Welcome, to "The Gentlemen's Quarter".....   Thank you for taking a moment to inquire after our exclusive line of shaving products.     The Gentlemen's Quarter, caters to men who have rediscovered the fine art of traditional wet shaving, and the pleasing ritual of using a quality shaving soap or cream with a dense, rich lather in carefully blended masculine scents.    

While our website is under construction, this file will provide you with a brief summary of our business, a list of available products, pricing, how to place your order, shipping, accepted methods of payment, along with contact information for any questions you may have.  

 We appreciate your patience, and hope that you will be pleased when our website becomes fully functional.   "The Gentlemen's Quarter" website is a collected effort between myself, the "Artisan's Resource Center" thru the "Tamarack" the best of West Virginia www.tamarackwv.com and one very talented web designer; consultant Mr. Amir Abbasi.

 My name is Colleen Hurley; I am the proprietress of "The Gentlemen's Quarter" and the maker of your fine, luxury shaving products.  Our story unfolds in the year 2003 when I began learning the various disciplines of becoming a skilled soapmaker, including cold process and hand milling with an emphasis on using natural raw materials and essential oils.   Two years hence.....along with making fine herbal bath soaps, I found myself collecting vintage straight razors and joined a forum for Straight Razor repair.   It was during this time that I decided to try my hand at making a good shaving soap, and was confident in my skills as a successful soap maker to develop a shaving soap that men would be pleased with.    Confident enough; to offer free samples to any who would give the soaps a try,  sending out samples across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Europe; "Traveling the World" in exchange for comments on how they felt the soaps performed.

I felt rather certain of my success, and their shaving pleasure; but much to my surprise..... When the comments returned I had fallen short of what makes for a truly fine shaving soap for a man, and thus my hard lesson of what works for woman's shaving needs, does not suffice for the shaving requirements of a man.

I was intrigued and determined to discover what was the "it" ?   That certain feel or lathering ability of a shaving soap that puts it into the class of Top Shelf .   I began sending out endless rounds of shaving soap free of charge, for who would know better what makes for a fine shaving soap than the man who uses it, and tests it in his own home using the shaving method of his choice.   It was a risk, but one I believed in....

By paying close attention to the comments from men who so kindly tested round after round of some, not so very good shaving soap, to the place where things began to turn, and now 18 months later.....I'm very proud to say that our efforts have paid off in the development of a shaving soap that really can claim to be Top Shelf ....and say it with confidence.

We are also very proud to offer you traditional shaving cream soap fashioned after the shaving creams of the early 1900's.    Our shaving cream is made by hand in small batches to ensure quality, using the finest select Kosher grade A tallow, cold pressed virgin olive oil, and mango butter.....to list a few of our exceptional ingredients.    We took the same measure of care to test and develop our exclusive line of traditional shaving cream sending out sample after sample, so you may feel confident knowing that many men such as yourself, have tried and used this product and have given it a final thumbs up.    You will need to spend an extra minute building this traditional cream as opposed to the instant pop of commercial shaving products, but your efforts will yield a bowl full of rich, dense, creamy lather, like velvet......that cushions the razor as it glides across your face, for an irritation free, close comfortable shave.  

We use no sodium lauryl sulfates, no synthetic foaming agents, no artificial colors, and no parabens.   Currently we carry only a small selection of scent blends, placing our focus on Quality First while we grow, and we are growing!   TGQ takes great pride in our level of exceptional customer service and have set forth with determination to bring back the meaning of Personal Customer Service  in a world of mass production. 

“The Gentlemen’s Quarter”    Is a unique entrepreneurial business tucked away in the beautiful, rugged Appalachian mountains of southern West Virginia.  TGQ offers a Quality line of grooming products catering to the World of Traditional Wet Shavers with Exceptional Personal Service.

Our company has been built by “Traveling the World One Shave at a Time” beginning with you, our customer.  Instead of approaching product development in a laboratory, we began with you;  in the comfort of your home using your vintage straight razor or double edge (DE) safety razor with your best Silver Tip badger in hand or your favorite Boar Hair shaving brush, with the belief that you as a traditional wet shaver would know what works best for you with the shaving accouterments you use every day.  We wanted Your Opinion First.....and then we developed a shaving soap and an exclusive line of shaving creams built upon what you said you needed and wanted in a shaving product, not just for a good shave.....but for Great Shave!   

....In the Fall of 2005, TGQ’s very own soap maker; Colleen Hurley began sending out free samples to men from across the United States,  Canada, the United Kingdom, Europe and Scotland “Traveling the World” with her samples of shaving soap and cream.....A costly venture....a risk, but one that we believed in; for who would better understand what you needed in a shaving product than you! 

In exchange for these free samples Colleen asked for honest, straightforward comments and has continued to receive progressive feedback for the past year and a half on the following questions and concerns from men like yourself.

 Does the lather provide adequate protection to cushion against the edge of your razor?  Did the lather’s texture achieve the highly sought after “tiny bubble matrix” resembling whipped cream, rather than a bowl full of runny bubbles?  Could you complete a two or three pass shave without having to lather up again?  Does the lather remain moist to soften your facial hair and yet hold it’s shape without being runny?  Did the lather have abundant “slip” and “lubrication” for your favorite straight edge or DE to glide across your face without skipping, for a close, smooth, irritation free shave?  Does the lather rinse cleanly from your face and the blade without residue?  After your shave, did your skin feel clean and smooth without any itching, redness or burning ?

We are happy to report that a year later we have achieved an across the board “Thumbs Up” from the Men who have spent so much time testing our products and offering their guidance to help us develop a superior product we are now able to offer you. 

   We also listened to your requests for a shaving product that uses no SLS (sodium lauryl sulfates) or other synthetic detergents and no parabens in our choice of preservatives.  Great time and consideration has been taken to develop a product line of Fine Herbal Bath Soaps, Shaving Soaps and Shaving Creams in a line of Custom Blends that are decidedly “Masculine” providing you with the greatest shaving experience beginning with the rich, abundant, creamy lather, superior slick for a comfortable close shave;  to our customs blends of carefully chosen essential oils and fragrance oils in our exclusive line of masculine scents that will have you climbing out of bed in the morning, looking forward to a Great Shave!

  “ The Gentlemen’s Quarter”  is proud to offer you a line of shaving soaps and shaving creams used and tested by Men of all Backgrounds and Cultures from around the World, with a rapidly growing reputation for offering you not only a great shaving product but one that can claim Quality as it’s bottom line, made just for you...the men of The Gentlemen’s Quarter.  We look forward to serving you with all of your shaving needs. 

Sincerely,
Colleen Hurley