It was a dismal dreary rainy morning, typical of fall / winter in Victoria BC, when I was choosing what soap to use next. So I plunged my hand into the box o’ Mama Bear samples, and grabbed a few. One stood out as a promise to remind me that fall need not be all that bad. So next, I’ll be reviewing Mama Bear’s Autumn Afternoon.

Mama Bear describes this one as a clean blend of herbs, falling leaves, and clean fresh air. And, as per usual, it smells exactly like it sounds. It’s a nice pleasant fresh smelling scent that reminds me of a walk through the park on a crisp day in the fall.

The strength could have been kicked up a notch. It was noticeable, but not strongly, when the lather was applied to the face, however it seemed to fade fairly quickly. Sniffing the soap directly is reasonably strong.

And the shave was the usual from Mama Bear. Decent glide, as long as you’re not too stingy on the water, but careful not to go overboard either or you’ll kill the cushioning. Lather will break down between passes if you’re using a scuttle, but can be re-whipped up easily enough (and you probably want to add a couple drops of water each pass as you do).

8/10 Scent Pleasantness

7/10 Scent Strength

7/10 Lather Quality (reflects new scoring as outlined here)

Overall, I give it a 6/10. Give it a shot if you’re looking for a light fresh scent.

Cost: $9.99 for a jar full. The samples used to be available for a dollar each, and it is for the other scents I checked; that option seems to be broken for this scent, however I suspect this might be an oversight.

Gear used:

Ingredients: Coconut Oil, Palm Oil, Castor Oil, Safflower , Glycerine (kosher, of vegetable origin), Purified Water, Sodium Hydroxide (saponifying agent), Sorbitol (moisturizer), Sorbitan oleate (emulsifier), Soybean protein (conditioner), Wheat protein and fragrance either natural or synthetic.