SOTD by u/RedMosquitoMM

LG23-20: Parisian Dupelgänger

• Brush: Semogue Owner’s Club “Taj” 24mm Boar
• Razor: Carbon Cx-Ti
• Blade: Astra SP (12)
• Lather: Spearhead Shaving - Rive Gauche - Experimental Formula 22.1 Shave Soap
• Post Shave: 345 Soap Co. - White Buffalo - Aftershave
• Fragrance: Maison Margiela - REPLICA At the Barber's
• Passes: WTG, XTG
• Coffee: Colombia. Cauca. - v: Castillo - p: Anaerobic
• Music: Serge Gainsbourg - Histoire de Melody Nelson
• LG Tags: #FOF

I normally bowl load, start my lather there, and add a ton of water before I even start working it into my stubble, making today's pasty lather challenge a fun experiment. And how did it go? This challenge validated my usual as-wet-as-possible approach, but not to the extent I expected.

My daily Precision Loading™ lather starts with a level 1/4 teaspoon of soap, rounded generously in the spoon when using bigger, denser knots. From there I add at least five tablespoons of water while lathering in the bowl; I’m starting off with what’s left in the knot after an initial post-soak squeeze and more water gets added to the mix as I finish up with a quick face lather. (I know, it’s fiddly, but this approach is easier on my shoulder and produces reliably excellent results.)

To comply with the challenge, I added half as much water to my scoop of Spearhead’s Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche dupe spread out in the bowl, and didn’t add any after working the resulting lather into my stubble. It was pasty, with stark ridges (the telltale sign of a dry lather), and left a bunch of soap behind with the finger-swipe test.

I was surprised to shave without any obvious irritation—the lather felt protective. However, my razor was fighting its way through the lather instead of effortlessly skating along the top, plus I had to try much harder to rinse the razor, which is annoying. A single dip and wiggle in the basin should be enough. Even worse, my skin felt uncomfortable under a thicker layer of less-cut soap and then super slick when I rinsed after my second pass, implying I should have added a lot more water before calling that lather lathered.

Beyond loading a certain level of adequate soap and adding sufficient water to match—thoroughly lathered—it's degrees of difference between pasty and super runny lather. But that’s one shave. I wonder how much the minor flaws of a sludgy lather like this compound over time. I suspect any cumulative impact is made worse by using a crummy soap base high in coconut oil and low in skincare ingredients. I’m lucky today’s “shave with a crummy lather while we laugh at your tarnished shave experience” challenge corresponded with an excellent soap base.

My verdict? A wet lather is best, but you can get by with a pasty one, though there’s no reason not to do better. Be best.

Speaking to the theme, all three of my products are a spin on the aromatic fougère YSL Rive Gauche pour Homme—named for the bohemian southern bank of the Seine. I’ve read this is an ancestor of many barbershop fragrances, meaning I should have mentioned it in my Two Bits writeup. Unfortunately, I haven’t tried it, making it difficult to describe how these dupes compare. I can say definitively that I don’t enjoy this style of aromatic fougère. Give me more citrus, more dank fern, or more spice and leather. Or I’ll splash on Skin Bracer and call it good. Heck, I’d prefer bay rum.

But I’ll at least try to compare these.

I’m told by an informed Redditor that the 345 aftershave is the most faithful wet shaving dupe of Rive Gauche he’s smelled, though White Buffalo’s product description makes no mention of Rive Gauche, and the listed notes aren’t a perfect match. The Spearhead version focuses on a soapy, woody lavender and reminds me of what I remember Chicago Grooming Co.’s Irving Park smelling like. Compared to White Buffalo, there’s no leathery quality, it’s more floral, and the fresh spices are subtle. Unsurprisingly, the Maison Martin Margiela fragrance smells the most like any barbershop or salon I’ve been in. There’s the usual mix of fresh herbs, light spices, and a musky fougère accord, but the opening is comparatively sweet and beautifully floral right after the harsh opening settles. It’s on the more well-executed end of REPLICA scents I’ve tried, which is not a high bar in our household’s opinion.

Like I said earlier, I’m not the right person to be selling you on any of these. The important thing is they’re on theme, though I should have chosen a different dupe in the first place. C’est la vie.

