July 24, 2023 – Tribute Day

• Brush: Summer Break Soap “Dundy” 26mm Motherlode
• Razor: Blackland Blackbird Lite
• Blade: Gillette Silver Blue
• Lather: Zingari – The Explorer
• Post Shave: Chatillon Lux – Admiral

First off, thank you u/RedMosquitoMM for the Zingari Explorer Smush – you helped me get all the software sponsor points with your last minute package back in week one. I appreciate that you are not a champion who hoards his wares, rather, you’re a champion who makes everyone better. Cheers, sir.

But, my tribute post is not for Ol’ Red. No, he got a whole day of that earlier. My tribute is to our beloved u/jeffm54321. What can be said about Jeff? So much. He is as snarky as they come and is a master at his craft, often blurring the lines between kindness and savagery so well you’re left reading his post in both tears of pain and of appreciation. Is he a crusty boomer who has seen things or is he Gen Z and in desperate need of therapy? Who can tell? I don’t think I want to know, there’s beauty in the mystery. Jeff, keep on being you. Stir that pot. Make grown men and women, here to learn about shaving and have a little fun along the way, sit and ponder questions like: “does this guy hate me? does he hate himself? is he funny? is he rude?” Continue to use that keyboard like the scalpel it becomes in your hands. You, sir, are a legend. Never change.

As for my shave, well, it was great. Smooth and easy 3 pass. I don’t like Zingari Explorer as a scent too much, the dry down isn’t for me, but, Admiral and Sonder will cover it up nicely and today was not about liking a scent so much as it was about using something given to me.

FOF Haiku of the day

Explorer dry down
Smells like expired stinky soap
My wife agrees, too

u/jeffm54321 Haiku of the Day
Jeff is a machine
Witty, savage, kind, between
Love him as he is

July 24, 2023 – LG Day 24 – Christmas Eve but in July, aka Appreciation Day

• Brush: Stirling Two-Band Synthetic 24mm
• Razor: Karve CB SB-B
• Blade: Gillette Nacet (1)
• Lather: Hub City Soap Company – Friday Night Lights
• Post Shave: Stirling Soap Co. – Vanilla Sandalwood
• Fragrance: Declaration Grooming – Darkfall

—

An Ode to Onion, best performed in front of a shrine to him

u/OnionMiasma, my thanks goes out to you,

For when I was in my time of greatest need

You didn’t have to think, you knew just what to do.

You sent a smush, no questions asked, no greed.

This soap which you somehow knew I’d love

Was sent not once, but twice, with utmost care.

You sent it not to get rid of

it, but rather because you really wanted to share.

Onion, I salute you on this day,

and may tomorrow Santa visit you on his sleigh.

—

Really, Onion crushed it with this smush. The local midwest USPS apparently didn’t want to bother sending smushes the first time around, so Onion decided to just smush again and resend. It would be so easy to say “sorry, good luck, I’ve done all I can do.” But that’s not the Onion way. He not only asked what brands I needed, but recommended a soap which I love so much that I plan to buy a soap and splash. Really, Friday Night Lights is a winner. I tried to replicate, or even just somewhat evoke, the sweetness and smokiness of FNL in my splash and frag (#FOF), but I couldn’t quite get it right. The smokiness, woodsiness, sweetness, and somehow a sense of nostalgia are all mixed perfectly in this soap. Thank you, Onion. You’re a hero, and your presence and contributions on this sub are so appreciated by me. From the Proraso train to your almond adventure, to shaving ten times in a day, to somehow roping your wife into this hobby and the freaking Lather Games, your creativity and dedication make you one-of-a-kind.

July 24, 2023 – It’s best to give and receive

• Brush: AP Shave Co. Cashmere
• Razor: Gillette Superspeed
• Blade: 7 O’Clock – Sharpedge (Yellow) (2)
• Lather: Wholly Kaw – Masquerade
• Post Shave: House of Mammoth – Shire
• Fragrance: Summer Break Soaps – Valedictorian

Today is soap swap day, so here’s some soap graciously provided to me by u/worbx as part of his Lather Games 2023 pif. It’s my first time using Wholly Kaw and it should close out my sponsor points. Yay! Curiously, looking at my schedule it’s almost all smush trades from here in out. That’s the nature of the game and fitting I think to close out LG with help from all of you. And with that I’d like to say a few nice things about several people here. The challenge says to say something nice and I’ll be doing that via some thank yous.

u/newtothethis: thanks so much for helping us all through leg day. Was there blood? Yes, but far less than if you hadn’t taken the time to post your tips.

u/j33pguy13: thanks for dragging me out of my lurking to join in this group. It’s been a ride. And thanks for getting me the moar boar in the end, even if I found the hidden sock puppet detection feature in latherbot. u/onionmiasma: Thanks for being consistently entertaining for my first lather games (even if you did 1 up my kids kitchen shave.)

u/admirable-nobody-946: Thanks for being generous and hosting us at your job for an evening. I had dinner with my parents this weekend and there still very confused “so you never met this dude in person before?” “nah but he seemed nice.” (hey onion, take him up on his invite it’s fun.)

