Rave: Alba Shave Cream
EDS Skin Care Forums Forum Index » Products Reviews Forum

free skin care · Thu May 24, 2007 11:37 pm

I picked this up a few days ago on a whim, and am I ever glad I did!

This shave cream comes in a plastic squeeze tube, and the store I was in had three scents in stock: unscented, mint, and lime/coconut. Being a citrus freak, I bought the lime/coconut.

I tried it out the next day. The directions advise moistening the area you want to shave, and then spreading a thin layer of the cream over top. The texture is similar to a lot of hair conditioners. That's where the similarity ends though! This stuff really does condition and moisturize the skin. Shaving was a breeze - (even with my over-used razor blades). For the first time in a long time, I had no nicks or unsightly red bumps on my skin. My skin also felt very soft and smooth afterward.

The only thing that disappointed me was the scent. In fact I was almost wondering if it had been mis-packaged. No lime or coconut whatsoever -only a minty smell. Not that I object to mint, but I was really looking forward to lime.

Oh well, it's cheap - only about $6 for a large tube that will last a long time, since it works best used sparingly. It's also packed with lots of nice skin-happy ingredients too. If you need a change from using your hair conditioner, or swiping your boyfriend's shave cream, I highly recommend trying this.

free skin care · Fri May 25, 2007 2:44 pm

This stuff is good, I agree, and there's at least one more flavor out there that I adore called Mango Vanilla - for years I even tried to recreate this smell with custom perfumes, it was so yummy! However, I'm disappointed at some of the ingredients, particularly the parabens used as preservatives.

Alba's parent company is actually Avalon Natural Products (www.avalonnaturalproducts.com, won't let me put in HTML to link), which is also the parent company for Avalon Organics. However, they wax poetic about how bad parabens are for only the Avalon Organics products, and have discontinued using them there, but those ingredients still show up in a lot of their Alba products. I've noticed a trend of them starting to release Alba brand products without parabens, particularly in their Hawaiian skincare line, so I hope this means a less-publicized but still existent change is under way.

Also, in case you're not as picky as me about ingredients, Trader Joe's makes a pretty decent-looking knockoff of this shave cream, with similar packaging and only slightly altered fragrances. I've never tried it, since this version also contained parabens last I checked, but if you have a TJ's in your area you might check it out.

Happy shaving!

--Virginia

free skin care · Fri May 25, 2007 3:41 pm

I agree that this is one of the nicest shave creams out there. I also agree that the Mango Vanilla is yummy. Outside of Kiehl's shave cream, which is way overpriced, this was my favorite for a long time, until I started using shaving oil. With a good blend of oils and the right fragrance, I can shave my legs and get a super smooth, close shave, condition my skin, inhale the gorgeous fragrance, skip body lotion afterwards....oh yeah - I'm not going back to cream!

free skin care · Fri May 25, 2007 4:36 pm

Ooooh, Katee, can you tell me more about this shaving oil plan of yours? I usually just use hair conditioner because I've been lazy as of late! But oil would be great, I often oil up in the shower anyway and I've shaved before after using a homemade oil-and-salt exfoliation rub, but that's about it. Do you make your own? What blend do you recommend? Does your razor get clogged?

free skin care · Fri May 25, 2007 6:25 pm

Yes Katee! I'm intrigued too! Is it something you buy, or something you make for yourself? Tell! tell! Smile

free skin care · Sat May 26, 2007 10:22 am

I love their shave cream - it smells soo good Smile

Shaving oil? Tell me more! Very Happy

free skin care · Thu Jun 14, 2007 2:15 pm

I just PM'd katee about this since she hadn't replied - I'll post if I have any info.

free skin care · Thu Jun 14, 2007 4:07 pm

ginnielizz wrote:

Also, in case you're not as picky as me about ingredients, Trader Joe's makes a pretty decent-looking knockoff of this shave cream, with similar packaging and only slightly altered fragrances. I've never tried it, since this version also contained parabens last I checked, but if you have a TJ's in your area you might check it out.

Happy shaving!

--Virginia

I second this, TJ's shaving cream is lovely. One of my other underrated products with a permanent place in my repetoire...

free skin care · Fri Jun 15, 2007 10:27 pm

Thanks for the review!

free skin care · Thu Jun 21, 2007 4:56 pm

Ooh, there was just a separate thread about the Trader Joe's version:

http://www.essentialdayspa.com/forum/viewthread.php?tid=24350

It looks like they removed the parabens that it used to contain. I'm going to have to give this one a try now. Get with the program, Alba!

Automatic Message

If this is your first visit to the EDS Forums please take the time to register. Registration is required for you to post on the forums. Registration will also give you the ability to track messages of interest, send private messages to other users, participate in Gift Certificates draws and enjoy automatic discounts for shopping at our online store. Registration is free and takes just a few seconds to complete.

Click Here to join our community.

If you are already a registered member on the forums, please login to gain full access to the site.