View Full Version : the adventures and misadventures of shaving in Paris
peacefrog
02-12-2007, 04:04 PM
As you may know, my wife and I spent the weekend in Paris. After a long day of sightseeing on Saturday, my wife insisted (yes, insisted :D ) that we go to Planete Rasoir (http://www.planete-rasoir.com/), which Trader Joe recommended to me. It's a very interesting shop. They have more wet shaving gear in one place than I've seen before...Plisson brushes; Merkur razors; soaps by Taylor, Plisson, Osma, Proraso, and several others; and a collection of old electric razors as well. The store has loads of character. The floors are well worn. There are a couple of old barber chairs and a couple of well used leather arm chairs. And in the corners you'll find oddities like an old pair of skis. The shopkeeper didn't speak much English (and I speak almost no French), but he asked where we were from and was quite friendly.
peacefrog
02-12-2007, 04:06 PM
Since this was the only soap they had that was actually made in France, I picked it up.
peacefrog
02-12-2007, 04:10 PM
That night after my shower, I decided to give my new soap a try. But then I discovered that I forgot to pack a brush! :( I needed something brushless, but it was too late to go back out. So I called down to the front desk to see if they could help out. Here's what they gave me. :eek: Well, at least I had my HD, so I didn't need to use that abomination of a razor. But that alleged shave cream did little more than provide a thin, watery layer of soap that did almost no good. Not quite the shave I had hoped for.
peacefrog
02-12-2007, 04:13 PM
On Sunday we headed back out for more sightseeing. Planete Rasoir is closed on Sunday, so I stopped into the first pharmacy I found to try to find something better to use than the shave cream the hotel gave me. I decided to give this goo in a can a try. This gunk ended up feeling like spreading Crisco on my face and gave me the worst shave I've had in ages.
Unfortunately I think I'm stuck with it until I get home on Friday.
peacefrog
02-12-2007, 04:14 PM
One of our stops on Sunday was the neighborhood of La Marais where we came upon this shop, which was unfortunately closed.
peacefrog
02-12-2007, 04:20 PM
Soap with alum?
Apparently so. I haven't used it yet, but I'll post a report after I do. Here are the ingredients: sodium palmate, sodium palm kernelate, aqua, potassium alum, butyrospermun parkii, glycerin, sorbitol, parfum, sodium chloride, palm acid, palm kernel acid, tetrasodium EDTA, BHT. Sounds pretty scary, but it looks like soap. :eek:
SSLSTudio...
02-12-2007, 09:09 PM
Thanks for sharing that Bob , huge fun looking at the pics very nostalgic.
makes me want to go back to Prague and check out the shaving scene there ,I wasnt a freak back then when I visited it last time but im sure in all the alleys there there must be an old barber with good skills I hope..or it will be my end.
Baron
02-12-2007, 11:30 PM
Thanks for the pics Bob! Very nice! Looks like you had a good time :)
Mama Bear
02-12-2007, 11:41 PM
I would have always thought the French would have the best of the best... I am not sure I am seeing that. Were you at all dissapointed, or is it just me...... Edit.. Lyrt's gonna hurt me, isn't he.... ack!
Bear Hugs!
Gatorade
02-12-2007, 11:50 PM
Great pics of those shops! I will have to make a note of the first one when I get pack to Paris.
PalmettoB
02-12-2007, 11:58 PM
Bob, I'm glad you shared the pics with us, man. Hope the rest of the trip was great, too!
peacefrog
02-13-2007, 04:24 AM
I would have always thought the French would have the best of the best... I am not sure I am seeing that. Were you at all dissapointed, or is it just me...... Edit.. Lyrt's gonna hurt me, isn't he.... ack!
Bear Hugs!
I was a bit disappointed in the soaps. I thought it was odd to have such a large offering of brushes and razors, but not much in the way of interesting soaps. Now, if you want bath soaps, there are lots of choices here.
Unfortunately I didn't have time to shop yesterday while I was in Bremen, so I can't report on that.
But, lucky for me, I found a small can of Proraso shave foam at Charles de Gaulle this morning so I can ditch that awful goo I bought on Sunday. Incidentally, I'm posting this from the airport. I'm meeting a colleague here in 20 minutes to spend the rest of the week working in Paris.
Mama Bear
02-13-2007, 05:09 AM
Bob, be sure to eat something sinfully decadent and tell us all about it!! :D
What an experience, enjoy yourself!
Sue, Bob, if you want everything in one place, you’ll be certainly disappointed. You have to go to different stores to find everything you want. French, like billions of people in the world, primarily rely on Gillette and Wilkinson at the local mall for their shaving needs.