The Djudges are gonna be tagged to hell today, so I’ll spare them the ping (except J33p above) and say thanks to all of you for your time and effort into this. It’s a great example of how this sub rocks.

I could go on and on. This sub is full of great people who are beyond generous, with time, hardware, software, etc. And that’s before you start in on the artisans who hang out here too and get roped into making meme soaps (u/rocketk455) or PIF away new sets with interesting (and often hilarious) story based side contests (u/Mammothben) just to name a few. I may be relatively young, but I’ve been around the internet since it’s early days, so I know people are gonna come and go and come back again, but hopefully the generousness vibe of this place doesn’t change too much.

Enough of the emotional stuff #fof time: I carried the tobacco note though this entire shave, but in different forms. The more muted, blended tobacco in masquerade. The light summery tobacco in Shire and the more straight tobacco in valedictorian. Overall a great progression of I do say so myself.

For #photocontest an entry into the story category. Can you tell my daughter composed this? I turned her loose with a directive to tell a story with the Babrie kingdom delivering the gift of wetshaving to stuffy land. And after some description of what an old kingdom gift exchange looked like she arrived at this. And I placed the gear.

OK #ROTY folks 6 more.

2023-07-23 I Bequeath thee!

• Brush: Yaqi Metal Timberwolf
• Razor: Muhle R41
• Lather: Barrister and Mann - Hallows
• Post Shave: Barrister and Mann - Hallows
• Fragrance: Stirling Soap Co. - Varen

Relevant Post-Shave and Fragrance: Varen, like Hallows, highlights oakmoss and vetiver.

Literally just this past Friday, I went to my local supermarché and was bewildered when I heard from the store's speakers: Jingle Bell Rock. Why were they literally playing Christmas music in July? No idea. Was it someone trying to convince themselves that it's not as ungodly hot outside as it is? Maybe, but I can only imagine that that would make it seem hotter once they inevitably had to step into the blazing death called "outside".

Christmas in July's Eve: The benefactor who generously provided me today's lather, aftershave, and razor is u/loudmusicboy. I had long been curious about this scent, perhaps largely because of the multitude of variations in its artwork that I'd seen pop up from time to time.

#FOF
I'm a fan. With strong oakmoss, it doesn't seem too far off from Varen. It's undeniably darker and "cold"er, which is unsurprising considering that Varen is still a fougère, and is brightened by floral notes. I could do without the cocoa of Hallows, and labdanum is on my "find out what this smell is" list. Nonetheless, both are strongly grassy (which, in the case of Varen, I feel a fougère should be). All that said, I don't know what a swamp smells like or even how likely it is for there to be swamps in Boston, nor what "perversely elegant" means.

But that wasn't the main highlight of the PIF. No, the PIF in question was mainly the razor. Well, this one and the MMOC that a PIFd on. u/loudmusicboy wanted to provide the experience of this aggressive razor to someone unfamiliar, and that he did. Holy hell, this is aggressive. Far more so than the MMOC, I feel. Quite simply, the Muhle R41 is a rough ride. I feel like the blade hovers in razor, loose and wild and ready to slice my skin off. It's like a shavette at 90 degrees. Now that it served here in the Games, I'm likely to pass it on forward to a new owner.

Challenge Accepted: While I can't say that I've caught every post, I can say that I've been paying extra attention to the participants mentioned below:

u/loudmusicboy, who has not only a seemingly relevant username, but also some impressively hairy shoulders and a remarkable debonair and distinguished-looking dog.

u/2SaintsDude and u/partyman97_3, one of whom now has u/loudmusicboy's MMOC (no idea which one, but they both got an MMOC), and both of whom are first-time Games participants.

u/Marquis90, though he doesn't know this, inspired me to search for and discover a non-alcoholic pastis (it's Ricard Pacific, it's wildly expensive to get in my neck of the woods, but it's deliciously close to the "real" thing).

u/OnionMiasma, in addition to exhibiting what I can only describe as a fanatical dedication to LG shenanigans, has been notably engaging among Games participants, which I think is the most commendable thing in the Games.

u/djundjila—who was the victor of my first Games and at that time conspicuously kept a running tally of his own score, which I suspect was motivated by non-existent transparency in scoring at the time—has provided a way not only to make the Games possible, but has worked to ensure an unprecedented degree of participants' confidence in scoring.

All of the djudges, especially the one djudging this. But also the anonymous 1 or 2 who graciously helped me with my small scoring concerns.

#photocontest
Photo: Light sources, because why not throw a bunch of loose LEDs in the skull's mouth?

• Brush: Dogwood Handcrafts 49ers Custom w/ Declaration Grooming B5 28mm

• Razor: Blackland Blackbird

• Blade: Bic Chrome Platinum

• Lather: Tallow + Steel - Shag

• Post Shave: Pinaud Clubman - Musk

• Fragrance: Imaginary Authors - The Soft Lawn

Today's Theme: Christmas in July's Eve - I received this smush of T+S Shag from /u/tsrblke 's PIF, many thanks to my fellow ROTY competitor!

