent.
It's not something I'd choose to wear regularly (it's expressly unisex, but I feel like a cooler or darker scent personally suits me better), it makes me feel like spending the day outsi—OH GOD WHY DOES THE SUN COAT ALL OF EXISTENCE WITH PAIN AND DEATH

#photocontest

Photo: Urban/architecture, the built environment
I was originally planning on some setup with maple leaves to match today's theme, but that seems at odds with all this bright liveliness. Meanwhile, even though I had to get a ladder to clean the outside of that window, I forgot to do the same on the inside. ~~Oh, well.~~ Later, because the fancy struck me to start cleaning my kitchen, I thought I may as well drag the ladder back out to get the window and take the shot again, with improved results.

Challenge Accepted: Hold up, there's a DQ thread, as in a thread where all the Lather Games' disqualified posts go? A graveyard of latherlympic shame? So the djudges have made extra work for themselves to track down the questions. Guys, I'm trying like hell to make things better by cutting down my ramblings, and then you do this? Well, all the better, I suppose; it makes it much easier for me to avoid lengthy digressions, and I will take such opportunity; I think this is my briefest post yet!

While I am tempted, I will not go off on some tangent comparing today's challenge from compulsory discussion boards in online classes. Is that still a thing? I imagine online classes have evolved greatly since my time, especially after 2020. It was a nice idea, but utterly and consistently failed to drive engagement from the students—unless they were already engaged, of course.

That's not an issue for us today, because the Lather Games participants are highly engaged; so much so, that today's Daily Questions thread is going to be very much alive, albeit not with very many actual questions, but you knew that.

DAY 7 LATHER GAMES! I GOTTA QUESTION BOUT A THANG!

• Prep: Water
• Brush: DS Cosmetics 30mm Tuxedo Knot
• Razor: OCMM
• Blade: GEM PTFE (16)
• Lather: Maggard Razors - Tobacco and Leather Shave Soap
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Tobacconist Aftershave Balm
• Fragrance: John Varvatos - Dark Rebel

​

PIC OR IT DIDN'T HAPPEN

RAZOR+SOAP+BLA BLA BLA

So this time it was probably one of the shortest shaves, I probably scooped too much soap(t'was around 0.4 grams but still), cause I only did one pass with the OCMM which was a combo of ATG and XTG. Yesterday that Parker did me over and there was barely anything to shave today...

It's the first time I used Tobacco and Leather and it was definitely not what I expected. Off the sample I get almonds, from all of the things in the world.... Didn't that day pass already?Strange... But when lathering it up it kind of disappeared and was substituted by a nice and sweet smell. My guess is that the harsh almond like smell is the same I get from Cuero Oscuro by Wholly Kaw, that soap smells straight like shoe polish, it's quite brutal and direct, but I like it!(surprise, surprise)

Post shave was the AMAZING HoM balm, GO BUY ONE OF THOSE DAMN BALMS AND THANK ME LATER!!!

DAILY CHALLENGE:

Now last year I got robbed, cause someone had the same idea as me, but was quicker than I was with the wicked_edge challenge. This year, I DID NOT SLEEP THE NIGHT BEFORE, NOT ONE BIT(no joke actually), just so I can rest assured that I have posted my daily question in the DQ thread and be the FIRST to do so! Which is quite fitting. Cause in my experience people who talk/write like this are THE MOST IMPATIENT MOTHER DUCKERS.....

And I'll give you an example how the convo went, keep in mind this is between the time of 00:00-02:00....:

NewGuyToTheGroup: Hey, I got these new WK and A&E soaps, but now I need a razor, what can you recommend to me?
Me: Yeah, sure what's your budget, usually people start with Merkur 34C or Muhle R89.
NewGuyToTheGroup: What else can you recommend up to a 100$?
Me: Well Razorock Game Changer is a pretty good bet usually, pretty good bang for buck!
NewGuyToTheGroup: WHAT ABOUT THIS RAZOR?(Proceeds to send me a 100$ AliExpress copy of an old french razor)
Me: Dunno man, I don't have much experience with those, but I wouldn't trust something out of AliExpress, FOR THAT AMMOUNT OF MONEY, especially when it's a nobody knows razor.

