Do I make lather differently than most?

[RumpleBearskin]

This is not a post about problems making lather. My lathers are just fine, thank you very much. But, I'm wondering if I am doing something a little differently than all the HowTos, Wikis, YouTubes, and other "How to make a lather" information out there.

I believe that all the instruction out there assumes that the lather in your bowl should be the final lather that you shave with. They all go for the "yogurt", "shiny", "smooth", thing that you then just paint on your face and shave. But what works best for me is to stop short of the final desired lather when making it in the bowl. It's "thicker", "pasty-er", and less "smooth" than all those videos. I then apply to my face, add water to my brush, and build the final "yogurt", "shiny", "smooth" consistency on my face, adding water as needed and wiping excess back to the bowl if necessary. This give me the best control and always gives me a great lather where I need it, on my face.

So my (of course, YMMV) steps to a "perfect" lather are:

1. (Optional for really hard soaps) Bloom the soap while I shower
2. Soak brush while I shower
3. (Optional for scuttle users) Heat/cool scuttle while I shower
4. Squeeze/shake out most of the water from the brush (not ALL of it, just most of it)
5. "Load it like I hate it" ... Always (I do NOT skimp on product)
6. Transfer to the bowl/scuttle and start building
   1. It will "smear" on the inside of the bowl
   2. The idea is to get it evenly distributed through the brush and on the inside of the bowl
   3. Add a trickle of water to the brush and continue
   4. Repeat until the lather begins to build and you can see "brush marks" and/or very firm peaks (no folding over on itself) throughout what's on the brush and in the bowl. (To me it looks "pasty", but like a wet paste.)
   5. Continue to add water. The lather will continue to build.
   6. Stop adding water when the lather just starts to smooth out, and you can see the barest hint of a "sheen" developing
      1. If you go too far, it's easy to go back to the soap and add more product
7. At this point you can start applying the "heavy" lather to your face
8. Add water to the brush in small trickles and continue building the lather on your face
   1. Repeat as necessary until you reach the desired consistency
   2. If necessary along the way, wipe any excess from your brush back into the bowl
   3. If it thins too much, get some "heavy" lather from your bowl and apply to your face.
      1. If necessary, start "thinning" it again

This process allows you to create whatever consistency of lather you want. It's easy to tune and to adjust during the shave.

I also think it's what most of us do already, but I haven't see anyone emphasize the heavier consistency in the bowl with the secondary refinement on your face. Just thought I'd put it out there in case it makes a light bulb go on for someone.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

I tend to load just enough soap* with a dryish brush, and that pastey stuff goes on the face. Pick up a little water, and face lather, adding water as needed. Some soaps which are slow starters (MdC for one) do need starting off in a bowl, but otherwise I skip that.

*sometimes I don't load enough and have to go back for more. I don't see this as a failing.

 

[ackvil]

Glad that works for you. For me, it's washing my face with facial soap and water. I then load my wet brush with a soap or cream, wet my face, apply the brush to my face working the lather until it gets to the consistency I want.

 

[BigJ]

Interesting step-by-step procedure!

My approach depends on the particular soap as the optimal soap to water ratio changes.

In general, I use a four-step procedure:
1. I wash my face and leave it wet.
2. Then take a wet brush to the puck, where I load heavily.
3. The loaded brush is used to build lather on my face.
4. I add a few drops of water at a time until I get the lather I like!

For me, the hardest part was to figure out that my preferred lather is ‘slick and shiny’ rather than the thick yougurt like stuff often shown in many videos!!

 

[Dave-the-rave]

It's like rocket science. Some guys use syringes and some count water droplets. Some count swirls.
Some design bowls specifically for the task. Some pay fortunes for bowls. Some buy a particular water.

I just rub my brush on soap then rub it on my face. I ain't no stinkin rocket scientist.

 

[musicman1951]

The answer to your question is: yes.

