June 8, 2024
- Brush: Zenith Boar 24 x 48 mm #SMOLL #OLDWORLD
- Razor: Fatip Piccolo Slant Closed Comb
- Blade: Schick Stainless
- Lather: Maggard Razors – Tobacco & Leather
- Post Shave: Spearhead - Black Watch (splash)
- Fragrance: Chris Rusak – Beast Mode EdT
None of my individual Maggard orders have been exorbitant, but they definitely add up. The most recent order was mostly samples, both soaps and aftershaves, to try and fill out my LG 2024 schedule.
In addition to using a Maggard soap, the aftershave and fragrance both represent small businesses. Spearhead is well-known to r/Wetshaving—frequent mentions of the Seaforth! line on this sub led me to try both Sea Spice Lime and Black Watch. Black Watch also has leather as one of its notes, so I thought it would pair with the Maggard Tobacco & Leather—and I was right!
Chris Rusak is an independent perfumer based (I believe) in LA. He’s produced some unusual, challenging scents, one of which is called After Every Ounce of Joy Leaves My Body. It smells like pine and gasoline. Today I went with a different fragrance called Beast Mode, which has some unusual “gourmand” qualities (such as licorice) which I think mesh well with the notes in Black Watch.
Today’s edition of Brush Strokes features a woodblock-printed image by Katsushika Hokusai, from his series Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji (which also includes the famous Great Wave off Kanagawa ). This print frames Mt. Fuji in the far distance, while in the foreground highlighting a craftsman at his work.
#ROTY
EDIT: for formatting, links, and ROTY tag