At this point the guy stopped answering and the night went on, I got home at around 6 in the morning and the dude messaged me:

NewGuyToTheGroup: YO I GOT THIS SICK ASS RANDO RAZOR(which was never even mentioned either by me or him)!!! IT'S SO COOL!!!
Me:......(inwardly towards myself, why did you ask me.... why?!?!?! Man just go suck a dick)

And this has not been the only case....

Edit1: Great big thanks to Maggards for their generosity, cause it was with their 150$ gift card that I was able to get my Timeless razor!!!!

Edit2: Daily Question topic is a great place where one can get answers to even the most intricate shaving questions, cause this sub is filled with people that are just incredibly smart and kind to help!!!

#FOF

Honestly the past few days I'm so smashed... I barely get the energy of doing a decent SOTD, but I'll try and be better than yesterday. I know I've been John Varvatos-ing it mainly, but they are the ones that I am mainly familiar with and it's easier to pair them with the soaps I used, especially the first few days. I really was wondering with WHAT can I combine Dark Rebel, cause it's definitely a STANK scent! Very heavy, VEEEERY! After smelling the soap I thought that it would match, to be honest it's not the best match with the Tobacconist balm, but I've had much worse, like last year's LG, where I just use something, somewhere and the results more often than naught were terrible.... Dark Rebel has that stank to the leather which I pick up from the soap. It really is a Noir type of scent, something out of a small jazz club in the 60's that has it's halls filled with cigarette smoke combined with cheap leather jackets!

• Daily Lather Themes: 8/30
• Daily Challenges: 8/30
• Hardware Scavenger Hunt: 10/20
• Hardware Vendor Points: 0/2
• Software Vendor Points: 3/13
• Software Vendor Bonus Point: 0/1
• 30 Different Soap Brands Point: 8/30
• 30 Different Soaps On Theme Bonus Point: 8/30
• 30 Different Post-Shaves Bonus Point: 8/30
• 30 Different Fragrances Bonus Point: 8/30

July 8, 2023 - like ice in the sunshine

• Brush: Maggards – purple handle 2 band badger
• Razor: Razorock – Eco
• Blade: Permasharp (5)
• Lather: Maggard Razors – Orange Menthol
• Post Shave: Summer Break Soaps – Bell Ringer
• Fragrance: Hermes – Terre d’Hermes

#FOF

35 dry degrees outside. A fantastic day to appreciate Maggards, who enable me to make this lathergames possible at a reasonable price. While we have good shops in Europe, Maggards prices and selection is unmatched. For last years lather games, I bought a sample of orange menthol. Originally i planned to use it more during sample september, but had so many handwritten labeled soaps that had priority to get rid off.
Today, I could use the soap again and paired it with the brush I bought last year from my LG price. I wanted to have something permanent that could always remind me of the shenanigans we had last year.
With ease I got a nice creamy lather, despite this huge lather swallowing brush. Although the badger hair is no named, it has soft tips, but don’t put medium pressure on it or it will become unformortable.
The soap is pretty straight forward with its scent. Orange and menthol. In combination they remind me of the ice you see in my SOTD picture. As a teen trapped in an adult body, I eat it less now, but they were a key part of my childhood.
With 5 uses, the permasharp blade is becoming scratchy. Around my adams apple were 3 red dots, here and there are non BBS spots. Permasharp… a marketing gag.
To continue my orange themed day, I used Bell ringer. Would you agree this is a gourmand scent? Maybe we should let the DQT vote for it, because I want to drink the aftershave whenever I smell it. It’s sweet orange liqeur to me.
Last on my journey through my orange plantation, I went with Terre d’Hermes.
This scent is more complex than the other ones I had today. We start with bright orange, and vetiver. After a while it gets herbal. Cilantro? Basil? Nothing like that in the scent pyramid, just rose leafes. Everything comes than together to the earty, woody combination with orange. I am not old enough for this fragrance, but its one of those ones where I am looking forward to mature and wear it.