But nobody cares. Some people face lather, some bowl lather, some palm lather, and apparently at least one does a hybrid bowl/face lather. The only thing that matters is good lather for shaving, and you've got that covered.

I both bowl and face lather, but one at a time. I find no difference in the quality of my lather. You can learn to lather in many different ways and they all work.

Enjoy your shaves.

 

[ClemsonTigerz]

It's like rocket science. Some guys use syringes and some count water droplets. Some count swirls.
Some design bowls specifically for the task. Some pay fortunes for bowls. Some buy a particular water.

I just rub my brush on soap then rub it on my face. I ain't no stinkin rocket scientist.

You just reminded me of that movie “Stripes” where Bill Murray says, “We’re not goin’ to Moscow, it’s Czechoslovakia, it’s like going to Wisconsin!” Alas, like his buddy, some people got the you-know-what kicked out of them in Wisconsin..... same thing with lathering apparently. Everyone has their Wisconsin....

 

[Atlantic59]

What is this "bowl" you speak of?



Soap + water in the right ratio produces lather, there's many ways that will work.

 

[DTrem5]

I just soak my brush, boar or badger, shake a couple of times then swirl on soap or add cream to the brush then face lather.

I hate using a dry brush, blooming soaps or measuring things. Wet brushes have never failed producing a nice lather for me. Dry brushes don’t feel good on my face either. I also don’t shave with really aggressive razors that I need to protect my face with absolutely perfect lather.

 

[BudgetShaverGuy]

shower
take synth brush, razor, and shave-stick out of cabinet
wet face
rub a light film of shave-stick film on my face (no pasty lather for me ever)
flood synthetic with warm water, let it drain upside down for a few seconds
face-lather for less than a minute adding a little water as I go
shave for 2 passes and touch-ups

this is as simple as I can make it and I love it, it's consistent and works every time, like clock-work

 

[fistfullofbeer]

Glad that works for you. For me, it's washing my face with facial soap and water. I then load my wet brush with a soap or cream, wet my face, apply the brush to my face working the lather until it gets to the consistency I want.

I think this is where I have been screwing up big time. The light bulb kind of went off after my last shave where I realized that my first pass was always less 'smooth' than my later ones.

I would get out of the shower and then splash my face with water. Load my brush and then lather on. I think by that time my face was not as wet and as a result the lather was not that good which in turn resulted in an average to poor first pass. Need to remember to load the brush up and then splash my face with water.

 

[samhain666]

I tend to load just enough soap* with a dryish brush, and that pastey stuff goes on the face. Pick up a little water, and face lather, adding water as needed. Some soaps which are slow starters (MdC for one) do need starting off in a bowl, but otherwise I skip that.

*sometimes I don't load enough and have to go back for more. I don't see this as a failing.

EXACTLY the same! Except I never "start" in bowl, all products I use go to face directly

 

[RayClem]

Your procedure is similar to that used by Michael Freedberg in his shaving videos (which are no longer being produced. He presses his soap into the bottom of what he calls his "loading bowl" and then generates a thick proto lather in the bowl. He applies this lather to his face and then face lathers, adding additional water until he gets the lather properly hydrated.

You can view some of his older videos here:

Michael Freedberg

My channel is currently dedicated to wetshaving product reviews and tutorials on various aspects of wetshaving, including how to build a perfect lather from ...

www.youtube.com

There are many ways of producing a lather. As long as you end up with an appropriately hydrated lather, there is no "wrong" way. However, everyone thinks their specific way is best. Some soaps, however, seem to work best when water is added slowly, but with others it does not matter.

 

[Steinmetzify]

It's like rocket science. Some guys use syringes and some count water droplets. Some count swirls.
Some design bowls specifically for the task. Some pay fortunes for bowls. Some buy a particular water.

I just rub my brush on soap then rub it on my face. I ain't no stinkin rocket scientist.

This. I’m usually in a hurry. Marco method for me. Fast and easy. I don’t have time/patience for adding drops of water to get the ‘perfect consistency’.