I have been using my recently received MdC with great pleasure. It is an excellent shaving soap. It is as easy to lather and as protective as people say. What caught my eye is that the ingredient list of MdC was very simple. It goes as follows:
MdC ingredients
Stearic acid, water, coconut acid*, potassium hydroxide, glycerin, aroma.
Even more interesting to me is the similarity of MdCs ingredients to that of the soft Italian almond-scented soap 3P, which reads as follows:
3P ingredients
Stearic acid, water, cocos nucifera*, potassium hydroxide, sodium hydroxide, parfum potassium carbonate.
*About COCONUT ACID: Coconut Acid is a mixture of fatty acids derived from Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil (q.v.). There is likely more than one grade of coconut oil.
A major difference is that MdC is a relatively hard soap whereas 3P is extremely soft. I liken 3P to a relatively dry ricotta cheese. This is counterintuitive since MdC does not possess sodium hydroxide but only potassium hydroxide. It is the sodium hydroxide salts of the fatty acids that give soap a more solid consistency. 3P, as do many soaps, have both potassium and sodium hydroxide and would be expected to have a harder consistency than MdC. It is likely that the hardness of MdC is acquired during the at least 5 month drying period referred to on the website. No doubt this adds to the cost.
Because the ingredients seemed so similar I used 3P and MdC side by side for about a week and, to be honest they seemed to perform identically. 3P is every bit as easy to lather as MdC and the protectiveness of the lather also seemed equivalent. I would like to confess that after about 6-7 of traditional wetshaving I pretty much have my soap hero worship under control there are so many excellent products I cannot really tell which is the best soap. In other words, there are probably several soaps as good as either 3P and MdC, but I thought that I might make the leap and suggest 3P as a more economical version of MdC. Although it is usually sold as a 1 kg slab for about $25-30, Connaught shaving also sells a 125 gram container for about $12, and a 10 ml sample for about $3. It may be of interest to some to try it as it does not get a lot of attention on the boards. Even if you personally do not think 3P is as good as MdC, I doubt you would be sorry if you try it.
[FONT="]Thanks for listening[/FONT]
MdC ingredients
Stearic acid, water, coconut acid*, potassium hydroxide, glycerin, aroma.
Even more interesting to me is the similarity of MdCs ingredients to that of the soft Italian almond-scented soap 3P, which reads as follows:
3P ingredients
Stearic acid, water, cocos nucifera*, potassium hydroxide, sodium hydroxide, parfum potassium carbonate.
*About COCONUT ACID: Coconut Acid is a mixture of fatty acids derived from Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil (q.v.). There is likely more than one grade of coconut oil.
A major difference is that MdC is a relatively hard soap whereas 3P is extremely soft. I liken 3P to a relatively dry ricotta cheese. This is counterintuitive since MdC does not possess sodium hydroxide but only potassium hydroxide. It is the sodium hydroxide salts of the fatty acids that give soap a more solid consistency. 3P, as do many soaps, have both potassium and sodium hydroxide and would be expected to have a harder consistency than MdC. It is likely that the hardness of MdC is acquired during the at least 5 month drying period referred to on the website. No doubt this adds to the cost.
Because the ingredients seemed so similar I used 3P and MdC side by side for about a week and, to be honest they seemed to perform identically. 3P is every bit as easy to lather as MdC and the protectiveness of the lather also seemed equivalent. I would like to confess that after about 6-7 of traditional wetshaving I pretty much have my soap hero worship under control there are so many excellent products I cannot really tell which is the best soap. In other words, there are probably several soaps as good as either 3P and MdC, but I thought that I might make the leap and suggest 3P as a more economical version of MdC. Although it is usually sold as a 1 kg slab for about $25-30, Connaught shaving also sells a 125 gram container for about $12, and a 10 ml sample for about $3. It may be of interest to some to try it as it does not get a lot of attention on the boards. Even if you personally do not think 3P is as good as MdC, I doubt you would be sorry if you try it.
[FONT="]Thanks for listening[/FONT]