Daily Challenge:
I am amazed that we have people in the sub, who frequent the daily chalenge thread day by day and are helpfull to new users or other frequent ones. I like that the thread sometimes becomes a troll thread with stupid ideas and we make small announcements formulated as questions.
It’s rare that a question is left unanswered. If its unanswered, then its very likely historic special knowledge, like when I needed help to determine the model of my Valet razor. In the manners of todays funny posts, I want to be part of it. On a more serious note

July 8, 2023 – LG Day 8 – SBS (But not the SBS we’re usually referring to)

• Brush: Maggard Timberwolf Synthetic 24mm
• Razor: Karve CB SB-B
• Blade: Lord Classic (1)
• Lather: Maggard Razors – Orange Menthol
• Post Shave: Wet the Face – Grapefruit Tangelo
• Fragrance: Kerosene – Summer of 84

I am forever grateful for Maggard Razors. Almost every wetshaving purchase I’ve made has been through them. Especially since so much of my den is samples, Maggard is really the only place to go when you want to try a variety of things and not pay out the butt in shipping costs. The fact that Maggard has such a positive relationship with many of our favorite artisans makes it feel much better – knowing that it’s not about the money but about the love of the hobby and the community makes it that much easier to support Maggard Razors.

With all that said, I embarrassingly only have one scent of Maggard’s house brand soap – Orange Menthol. It’s simple but successful, with a lovely orange accord that doesn’t feel overpowering but is present, and is neither too synthetic nor hitting me over the head with essential oils. This made it an easy pair with WTF Grapefruit Tangelo, which just kicks up the citrus anytime I’m looking for that. Summer of 84 is a new acquisition for me; I believe this is my second time wearing it. It’s a very clean explosion of grapefruit, made better by the other notes in the background allowing the citrus to shine. Today is a bright, summer shave, sponsored by the folks that make it impossible to stop buying more soap. #FOF

DQT comment/answer/contribution here. Probably will have more over the course of the day, too, to appreciate the sheer number of shitposts in the thread.

• Brush: Chisel & Hound Kuai Taper w/ V18 Fanchurian 26mm

• Razor: Muhle Rocca R94

• Blade: Bic Chrome Platinum

• Lather: Maggard Razors - Mango Sage Tea

• Post Shave: Noble Otter - Thé Noir et Vanille

• Fragrance: Imaginary Authors - O, Unknown!

Today's Theme: Small Business Saturday... but in July - Used the Maggard Mango Sage Tea soap, and it's a pretty delightful scent. Mango and Tea off the puck, sage heavy when lathered. Very easy to lather up, good amount of structure and whips up pretty quickly.

Today's Challenge: DQT Appreciation Day - DAE PAA BAD? Also neck picture!

My theme for today's shave: Tea

Yes, I know, tomorrow could have been tea day, but it won't be so boohoo to me for making my LG calendar more complicated than it needs to be. For today's shave I decided to have a Tea-themed shave. The Maggard Mango Sage Tea is pretty light on the tea, off the puck it gives mango milk tea boba drink vibes, but loses most of the tea once it's lathered up. Noble Otter's Thé Noir et Vanille reminds me most of a strawberry herbal black tea - the kind that has dried fruit and black tea leaves mixed together - with a hint of rose petal on the finish, and I could see it being a very fancy herbal tea finished with rosehips. Wonderful scent. And finally, Imaginary Authors' O' Unknown! is the most tea-forward scent of the bunch. It's pretty much straight up strong black tea and I quite like it.

For music, I picked Skeletons in the Closet by Gamma Ray. Absolute banger live album, and Kai Hansen's voice + guitars really shine. Incredible energy from the band and the audience comes through in the recording. What does it have to do with tea? Nothing really, it's just a great album. Could I have picked a british metal band to at least pretend like there's a link to tea? Sure but you're not my real dad. Dale. Can't tell me what to do. #photocontest #FOF #ROTY

July 8, 2023 - Small Business Saturday (in July)

• Brush: Maggard 24mm Blue handle with Brown Synthetic
• Razor: Maggard V3M
• Blade: Gillette Rubie (5)
• Lather: Maggard Razors - Mango Sage Tea
• Splash: Noble Otter - Manoi de Tahiti
• Fragrance: House of Mammoth - Voices #FOF

Today’s theme:

I have a selection of samples of Maggard Razors’ soaps. I almost went with tobacco leather, but I’ve had a couple of tobacco scents in the last week. When I picked up Mango Sage Tea, I knew I had the right one for today.

