When I saw the new seasonal and limited release scents from Alabama-based artisan soap maker Soap Commander, I was immediately intrigued. They seemed to fit right into my wheelhouse of enjoyable scents. Of course, they’re only available on the Soap Commander site, which is not available at my work computer. For once I actually remembered to check it out off-duty hours, and pulled the trigger on both sets. First up from these is Recreation, the Summer 2018 seasonal scent.
As always, let’s talk about the packaging first. It comes in a fairly wide mouth, and very deep tub that is packed with 6 oz of soap. The soap is hard in consistency, so will most likely last quite a while. The top label gives all the pertinent information about the soap, (scent notes, name, brand label, etc…) while the side label gives additional information such as the ingredient list.
Ingredients: Stearic Acid, Distilled Water, Shea Butter, Coconut Oil, Potassium Hydroxide, Glycerin, Sodium Hydroxide, Castor Oil, Fragrance
The labels are waterproof, and well done. The scent notes, in this case as listed on the top label are:
Mango, Mandarin, Dates
Now, out of the tub, this is about a 2-2.5/5 scent strength. Dry, you get the hints of the sweet mango and mandarin, but the dates are pretty overpowering. Once lathered up, however, the fruits come forward much more, and increase the strength of scent to about a 3-3.5/5. It could stand to be a tad stronger, but this wasn’t bad at all. The soap did take a little bit longer to load, but that could also be attributed to the brush. Lather was quick to form, and easy to dial in. One of the great things about this soap is the ability to dial in the cushion to what you prefer. Now, that being said, I played around with it and still couldn’t get it as good as I would have liked. Slickness is also well above average. Where this soap really shines is in the residual slickness. I did multiple buffing passes with a little additional water as well as without and had zero issues. Moisturizing is somewhat average, not drying but nothing to write home about. Stability, from what I could see was not an issue at all.
Here is the (one use) scoring of the soap base’s performance (as always, strength of scent and preference aren’t included since they’re so subjective):
Lathering: 8.5/10
Cushion: 9/10
Slickness: 8.5/10
Moisturizing: 7/10
Residual Slickness: 9.5/10
Stability: 5/5
Total: 47.5/55
Comparable soap bases from a performance standpoint:
Stirling (48/55)
Long Rifle (48/55)
Wickham Soap Co. (48/55)
Castle Forbes (47/55)
Chiseled Face Groomatorium (47/55)
Conclusion: This is an absolutely solid soap base, and this scent for me makes it a must have in the den. According to Chad’s scale, this is a Tier 1 Box 4 soap when I take the scent into account. If I’m just scoring the soap base it’s a tier 2 box 5 soap. One of the great things about this soap, however, is the price to performance value. It’s an above average soap that you more than get your money for. At $15 for 6oz, you pay $2.50 per oz…just a bit more than Stirling. If you’re on a budget and need a soap that is a great performer that will last quite a while, this is a great option, especially if you are looking for a vegan soap to fit that niche. The scent on this particular offering is phenomenally good, morphing from a nice warm desert type scent into a bright sweet fruity scent with a darker sweetness in the background. Well done, Soap Commander!
https://youtu.be/SgT0nSflOG4
As always, let’s talk about the packaging first. It comes in a fairly wide mouth, and very deep tub that is packed with 6 oz of soap. The soap is hard in consistency, so will most likely last quite a while. The top label gives all the pertinent information about the soap, (scent notes, name, brand label, etc…) while the side label gives additional information such as the ingredient list.
Ingredients: Stearic Acid, Distilled Water, Shea Butter, Coconut Oil, Potassium Hydroxide, Glycerin, Sodium Hydroxide, Castor Oil, Fragrance
The labels are waterproof, and well done. The scent notes, in this case as listed on the top label are:
Mango, Mandarin, Dates
Now, out of the tub, this is about a 2-2.5/5 scent strength. Dry, you get the hints of the sweet mango and mandarin, but the dates are pretty overpowering. Once lathered up, however, the fruits come forward much more, and increase the strength of scent to about a 3-3.5/5. It could stand to be a tad stronger, but this wasn’t bad at all. The soap did take a little bit longer to load, but that could also be attributed to the brush. Lather was quick to form, and easy to dial in. One of the great things about this soap is the ability to dial in the cushion to what you prefer. Now, that being said, I played around with it and still couldn’t get it as good as I would have liked. Slickness is also well above average. Where this soap really shines is in the residual slickness. I did multiple buffing passes with a little additional water as well as without and had zero issues. Moisturizing is somewhat average, not drying but nothing to write home about. Stability, from what I could see was not an issue at all.
Here is the (one use) scoring of the soap base’s performance (as always, strength of scent and preference aren’t included since they’re so subjective):
Lathering: 8.5/10
Cushion: 9/10
Slickness: 8.5/10
Moisturizing: 7/10
Residual Slickness: 9.5/10
Stability: 5/5
Total: 47.5/55
Comparable soap bases from a performance standpoint:
Stirling (48/55)
Long Rifle (48/55)
Wickham Soap Co. (48/55)
Castle Forbes (47/55)
Chiseled Face Groomatorium (47/55)
Conclusion: This is an absolutely solid soap base, and this scent for me makes it a must have in the den. According to Chad’s scale, this is a Tier 1 Box 4 soap when I take the scent into account. If I’m just scoring the soap base it’s a tier 2 box 5 soap. One of the great things about this soap, however, is the price to performance value. It’s an above average soap that you more than get your money for. At $15 for 6oz, you pay $2.50 per oz…just a bit more than Stirling. If you’re on a budget and need a soap that is a great performer that will last quite a while, this is a great option, especially if you are looking for a vegan soap to fit that niche. The scent on this particular offering is phenomenally good, morphing from a nice warm desert type scent into a bright sweet fruity scent with a darker sweetness in the background. Well done, Soap Commander!
https://youtu.be/SgT0nSflOG4
