Pacific Shaving’s New Colorful Shave Creams Have A Cause

Pacific Shaving recently announced their #ShaveWithPurpose shave creams, a whimsical line that also serves a serious purpose.

Pacific Shaving #ShaveWithPurpose Shave Creams

From the Pacific Shaving website:

“These moisturizing shaving creams for men and women are unlike any others – they have color! (Just looking at them is guaranteed to brighten your day.) But color isn’t the only difference. Year-round, 10% of proceeds from each sale go directly to non-profit organizations that support important health & social causes.

“The inspiration for our #ShaveWithPurpose line of colorful shaving cream came in early 2020 as we became increasingly concerned about the growing social injustices and healthcare inequities throughout the U.S. As business partners, parents, and husband & wife, we asked ourselves how Pacific Shaving could help create positive change. We saw a fun and unique opportunity with the idea for different color, unisex shaving creams, using each as an everyday vehicle to raise support and awareness for important health and social causes….”

BLUE:
Prostate Cancer Foundation, whose mission is to fund the world’s most promising research to improve the prevention, detection and treatment of prostate cancer and ultimately cure it for good. One in nine men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in his lifetime, and it is the second leading cause of cancer death in American men.

GREEN:
Mental Health America, and their continued efforts to increase mental health awareness. Forty percent of all adults, and one in six youths struggle with mental health issues.

YELLOW:
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, a voluntary health organization that gives those affected by suicide a nationwide community empowered…to take action against this leading cause of death. One person dies from suicide every 40 seconds, and it is the second-leading cause of death among young people.

PINK:
Lynn Sage Breast Cancer Foundation, one of the nation’s leading breast cancer charities…. One in Eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime. Men are not immune either.

RED:
Project ALS, a leading non-profit organization funding the most promising scientific and medical research that will lead to the first effective treatments and cure for this neurodegenerative disease….

PURPLE:
It Gets Better Project, a nonprofit organization with a mission to uplift, empower, and connect lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer youth around the globe….

Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Stearic Acid*, Triethanolamine, Glycerin*, Isobutane (propellant), Propane (propellant), Sunflower Seed Oil Glycerides*, Laureth-23, Coconut Acid*, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice*, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter*, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil*, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil*, Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Seed Butter*, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil*, Mentha Viridis (Spearmint) Leaf Oil*, Vegetable Oil (Olus Oil – Eu)*, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate*, Methyl Gluceth-20*, Hydroxyethylcellulose*, Ethylhexylglycerin*, Sodium Isethionate*, Phenoxyethanol, Limonene* (PINK includes Red 33^; YELLOW includes Yellow 5^; RED includes Red 40^ & Red 33^; GREEN includes Yellow 5^& Blue 1^; BLUE includes Blue 1^; PURPLE includes Blue 1^ & Red 33^

My Experience With Pacific Shaving #ShaveWithPurpose Shave Creams

[Note: Pacific Shaving sent me a selection of their #ShaveWithPurpose shave creams to evaluate, but comments here are my own and have not been review or approved by Pacific Shaving.]

So let’s talk about “the elephant in the room” first.  Yes, these are shave creams from a pressurized can…

…so I know this review may not get much love from the Sharpologist community.  But hear me out here.

I find Pacific Shaving to be a stand-up brand and I know the CEO.  Sharpologist has covered them a number of times in the past, including their brush-friendly caffeinated shave cream and aftershave, and their cork shaving brush.

They pay attention to their ingredients (note that many of the ingredients listed above are plant-derived) and are aware of the larger world around them.  So while this shave cream line may not be in the “traditional” realm, I’m willing to give it a try.  I use the “Blue” cream here but all the variants are basically the same, as described in the previous section.

I get a pleasant, mild (to my insensitive nose), minty scent from the lather.  I think most people won’t have a problem with it.

As for the consistency, this is a foam.  Compared to most “old school” products covered on Sharpologist the foam looks on the “dry” side.  But I find it to be quite a thick foam and more concentrated than other foamed shave creams I used–a brief squirt should be more than enough for full face coverage.  When fully lathered it looks less dry and rather thicker.  This is a brushless product.

I used Pacific Shaving #ShaveWithPurpose shave cream with both a double edge (DE) razor (adjustable…I ain’t no fool), and a Shavelogic cartridge razor since this product is aimed squarely at the mass market consumer.

With a DE razor I find the shave has good lubrication and protection, though I did drop down the adjustment dial about 1/4th of a stop from where I usually have it.  Nevertheless I find shaves are entirely acceptable with a “Darn Fine Shave” result easily attainable.

I think the protection performance is a little better when using a cartridge razor, though.  Like with a DE, my shaves with a cartridge razor using Pacific Shaving #ShaveWithPurpose are competitive-or-better than other shave foams.

I think post-shave skin moisturization is actually quite good for a shave foam.

Conclusion

Pacific Shaving #ShaveWithPurpose shave cream is both an attempt to stand out in the competitive consumer shave market and an acknowledgement that there are causes and charities that deserve attention from businesses.  Although the typical “old school” shaver might raise an eyebrow at this product, I think it performs pretty solidly well.