I’m sure most of us on this sub have shopped at Maggard Razors online or in person. I would have liked to go to the meetup this year, but even if I had bought tickets, due to health issues with my wife, I would have had to cancel. It sounded like everyone had a great time. I don’t know how they are so fast, but if I place an order during their opening hours, I get the shipping notification about an hour or less after placing the order. I think every order arrived a day earlier than estimated too. Maybe it helps that I’m around 400 miles from their store. Their service has been nothing but excellent for me.

Today’s Challenge:

Looking through r/DairyQueen there isn’t any wetshaving content.

Managed to answer a question that relates to this shave.

Today’s shave:

It has been a while since the last time I used an MR soap. Decided to use my Maggard V3M razor. Looking at it next to my Travel Tech, it has a very similar head. I can’t recall the handle version, but it has about the grippiest knurling of any handle I own. No slipping of that grip even with soapy fingers. The brush is the first (ok, only) brush I have ever set. I set it pretty high with close to the max loft I could. I might pull it and reset it some day. It is very soft with no backbone. I think dropping the knot another 5mm or more would improve it. Lathering the soap from a scoop smeared in my bowl was very quick. The damp brush picked up all the soap quickly, but I needed a bit more water to get to a decent consistency. A fine shave today with my mostly Maggard sourced shave.

Today’s Fragrance:

Once I settled on Mango Sage Tea as the soap, the obvious fragrance choice for me was House of Mammoth - Voices. The mango was a good link between the two. The aftershave took a little more thought. I don’t think I have any prominently mango or sage scents. I have a few tea ones, but they would have really covered the mango up. So I thought I’d play up the fruity aspects. I narrowed it down to House of Mammoth - Sonder, Chicago Grooming Co. - Sandy Cheeks, and finally picked Noble Otter - Manoi de Tahiti. I already have plans for Sandy Cheeks, and Manoi won the side by side sniff test. The scents mixed very well. Adding Voices on top was excellent. I got this spray the last time I ordered from House of Mammoth. This was the first use, and WOW! That is a great scent. I really got that rice scent right away. With the mango, ginger, lime, coconut, and vanilla already in the other scents, that sticky rice scent makes it all smell like some kind of rice pudding dessert. After the rice note settled for me, more mango came out. I’m trying not to spend much this summer, but I am very tempted to complete the set of Voices.

Haiku number 8:

Mango rice pudding,

My stomach is now growling,

For some Pad See Ew.

July 8, 2023 – Small Business Saturday

• Brush: Maggard Razors Aluminum handle 2-band badger 22mm
• Razor: Maggard Razors SS70
• Blade: Wizamet (4)
• Lather: Maggard Razors – Lilac
• Post Shave: Barrister and Mann – Presto
• Fragrance: Barrister and Mann – Fougère Angelique

Challenge: My question in the DQT.

Thanks to /u/chronnoisseur42O for the smoosh! Lilac is a pleasant soft floral. It’s somewhat powdery. It’s not particularly sweet or musty. The soap is just okay. I’ve never been impressed by this base. It doesn’t hold much water. It doesn’t leave any residue behind, meaning there’s no residual slickness. Primary slickness is just fair.

I used Maggard Razors SS70 and Aluminum Handle brush in honor of today’s theme. I won the SS70 in a PIF from /u/wyze0ne. It doesn’t clamp down on the blade very firmly, which leads to some blade chatter. There’s lots of blade feel, maybe more than any other safety razor I’ve used. It’s mild-medium in aggression, but feels harsher. I feel like I’ve had some good shaves with it, but today’s shave was a bit unconfortable and left some irritation.

The brush is great. The knot is very good. If you like small brushes, check this one out. I paid ~$7.50 during Black Friday. It was a great deal.

I picked Presto to pair with Lilac based on smelling the dry soap. Presto is very floral. There’s a bit of greenness to it. An underpinning of rosy sandalwood grounds the fragrance. It’s bright and feels very fresh. The splash has a cooling effect. As a result of those ingredients, the smell also has notes of aloe vera, and my hands are tingly.