Mama Bear
02-13-2007, 06:34 AM
Sue, Bob, if you want everything in one place, you’ll be certainly disappointed. You have to go to different stores to find everything you want. French, like billions of people in the world, primarily rely on Gillette and Wilkinson at the local mall for their shaving needs.
I guess I have always had the perfect store in the back of my mind... and it just doesn't exist. Somehow maybe if you travel far enough, like to Paris, you might just find it tucked away between a bakery and a barbershop. They will have all of the things you have always wanted to see and feel and smell right there all in one place.... but this is just a dream......
SSLSTudio...
02-13-2007, 07:08 AM
I guess I have always had the perfect store in the back of my mind... and it just doesn't exist. Somehow maybe if you travel far enough, like to Paris, you might just find it tucked away between a bakery and a barbershop. They will have all of the things you have always wanted to see and feel and smell right there all in one place.... but this is just a dream......
For shaving it might not happen, but for Delicatesse stores oh boy France can not be beaten . if your into chocolates ,nice breads, cheese, sweets they have stores that will blow your mind would def. be a no no for those watching their figure that includes me trying to loose weight....
Alex S.
02-13-2007, 02:42 PM
Thanks for the pix, Bob.
My wife and I were in Paris for a week last year, before I started my old skool shaving adventure. If I knew then what I know now . . .
peacefrog
02-13-2007, 05:38 PM
Bob, be sure to eat something sinfully decadent and tell us all about it!! :D
What an experience, enjoy yourself!
Actually, I'm not a big fan of the food in France. I love meats, so Germany always works well for me, but northern Italy is my favorite place in the world for food.
peacefrog
02-13-2007, 05:39 PM
For shaving it might not happen, but for Delicatesse stores oh boy France can not be beaten . if your into chocolates ,nice breads, cheese, sweets they have stores that will blow your mind would def. be a no no for those watching their figure that includes me trying to loose weight....
Yeah, whereas I was taking pix of shaving stores, my wife was taking pix of chocolate displays.
peacefrog
02-13-2007, 05:41 PM
Thank god for that Proraso shave foam. It's not bad. I got a good, close shave, but unfortunately my face hasn't yet fully recovered from yesterday's shaving catastrophe. I can't wait to get home and have a nice, proper, relaxing shave.
Mama Bear
02-13-2007, 05:52 PM
Yeah, whereas I was taking pix of shaving stores, my wife was taking pix of chocolate displays.
Um, Bob.... where are the chocolate pics! :drool :drool :drool
qhsdoitall
02-13-2007, 05:53 PM
Thank you for the pics Bob. There is something to say about small independent shops instead of the big box stores and malls when it comes to certain things. Bakery, butcher, fish market, chocolatier, coffee, deli, pipes & cigars, shaving goods and so on. The essences of life with quality, care and service thrown in for good measure.
peacefrog
02-13-2007, 06:07 PM
Um, Bob.... where are the chocolate pics! :drool :drool :drool
Here ya go!
Mama Bear
02-13-2007, 06:08 PM
OHMYGOD.....! :drool :drool :drool :drool :drool
TraderJoe
02-14-2007, 02:01 AM
:signs154
Bob - great pics buddy! Looks like you found some neat places :happy088 You're lucky man, its cold and snowy here, and you are wandering about the streets of Paris. Thanks for sharing those pics, they're so real looking I can almost imagine being there.
Enjoy the rest of your trip...you might find some Speick in a can in Deutschland to round out your canned-goo AD :D
Thanks for the virtual tour, Bob.
Prolly the only way I'll ever get to see Paris.
peacefrog
02-14-2007, 06:12 PM
:Enjoy the rest of your trip...you might find some Speick in a can in Deutschland to round out your canned-goo AD :D
It's disorder all right. I'm getting awful shaves. The combo of canned goo and Wal-Mart blades is enough to send me back to Edge gel and a Mach 3. Thankfully, tonight's was the last shave of this trip. I'll skip tomorrow night; then Friday night I'll be back at home with a brush, decent blades, and good soaps and creams
MullersLaneFarm
02-15-2007, 01:45 PM
I'm having brush envy
MullersLaneFarm
02-15-2007, 01:50 PM
Apparently so. I haven't used it yet, but I'll post a report after I do. Here are the ingredients: sodium palmate, sodium palm kernelate, aqua, potassium alum, butyrospermun parkii, glycerin, sorbitol, parfum, sodium chloride, palm acid, palm kernel acid, tetrasodium EDTA, BHT. Sounds pretty scary, but it looks like soap. :eek:
The alum is used as an astringent.
butyrospermun parkii = Shea Butter
A pretty typical soap with palm & palm kernel oils
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