DIY Shaving Soap Recipe: Transforming Bar Soap into Shaving

[jaro 101969]

I only use what is laying around the house: Dial, Dove, Irish Spring and Zest. They all work well; Irish Spring might have a slight edge. Usually they’re all blended together.

And no, I’m not blending in some bizarre clay substance. These guys don’t get it. I USE SOAP SCRAPS BECAUSE THEY ARE FREE AND THEY WORK WELL. So many shavers have been brainwashed by B&B and other sites that shaving requires exotic and expensive products and equipment and unique and obscure techniques that the idea that this is a SIMPLE and EASY activity that anyone one can do with little or nothing is a controversial, even subversive idea. AAAAGGGHHHH!! STOP IT ! STOP IT !

Part of the problem is that an entire industry has been built on this idea. There is money in dem soaps and razors and pre-shaves and brushes and aftershaves etc, etc and a mythic subculture to support it.

Part of what I want to do here is to explode these myths and free our minds from the consumer culture that depend on them. FREE YOUR MIND !!!

First it's not weird , it is proven and second I don't believe we here are a bunch of brain washed minions, we each like and use what we like and want ..... You are free to do as you please And I say have fun, But what I mentioned is only 3.99 for a Big bag that would last for Multiple "experiments" ... Good luck with your exploration, I enjoy playing around and experimenting also BUT I will probably stick with what I currently use and has been Proven since shaving soaps were First "invented" in the 14th century and creams / soaps even before that....

History. A rudimentary form of shaving cream /soap was documented in Sumer around 3000 BC. This substance combined wood alkali and animal fat and was applied to a beard as a shaving preparation. Until the early 20th century, bars or sticks of hard shaving soap were used....

I think we are all grown up enough to have our own thoughts and likes and not make fun of others who have differing views ....

 

[kingfisher]

Sugar does not promote mold formation; quite the opposite - it acts as a preservative. Just think about jams or condensed milk. Mold thrives in moisture, so it is not advisable to seal the container tightly with soap after using it.

(Sorry for my not-so-great English).

Your English is fantastic.

In standard American English, we would use the singular 'jam' rather than the plural 'jams' in your first sentence, but perhaps in British English 'jams' would be preferred?

 

[swellcat]

feeling of dryness on the skin

I wonder if using other fats—almond, castor, and/or jojoba oils and/or kokum or shea butters, as examples—might make a constructive difference here.

 

[Lane101]

This is exactly the kind of tinkering I enjoy. Thanks for the tutorial. It would be interesting to see if I can get Ivory soap to perform well as a shaving soap while also adding a new scent to it. Maybe lavender.

Have some fun experimenting. I've done a lot of blending and even use a small amount of Ivory in my mostly shaving soap custom blends for extra slickness. When I tried Ivory by itself it was slick though the lather was not durable - dissipated quickly.

I did experiment with a blend of Ivory and Dove Men + Care that made a good shaving soap. Link to my post on this below:

Dove Men+Care: Miracle Superlather Ingredient & Very Good for Shaving When Mixed with Ivory in 50/50 Blend

As promised in my post on Big Jim's thread (link below) I've further experimented and tested Dove Men+Care (DMC) in various shaving soap blends. Overall results were as follows: Dove Men+Care is an excellent superlathering ingredient when combined with other shave soaps either per shave or in...

www.badgerandblade.com

 

[Lane101]

I only use what is laying around the house: Dial, Dove, Irish Spring and Zest. They all work well; Irish Spring might have a slight edge. Usually they’re all blended together.

And no, I’m not blending in some bizarre clay substance. These guys don’t get it. I USE SOAP SCRAPS BECAUSE THEY ARE FREE AND THEY WORK WELL. So many shavers have been brainwashed by B&B and other sites that shaving requires exotic and expensive products and equipment and unique and obscure techniques that the idea that this is a SIMPLE and EASY activity that anyone one can do with little or nothing is a controversial, even subversive idea. AAAAGGGHHHH!! STOP IT ! STOP IT !

