I’m in my anniversary month, and for those new here or not paying attention, August 2025 represents one year since I started on my wet shaving/double edge safety razor shaving journey. You can read my shaving story here.
It’s been a year of learning, discovery, and experimentation. Every shave has had things that I could learn from and apply to future shaves, not only as I’ve been experimenting with new razors, blades, soaps and pre- and after shaves, but also in technique, like learning how to produce a consistent lather.
I’m also working through a lot of 17 samples I purchased recently. These are samples of soaps, pre shaves, and aftershaves that I’ve been wanting to try but for whatever reason haven’t tried yet. And today’s SOTD used the Proraso blue products for the second time.
Proraso is easily my favorite producer of soaps, pre shaves and aftershaves. I’ve been using the Proraso white line, designed for sensitive skin, since March 2025, and it has never let me down. I’ve wanted to try the blue, or protective and moisturizing, line since I learned about it about a month after starting with the white line.
Last time I used it a couple of weeks ago, I said I wasn’t sure about the fragrance. Coming from the Proraso white line, which has a kind of soapy, light fragrance, the blue has a menthol base, but then has a musky, more masculine scent. And after this second use, I’m really liking it. It isn’t too strong, isn’t weak, either, isn’t fading out too quickly, and just seems pleasant and providing a good smell that’s sticking with me without being overpowering. And the products, including the soap, which only comes as a cream instead of the hard soap and cream that the white is available in, works well in producing a great lather.
After a week with my new Parker 55SL Semi-Slant, and its aggressive feeling shaves, it was very nice to return to the Rockwell 6C this week. But the anniversary part of this week is revisiting one of my favorite blades from the early days of this journey: the Gillette Perma-Sharp.
The Perma-Sharp is rated as a fairly aggressive blade–a 4.50 versus the Feather’s 5.00 rating–but like most high-quality blades, it’s very precise and comfortable when used properly and paired with the right razor setup.
I paired it with the Rockwell 6C plate 4 because I haven’t tried it with the Rockwell yet. In use with the Van Der Hagen, King C Gillette, and Henson, it always performed well–better than most, so it made sense to come back to it.
It did not disappoint.
The Rating
Shave #159. Shave #4 of the new year. The Anniversary Proraso Blue Perma-Sharp SOTD.
The setup:
- Razor: Rockwell 6C plate 4
- Blade: Gillette Perma-Sharp
- Pre-Shave: Proraso Blue Aloe & Vitamin E pre shave cream
- Brush: Proraso Boar shaving brush
- Soap/Cream/Gel: Proraso Blue Aloe & Vitamin E shaving cream
- Alum Block: Stirling Soap Co. Alum
- After Shave: Proraso Blue Aloe & Vitamin E aftershave balm
After a week of aggressive feeling, harsh shaves, it was a pleasure to return to a comfortable setup that had little blade feel and great closeness. The Rockwell 6C’s plate 4 is one of my favorites for longer stubble shaves, like Sundays, where I have three days of growth to get through. And it handles it with ease.
I love the Perma-Sharp for its closeness and precision, and in a good razor like the Rockwell, it delivers a very nice shave that was comfortable from the start and has not left the burn and irritation that I had after the shaves last week with the Parker.
As I said earlier, with this second use of the Proraso blue products, I’m finding it to be one of my favorites, so I’ll obviously have to purchase the full-sized versions when I’m out of the samples. The fragrance is very pleasant but not overwhemling, and I’m really liking that balance. Plus it just performs very well and makes my skin happy.
This was almost a perfect shave. There are just a couple of spots of stubble that prevents it from being a BBS (Baby Butt Smooth shave), which places it among the very top shaves I’ve had in the last year. And that makes this anniversary shave exactly what I was hoping for this month–a celebration of shaving with a great result from a new combo.
Comfort: 5 out of 5
Quality/Closeness: 4.750 out of 5
Overall: 4.875 out of 5