Today's Challenge: Community Tribute Day - So today's community tribute gives me a lot of options. I could double down on the love for /u/tsrblke who has steadily become a familiar and friendly face in the community, and who I've greatly enjoyed interacting with on the subreddit and on discord. But no, I won't tribute to him.

I could suck up to the djudges and show love to /u/j33pguy13 who has become as good of a friend in the wetshaving community as I could have possibly expected. He's welcomed me into this hobby and helped me explore many software products I would have otherwise never had access to, and also helped my 49ers brush get a top tier B5 knot. But no, I won't tribute to him.

I could shout out to community mainstays like /u/iamsms and /u/visceralwatch who have generously trusted me to borrow some incredible razors from them, and /u/iamsms in particular who was the first to invite me to join the IRC chat which started my whole slide down this wonderful rabbit hole. But no, I won't tribute to either of them.

I could shout out to other community members like /u/unitedstatesghost who pulled the trigger on a shitty Minions brush for the lulz and continues to be a great contributor around the wetshaving sphere. But no, I won't tribute to her.

My tribute today, is to /u/scorpio93x. This one goes out to you

My theme for today's shave: I'm Immature and Unashamed

So for today's shave, I knew I was going to use the T+S Shag smush from /u/tsrblke, and as I browsed my spreadsheet of post shaves and fragrances, I noticed I could do something that would make my inner 12-year old happy. Shag. Musk. Soft Lawn.

For music, I picked Sonata Arctica's Winterhearts Guild because talking about it yesterday and listening to their album Silence got me in the mood for more Sonata Arctica. A really great power metal album that I hold near and dear to my heart. #photocontest #FOF #ROTY

LG23-24: Christmas in July's Eve

• Brush: Muninn Woodworks 26mm Maggard Razors Premium Boar
• Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
• Blade: GEM (31)
• Lather: Red House Farm - Lumos - Shaving Soap
• Post Shave: AllMan - Defiance - After Shave
• Fragrance: Providence Perfume Co. - Jadeite
• Passes: WTG, XTG
• Coffee: Ethiopia Yirgacheffe
• Music: R.E.M. - Green
• LG Tags: #FOF

r/wetshaving is the best shaving forum out there. Looking for expert knowledge? Check out the gems in the daily thread, u/WegianWarrior's regular patent posts (so cool!), and our in-depth reviews. Want fun? Again, check out the Daily Questions, or, obviously, the Lather Games SOTD threads. Into the artistic side of the hobby? Our weekly photo contest has featured professional-level competition this year. Want to sample a few soaps? Have we got the smushes for you. Even if you just like to hang around, post a SOTD, and spectate, we're happy you're here to throw a few upvotes are way, say hello, and shake up the monthly lather logs.

And this community makes stuff too. I used two of those items today: a MM24 razor from fellow Motherlode-advocate and all around good people u/Eldrormr and a Red Amboyna burl brush u/whosgotthepudding turned for me. Beautiful hardware.

My lather and post shave are from the community too. Shoutout to u/putneycj who sent me some smushes, including this neon green sample of Lumos, made by our very own u/grindermonk. And u/jeffm5432 PIFed the also-quite-green aftershave my way. Thank you both!

(Judges, pardon the interruption. To be clear about what links my soap, aftershave, and fragrance today: all three are visibly green, and not just the packaging. Green soap, green juice. The Jadeite fragrance is also named after a green mineral, but that's just the kicker.)

I always try to fit one of u/grindermonk's Red House Farm soaps into my Lather Games calendar. Knowledgeable, well-spoken, and generous, u/grindermonk is exactly the kind of person that makes r/wetshaving great, and I've enjoyed chatting with him here. His crock-pot soap development was one of the coolest projects shared on r/wetshaving, and I've enjoyed following along as he develops new batches—all of which he's shared with folks here on the sub. (They're a go-to travel shave option for me. Very quick to lather.) Here's to you u/grindermonk! 🍻

According to Red House Farm, this neon-green soap—that glows in the dark "if left exposed to the sun"—is scented with a bunch of citrus and floral notes, supported by a "rustic woods" base. Sadly, the scent on this smush is faint, because I should have just killed it right away instead of trying to wait for the Lather Games. All I'm really getting now is a gentle lavender and a sweeter floral accent, which must be the crocus. Nothing wrong with a lightly-scented shave every once in a while.

On the other hand, my post shave splash is the exact opposite, and a little bit goes a long way. u/_walden_ shared in the past that Defiance is probably a dupe of Hugo Boss Boss Bottled. I believe it, since a fruit accord is the first thing I notice, and it persists, sweet and jubilant, as long as I can smell my aftershave. The description of Boss Bottled as "Woody Spicy" with a "floral and spicy heart" is a surprise; I pick up a bit of carnation underneath all that fruit, and a significant amount of vanilla along with what I accurately guessed was vetiver, but I would never have called this Defiance aftershave spicy. To my nose, it reads as fruity and green. Something is lost in translation when a complicated blend is splashed right under your nose and doesn't evolve throughout the day like a fragrance version would.

