Product Review: Taylor of Old Bond Street pre-shave oil

A quality pre-shave is a helpful way to improve the quality of a wetshave.  The pre-shave helps prepare the skin and hair for shaving and allows the razor to glide better.   When I purchased this product, I recalled reading other reviews stating that the aroma of the pre-shave was very pleasing.  I have found Taylor of Old Bond Street products to be of pretty good quality, so I decided to give this a try.


This pre-shave oil is advertised as being beneficial for those with sensitive skin - I definitely fit that billing.  It contains essential oils that are supposed to moisturize the skin.  This particular pre-shave oil is touted as having aromatherapy as well. 


As far as the fragrance goes, I'm not a huge fan of it.  It is a bit floral for my taste and the scent lingers as well.  The oil is very oily.  It only takes a very small amount to apply to your face.  And it feels a little tacky when going on.  I apply my shave soap/cream with my shave brush right over the oil - some people claim to use the oil on its own without a soap/cream.  The shaves I have gotten when using this product are pretty good. There is definitely much less drag with the razor when using the pre-shave oil.   It leaves my skin feeling nice and moisturized after using it as well.  However, the fragrance hangs around too long and it makes me sneeze.


I recently tried the pre-shave when shaving my head.  My hair was already very short so I wetted my head and applied a small amount of oil to my head and rubbed it into my scalp.  The shave I got was exceptional - probably one of the best I've ever had.  I was nick-free and the shave was very clean and close.  I couldn't have been happier with the shave, but unfortunately the scent just kind detracts from it.  Overall, the oil works good enough if you need or want a pre-shave, but if you are finnicky about fragrances or don't want an oil that smells too floral or serves as aromatherapy, it may be best to use a different product.