Shaving Product Review - K Shave Worx "Berry Blast"

This fine SOTD courtesy of the latest from K Shave Worx called Berry Blast in the form of #soap and #aftershave! If you like berries, this is for you - as it lives up to its name and pulls no punches!

I've huffed a bunch of their soaps before while at Pasteur Pharmacy, but I was leery of starting with another vendor (I tend to buy in heavily if I like their products) and some of the scents seemed a little strange in the tub (something you should never really rely on as it's misleading more often than not - snort the aftershave instead). But when I saw the new Berry Blast after reviewing Raspberry Vanilla not once but twice... I couldn't resist. K Shave Worx does have quite a few scents now that are mainly simple, unpretentious and often fruity. This one is no exception if you're a fan of berries of any sort. Of course, there's no "manning this one up" as it smells like you raided your wife's Bath & Body Works collection. It's sweet (but not too cloying) and has notes of boysenberries, elderberries, strawberries, guava and pomegranate.

Performance was very nice indeed. The soap produced ample, creamy lather with excellent cushion, good glide and decent secondary lubricity. The scent strength in the tub is quite strong, but mellows out slightly when lathered. I'm a sucker for heavily scented soaps, and this one's a solid medium if not a touch more when all's said and done. Most artisans give you 4oz. of soap - this one is 6oz. (they also come in 2oz.). It has a fairly simple ingredient list but has all the basics of a fine soap:

Stearic acid, water, coconut oil, potassium hydroxide, fragrance, sodium hydroxide, castor oil, kokum butter, shea butter, sodium lactate, glycerin

The aftershave was a treat. I was a little worried initially when I saw alum as an ingredient. If you're familiar with PAA aftershaves, it can be a bit much sometimes. Not a problem here; I could hardly detect it if at all - and the other ingredients just left my skin feeling wonderfully soft and smooth. Not at all tacky. The scent is light and fades after maybe an hour or so tops, but that's not a bad thing - I think only tween girls might want to smell like berries all day (though honestly, I'm not sure I'd mind - this stuff is delicious). I wouldn't call it very healing though. I had a bit of a close shave this morning, and while it helped a little - something with more goodies would've been better. The ingredients are quite simple here as well:

Witch hazel, rose water, aloe vera, polysorbate, alum, fragrance oil

To finish off, I decided to go with Drakkar Noir simply because it was handy, and I knew the aftershave scent wouldn't last anyway. It gave me back some masculinity over the berries... ;)

Hardware today consisted of my #StandardRazors razor with a #PolSilver blade on shave four. The #BSB Shaving Brush did its thing in the #GTP scuttle which kept the suds warm throughout the shave.

Another shave under my belt with thanks to #kshaveworx. Solid soaps and aftershaves that perform well (perhaps a bit above average if I had to split hairs) but are definitely well above average on value, unique - and strong scents. In fact, they're an exceptional value for what you're getting... The soaps are $17 each for six ounces whereas the aftershaves are $12 for 100ml. I'd say they're definitely on target.