Difference between Proraso soap and cream?

[Steavis]

I've been an "off and on" wetshaver since 2007 (occasionally lapsing into lazy use of an electric--I have now rectified that by throwing away the electric's worn blades and putting it in storage in the garage). I've been exclusively a cream user during the periods when I was wetshaving, sticking with KMF and Trumper's Lime. My first tube of Proraso arrived today, and I'll be shaving with it tomorrow, but I'm already pretty sure Proraso is going to be my go-to cream (already lathered some up tonight, just to see what it was like ). I do want to give soap a try though too. I'm sure I'll try a puck of something else too, but I'm curious about Proraso soap.

Specifically, for those who have tried both Proraso soap and cream, is there much difference between the two? Do the characteristics differ to the same degree as most soaps and creams differ from one another? Or do they more or less lather and shave the same and just come in different packaging?

I already have a tub of Proraso soap on order so I can see for myself blush, but in the meantime I'm wondering what others' opinions are.

 

[Kevan]

Proraso soap is very soft -- typical of Italian soaps -- and quite dense. Some people call it a "hard cream," some pinch off a smidgen and lather it in a bowl. But I find that it performs best when you lather the brush directly on the soap itself. and use a boar brush. But a dense badger works well too.

The cream, true to its name, lathers a bit "creamier" than the soap but it may just be me. I have both, use both, and love both. The soap may take more water than the cream as well.

 

[Drubbing]

Yes, the soap is more of a firm cream version of the cream. I've not come across any other like this. Anyway, for me, theres no difference between the proraso soap and cream at all. So if you want to give soaps a go, best try the glycerine's, milled and tallow varieties.

I don't recommend lathering any soap on the puck, particularly proraso, you will waste mountains of it. Even with other soaps, I find the method wasteful, inconsistent for lather, and messy.

With all soaps, I use the puck to load up the brush, and that's very easy to do with Proraso, as it's so soft.

 

[Ru4scuba?]

Proraso soap is very soft -- typical of Italian soaps -- and quite dense. Some people call it a "hard cream," some pinch off a smidgen and lather it in a bowl. But I find that it performs best when you lather the brush directly on the soap itself. and use a boar brush. But a dense badger works well too.

The cream, true to its name, lathers a bit "creamier" than the soap but it may just be me. I have both, use both, and love both. The soap may take more water than the cream as well.

I would agree that the cream lathers a bit "creamier" than the soap...but I like the tub better.

 

[BroJohn]

I find that the end result to be about the same, whether using the soap or the cream.

-- John Gehman

 

[Ru4scuba?]

I find that the end result to be about the same, whether using the soap or the cream.

-- John Gehman

Sir,

Do you find the cream to have a different consistency however? I would agree with you on the result piece...dunno why, it just feels slightly different to me than the green tub.

 

[BroJohn]

Sir,

Do you find the cream to have a different consistency however? I would agree with you on the result piece...dunno why, it just feels slightly different to me than the green tub.

With the soap, I build the lather directly on the beard and get a really dense lather. Offhand, I think the lather is about the same for either format. It does take a little longer and a bit more effort using the soap cup, though.

-- John Gehman

 

[Sparafucile]

I've used them both for years, and they're pretty much the same; except that the creme is a bit easier to lather, and in a pinch, when you're short of time, you can use your fingers to lather the creme on your face.

Tye the pre/post - it's a great product - I like Proraso creme so much, I buy the 500g (yes 1.1 pound) tube!

 

[bladebuff]

The Proraso soap and cream are pretty much identical by major ingredients and perform almost identical. I get a creamier lather with the tube but enjoy using the tub a bit more. The choice is entirely up to the the shaver...but isn't that always the case. Can't go wrong with any of the Proraso products as far as I am concerned.

 

[Iakona]

best try the glycerine's, milled and tallow varieties.

This statement is a bit misleading and would seem to propogate misconceptions about "tallow" soaps.

Glycerine and Tallow both refer to ingredients in a soap. Glycerine, I guess is a bit more complicated than that, as glycerine soaps can contain tallow

The terms milled, or triple milled soap refers to the process of making the soap rather than its ingredients. Triple milled soaps can contain tallow - or not.

Jim has put together a great post on this information here:
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?p=932304#post932304

 

[Steavis]

Thanks for the input, folks. I've now tried both and find the lather to perform about the same, but I enjoy loading up the brush from the tub more than squeezing out a bit of cream--just feels more old-school and manly to me, I guess. The tube is quicker though so I will keep it around for mornings when I'm short on time.

I also ordered a jar of the Proraso pre/post along with the soap and used that this morning as a pre-shave cream--very nice. Not counting the brief periods in 2007 and 2009 I've been wetshaving for 2 weeks and today was my most irritation-free shave yet.

I'm probably changing too many variables too often, but I rediscovered a bowl of Crabtree & Evelyn Nomad soap that I bought in 2007 and I'm wanting to give that a try because it smells so darn good.

 

[squarerigger]

Thanks for the input, folks. I've now tried both and find the lather to perform about the same, but I enjoy loading up the brush from the tub more than squeezing out a bit of cream--just feels more old-school and manly to me, I guess. The tube is quicker though so I will keep it around for mornings when I'm short on time.

I also ordered a jar of the Proraso pre/post along with the soap and used that this morning as a pre-shave cream--very nice. Not counting the brief periods in 2007 and 2009 I've been wetshaving for 2 weeks and today was my most irritation-free shave yet.

I'm probably changing too many variables too often, but I rediscovered a bowl of Crabtree & Evelyn Nomad soap that I bought in 2007 and I'm wanting to give that a try because it smells so darn good.

So, what method are youu using to produce lather? I am also in the same boat but have not yet tried the soap. Any info would be helpful.

 

[kg0mz]

+1 on the tub. I find the soap "heartier."

 

[Steavis]

So, what method are youu using to produce lather? I am also in the same boat but have not yet tried the soap. Any info would be helpful.

I used the tutorial detailed in this thread (I originally found it in the "need help" sticky at the top of the Soaps forum). For me that method works wonderfully for making great lather with the Proraso soap. I've only used it a couple times, but I'm getting closer shaves and less irritation than I was with KMF cream--but it's entirely possible that that is more because my technique is improving. I feel like I'm not the most qualified to make a valid comparison, but I feel like the Proraso soap is softening the whiskers more and making them easier to cut. The KMF I was using was more moisturizing, but I can make up for that by using a bigger dollop of aftershave balm.

 

[squarerigger]

I used the tutorial detailed in this thread (I originally found it in the "need help" sticky at the top of the Soaps forum). For me that method works wonderfully for making great lather with the Proraso soap. I've only used it a couple times, but I'm getting closer shaves and less irritation than I was with KMF cream--but it's entirely possible that that is more because my technique is improving. I feel like I'm not the most qualified to make a valid comparison, but I feel like the Proraso soap is softening the whiskers more and making them easier to cut. The KMF I was using was more moisturizing, but I can make up for that by using a bigger dollop of aftershave balm.

Thanks, I saw that sticky but was unsure if that technique applied since the Proraso soap is somewhat softer than regular shaving soaps. Will give it a try this morning.

 

[DE Shaver]

As others have said, the soap and the cream are nearly identical to each other in terms of performance. The difference is in their form. I now prefer the cream for convenience but use both products interchangeable.