Confusing Product! First Shave with Neutrogena Shave "Cream"

[scottish steve]

Last night I noticed 'Neutrogena Men Skin Clearing Shave Cream' in the local supermarket and thought "Wow! A real shaving cream at last!" I have just used it. It's 30 yuan for 150mL, comes in the non-pressurised squeezy container that all facewashes seem to and the directions had me confused.
"Unlike shave foams and gels a thin layer is all you need. Massage a Quarter-size amount on wet skin..."
Well, I can't remember how big a quarter is so I warmed a bowl and brush and plopped some into it along with some Nivea Extreme Comfort Shaving Gel just to make sure. Er, the lather disappeared. Try as I might I could not get one to form. I decided to shave anyway and it was ok, if unconventional. After a while I got rid of the gel and just used more "Cream". This was soaked up by the brush in seconds but I managed to get some on my face and it provided high slickness and didn't seem to clog the razor. This is an oil-free formula, which I like as I hate getting the oil out of a brush. After a while I had a revelation and ditched the brush, simply smearing the "cream" onto my face. It stayed there. It isn't like using canned goop, which refuses to adhere to your face, but seemed to form a consistent layer on top of my skin. Despite my faffing about I had decided to really put this 'cream' through it's paces so I did a five pass shave this morning, with a cartridge no less. No irritation, extremely smooth. Job well done. I finished with lavender oil and aloe vera.
So some advice to anyone who sees this product and wants to try it- don't use a brush and don't expect it to lather at all. It's a 'micro-barrier' not a cream; misleadingly labelled but very good nonetheless.
I'm going to try minimalist shaving for a bit- a Dorco TG-II cartridge and the Neutrogena.
No brush, no bowl, no selection of classic Safety Razors and exotic blades from around the world.
Two products plus a natural oil as a balm (but I'm going to step down to three passes and see if I can ditch the balm, leaving myself with what I believe is the fewest possible items with which to shave) I wish I had a straight with me, but alas.

 

[nrv216]

Weird, is it similar to Jack Black beard lube? That is all I am picturing based on your description. It doesn't lather but lubricates and was good for cartridge shaving. I have never tried it with a straight.

nrv216

 

[Go West Young Man]

It's definitely a cream, just a non-lathering one.

 

[bpire2002]

Ive got to try it, thanks

 

[scottish steve]

I hope you like it. It certainly seems to have had more thought put into it than foams etc. I think it would be great for a straight. I've always wanted to get 2 or 3 of those rubber thumbpad things designed to count money with, to have slippage-free skin-stretching.

 

[mikey]

Hello Steve,

I mean no disrespect but:

What did you expect? Why is it such a revelation? How is this product confusing? It was designed to go on thin and to be used brushless and says so right on the package.

Thanks,
Mike

 

[Toxic515]

I bought the same stuff a while back, and proceeded to try to use it with a brush as well. Then I read the instructions. It works, but I don't like it nearly as much as a lathering cream / soap. I have used it a time or two as a pre-shave. It doesn't do as well, IMHO, as Shave Secret for that. It'll probably go bad before I use all of it, I just don't care for it all that much at all. Perhaps I'll try it later today to see if I revise my opinion. YMMV, of course, as always.

 

[Tim_McD]

This was my go to product before I made the switch to wet-shaving soaps and creams. I would use this in the shower along with my cartridge razor.

I think that it was better than any canned goo or foam that I previously used, as it is free of propellants and other add-ins that can dry out your skin. I still have a tube or two kicking around that I may loop back to someday or - more likely - PIF to someone still using a can.

 

[scottish steve]

Hello Steve,

I mean no disrespect but:

What did you expect? Why is it such a revelation? How is this product confusing? It was designed to go on thin and to be used brushless and says so right on the package.

Thanks,
Mike

I've never used something like this before. I think it would be like giving the instructions to use CF Cream to somebody who had never used anything other than canned stuff and seeing his reaction.
I did a 3-pass this morning with no ASB and it's not quite as good. Tomorrow I'll try with a SS and see if that makes a difference.

 

[mblakele]

Is the version you are using the same as this one? http://www.drugstore.com/neutrogena-men-skin-clearing-shave-cream/qxp72470?catid=183783

Active Ingredients: Salicylic Acid (1%)

Inactive Ingredients: Water, Cetearyl Alcohol, C12 15 Alkyl Benzoate, Glycerin, Steareth 21, PEG 7 Olivate, Steareth 2, Polysorbate 60, Dimethicone, Aloe Vera (Aloe Barbadensis) Extract, Propylene Glycol, Tocopheryl Acetate (Vitamin E), Pantothenic Acid, Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C), Retinyl Acetate (Vitamin A), Potassium Cetyl Phosphate, Xanthan Gum, Tetrasodium EDTA, Menthyl Lactate, Benzyl Alcohol, Polymethylmethacrylate, Fragrance

It does not look like it would lather: no saponified fats or hydroxides, and no surfactants that I recognize. On the other hand the salicylic acid might help folks who are prone to ingrown hairs. Presumably the glycerin, aloe, and Vitamin E are good for the skin, too.

 

[Renato1]

It says "No foam formula" on the tube. I guess you just haven't come across similar stuff like Jack Black Beard Lube, the Menscience one, or the numerous shaving oils (i.e. not pre-shave oils, but shaving oils). Admittedly what comes out of them is clear rather than cream looking.

One advantage these latherless ones have is that you can see exactly where you are shaving, and what is coming off.

Also, I've been told in other threads, that if you use a tinier amount than that "quarter amount" they recommend, they do also make good pre-shaves to enhance normal soaps and creams.
Regards,
Renato