Pampering the stars

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This article was published 18/01/2019 (2483 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A locally based shaving and skin care line is taking off to Los Angeles for awards season.

Whyte Ridge’s Jonathan Steinfeld will be providing gift bags full of his handcrafted shave soaps, creams, and more to be given to celebrities attending parties honouring the Academy Awards in February.

Steinfeld, a pilot with one of the country’s largest airlines, started his online store Stone Field Shaving Company in February 2017 as a way to fill his days off and pursue his passion for quality wet shaving products. In October, Steinfeld was invited to participate in a gifting suite ahead of the Oscars.

“If we can pick up another customer or introduce a new customer to this experience, then it pays for itself,” Steinfeld said in his home office and warehouse.

“I’m hoping that they’ll like the product and see that it is something unique from Winnipeg,” he added. “It’ll hopefully help put us on the map some more.”

The company puts an emphasis on local and Canadian-made products and Steinfeld works closely with local artisans to populate his online shop with goods.

Shave creams and soaps are created by artisans Justin Desjardins (Prohibition Style),  Linda Janes (Purely Skinful Handmade Essentials), and Crafted Bath, among others, while the scuttles and brushes Stone Field sells are created in Winnipeg by potter Bernard Ferguson (Wind Horse Pottery), and razor handles are the purview of local woodturner Herman de Vries.

In the past, razors have been made from wood sourced from discarded mouldings of the Hudson’s Bay Company downtown, Jack Daniels’ whiskey barrels, and even the white oak tree featured in the 1994 film Shawshank Redemption.

Steinfeld said his focus on locally made goods and Canadiana was necessary for his shop to be successful, as sourcing products from the United States became increasingly cost-prohibitive.

“It’s nice to try to support locally and get things that are made by artisans locally, but what I really love about these is that you’re not just buying a razor, you’re buying a story,” he noted. “There’s a really emotional connection.”

To make an impression at the awards, where celebrities and influencers are inundated with products and swag, Steinfeld decided to create a new shave soap specifically for the occasion.

Antoine’s Shave Soap was inspired by life and publications of French writer and aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (Le petit prince, Vol de nuit), Steinfeld explained, and features notes of leather, bourbon and tobacco.

“Much like Hollywood, every soap has a story,” he said. “I really thought that this soap, that brings this story to life, would really be appropriate, while at the same time staying true to my company.”

Other products made by Stone Field include North of Fifty, a nod to Steinfeld’s time flying in northern Manitoba; Prairie Thunderstorm; and Three Six & Charlie, a reference to the runways at Winnipeg’s international airport.

After the awards season passes, Steinfeld said he will be focused on building his customer base in Winnipeg, where he hand delivers each order complete with a handwritten note and wax seal. He hopes as more people learn about his business, more people will also begin to look forward to the morning ritual.

“It’s about stepping back in time, it’s about shaving the way your father, or grandfather did,” Steinfeld said. “I find that this type of shaving gets you back to that time, it’s meditative, and when you’re shaving you’re not thinking about your day.”