Artisan's Vs traditional

[dundak]

I’ve found that I would rather use a nice traditional cream than most artisan croaps.

I can get that “low structure” “great post shave feel” by just increasing the cream to water ratio.

I find the super soft consistency and mega scents of most artisan soaps are not my fancy. They work. Just not my cuppa.


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[nav]

Artisanal soaps are good-but in my opinion they don’t quite match the performance of Art of shaving, tabac , .Artisanal soaps these days are more like croaps - and their performance is highly dependent on how fast they “melt”

Totally agree.

I have long stated that ease of loading often gives the feeling of a superior soap but it's just that traditional soaps are harder and require a stronger technique than softer artisan soaps.

I have 120 soaps compromising of a mix of artisan and traditional hard soaps. I generally prefer the milled pucks but there's many artisan soaps I also really enjoy.

Is one better than the other? No way! Just a different method to use them in order to get the exact same outcome.

 

[EricSki]

After 47 years I guess my time is up!?

Nah, you’re good. I’ll use your products today.

I actually thought the soap was older than 47 years though?

 

[Leverspro]

After 47 years I guess my time is up!?

For that comment my friend, I am going to try your soap for the first time. It will be lime.

 

[Racquet]

blasted toe.

You shave your toe? Careful

 

[naughtilus]

Artisan vs Mass market is the correct dichotomy. Hand made soaps, brushes, razors and accessories are traditional too. Once you start having employees and dealers selling your product, it's no longer artisan in the true sense.

It's essentially a pointless mental exercise. Just buy what you like.

 

[BudgetShaverGuy]

I've only used 3 different brand of "artisan" soaps, 2 of which burned my skin horribly and which I will never bother to mess with again. Soap Commander is the only artisan I keep in my rotation and is the best performer among the more traditional stuff I use which is mainly Proraso, a most excellent lather maker for my finicky skin.

 

[Leverspro]

Artisan vs Mass market is the correct dichotomy. Hand made soaps, brushes, razors and accessories are traditional too. Once you start having employees and dealers selling your product, it's no longer artisan in the true sense.

It's essentially a pointless mental exercise. Just buy what you like.

Well said!

 

[BigJ]

Artisan vs Mass market is the correct dichotomy. Hand made soaps, brushes, razors and accessories are traditional too. Once you start having employees and dealers selling your product, it's no longer artisan in the true sense.

It's essentially a pointless mental exercise. Just buy what you like.

+2! Great points!! ‘Just buy what you like.’

 

[macintoshBR]

To each his own, I respect what every one chooses to buy and use

But for me, now I have Just 5 soaps in my den, all made in EU to the highest regulatory standards, and in the market for at least 2 decades. No shaves with kitchen or garage-made soaps anymore for me.

Traditional soaps are traditional for a reason.

 

[Neil-O]

I’ve had a handful of artisan soaps over the past couple of years. Although the scents were very nice and the lather very good, for some reason I was actually relieved when they were finished up and I could toss the container. I did have a pumpkin spice one that went into the trash after two uses because it burned my face.

I am completely happy with more traditional soaps - Prorasso, Tabac, Cella, PdP are my favorites, buy I also like Williams, MWF, Arko, among other “classics”. When these get used up I look forward to unwrapping a new one to restock the den.

 

[Roy]

All soaps are new to new shavers!

 

[zed117]

There is something to be said about the skin food in some of these Artisan soaps. Some of them could put my Lady’s skin creams to shame. I started wet shaving at 18 and have softer healthier skin now at 26.

I use to keep well know traditional soaps: Arko, Cella, MWF, Williams. I also used to have a bunch of a Stirling, Proraso, and Razorock around. Now I only have Barristers Reserve/Excelsior and DG bases, my face thanks me after repeated use.

 

[Namkcakram]

To each his own, I respect what every one chooses to buy and use

But for me, now I have Just 5 soaps in my den, all made in EU to the highest regulatory standards, and in the market for at least 2 decades. No shaves with kitchen or garage-made soaps anymore for me.

Traditional soaps are traditional for a reason.