I finished my shave with many dabs of my Jadeite sample. Charna Ethier releases a limited edition Spring/Summer fragrance annually, each formulated like a traditional Eau de Cologne—lightly scented, featuring citrus or herbacious notes, and meant to be applied throughout the day as needed. As Ethier says it, "applied liberally and frequently for maximum refreshment." Jadeite takes the refreshment idea as its inspiration, accenting an iced green tea accord with bergamot, water mint, and linden blossom. I'm not used to light perfumes that are meant to be reapplied—in fact, many of the American perfumes I use most often are incredibly strong and long lasting—so I've enjoyed sampling this one. When I first dab it on, the green tea pops out immediately. After a few minutes, it transforms into a distinctly herbal scent; it reminds me of when I've steeped Thai basil grown in the garden, with lemony facets and a cool, peppery quality that plays off the water mint note here. Wait a little bit longer and the green tea fades into musky frankincense and ambrette. Dab on a bit and enjoy the cycle all over again. Jadeite is a fun summer wear, though it was overwhelmed by the Defiance aftershave this morning. It would work better following up a light aftershave, like Thayer's cucumber toner, that highlights the gossamer quality of both products. I enjoyed the afternoon application more.

July 24, 2023 – I choose you

• Brush: DG 14/ Dowgood Handcraft – Sonder release
• Razor: Blackland Era
• Blade: Astra SP (Green) (2)
• Lather: Saponificio Varesino – Manna di Sicilia
• Post Shave: Southern Witchcrafts – Desairology
• Fragrance: Trussardi- A way for him

I tried to get as many items from other users into my shave as possible. The brush was a PIF from u/Phteven_j . The razor is borrowed from u/hairykopite.
u/MrTangerinesky PIFed me the soap. For the soap there is a little story. The OG Post
As you see on the comments, nobody realized the challenge existed. We had a few people who did the Stag challenge, as well as my headless horsemen challenge, but I was the only one who used the hashtag. To this day, the hashtag is saved in my autocomplete August came to an end, and MrTangerinesky started a chat with me about the gift card, informing me, that I was the only contestant. If there is no competition, winning is little fun, so I declined the gift card politely.
Daily Challenge:
But MrTangerinesky is a man who keeps his word. He proved that publicly by forming walnut shaped icecubes with cryogen on video, insulting me till my stomach hurt and I made my username all honor.
He insisted on giving me the gift card. As an old colleague, who bought a boat while drunk, without having a drivers licence for boats, drivers license for trailers, from money he got by selling a car, he won, said it: “Thats money which fell from the sky. Lets go stupid”, I decided to buy expensive soap.

#FOF
Soap:
Manna di sicilia was my choice. It sounded like a classic scent that I could wear every day. Orange andfresh bergamot, rose and tobacco, as well as patchoulli with cedarwood sounded like a banger.
In my opinion, Noble otters Neon sun is the american answer to this scent. I have both in my collection and could use the aftershave interchangeable. The soaps performance is something that needs a few extra words. It lathers easily, gives good slickness and is vegan. Well, we have that in a lot of artisans we buy from regularly. But SV puts the cherry on top, by having the soap tripple milled and each scent has its own base with its unique skin properties. If my skin is dry, this soap is my go to choice and within 1-2 days, I can see progress. In the manual of the soap (yes, the soap has one), they write that you should bloom the soap and use a badger. I did that. With such a good set up, it's difficult to have a bad shave.

Aftershave:
I started with a classic scent, I continue with one. Desairology, is my favortite scent for day to day life. Its always a great choice. Sandwalwood, musk and burned sage lay a great base for a masculine scent. Lavender, vanilla and oakmoss make it a classic.

Fragrance:
“A way for him”. I thought it would fit my theme of classic masculine fragrances well. nfortunately, that was a miss. A way for him has some accords that sound more like marketing to me (solar and air!!!).
This fragrance is oriental sweet and smells cheap. Maybe I ll give it my 14 year old brother to wear. Maybe I ll give it my 10 year old brother and he torches something with it. We’ll see.

Continue the daily challenge:
MrTangerinesky keeps his words! I love the way he play the a thergames. You give him a theme and he will find a crazy way to reformulate it. Thats what I want to see here in the games.
I can only imagine what a night in vegas would be like with him. Maybe after our first beer, we would drive to the police station and get in arrest, to keep us and the city safe. I expect the officers to roll the red carpet out for him, greeting him with a handshake. But once we arrived in the cell, we will probably try to get out, but drunk.

u/glink48: my latherbuddy. I can’t remember how we started, but it’s a lucky coincidence that we come up by a theme for the next day and shave accoridingly. Hope he will get back to germany with his Race car and I ll try to keep at your tail with my bike.

u/worbx: I know nothing about this guy. He flies completely under the radar here. But when I see his username, it’s always a generous PIF to provide the r/wetshaving world with samples. maybe he is the drug dealer my mom always warned me about, just sending free soap and getting us hooked. Who knows?

u/Teufelskraft:
Seriously. Last games and this games would not have been possible without you. Your generosity is unmatched, and I miss you on the sub.