Part of the problem is that an entire industry has been built on this idea. There is money in dem soaps and razors and pre-shaves and brushes and aftershaves etc, etc and a mythic subculture to support it.

Part of what I want to do here is to explode these myths and free our minds from the consumer culture that depend on them. FREE YOUR MIND !!!

Wouldn't you go back to shaving soap if you could find a high value option like the Williams soap you used to love? Just this past October you posted:

"Loved Williams. For a buck a puck I could make smooth, creamy ultra-slick lather for 6 months or more. Fantastic product, so of course it had to disappear. I’ll soldier on with the free lather I make from hand soap scraps"

Recall that Arko did not work for you as you felt it left behind a residue. Next best thing could be Razorock What-the-Puck that is excellent. At around $3 for a 100 gram puck, when on sale, it is similarly priced to the 50 gram Williams pucks.

 

[mcee_sharp]

I only use what is laying around the house: Dial, Dove, Irish Spring and Zest. They all work well; Irish Spring might have a slight edge. Usually they’re all blended together.

Thanks, might try it someday.

I can appreciate some of the other things you bring up, but we're obviously on different ends of the spectrum with this thing we both share a bit of enjoyment doing.

 

[Quaznoid]

Wouldn't you go back to shaving soap if you could find a high value option like the Williams soap you used to love? Just this past October you posted:

"Loved Williams. For a buck a puck I could make smooth, creamy ultra-slick lather for 6 months or more. Fantastic product, so of course it had to disappear. I’ll soldier on with the free lather I make from hand soap scraps"

Recall that Arko did not work for you as you felt it left behind a residue. Next best thing could be Razorock What-the-Puck that is excellent. At around $3 for a 100 gram puck, when on sale, it is similarly priced to the 50 gram Williams pucks.

No. As I explained in “Tyranny of Choice”, my shavings habits had become fixed by the time more products became available. I dabbled a little but quickly concluded that what I had been doing for decades worked well and there was no need for change.

 

[Quaznoid]

First it's not weird , it is proven and second I don't believe we here are a bunch of brain washed minions, we each like and use what we like and want ..... You are free to do as you please And I say have fun, But what I mentioned is only 3.99 for a Big bag that would last for Multiple "experiments" ... Good luck with your exploration, I enjoy playing around and experimenting also BUT I will probably stick with what I currently use and has been Proven since shaving soaps were First "invented" in the 14th century and creams / soaps even before that....

History. A rudimentary form of shaving cream /soap was documented in Sumer around 3000 BC. This substance combined wood alkali and animal fat and was applied to a beard as a shaving preparation. Until the early 20th century, bars or sticks of hard shaving soap were used....

I think we are all grown up enough to have our own thoughts and likes and not make fun of others who have differing views ....

Lather whatever you want. I didn’t mean to dis your recipe. But I didn’t want to leave the impression behind that bath soap lathering requires a bunch of ingredients and processes, etc that might put people off. The beauty of it is that it is easy and requires nothing. Shave ‘on.

 

[jaro 101969]

Lather whatever you want. I didn’t mean to dis your recipe. But I didn’t want to leave the impression behind that bath soap lathering requires a bunch of ingredients and processes, etc that might put people off. The beauty of it is that it is easy and requires nothing. Shave ‘on.

Its all good. I understand it can be easy , I was only saying you could add some extra sickness which is always a good thing and it doesn't cost much to have lying around for when you might need it was all.. Also I wish you fun and best luck with your endeavors also... Have a great day...

 

[Life Is A Dream]

Wow, this is certainly interesting. Kudos on the effort and documenting it with pictures for us!

You could also try experimenting with different oils (like coconut oil). I vaguely remember some vegetarian soaps that use it as one of their main ingredients. Would be interesting to see how it differs from olive oil in the end result if any.

 

[cranewarrior]

Sugar makes the lather more stable, and right after its addition, the soap mixture becomes firmer. This is noticeable in the photo.

I read this tip on a hobbyist soap-making forum. Anyway, the result is quite mixed: stable , but a really unpleasant feeling of dryness on the skin. I doubt I'll continue using this soap in the future.