Fougere Angelique is a Maggard exclusive. The fragrance is intriguing. Right off the bat, there’s a soft, sweet lime. There’s a hint of a sharper citrus. The citrus notes blend with a note of lavender. Taking a long sniff reveals fresh green notes followed by strong oakmoss. Digging a little deeper I get a note of dirt (pun intended). I also get a note of creamy sandalwood, similar to Barrister and Mann’s Sandalwood soap fragrance. Angelique is an unconventional fougere that paints well outside the lines of a traditional example of the genre. It begs you to take another smell and delve deeper into its layers.

#FOF

LG23-08: Small Business Saturday... but in July

• Brush: Dogwood Handcrafts 26mm Declaration Grooming B9B #SHD #COMPOSITE
• Razor: Wolfman Razors WR2-DC 0.95 SB / 1.25 OC #CNC
• Blade: Voskhod (14)
• Lather: Maggard Razors - Mango Sage Tea - Shave Soap
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Voices - Aftershave
• Fragrance: Anjali Perfumes - Under the Mango Tree
• Passes: WTG, XTG
• Coffee: Peru, Cajamara - v: Geisha - p: Washed.
• Music: King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - PetroDragonic Apocalypse; or, Dawn of Eternal Night: An Annihilation of Planet Earth and the Beginning of Merciless Damnation
• LG Tags: #FOF

If you’re new around here, or you’ve managed to not hear of the daily threads before now, you’re missing out. The "Newbie Friendly" threads are a font of wet shaving wisdom, well-intentioned snark, and community building. They're where the magic happens.

For today's challenge, I answered a few questions over in the DQT. Some answers were more helpful than others. I also asked my own question about mango-scented wet shaving products to parallel my Small Business Saturday shave.

I’ve used this Maggard Razors soap sample every Lather Games I’ve competed in and there’s nothing new left to say about this simple of a scent. Mango Sage Tea is clean, lively, and inevitably makes me think of expensive hotel soap when I use it. This morning I noticed the sage and tea components more than in the past; they give the fruit a feathery, calming backdrop. Together, the sage and tea almost smell malty. Combined with the mango, they highlight the fruit's bright, tangy smell by providing the exact opposite.

To finish up my shave, I reached for two recent acquisitions that also focus on mango notes.

I was hesitant about Voices and gambled a little on a set; I typically don't like gourmands and worried it would be too sweet. However, it's wonderfully easy to wear. The mango is naturalistic and mellow, the creamy pandan and coconut milk sticky rice present, but not saccharine, and the woody base balances out this scent's lactonic qualities. I'm curious how Voices would smell without the orris note; I suspect it's the secret sauce that binds everything together and makes such a distinct dessert smell take on the more interpretive qualities of a perfume.

Speaking of, I've only worn this newly-released Anjali Perfumes fragrance a few times, but it brought a smile to my face with the first spray. First of all, it reminds me of a beautiful short film I saw at a festival earlier this year. Beyond that pleasant association, I also love the immediate green freshness of Under the Mango Tree, as well as the way it settles it into a mellow outdoor scent. The mango note is huge and juicy in the opening. It's also very green; tomato leaf, grapefruit, and bergamot meld with the the mango to give the impression of green skin and the full tree overhead, loaded with fruit. With each wear so far, I've totally missed the middle-ground between that delightfully bright opening and the subtle drydown, but that's a very pleasant destination even when I arrive abruptly. The fruit is still present, and the base is a relatively fresh one, but woods and hay are the foundation. It's the smell of a sun-baked pastoral vista. Beautiful. [There you go, u/wallygator88!]

Day 8 - Small Business Saturday

• Brush: Maggard Razors Black Resin Handle Synthetic Shaving Brush, 24mm
• Razor: Karve - CB
• Blade: Astra Green
• Lather: Barrister and Mann - Fougère Angelique
• Post Shave: Barrister and Mann - 42 Balm
• Fragrance: Southern Witchcraft- Druantia

I blame Maggard for me being here right now, haha. I purchased my starter set from them to save money. I now have a handful of razors, more soaps then I need, and my wallet may never recover. Haha.

