Gary, I am looking for soft tips without the "gel" clumping and hooking tips that were prevalent for several years. This knot is under serious consideration. Do the tips clump and have that slimy gel fell, or are they merely soft?

Gary, what knot did you use to replace the synth? Also, I would love to know more about your process. I have considered a Mesquite burl from Bob but am wondering now if I will go through with it. I love that handle shape and the look it has with CA. I was pondering a Manchurian. anyway, I wouldn't m...

Chris, I used the last of your Gardenia soap from six years ago recently. Amazing stuff. I have a batch of liquid soap finishing right now (dissolving the soap paste into water to attain the proper consistency). Downstairs two batches of bar soap are curing. I just tried a new formula for shave soap...

Semogue Taj Resin Mistura
Homemade Orange-Cedar
Chatsworth/Medical Prep
Thayer's Superhazel splash

Semogue Mixed Knot Taj Resin
Homemade Orange-Cedar soap
Edwin Jagger Chatsworth razor
Personna Medical Prep shave 5
Thayer's Medicated Superhazel

Semogue Mistura Taj
Orange-Cedar soap
Jagger Chatsworth
Personna Medical Prep
Thayer's Medicated
Comme des GArcons Vettiveru

Semogue Mistura in Taj Resin
Homemade Orange-Cedar ss
Edwin Jagger Chatsworth DE
Personna Medical Prep blade
Thayer's Medicated w. hazel
Guerlain Vetiver EDT spray

Semogue Mistura in Taj Resin
Cyril R. Salter tallowate soap
Gillette Red Tip w/Med Prep
Medicated Superhazel splash
Guerlain Vetiver EDT spray

Music: Guy Clark, "Stuff That Works"

What's interesting is watching the artisan soap market drift toward detergents (B&M, Saponifico Varesino) and huge amounts of glycerin (many, many examples). The goal seems to be both instantaneous surfactant/foaming effect and huge amounts of slickness, plus replacing the glycerin that occurs natur...

Nathan, having used it more, it's somewhere between the Tyrwhitt and Ralph Lauren's Safari cologne and shave soap.

It's a good scent, but definitely in the men's EDT direction rather than the sawmill/lumber direction.

This brush continues to impress after almost 4 weeks of daily use. It gins up incredible lather from soaps, it holds a huge volume of lather, it gives a nice scrub without scritch, and it came in at 60 bucks. The shape and size of the bloom is lovely and classic. I did a shave with the smallest of m...

In addition to the excellent, affordable options from TOBS (in my opinion unmatched in the cream market in terms of performance), I recommend Asylum Shave Works creams from Bullgoose. I took a chance on a tub recently and was rewarded with terrific lather and scent (I chose the European Barbershop f...

Absolutely lovely. The old Rooneys were stunners.

Enjoy them in good health!

Gil, glad to see you back! I've been poking around here a bit again lately, too, after a long layoff. I may have to give a Simpson another whirl again, but for me, the best brush going right now is the Semogue Caravela mixed-knot in resin. I share your enthusiasm for Fine soaps, but I use homemade s...

In the end, I'm sticking with ordinary...ish. I ordered a Chatsworth, which is the 89 head on a slightly upscaled faux-ivory handle. I had one way back when and enjoyed it, and I decided it's a minor upgrade in aesthetics and price while still giving me a razor that just works. I still have the vint...

Bryan, how does this blended brush perform in comparison to a synthetic? Sorry Gary, but I’m not a convert to synthetics. Currently I use an AP Shave Co. Synbad for a travel brush only. I like it better than the Muhle STF and STF v2, but none of these synthetics are a match for the Semogue mixed. I...

The Supper of the Lamb: A Culinary Reflection by Robert Farrar Capon Spectacular prose, terrifically funny, quite insightful. Leisure The Basis of Culture by Josef Pieper Quite readable as German philosophy goes and a delightful antidote to a culture of total work. Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport...

I'm late to the party on this one, but I bought a tub of this cream a couple of weeks ago. First, I had forgotten the unbeatable performance of TOBS cream. Superb stuff. Second, the scent: not true cedarwood, this is a clean scent. The fact that some folks pick it up more than others probably has to...

Wendell, if you're still thinking and looking on this purchase, the 820 from Semogue is an identically spec'd knot with an acrylic handle. It's not as ergonomic as the wooden handle on the 1305, but it is a terrific brush. I've not tried the Taj Resin SOC boar, but the Taj Resin handle is indeed won...

Bryan, I agree that the magic is in the lack of excessive density. The brush holds a terrific amount of lather - more than a synthetic of similar size or a straight boar brush of even slightly larger size - but actually releases it and does not feel like a wall of badger. It reminds me of some older...