July 13, 2023 - Hippy Hippy Shave

• Brush: Oumo Passion Warhammer 29mm 5th Anniversary Fan
• Razor: Ever Ready 1912 Chain Handle #TWINS
• Blade: Personna GEM PTFE
• Lather: Declaration Grooming - Yuzu/Rose/Patchouli - Chatillon Lux collaboration
• Post Shave: Declaration Grooming - Yuzu/Rose/Patchouli Splash - Chatillon Lux collaboration
• Fragrance: Chatillon Lux - Yuzu/Rose/Patchouli EdP

FOF

Today’s theme:

I went to a college that is a bastion of the modern hippy culture, CU Boulder. Back when I went there (holy crap it is almost 30 years since I graduated), patchouli was a frequent fragrance encountered on campus. I did not like it much then. For me, patchouli is like musks, a little is great, but too much can be gagging. Well, this trifecta of YRP is a fantastic patchouli scent.

Today’s Challenge:

Why just pick one song? I decided that I’d find songs that feature the three named scents in my choice for today. Rose is the easiest, found a few instances for patchouli, but yuzu was tough. Then I found there is a an Asian group called Yuzu that has been featured on some soundtracks.

Yuzu

Rose

Patchouli

Bonus Incense

Today’s shave:

I got this Ever Ready razor a while ago, but hadn’t cleaned it up yet. Some dish soap and a soft toothbrush to get as much gunk off. Still some tea stains here and there, but clean enough for a shave. Maybe a soak in the ultrasonic cleaner to get the stubborn bits to lift off will be done later. Like the GEM version, it is a pretty mild shaver. It is not as loud as a MMOC or Ever Ready Shovelhead. Since this soap is one I like a lot, my second hungriest brush was perfect for the shave. A generous scoop of lather into the bowl, and much water added before I got it dialed in to where I wanted it. This brush absolutely swells and is a massive puffball of lather when I load it up. I had an irritation free shave. That oopsy with the kamisori was felt for a couple days, but it was better tonight. 3 full passes tonight, very good shave.

Today’s fragrance:

This was the first day I had picked out for the calendar. It is an obvious choice of course, but still it is a fantastic patchouli based scent. That magician at Chatillon Lux turned one of my least favorite scents into one I love. Of course it is a predominantly patchouli scent, but not a solid wall of patchouli like my past experience of people using it. The citrus comes out stronger once I started lathering. The rose is a background floral for me. I can smell it there, but I have to tease it out to get more than just “floral” smell. Rose is that way for me. It isn’t like lavender or lilac which my nose can usually recognize right away. The yuzu sweetens things up with a clean citrus note. Obviously since I trickholed the scent today, there is no real conflict of the scents, just more of it. Right now, the EdP and splash are giving a stronger yuzu/rose scent. Those notes faded from the lather pretty quickly, leaving a mild patchouli scent until I added the post shave and fragrance. Scents are going to get harder to match the more I’m using up my samples for most days. I only have two firmly in mind for later shaves, so more experiments left this month.

Today’s Haiku

Patchouli balanced,

By the fruity, floral notes,

Is so delightful.