BEST way to add water?

[RicoSuave]

Don’t know about you guys, but nothing ruins my shave more than when I end up adding TOO much water when trying to build a lather, making it a lightweight mess (I prefer my lathers on the THICK side! )

Tried dribbling water from the faucet, quickly placing the brush under the faucet, dribbling water from my hands, etc, and results are INCONSISTENT.

Was thinking of getting a dropper of sorts, or maybe a squeeze bottle.

Wadaya guys think? What method do YOU use to incorporate water into your soap, in order to create a GREAT, thick lather?

 

[Toothpick]

If I am allowed to comment with my almost 2yr old beard…

It’s easier to add water than remove water right? For me anyway, back in the day.

Just a few drops out of the faucet worked for me. Don’t know your setup so it’s hard to say why that wouldn’t work too.

If you have to wet your brush again just do it. Wet your brush and lather it up some more. Add more cream to your bowl. Work that lather up again. I don’t see the big deal in making the perfect lather. More soap - more water. That’s about it. And beat it to death with your brush. If it gets messy…well then so be it.

I don’t think anyone needs another tool to add water. You have all the tools you need, don’t be afraid to use them.

 

[JeffJ]

Lazy face latherer here. I dip the brush tips in the sink. Always good enough. Have over hydrated a handful of times in 10+ years of daily shaving.

And agree with everything Toothpick said above. It’s always recoverable.

 

[Atlantic59]

If you need to control the amount of water fairly closely, one of these you may have around the house already...


or if you got one of these from a dental visit:

 

[Ravenonrock]

Less is more.

 

[Tomo]

There’s nothing worse than a washed out lather.

I start my lathers on the dry side. I set my faucet to a fast drip and let it drip into my lather bowl as required as I build the lather.

During the shave my lather bowl rests in a few inches of hot water in the sink. If the lather gets dry I just dip the tips of the brush in the sink and mix it up again. You shouldn’t need and special gadgets. Some soaps are more susceptible to getting washed out than others.

 

[Ivo4u2]

Absolute control one of these droppers

for me? I dip my brush in the sink if it is to dry regardless of bowl or face slathering. But I like it slick and a bit wet lately and a bit messy….

 

[theklaw]

I fill a mug with cold water from the fridge and add some distilled water to it. I use some of that water to rinse my face.
I then wet my synthetic brush and give it a couple of shakes before loading my soap from the puck. Once I have loaded the soap I begin to face lather, gently dipping the tips in the mug of water from time to time. I do this until I see a sheen and I am happy with the consistency of the lather. Once I have finished shaving, I take some more of that cold water out of the mug and rinse my face with it. It's nice and refreshing. Splash some Lucky Tiger on my face and I'm good to go.

 

[sdimartino]

Lazy face latherer here. I dip the brush tips in the sink. Always good enough. Have over hydrated a handful of times in 10+ years of daily shaving.

And agree with everything Toothpick said above. It’s always recoverable.

I agree with JeffJ. I’m a face latherer and I have a Proraso shaving mug I use to soak my brush in. After loading the brush, I then use the mug to dip just the very tips in when I want to add water. Has worked great for me.

 

[DaveHStone]

More often than not, the root cause of thin lather is not enough soap/cream, aka too short brush loading time.

Adding more product almost always leads to richer, creamier, denser, thicker, more voluptuous lather.

So, I'd start there.

As for adding water, it makes no difference how you add it, as long as you don't add too much too quickly.

Good luck

 

[TexOkie Shaver]

I’m right there with you. Nothing ruins my shave quicker than a runny drooling mess.

I’ve learned that running some water in the sink and then dipping just the tips of my brush works better than the hand dribble method. You can tell when your brush just makes contact by watching for the ripples.

 

[luvmysuper]

You need to get a graduated cylinder (TD type not TC), a gram scale, a complete set of pipettes, distilled water or a reverse osmosis system, a non-porous shaving bowl, cotton swabs and a thermostatically controlled portable water heater to get the exact hydration needed.

Or you could just dribble a few drops in with your fingers or dip the brush in the sink and enjoy your shave instead of focusing on minutiae.

But thats just me.

I got back into wet shaving because cart and goo was an unenjoyable tedious chore.
Don't let minute details turn something fun into a meticulous utilitarian routine.

 

[Lefonque]

Just use a cupped hand.

 

[bartje-p]

I soak my brush in a bowl of lukewarm water. Before loading the brush, I squeeze it a bit, then load. Then apply to my face and during the face lathering, I add small amounts of water from my left hand (I am right handed), which I hold under the tap. I let some drops roll directly into the brush and continue lathering. This repeats until I am satisfied. The risk of overloading is very small. It also helps to not use 30-ish soaps at the same time, each soap as it's own amount of water it needs. Or use a soap for the whole week, until you know the right amount of water it needs.

 

[Lefonque]

Don’t know about you guys, but nothing ruins my shave more than when I end up adding TOO much water when trying to build a lather, making it a lightweight mess (I prefer my lathers on the THICK side! )

Tried dribbling water from the faucet, quickly placing the brush under the faucet, dribbling water from my hands, etc, and results are INCONSISTENT.

Was thinking of getting a dropper of sorts, or maybe a squeeze bottle.

Wadaya guys think? What method do YOU use to incorporate water into your soap, in order to create a GREAT, thick lather?

Chard always makes a great lather. Have a word with him. I think he has sold his soul in order to make a great lather of perfect consistency.

 

[Capt. Pat]

I dribble off of my fingers, repeat if necessary

 

[sdimartino]

Chard always makes a great lather. Have a word with him. I think he has sold his soul in order to make a great lather of perfect consistency.

Lol! Poor @Chard52142 . We kid because we love, brother! And because we’re jealous of your legendary lathering skills.

 

[Wogus]

I use a squirt-top bottle, personally, but purely for convenience. If your goal is absolute consistency I think you're going to need to use something like a graduated syringe or kitchen measuring spoons.

 

[Black Adder]

I don’t see the big deal in making the perfect lather. More soap - more water. That’s about it. And beat it to death with your brush. If it gets messy…well then so be it.

I don’t think anyone needs another tool to add water. You have all the tools you need, don’t be afraid to use them.

And there you go. Good advice.

 

[dabrock]

Sounds like you are doing a bowl lather and not understanding the soaps you are using well enough yet. I would say start learning to face lather and get a feel for your lather as you build it. Just dip your bristles in a cup of water or the sink as you go and pay attention to the feel. As someone mentioned before, you are probably not loading enough, so load a lot more than you normally would think you need, and get a synthetic brush if you don't have one already as they tend to be very easy to use.