I’ve been on some really great artisans lately, but the more I experiment the more I realize two simple things:

1- I’m comparing every soaps post shave against Haslinger schafmilch

2- I’m comparing every soaps cushion/slickness against kg brick Cella... that stuff with a dangerously keen SR will just give the best shave of my life everytime.

 

[vijayasree5]

I Personally Prefer Artisan Soaps.

 

[cyclingsteveb]

For that comment my friend, I am going to try your soap for the first time. It will be lime.

I've got the lime and its an excellent soap!

 

[steelhead52]

I have over 200 different soaps and creams in my inventory in over 90 different brands thanks partially to a very large gifting. Like most here I started with mass produced soaps then found this board that ultimately lead me down the dark path of severe soap acquisition disorder.

Over the years I purchased many soaps I have been very pleased with and also a number of soaps where I wished I had my money back. I have found most mass produced soaps to be quite good and only a few that ended up in the shower instead of using for shaving.

Attributes of Mass produced soaps:
1. Large milling capital investments allow for very consistent soaps purchase to purchase.
2. Milling/mixing/extruding creates a well mixed, low moisture, dense soap. This means you will need to load longer but will get many more shaves per ounce with milled soaps. Except for Czech and Speake, all my milled soaps yield a cost per shave lower than $.22 per shave. This compares to most of my high end artisan soaps that cost over $.45/shave.
3. Most mass produced soaps are geared to a performance/benefit cost point within reach of most users. This means you can get some really great performing soaps at a reasonable price.
4. Most mass produced contain surfactants, preservatives, and low water content meaning they have an almost unlimited effective shelf life and can be used with most water conditions.
5. Even with effective EU monitoring, most mass produced soaps do include less desirable preservatives and surfactants that can be avoided by small batch artisan processors.

Attributes of Artisan soaps:
1. Getting a consistent and repeatable process is much more difficult for small batch processors.
2. Lower capital expenditures means artisans are relegated to hot and cold methods yielding higher moisture content in their soaps regardless of their curing processes.
3. Its a fact that a knowledgable artisan can create a soap with more expensive ingredients leading to very high performance levels even surpassing mass produced soaps, but that comes with a significant investment in time and cost. Many artisan soaps will cost the user over twice the cost per shave compared to mass produced soaps.
4. There are indeed artisans who are very skilled and some not quite as skilled leading to quite a diversity in artisan soaps.
5. Economy of scale forces artisans in general to have much higher per shave costs.
6. Competition has lead to much improved artisan performance with healthier ingredients.
7. One concern for artisan soaps in lack of regulation and monitoring, especially with fragrance oils.
8. Due to higher moisture content and variation of preservatives, many artisans soaps will not have the shelf life of some of the mass produced soaps.
9. Due to small batch processing, experimenting with various scents is much easier yielding some excellent scents and many no so great scents. Recent collaborations of soap makers with professional perfumers has lead to some better and more desirable scents, but at once again, at additional cost.

Overall, I will always enjoy Tabac, Valobra (I hope it returns with the Poraso purchase), Haslingers (even though I'm disappointed with the formula change), DR Harris, and Cade etc. There are a few mass produced soaps I do not like and won't mention because YMMV.

Favorite artisans in no order include Grooming Dept, Declaration Grooming, Murphy and McNeil, Turtleship, Lisa's Naturals, B&M,Wholly Kaw, Long Rifle, SV, PC, MdC, and many others.

Overall I think mass produced soaps are a better value providing 90% of what I'm looking for in a good shave. To go the extra 10% I am sometimes willing to pay a significant premium to get to shaving Nirvana.

 

[kingfisher]

T... I can shave with any blade without issues with them. DE, SE, and SR, except for the blasted toe. .....

Blunt the toe by running it down your bathroom mirror a couple of times. Easy to do and works wonders.

 

[ghostlife]

I'm only buying artisans from now on not because I don't like the mass market soaps, but because I want to support local (Canadian)

 

[mrlandpirate]

I use the soaps I like and these days it's mostly artisans