Day 24 - Christmas in July

• Brush: APShaveCo - Butterscotch Handle with Synbad Knot
• Razor: Karve - CB
• Blade: Astra - Green
• Lather: HOM - Rumble
• Post Shave: Wholly Kaw - Night Cap
• Fragrance: Dossier - Woody Vetiver

Today I went with HOM Rumble. It was the only shave soap I received for free. Thanks, u/nathlam15. He sent a sample with a purchase. I don't hear a lot about Rumble. It is a fantastic warm rum chocolate scent. That said, it is too hot for such a nice warm scent.

For the fragrance, I went with Woody Vetiver. My goal was to uplift the warm scent with the powerful vetiver from Dossier. Mixing them added a nice sweet undertone to the Vetiver. The Woody Vetiver, vetiver is so in your face that it was nice to see how it mixed with the sweet, warm Rumble and Night Cap.

ROTY #FOF

July 24, 2023

• Brush: Terrafirma Soapery - Mallee Burl and Resin with 28mm G5C
• Razor: Gillette Super Speed
• Blade: Wilkinson Sword
• Lather: Noble Otter - Thé Noir et Vanille
• Post Shave: Sir Henry’s – Lavender, Vanilla, Sandalwood Splash
• Fragrance: Tumi – Kinetic [--:-- GMT]
• Music: Garth Brooks – Friends in Low Places

In the announcement thread, the question was asked if someone in the games gave us a gift card and we used it to buy soap, if that counted. u/USS-SpongeBob confirmed that counts, so last year, my guy u/chronnoisseur42O hosted a post Lather Games PIF about hobbies due to his love of LEGO, and I was selected as one of the lucky recipients. Check out his amazing collection – it’s seriously impressive. The prize for this was a Maggard Gift Card, which I used to buy the soap I used today – Noble Otter’s Thé Noir et Vanille.

TNeV, as it’s called in shaving circles, is black tea, vanilla, and supposedly strawberries. I was very surprised to read that u/RedMosquitoMM smells a strong strawberry scent right off the bat, because I it’s not strong to me. However, anyone that reads his posts vs. mine will immediately know that my nose isn’t even close to the same stratosphere as his, so trust him on this. I get mostly tea and vanilla from TNeV. I stuck with vanilla for the post-shave and fragrance. Lavender, Vanilla, Sandalwood Splash from Sir Henry’s is nice and simple. Three nose-flavors blended together and make for a nice finish to TNeV shave. Finally for the fragrance, I went with Kinetic [--:-- GMT] from Tumi. It has a smoky vanilla scent to it and a touch of sandalwood that blends quite well with the LVS Splash for a great #FOF day.

For the challenge, there are so many amazing people on this sub and it’s impossible to narrow it down to one, two, or three.

u/chronnoisseur42O is a super nice dude – gifted me the PIF that I used for soap today – and is a Lather Games Powerhouse. His posts are always enjoyable and he’s going above and beyond in these games.

Of course, I have to give credit to my buddy u/OnionMiasma who has a brilliant knack for creative writing, and thinking outside the box – he’s definitely been pushing me to do better in this years Games. Nearly every day, I read his posts and I'm envious that he had a better idea than I had or I'm jealous of something he came up with. Oh yeah, and he also raised a bunch of money for the JED Foundation last year and is doing it again this year!. An absolutely solid human being and one I hope to get a beer with in real life in the future.

u/RedMosquitoMM has a wonderful ability to describe scents better than anyone else on the sub, and is always an absolute joy to read. And he gave into peer pressure and shaved his legs for leg day!

u/EldrormR pushes people out of their comfort zone to try boar brushes, MMOCs, and now a Wagaiaouzet thingy! He enables like no other and hasn't led me astray yet.

Of course, the LG organizers and djudges this year: u/USS-SpongeBob, u/wallygator88, u/Djundjila, u/walden, u/DoctorRotor, u/J33pGuy13, u/VisceralWatch, u/merikus, and u/EldrormR - you are all so giving of your time sifting through all of our nonsense, and I’m especially thankful for whoever has to read my extremely long posts, day after day after day - THANK YOU!

And finally, my frenemy, u/MrTangerinesky – You’ve provided me with so much hilarious and cringeworthy moments over the last couple weeks. You’re may be a lunatic, but you’re our lunatic. 🤝🏻

The theme for the #photocontest is Royals, since the soap brand is a one of nobility. Took my SOTD pic in front of The King of Burgers. Because every King needs a Queen (and in case BK isn’t Royal enough for you) I also included a 3D printed Queen Elizabeth figurine for a prop.

For today’s 10 Questions with… I have: Cody from Noble Otter. He was very quick to respond to my interview request and gave a lot of really good answers to my questions. Thank you u/NobleOtter for agreeing to participate and play along in my shenanigans! Appreciate all you’ve done to grow this hobby of ours!

10 Questions with… Noble Otter

1) Does your Otter mascot have a name? I feel weird calling him, “your otter.”

We dont really have a name for him. We have called in Kai in the past, on a card for the Monoi de Tahiti release but we never really stuck with that. We kind of just left it open to allow the imagination of our customers to make the story.

2) Is your otter a sea otter or a river otter?

He is a river otter.