Do you use any aftershave lotion or face cream? I do myself and I have been shaving a lot with Ivory bath soap, a very drying soap. The moisturizer takes care of the skin drying issue for me.

 

[smartpc]

Do you use any aftershave lotion or face cream? I do myself and I have been shaving a lot with Ivory bath soap, a very drying soap. The moisturizer takes care of the skin drying issue for me.

Yeah, I tried using that moisturizing lotion.

 

[Old Hippie]

When I use a bar soap it's usually Yardley Oatmeal and Almond. It's a moisturizing bar so not drying at all.

Makes decent lather for less than $2.00 a puck. Yeah, takes a different lathering technique but it works fine in hard water. It's what I keep in my travel kit. My own soap is "better" but this can be pretty good as long as you understand the limitations.

O.H.

 

[Wombat ESQ]

Be careful with bentonite clay because it also dry your skin, but yes it can also be helpful for other reasons.

Stockfood additive, and a leaky dam sealant

 

[geneaut]

When I use a bar soap it's usually Yardley Oatmeal and Almond. It's a moisturizing bar so not drying at all.

Makes decent lather for less than $2.00 a puck. Yeah, takes a different lathering technique but it works fine in hard water. It's what I keep in my travel kit. My own soap is "better" but this can be pretty good as long as you understand the limitations.

O.H.

A lot of the tallow Yardley's work decently well as shave soaps.

 

[blethenstrom]

A lot of the tallow Yardley's work decently well as shave soaps.

I have a couple at home I need to try it out.

 

[geneaut]

I have a couple at home I need to try it out.

They used to have one with Shea butter in it that shaved well, but I simply adore their lavender scent so it gets called upon the most often.

The nice thing is our local Dollar Tree has them for $1.25 a bar.

I've been known to add a dollop of unscented Nivea shave cream to my lather bowl when I do this, but not always.

** Edir - it was Shea Buttermilk. Shaves well but the scent is just meh

 

[cymric]

I would skip the sugar and add a bit of waterglass = sodium silicate instead. I'd also use a less viscous oil. But above all I wouldn't do any of this tinkering and just use a shave soap from one of the trusted brands.

It reminds me to no small extent of the ridiculousness that was Method Shaving. Starting out with a block of saponified olive oil (which, while nice as a bath or hand soap, is useless for producing a decent lather to shave with), all sorts of oils and pastes and goos and what-not were added until you ended up with... well, the lather from a proper shave soap.

 

[Wgg2017]

I only use what is laying around the house: Dial, Dove, Irish Spring and Zest. They all work well; Irish Spring might have a slight edge. Usually they’re all blended together.

And no, I’m not blending in some bizarre clay substance. These guys don’t get it. I USE SOAP SCRAPS BECAUSE THEY ARE FREE AND THEY WORK WELL. So many shavers have been brainwashed by B&B and other sites that shaving requires exotic and expensive products and equipment and unique and obscure techniques that the idea that this is a SIMPLE and EASY activity that anyone one can do with little or nothing is a controversial, even subversive idea. AAAAGGGHHHH!! STOP IT ! STOP IT !

Part of the problem is that an entire industry has been built on this idea. There is money in dem soaps and razors and pre-shaves and brushes and aftershaves etc, etc and a mythic subculture to support it.

Part of what I want to do here is to explode these myths and free our minds from the consumer culture that depend on them. FREE YOUR MIND !!!

For some reason this rant reminds me of Timothy Leary. Turn on, tune in, drop out. You've seen the light and are trying to open our minds ! I like it!

(Still probably not going to shave with soap scraps though. When an old bar is too small to be useful, I get a new bar and squish the two together)

 

[Quaznoid]

For some reason this rant reminds me of Timothy Leary. Turn on, tune in, drop out. You've seen the light and are trying to open our minds ! I like it!

(Still probably not going to shave with soap scraps though. When an old bar is too small to be useful, I get a new bar and squish the two together)

I used to do that too. The soap is used up either way. With my system I don’t buy anything extra.

You’re not far off the mark with the Leary reference. Somebody gets it.