Cut some slices off the kilo brick and dutifully pressed them into the bottom of my ramekin of choice and went to town with my Jagger best badger. Hard water, soft water, Evian, brush angle, more soap, less soap, light of the moon, breathing exercises -- it all yields a middling lather that irritates my neck. These are fighting words, I know, but has anyone else had this experience? I'm too stubborn and cheap to give up on this block of gooey cheese just yet.
Cella: Boy, Does My Mileage Vary
- Thread starter TrivQuad
- Start date
I've only used my sample once and it seemed to lather well. Why don't you send me the rest of yours for further testing. 
Are you sure it's the Cella that irritates your neck and not your technique? My own experience with Cella leads me to believe it's the latter, rather than the former. But, if you're not convince I'm willing to test your batch out for you. Simply mail me the rest of your brick and I will post my report shortly after...
Have you tried Marco's method?
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/199887-My-lathering-technique-with-Italian-soft-soaps?
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/199887-My-lathering-technique-with-Italian-soft-soaps?
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Ha ha, ha. VDH Deluxe does not irritate my neck and seems to be slicker and provides more cushion. Call me crazy.
I went a little different with my Cella the othr day. Instead of the Marco method and/or using a scuttle, I just kept the brush and lather on the soap in the mug as if it were williams. The only water i used was a wet brush and a tablespoon or less of water. I just kept stirring and mixing till it came up as thick as I liked, then stopped mixxing. It was nice and thick on my face but still only good for one pass as it isnt slick enough for a second without a total relather. But staying on the soap and using minimal water produced a nice rich lather for me. Try staying on the soap and pretend its williams, and see how that turns out.
It's really a "different strokes for different folks" thing. You aren't the first person to have a problem with Cella. For me personally, it's the gold standard in terms of what I want from a soap. Fortunately there are a lot of great soaps out there. It could be that some of the ingredients irritate your neck. Mama Bear's soap had one scent that just set my face on fire, and all of the other scents from her were very comfortable on my face. I wouldn't keep using something and make myself miserable if I repeatedly had problems with it. Shaving is supposed to be an enjoyable experience.
Hold the buses, you're not re-lathering between passes?
I also can't use Cella, I seem to have a skin reaction that appears after the first pass. I get a stinging sensation when I re-lather for the second pass. I had to give away my red tub to a friend. Its a bit of a disappointment when you can't hang out with the cool kids.
I do lather between passes, but what I intended to convey was that my last Cella lather was very slick for the initial pass, but as soon as the razor passes over, my skin flash dries. You cant quickly reach back and hit the same spot again. There isn't a layer of slickness left after the blade passes. But mixing as I described above made a way thicker lather than I had gotten from other methods. For some reason I always ended up with frothy fluffy lather but staying on the soap fixed that for me. It could be possible he got irritation from the result of inadequate (poor) lather like I had gotten from some of my previous attempts.
Never had any allergic-type reactions to Cella, and I got to enjoy the smell after some time. Lathered fine, I just found that other soaps gave me thicker, more protective, slicker lathers. i.e. Tabac, Proraso Red, TOBS Sandalwood Soap. So Cella gets the boot from the repurchase list.
I had that once with a tub of Cella, where I couldn't get a proper lather out of it. I threw it away. A couple months later, I thought I'd try again, and it was a totally different experience with another tub. Apparently, the consistency and performance of Cella is not always the same, maybe also depending on age. I no longer use Cella because I'm a bit suspicious of the stuff in general but maybe you should try another brick or tub if you want to give it a second chance.
Cella was a dud for me too...tried to bowl lather it and just kept coming up with insipid, thin lather. Months later, I pulled it out of the Cupboard of Shame in my den, hit it with a new 620 boar and face lathered it...never went back to bowl lathering again. Cella is ALWAYS in rotation now.
There is actually a thread about some people having an adverse reaction to the almond extract. It seems to be rather common. I get a very mild irritation from all almond soaps/creams as well. I have never had an issue with Cella lathering though. It lathers very well IMO.
I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one. I like the scent and it doesn't irritate my skin but I just don't find the lather to be all that protective. I have tried a few different methods to no avail. I recently purchased a semogue boar brush and I'm hoping that it will make a difference.
I'm among those for whom Cella works very well. I notice a slight "tauntness" to my skin afterward, but it soon gives way to a very satisfying face feel.
As to lather, I have no problems at all, but then I have a water softner and creating lather is typically a non issue.
However, if Cella isn't working for you, take a pass. There are plenty of other excellent products. (Dr Harris, Mikes Natural, etc)
As to lather, I have no problems at all, but then I have a water softner and creating lather is typically a non issue.
However, if Cella isn't working for you, take a pass. There are plenty of other excellent products. (Dr Harris, Mikes Natural, etc)
I have not but of course. No one soap works for everyone. Are you sure you're loading sufficiently? It's a very common issue with various soaps. You can't treat all soaps identically and, instead, need to be able to tell when you've loaded enough no matter what soap you're using. That is, assuming that it's not an ingredient in the soap causing the irritation. Your "middling lather" makes it sound as if it's not an allergic reaction. It is certainly possible to get excellent lather with Cella and if you're not getting good lather it is probably a matter of technique.
Cella's not my favorite soap but it's definitely a good soap -- particularly for the price.
Any reason you picked up the brick if you've never used it before? Definitely try soaps before you settle on them.
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I'm with Max...I also do not have any issues with Cella, but there are other Italian soaps that work better for me. I'd suggest Antica Barbieria Colla Bitter Almond, Boellis Panama 1924, Panna Crema, TFS BDF Mistero, QCS Shave Cream, DR Harris, Etc, Etc.
I have super hard water with Calcium Carbonate ane Iron levels FAR above normal levels and it lathers fine for me...I think that perhaps you must not be loading adequate product onto your brush. I can lather it with any brush type, so I do not think it's the brush itself...More than likely it is amount of product on the brush when you start lathering, or lack of water in the mix.
I typically add water 3 to 5 times during creating of the lather, perhaps 3 drops per time until the lather is yogurt-like. And i face-lather, so...
The Italian soaps like water, especially the ones containing Tallowates and Lanolin together. I also soak the soap top with water before the shave, and then pour the soap-dilute through the brush before I start to load.
I have super hard water with Calcium Carbonate ane Iron levels FAR above normal levels and it lathers fine for me...I think that perhaps you must not be loading adequate product onto your brush. I can lather it with any brush type, so I do not think it's the brush itself...More than likely it is amount of product on the brush when you start lathering, or lack of water in the mix.
I typically add water 3 to 5 times during creating of the lather, perhaps 3 drops per time until the lather is yogurt-like. And i face-lather, so...
The Italian soaps like water, especially the ones containing Tallowates and Lanolin together. I also soak the soap top with water before the shave, and then pour the soap-dilute through the brush before I start to load.
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Mileage definitely varies from person to person. One thing I can guarantee, if you put it on BST it won't last long.
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