3) A lion is the King of the Jungle, are we to assume your Otter is the King of the Rivers (or Sea)?

Actually, we think of him as a royal family member but not the king. Kind of like a young member that just wants to go on adventures rather then but stuck to the throne.

4) If you could live as an animal (other than an Otter) for a week, which would you pick? Why?

Some type of bird. I love flying and would want to be a eagle or something that could just soar.

5) Do you have a favorite scent that Noble Otter has released?

This is really tough, I think Orbit is my favorite but TNeV and Hamami are also close seconds.

(INTERVIEW CONTINUES IN THE REPLY)

July 24, 2023

• Brush: Frank Shaving – 20mm Synthetic
• Razor: Star – Silver Star
• Blade: Gillette Silver Blue
• Lather: Zingari Man – The Merchant Soap
• Post Shave: Ogallala Bay Rum – Sage & Cedar Splash
• Fragrance: Cartier – Pasha Edition Noire

I was sent this smush of Zingari Man – The Merchant by u/Priusaurus. In the official smush trading post, Priusaurus commented an offer for anyone to reach out to him for a smush if they needed any and I did. He sent me two and didn’t want anything in return, even though I offered. If that’s the type of community this subreddit is, I’m really happy to be part of it!

The scent of The Merchant is a little sweet, a little warm, and a little spicy, so I used a splash that’s warm and spicy - Ogallala Bay Rum, Sage, and Cedar. I went on a big bay rum kick when I was first getting going and picked up nearly every Bay Rum scented product I saw. Don’t regret it, but I don’t reach for this splash often at all – It’s spicy and woody. Then, for the cologne, I went with Pasha de Cartier because it’s woody and spicy, similar to the splash, but inverse. #FOF

CHALLENGE

I gotta go with u/Priusaurus. Not only did he send me a couple smushes without wanting anything in return, but I’ve been thoroughly enjoying his Lather Games posts. The interviews are great and his antics are top notch. I had no idea this guy that seemed so nice in the PMs would be going so over the top for Lather Games

July 24, 2023 – The day of the night before not Christmas

• Brush: Summer Break Sheridan w/ 26 mm Synbad
• Razor: Razorock Hawk v2
• Blade: Feather ProGuard (AC) (12)
• Lather: Los Jabones de Joserra – Kush
• Post Shave: Declaration Grooming – Darkfall
• Fragrance: Maher Olfactive – Nefertiti

Challenge: Thanks to /u/chronnoisseur42O for helping me fill out my calendar. Today’s soap is 1 of 3 smooshes he sent me. If you take a look at the trade thread you’ll see he offered to help pretty much everyone who needed something. He’s putting together a very solid effort in these games. I’m sure a lot of planning went into that. And still, in the spirit of the games, he generously helped his fellow competitors.

When I asked chronnoisseur for a smoosh of this soap, I assumed it would smell like weed. I now know that this is a dupe of Nasomatto Black Afgano, which I’ve smelled before. Kush is pretty close to the real deal. The fragrance is dark and smokey. It doesn’t smell like tobacco, matches, or even burning wood. It’s more like the smell of burnt wood after the fire has gone out. It’s woody. I’m definitely getting a cannabis note. There’s a mossy greenness. The soap is pretty good and made a slick lather. I don’t understand why it’s $35, especially when their soaps are dupes.

I decided to use Darkfall to pair with the smokiness of Kush. Darkfall is an amber fragrance that’s inspired by the smell of GA in the fall. The fragrance has a smokiness reminiscent of burning piles of dead leaves. Once my nose adjusted to the smoke, I could smell a nutmeg, clove, cinnamon type of spice. It’s very dark and feels too heavy for summer.

After I found out that Kush is a Black Afgano dupe, I pulled out my sample of the Nasomatto fragrance. Unfortunately, it has either evaporated or leaked. There’s nothing left. So instead, I’m using another fragrance with a cannabis note, Nefertiti. This bottle was received in the December gift exchange.

Nefertiti is an exotic blend of cannabis, honey, and incense. There’s a resinous quality to it. There is a fragrant green note that smells like ivy and is almost soapy. I think it’s lavender. After a while the lavender note gets stronger, and is still accompanied by mossy cannabis. I’m now also smelling amber. It’s a very interesting fragrance that feels indulgent.

#FOF

Edit: I wish I'd come up with this in time for meme day, but the latest LG podcast made me think of this.

July 24, 2023 - Christmas in July’s Eve

• Brush: Yaqi Dandelion Green 24mm Cashmere
• Razor: EldrormR MM24
• Blade: Personna GEM PTFE
• Lather: Tallow + Steel - Shag
• Post Shave: Stirling Soap Co. - Satsuma
• Fragrance: Rogue - Derviche

FOF

Today’s Theme:

I went with as many things as I could fit into today’s shave that came from this community. First up is the razor that u/EldrormR put together for me. He made it from a broken MMOC that I sent to him. Next is the lather from u/tsrblke. He won it in a PIF, and immediately turned it into a smoosh PIF. The splash is from a big box of samples I got from u/putneycj. Finally the fragrance is a sample that was in a den clearing PIF from u/wyze0ne. I hope I remembered everyone correctly, but thank you again.

