Zadig & Voltaire – This is him! quick review

So I have scored a free sample of Zadig & Voltaire “This is him!” EdP, and it passed the Better Half’s nose with flying colours.

It’s a pretty woodsy scent, with a lingering topnote and a sustained base. Grapefruit, black pepper, incense, sandalwood and vanilla might sound like an odd mix – at least it do to me – but it works well. It’s fairly intense – in that a little goes a looong way – and have significant staying power; 8 hours after putting it on it smells no different than when applied.

Some might find the scent aggressive, but according to my Better Half it’s assertive – marking position and presence. For some that might be a turn-off, for others a turn-on.

Fall and winter should suit this EdP fine, I do believe it’s a little heavy for spring and summer. YMMV off course.

Lit face and burnt hands

Digging trough old patents can be a lot of fun… and somewhat scary at times; where they f-ing insane???

Lester E Norquist patented a solution to dark bathrooms in 1921 – by patenting:

a light in the form of a lamp that is adjustably and removably attached to the razor-blade holder in a position to illuminate the face when shaving.

Only one problem with that idea… he suggested using an incandescent bulb hooked up to the mains and then wrapped in a narrow tube of glass and metal.

To further qoute the patent application:

A completely operative face illuminating razor is provided for each user, which means that the handle and its reflecting hood are attached to a safety razor holder with a razor blade in it, and the sleeve and the glass cylinder and the socket with the electric lamp are in operative position within his beard.

A 40W bulb can bake a cake – a tungsten bulb in that watt-range is about 2% efficient, meaning that of the 40W you put in, 39.2W is radiated as heat. An incandescent bulb can easily reach 175°C (350°F), and neither glass nor metal insulate very well against temperatures like that.

See that thermal image? Now imagine wrapping your hand around that…

I do realise that Lester could have used a bulb with a lower wattage – but those are even less efficient. They will get just as hot; it’ll just take longer… and in the mean time it’ll cast less light towards the face being shaved.

The final nail in the coffin of this patent is the sheer thickness of the handle… even the Stahly Live Blade is slim in comparison. The sad fact is that Lester just was years ahead of his time; today we can easily put a LED-light and battery in a razor handle to light up the area we’re shaving if we so desire, without the bulk, heat and wireing that Lester E Norquist had to make do with.

Free samples – a great way to try scents

If your Better Half is halfway serious about make up and related products all is not lost if you go shopping with her, far from it.
Be patient, interested, pay a bit of attention and offer helpful suggestions… and Lo! free samples will come your way from the shop assistants, because they are trilled and overjoyed by a guy who isn’t moping in the corner looking like he hates his life!
If you keep frequenting the same shop on a regular or semi-regular basis, the employees will remember you, and also recall what samples you have gotten already – so you don’t end up with ten of the same – and will also ask your opinion on the samples you received so they can narrow the selection of new samples to offer… or offer you things that matches, like when I received matching Eau de Perfumes to a pair of shower gels I had already gotten.

I’ve built up a modest scent archive of samples so far by the simple expenditure of taking in interest in something my Better Half enjoy. Not only does it mean I get to spend more quality time with her, but so far I’ve also found at least two perfumes I would enjoy receiving for a birthday or Christmas.
And as an added bonus I know I can go to that shop my Better Half prefers, smile at one of the girls working there and know that if I ask for suggestions for a make-up item or scent I can give as a gift to my Better Half, they will hook me up with something that my Better Half will enjoy receiving and using.
It’s a win-win-win all around!

Another match book novelty razor

While looking for more information on the match book novelty razor I posted last Thursday, I found these photos on a shaving forum. A different take on the match book razor, possible older than the last one I found judging by the razor’s head – it looks like a SE, possible a GEM blade.