**LG23-20: Parisian Dupelgänger**

- **Brush:** Semogue Owner’s Club “Taj” 24mm Boar
- **Razor:** Carbon Cx-Ti
- **Blade:** Astra SP (12)
- **Lather:** Spearhead Shaving - Rive Gauche - Experimental Formula 22.1 Shave Soap
- **Post Shave:** 345 Soap Co. - White Buffalo - Aftershave
- **Fragrance:** Maison Margiela - REPLICA At the Barber's
- **Passes:** WTG, XTG
- **Coffee:** Colombia. Cauca. - v: Castillo - p: Anaerobic
- **Music:** Serge Gainsbourg - *Histoire de Melody Nelson*
- **LG Tags:** `#FOF`

I normally bowl load, start my lather there, and add a ton of water before I even start working it into my stubble, making today's pasty lather challenge a fun experiment. And how did it go? This challenge validated my usual as-wet-as-possible approach, but not to the extent I expected.

My daily [Precision Loading™ lather](https://youtu.be/IXjcJsMsKyQ) starts with a level 1/4 teaspoon of soap, rounded generously in the spoon when using bigger, denser knots. From there I add at least five tablespoons of water while lathering in the bowl; I’m starting off with what’s left in the knot after an initial post-soak squeeze and more water gets added to the mix as I finish up with a quick face lather. (I know, it’s fiddly, but this approach is easier on my shoulder and produces reliably excellent results.)

To comply with the challenge, I added half as much water to my scoop of Spearhead’s Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche dupe spread out in the bowl, and didn’t add any after working the resulting lather into my stubble. It was pasty, with stark ridges (the telltale sign of a dry lather), and left a bunch of soap behind with the finger-swipe test.

I was surprised to shave without any obvious irritation—the lather felt protective. However, my razor was fighting its way through the lather instead of effortlessly skating along the top, plus I had to try much harder to rinse the razor, which is annoying. A single [dip and wiggle](https://media.tenor.com/enMwAILCfnkAAAAC/mr-bean-brows.gif) in the basin should be enough. Even worse, my skin felt uncomfortable under a thicker layer of less-cut soap and then super slick when I rinsed after my second pass, implying I should have added a lot more water before calling that lather lathered.

Beyond loading a certain level of adequate soap and adding sufficient water to match—thoroughly lathered—it's degrees of difference between pasty and super runny lather. But that’s one shave. I wonder how much the minor flaws of a sludgy lather like this compound over time. I suspect any cumulative impact is made worse by using a crummy soap base high in coconut oil and low in skincare ingredients. I’m lucky today’s “shave with a crummy lather while we laugh at your tarnished shave experience” challenge corresponded with an excellent soap base.

My verdict? A wet lather is best, but you can get by with a pasty one, though there’s no reason not to do better. [Be best](https://media.tenor.com/oBha0tOtvXgAAAAd/hose.gif).

Speaking to the theme, all three of my products are a spin on the aromatic fougère YSL Rive Gauche pour Homme—named for the bohemian southern bank of the Seine. I’ve read this is an ancestor of many barbershop fragrances, meaning I should have mentioned it in my Two Bits writeup. Unfortunately, I haven’t tried it, making it difficult to describe how these dupes compare. I can say definitively that I don’t enjoy this style of aromatic fougère. Give me more citrus, more dank fern, or more spice and leather. Or I’ll splash on Skin Bracer and call it good. Heck, I’d prefer bay rum.

But I’ll at least try to compare these.

I’m told by an informed Redditor that the 345 aftershave is the most faithful wet shaving dupe of Rive Gauche he’s smelled, though White Buffalo’s product description makes no mention of Rive Gauche, and the listed notes aren’t a perfect match. The Spearhead version focuses on a soapy, woody lavender and reminds me of what I remember Chicago Grooming Co.’s Irving Park smelling like. Compared to White Buffalo, there’s no leathery quality, it’s more floral, and the fresh spices are subtle. Unsurprisingly, the Maison Martin Margiela fragrance smells the most like any barbershop or salon I’ve been in. There’s the usual mix of fresh herbs, light spices, and a musky fougère accord, but the opening is comparatively sweet and beautifully floral right after the harsh opening settles. It’s on the more well-executed end of REPLICA scents I’ve tried, which is not a high bar in our household’s opinion.

Like I said earlier, I’m not the right person to be selling you on any of these. The important thing is they’re on theme, though I should have chosen a different dupe in the first place. *C’est la vie*.