For the fragrance both Fougère Angelique and balm 42 are very lemony and bright. I thought the earth from Druantia would combine nicely. It is a nice summer day with rain in the forecast

ROTY #FOF

Saturday, the 8th of July, 2023

• Brush: Maggard Razors 24mm synthetic, marble resin handle
• Razor: Maggard Razors V3
• Blade: Gillette Rubie (24)
• Lather: Maggard Razors - Northern Moss
• Post shave: Maggard Razors - Orange Menthol
• Fragrance: Southern Witchcrafts - Lycanthropy

All of the non-Maggard brand items in today's shave were still at least purchased from Maggard Razors. The razor and brush were in the starter kit I bought from them. I don't have any Maggard-brand perfumes, but I have bought a few through their shop, including Lycanthropy.

Lycanthropy is... challenging when first sprayed. The mix of notes in the opening is not pleasant, at least not to my nose. However, once it settles down a bit, it's quite nice. I'm not sure what blows off quickly... looking at Southern Witchcraft's page, I see they list fir tree, lilac, musk, mildew, moss, Egyptian jasmine, palo santo, white sage, and ozone.

Ozone might be what I don't like about the opening, but honestly I don't smell ozone when I smell this. Even on open. Maybe I need to pay more attention to that opening the next time I use it. At one point I think I was down on the juniper, but today I notice the juniper sticks around a while, although it's not as intense after a couple hours. The juniper I like. And I think it's especially good with what I can smell of the fir note, and what I think is the moss, musk, and mildew notes under that. There's a dankiness in here that I believe would come primarily from those, anyway.

I'm trying to imagine "white sage;" I'm sure that contributes to the jumble I smell in the opening, but I cannot pick it out. Palo santo I had to look up, but it seems this would be another woody note, along with the fir.

I suppose I should tag this #FOF, since this is the most in-depth I've gone on talking about scents in some time. Although I'm sure this goes at the bottom of the list of entries there.

The daily questions thread is great. Well, today it seems to be about 95% shitposting, but that's still fun to read through. I feel a bit sorry for anyone not a regular who stumbles on it today. But the actual questions and discussions that come from it are often quite good. I put up an actual question today, which may well be lost in the noise for now.

July 8, 2023

• Brush: DS Cosmetic Boar/Badger Brush #MISTURA
• Razor: Star Silver Star #UNICORN
• Blade: Gillette Silver Blue
• Lather: Maggard Razors – London Barbershop Soap
• Post Shave: Maggard Razors – London Barbershop Splash
• Fragrance: Prada – Luna Rossas Ocean

When I first started wetshaving, I was told two things: Start with the Stirling Starter Pack and buy everything else from Maggards. And I’m really happy I’ve listened to both pieces of advice almost exclusively. Maggard’s has everything anyone could want under one virtual roof. Well, I suppose it is an actual roof, but I’ve never been there, so it’s pretty much a virtual roof to me. But I digress, I don’t think anyone wants to get into a discussion about whether or not we should consider Maggard’s an e-commerce retailer or a brick-and-mortar retailer. We’re all here to praise the company that is Maggard Razors. They have everything anyone who is into wetshaving could want. And if they don’t sell it, it probably sucks anyway and you don’t actually want it.

Today I shaved with Maggard’s London Barbershop. I’m not sure what makes this scent specifically British, but right ‘o old chap! Chip-chap-cheerio, amiright? This soap and splash combo is perfect for the bloke who wants a classically good shave with a splendid scent. I bought a sample of the soap, but a full splash because I figured Barbershop goes with just about everything, and blimey, I was right! I lathered up the soap this morning, and bloody hell, did it create a brilliant lather that I quite fancied. And the best part is the Maggard branded soap only costs a few quid. And then the splash and the cologne left me feeling fresh and smelling great in my flat. After I sprayed on a couple spritz of Luna Rossas Ocean, I felt absolutely smashing! All my mates would agree this was a great scent combination. Anyone that says otherwise is either just being cheeky or they are just crackers! And that’s no poppycock! #FOF

For the challenge, I’ve grown accustomed reading the Daily Questions Thread, well, daily and have asked a bunch, so I’m happy to participate once again. Here’s my contribution of the day.

