ArkoMen Face Shaving Soap Stick, Sensitive skin shave cream, White, ( Pack Of 12 )

After reading most of the wet shaving blogs, I decided to take somewhat of a plunge and purchased the 12 piece box. This has to be a most amazing item, even if I am going from a product made in Italy for one made in Turkey. Don't get me wrong, I am still very much in love with my Proraso creams, but this provides even more of a cushion, incredible lather, leaves my face in even better condition post shave and, although I have fairly sensitive skin, found it to be non-irritating. I agree with the reviewer who stated that Arko could have gotten 10x the price they are asking had they decided to put this out in more appealing scents such as sandalwood but, unlike many on here and like so many others, I did not find the scent objectionable at all. In fact it is more like Ivory Soap than it is like, as some have mentioned, Lemon Pez or, even more incredibly, lemon Mr. Clean. No way! Give me a break. Are you buying this for a top-quality shave at a ridiculously low price or are you looking to announce your existence by wreaking of Axe?I did not want to bother keeping it in the cheap wrapper, so I took it all off, heated the stick, unwrapped of course, for about 5 to no more than 10 seconds in the microwave to soften it (be careful because it will grow in the microwave like molten lava if you leave it in too long), and then stuffed the stick into my 2.5 oz., emptied out, deodorant stick twist container that I had not been using. I have used it all week by wetting my face and then the end of the Arko stick with hot water, rubbing the soap into my beard, re-wetting as needed and then wetting my badger brush with hot water, shaking it out some and then massaging the soap directly on my face. No scuttle needed. Explosion of thick lather! Even with my fairly soft silver-tipped badger brush! And here I was afraid it would take longer than if I had a stiffer bristle. I found it lathered faster than whipping a cream in my bowl.What a pleasure this is to shave with! My razor just glided and cut my whiskers like a knife through butter. What was even more incredible and impressive was the absence of any irritation and how smooth and conditioned my face and neck were afterwards. Who needs a strong-scented shave cream anyway if you're only going to put on some after shave or cologne later? I would not want to have several scents going on at the same time. I am not going to ever match my cologne or after shave with any of my shaving creams or soaps anyway. I say, better to splash on Tabac or Cool Water over Ivory Soap than over menthol or sandalwood.Get this! If you are afraid to buy the entire box of twelve at the unbelievable $1.61 per stick cost, then pay a little more and buy just one stick just to try it out. But at this price and the awesome shaving experience this product provides, you have very, very little to lose...except your facial hair.

At $1.04 per stick ordered in a bulk pack of 12 (i.e., $13.25 for the box) this is the ultimate combination of high performance soap at rock bottom cost. Amazing value. Use is simple: wet the top of the stick, rub a thin layer on the stubble, scrub with a medium wet brush. The lather quickly erupts in to a slick, cushiony surface that provides smooth razor glide and protection from knicks and cuts. To each their own, but I find the scent refreshing and clean. It has an intense, old-school style barber shop soap smell with light citrusy notes. The soap washes off clean and the scent does not linger or interfere with aftershave. The skin is left soft and hydrated for the day. I have been using the stick almost daily for a few weeks now and it has barely made a dent on the thing. With 12 sticks this is probably a 3 to 4-year supply.Update 1/22/15:I still have yet to use up my first stick, which was purchased 3 months ago. I have used Arko for almost every shave during this period. I generally shave 5-6 times a week- and I am generous with the amount of product used each shave. There is still about 1/4 of the stick left. At this rate, I estimate that one stick lasts 3 to 4 months. This works out to approximately 25 or 30 cents per month if you buy the 12-pack (about 1 to 1.5 cents per shave). Basically, for about the price of a soda from a vending machine you get 3-4 months worth of shaving soap that produces a very close and comfortable shave with a DE safety razor.Some other recommendations for those new to wet shaving, and more shaving math:With a box of Personna Double Edge Razor Blades, 100 Count, a Merkur Heavy Duty Double Edge Razor #34C (Blade Included), a bottle of Proraso Aftershave Lotion, Refresh, 100 ml, and a 12-pack of Arko, you will have a superior set up that can provide years of economical and high quality shaves that far exceed what you can get with a cartridge razor in terms of both cost and performance. The whole package would cost about $77. This whole package would be equivalent to purchasing only 26 Gillette fusion blades {see Gillette Fusion Manual Men's Razor Blade Refills 12 Count}Update 2/6/14My first stick of Arko ever purchased is still going, now at 3.5 months from purchase. There is only a wafer size of the stick left- I simply pressed it on to the top of stick #2.Update 2/16/19It's been 4 1/2 years since I purchased 12 Arko sticks and I have yet to get through all of them. Granted, I have a beard now and only use them to shave my neck and parts of my cheeks. In any event I stand by my prior comments that this is the most economical way to shave without sacrificing quality. I simply can't get a closer shave with anything else with my DE razor, and keep coming back to my Arko sticks.Update 7/8/21For those who actually care, I finally used up 12 Arko sticks- nearly 6 years after purchase.