Today’s Challenge:

It is easy to say nice things about people here. I don’t know if I’ve encountered such a generous group of enthusiasts before. Reminds me a bit of a group of friends I made in my early online days playing on MUDs. Very friendly group, and I met my wife on one MUD. This group shares its passion for the hobby, and really help out those who are new to it. Anyone I don’t mention, sorry, but there isn’t enough space for everyone, and I’d hate to miss anyone if I try to list you all. If you’ve ever given a nice reply, funny post, good advice, or read through my sometimes, ok often, rambling posts, thank you. You guys are what keeps me coming back. To highlight a few u/gcgallant always has some good advice and nice comments. I was pondering trying the Weck challenge, and even though the answer was in the post already, helped me not only decide on the blades, but sent me a couple to try. He also included a dull razor shaped object to get a few practices in before I commit to slicing my face off with the real thing. Another person I’m sure is on many people’s posts is u/OnionMiasma. I commented on someone’s post last year how I kept seeing people rave about Seville. He reply asking if I wanted a smoosh. Then he just does some awesome other things, like turning his personal tragedy into an opportunity to help other people. Ok, maybe the Park Police are after him for the sign makeover, but I’d say he’s still good people. Post is getting long, so again if you are reading this, know you made the list.

Today’s Fragrance:

My scents are a bit of a hot mess today. Deciding to go with only PIFs and Smooshes really limited my choices. The T+S Shag off the soap is almost an assault by patchouli. When I got the smoosh in the mail, I left the envelope in my home office for a few days. My office smelled like patchouli for several days. When I opened it up today, the scent was still strong, and all I could smell was patchouli. Knowing I had to deal with that, I picked Stirling - Satsuma for the citrus to give a clean and fresh scent to temper the soap. Finally, I only have two little EdP samples. Both are from Rogue, Derviche and Jasmine Antique. I thought tobacco, leather, and musk of Derviche would play well with the scent of Shag. So I went to make my lather, and as soon as water hit the soap, I lost the patchouli scent. I still can’t figure out how, but that full forward patchouli I was getting from the smoosh just dissipated. Did my nose just break? Well Satsuma still had that smell of tangerine peels, and Derviche was a tobacco and leather mix to me. Total surprise, and not sure what is going on here.

Today’s Haiku:

Where did the scent go?
How can patchouli fade so?
Strange, I just don’t know.

DAY 24 LATHER GAMES! MR.NICESKY!(MR.NICEKEY)

• Prep: Water
• Brush: DS Cosmetics 30mm Tuxedo Knot
• Razor: Soluna* #JETSETTER #UNICORN
• Blade: Gillette Minora (17)
• Lather: Pre de Provence - Nr. 63
• Post Shave: Clubman Pinaud - Classic Aftershave Lotion
• Fragrance: Bourjois - Masculin 2 Vetyver

*(ASTERIX)- The razor I think is marketed as travel and the Unicorn # is cause it is on loan from a friend of mine who is around 45 and has told me that this is a razor his grandpa used ever since he could remember himself. So my assumption is that it is before 1971.

PIC OR IT DIDN'T HAPPEN

​

DAILY THEME

This soap sample along with many other things was a PIF I won from u/BourbonInExile! To this day I am thankful, cause it was his PIF, that introduced me to GEM razors! And I couldn't be happier about that!!! I was always curious about PdP, but luckily enough was lucky to get to try it. It is a fancy and heavy scent, true baller type of scent, like super classy. Soap itself is decent!

The razor is something that baffles my mind. Now this is a real YMMV, but it is similar to the Blackbird in the sense that by feel on the skin it shaves super rough and awful, but does a very clean shave with zero to none irritation. I don't know how that happens, you just feel that you are scraping your skin, but at the end the Alum does not give any feedback and you are left with a BBS shave!

DAILY CHALLENGE

Oh boy....

First off, as always, a GREAT BIG THANK YOU, to the djudges( u/USS-SpongeBob, u/wallygator88, u/Djundjila, u/walden, u/DoctorRotor, u/J33pGuy13, u/VisceralWatch, u/merikus, and u/EldrormR ) for doing all of this and organising everything, I can't even imagine how hard it is! So yeah, gotta suck up to the djudges! Thank you for your patience and tolerance towards the mistakes of the participants! Joke aside, I really do appreciate your work!