Cheers!

July 8, 2023 – LG 8: Small Business Caturday

• Brush: Maggard 24mm 2-Band Badger
• Razor: Maggard Slant on MR11 Handle
• Blade: Astra SP (Green) (4)
• Lather: Maggard Razors – Lilac
• Post Shave: Barrister and Mann – Fougère Angelique
• Fragrance: Barrister and Mann – Fougère Angelique

What’s better than Saturday, Caturday of course. #PHOTOCONTEST (pets, featuring Mr Cat, aka lathercat).

Maggards soap, made by Through the Fire Fine Craft, is pretty run of the mill if you ask me. Not one of the all stars of this sub, but it still makes the team. Lilac is a pretty straightforward floral scent. Clean, crisp, and safe, but not much of a head turner. I initially had slated lilac vegetal in today, but opted to take a picture of my cat instead of smell like his liquid excretions. Seriously though, that stuff has a decaying floral, ammonia, medicinal quality to it that is a head turner, but for all the wrong reasons. Figured instead I’d opt for the phenomenal maggard exclusive fougere Angelique. A wonderful fougere that paints outside the lines, and is wonderfully citrus forward with loads of lime and neroli to my nose. Killer longevity for a citrus forward scent, but dries down with some floral elements from the geranium and lavender, eventually smoldering out to its woody and mossy base. Quite different than the other fougeres in my den, and really holds onto the citrus side of the scent throughout. #FOF

In case it wasn’t as clear as other day, although some floral elements link the shave, everything hardware and software today was from maggard, and had a nice purple/blue theme as well.

As for the challenge, getting meta today in the DQT and wondering about airbudding the airbud quest.

soap brands 8/30, post shave 8/30, frag 8/30, post/frag linked 8/30, software sponsors 3/15, hardware sponsors 2/2, razor hashtags 4/15, brush hashtags 5/15, photo contest 8/30, daily challenges 7/25, special challenges 1/5

July 8, 2023 – Mag Day

• Brush: Semogue SOC Boar
• Razor: Gillette Tech Fat Handle (1938-1945) #REEGUS
• Blade: Gillette Silver Blue
• Lather: Maggard Razors – Mango Sage Tea
• Post Shave: Thayers – Lavender

Love me some Maggard Razors. Reliable, consistent, kind – there’s a reason every other vendor of shave wares wants to be them – but nobody comes close.

I thought I had some Maggard soap from last year floating around but I did not. Fortunately, u/redmosquitoMM came through in the clutch and, as he lives only a few hours from me, was able to have a smush at my door in just a couple of days (you’ll see him pop up again tomorrow, too – the man is a legend). I really enjoyed this new to me scent, I got more sage than mango, but, the mango/tea softened into the sage and it was a really enjoyable slightly greenish citrusy scent. I have nothing that remotely comes close to pairing with this and I wanted to smell it dry down a bit so I just used my Thayer’s this go and, well – it was my daughters birthday party today and the scent of soap fades quick so honestly I have no idea how it dries down – I wasn’t paying enough attention with all 20 people in my house. But – the shave was great, performance was smooth, etc. etc.

I did use the vintage Gillette today and generally I struggle with it and get some razor burn, but, I went with two passes today (I had just worked out and immediately shaving after workouts always leads to awful razor burn) and I am happy to report it was an excellent experience! This bad boy, per Razor Emporium’s pics, seems to be a 1938-1945 variety but it has no date code and earns me that luscious 0.1 point. Ya love to see it.

I love the DQT and have benefited from it greatly. I still have a ton to learn from more veteran shavers and use that thread often enough, but it’s also fun to have accumulated enough knowledge to be able to help newbies in a limited capacity and have some slightly educated opinions on questions that pop up. My response today is all about my favorite post in LG history. This community shows it’s excellence via the DQT thread time and time again – so welcoming, helpful, and kind.

Anyway – have a great night, y’all!

FOF Haiku of the Day

Maggard soap today
Mango Sage Tea lathered
Excellent, if fast