I’m continuing to work through the samples. 3 soaps/creams left!
Of all the samples I got recently, this is one of a couple I was most looking forward to. This is because of my experience with Proraso. Cella is also an Italian product, though the company pre-dates Proraso. But it shows up often in the Wicked Edge subreddit. Cella makes two shaving product lines: their “All Red” line that comes in red packaging, and the Organic Shaving line, which comes in green.
The red line is called their shaving product line on their website, which is interesting, and the organic line shows up under a separate menu. I’ve read that the red products have an almond fragrance, while the green is aloe vera based and has a light fragrance. Whether there’s a difference in lubrication or other factors is something I haven’t heard.
Unfortunately, the only Cella green sample available was the soap. Now, to be clear, they call it a shaving cream in a bowl, but it was hard in the sample container and I had to scoop it out with my spoon. It took some extra effort to lather with my badger brush, and I’m not really sure why. But once it got to the thick and rich lather stage, it was easy to work with and felt comfortable, though I didn’t feel like there was as much lubrication as the Proraso white, or certainly not as much as the Stirling Sheep or Cooper & French unscented.
The scent of the Cella is pleasant: light and soapy. Nothing harsh and certainly not distracting. If this is the scent profile of the rest of the line, I’d be happy to try the pre shave and after shave products.
The Rating
Shave #154. The Cella sample SOTD.
The setup:
- Razor: Rockwell 6C plate 3
- Blade: RK Stainless Steel
- Pre-Shave: Razor Emporium unscented pre shave
- Brush: Razor Emporium badger brush
- Soap/Cream/Gel: Cella Aloe Vera shaving cream
- Alum Block: Stirling Soap Co. Alum
- After Shave: Dollar Shave Club Post Shave Cream
I continue to be uninspired by the RK blade–there’s more irritation than I would expect, and it just feels rough while shaving. It’s not very comfortable and not terribly close, even in a setup that should result in a closer shave than the Henson.
The Cella soap or cream worked fine–I wasn’t blown away, and not quite as impressed or pleased as with my Proraso faves. But I might just need to try the whole line to see if it works better in a matched set than piecemeal with other products.
But the shave itself is just not as comfortable, close, or satisfying as I’ve had with recent combinations, and I keep just being disappointed with the RK blades.
The bottom line is that I’ll be happy to be done with this week’s pairing and to move on to the anniversary month.
Comfort: 4.5 out of 5
Quality/Closeness: 4.750 out of 5
Overall: 4.625 out of 5