Now in NO PARTICULAR ORDER:

• u/FMKJuli - Mentioned it earlier, will mention it again. Thank you for your help through your own experience!
• u/J33pGuy13 - A friend with whom we competed together in the LG last year and made a great connection, awesome guy with great energy! His passion for crazy scented soaps or items in general is so contagious everyone joins in. He's done a lot for the sub. Also one tough SOB!
• u/djanovshaving - Another friend part of the Bulgarian community that we created. Very happy he joined cause it's a lot more fun when a friend can join in, also I'm very happy to see how well people receive him!
• u/souleater7173 - What he said today really touched me and made my day and week! Also mad props to the guy for sticking to something I cannot do myself, and I've tried.
• u/OnionMiasma - Another friend that was made in the last LG and a great competitor, one who made the previous and current LG worth it!! Great guys, great posts!
• u/Priusaurus - He's ok I guess.... But seriously, I don't think I would have pushed myself in general for the LG if it wasn't for him and the SPITE SHAVES that came out from the whole thing! He really stepped up his game since last year, and I'm very happy battling side by side! #Frenemies!!!
• u/chronnoisseur42O - A very charismatic person, who was "blamed" for being too practical! I say BOOOO, the guys is great and you can clearly see how much he loves the hobby! I still think he should try and see how it goes with youtube. People say that Vis is dry, but hey, he's an allstar either way!!! Pure shaving content, I LOVE IT!!!
• u/Crisp_Mango - This dude is crazy.... Every day a different song? And he always comes first here! Hope his wife has a different experience!
• u/EldrormR - A true connoseur of GEM razors and a master at restoring them!!
• u/raymoonie - My favourite SOTD photo guy, I like his photos best, always!

EDIT - u/USS-SpongeBob - Thank you for teaching me about soaps and fatty acids, really broadened my view in ingredients in general and what I buy or don't buy!!

​

#FOF

Now having in mind the scent of PdP 63 I wanted to keep it simple and stylish, so aftershave was Pinaud Clubman Classic, which truly is a classic oldschool scent, that probably a lot of barbershops used(or smelled like). So I decided to use something simple to top it off which is Masculin 2 Vetyver. Honestly the name says it all, it's just BAM, Vetiver to your face, and it's fucking strong, but it pairs up well with the Pinaud Clubman, both very simple yet well made scents who give you a manly feeling!

• Daily Lather Themes: 24/30
• Daily Challenges: 24/30
• Hardware Scavenger Hunt: 18/20
• Hardware Vendor Points: 2/2
• Software Vendor Points: 12/13
• Software Vendor Bonus Point: 0/1
• 30 Different Soap Brands Point: 24/30
• 30 Different Soaps On Theme Bonus Point: 24/30
• 30 Different Post-Shaves Bonus Point: 24/30
• 30 Different Fragrances Bonus Point: 24/30

July 24, 2023 – LG 24: Christmas in July’s Eve

• Brush: Zenith Titano
• Razor: GEM Junior
• Blade: GEM (35)
• Lather: Red House Farm – Sedona
• Post Shave: Declaration Grooming – B Cubed
• Fragrance: Gallagher Fragrances – Behold, Patchouli

For starters. Thanks to u/teufelskraft (sp? they deleted account) for the zenith boar PIF, 1st one I started form new to break in. Thanks to u/oswald_heist for the GEM junior, my first GEM from a PIF. Thanks to u/grindermonk for the soap. I was initially going to use 9 Days up Nort Today but couldn’t find the PIF, I think he was so kind to just send me that one because I’d won/puchased a lot of his other soaps and tried a lot of his different bases, but just to be sure today I went with Sedona from this PIF. The B cubed was from u/el_charminman from the 50K PIF that I think originated here. In my messages it was labeled 50K PIF, but I know that one was done a bit differently. Lastly, my frag is a donor from either one of our Xmas, Xmas in July exchanges, or FOF winnings gift card, thanks!

With that out of the way, my linking theme for today is more PIF based, not scent based. However, for the sake of #FOF, Sedona comes of as juniper and sage heavy to me, even though it has woods and patchouli base notes. I almost get a winter fresh gum style smell from it, which I would not associate with its high desert smell description, but its what I get. I never tried the original BBB, but the Cubed is a sweeter bay rum, slightly floral, with a heavy dose of blackberry and still plenty of spice and rum. I opted to go with Behold! Patchouli from Ghallagher Frgrances since it sort of builds on that spicy accord. It opens with some tart citrus, but quickly moves to heavy patchouli and some warm amber, and is anchored by musky woody base.

As for appreciations, obviously everyone mentioned above. However, I want to shout out a few other people. First, u/onionmiasma for sending me smooshes, even after the first ones were swallowed by USPS, as well as some hardware to try out (tomorrow and next day). u/priusaurus and u/mrtangerinesky for providing some lovely entertainment these games, the former also some soap smooshes. u/eructate also lent me a razor these games, and I’ve won a PIF from him in the past. u/tetriside also came in clutch from trading this year. Lastly, here is where we also stroke the judges…um egos. So thanks u/djudjila, u/uss-spongebob, u/visceralwatch, u/wallygator88, u/j33pguy13, u/doctorrotor, u/walden, and u/eldrormr. Seriously LG is such a blast and I’m sure judging, Doing, portal making/sustaining, etc. is such a huge task, so thank you all.

For our #PHOTOCONTEST I went with masterpieces. Today seemed fitting since the people here and the artisans, the sub as a whole, are all awesome masters in their own way.

soap brands 24/30, post shave 24/30, frag 24/30, post/frag linked 24/30, software sponsors 11/13, hardware sponsors 2/2, razor hashtags 10/15, brush hashtags 10/15, photo contest 24/30, daily challenges 21/25, special challenges 3/5