What's new

Dumb question about face-lathering tube cream

Over the past month I have abandoned my beautiful Captain's Choice aquamarine bowl, and have been face lathering my TOBS creams and hard soaps by loading my wet brush and creating the lather on my beard/face.

So...what is the technique for face lathering cream (like Tabac and Proraso) in a tube?...smear it on your face and lather with a wet brush?...squeeze a dollop onto the wet brush and face lather?

Curious about the methods you all use.
 
I do the face route. Some guys add a dab of cream to different corners of the face and then lather. I prefer rubbing some in my hands and then applying it to the face like you would a brushless cream. Then lathering. It's a bit messier but I like having an even coat across the face to start with.
 
I usually squeeze a small amount onto the tip of my finger. I distribute this by dabbing a bit on each cheek, my chin, and neck (probably overkill). I then wipe my finger and any remaining cream onto my damp brush.

Next I spread the cream on my face and neck using painting strokes with my brush until evenly coated. I then start dipping the tips of the brush in water to hydrate the lather with additional painting and/or swirling strokes until ready to get after it with the razor.

Done properly, my brush is loaded with enough lather for three or more passes.

Good luck 👍
 
Last edited:
I squeeze some onto a wet brush, but I'm sure it would work either way. Or both.

I do the face route. Some guys add a dab of cream to different corners of the face and then lather. I prefer rubbing some in my hands and then applying it to the face like you would a brushless cream. Then lathering. It's a bit messier but I like having an even coat across the face to start with.

I face lather like 80% of the Time... My method is as follows...

1. Put a dollup on a wet brush.
2. Distribute the cream on the top of the brush bristles with muy fingers.
3. Rub muy soapy hand as preshave on muy face.
4. Lather on my face with the brush...

Cheers

I usually squeeze a small amount onto the tip of my finger. I distribute this by dabbing a bit on each cheek, my chin, and neck (probably overkill). I then wipe my finger and any remaining cream onto my damp brush.

Next I spread the cream on my face and neck using painting strokes with my brush until evenly coated. I then start dipping the tips of the brush in water to hydrate the lather with additional painting and/or swirling strokes until ready to get after it with the razor.

Done properly, my brush is loaded with enough lather for three or more passes.

Good luck 👍

I'm gonna try em all. 🙂👍
 
TLDR: @gpjoe, thanks for asking the question because it prompted me to try something different and learn something new.

I went to brush my teeth a few minutes ago after eating dinner. When I squeezed the toothpaste onto the brush, I thought about this thread. Wait a second... I didn't dab a bit of toothpaste on each tooth! No, I put a bit on the brush as I've done since I was a kid and started brushing my teeth.

So I grabbed a shave brush and a tube of Proraso to try the same thing. I used the method as described by @Big_T and @ajkel64 in previous posts in this thread.

I'm very happy with the results and this may be what I'll be doing in the future when face-lathering shaving creams from a tube. This method is both simple and effective. Live and learn...
:cool:
 
Last edited:
Damp brush, but not dripping wet. Synthetic brushes will release too much water into a cream making for a miserable lathering experience. Natural hair brushes are therefore my preference for face lathering Proraso cream. Start with a less hydrated brush, and you can always add water as you go.

I also like to bury the cream in the center of the knot about a half inch below the top surface.
 
TLDR: @gpjoe, thanks for asking the question because it prompted me to try something different and learn something new.

I went to brush my teeth a few minutes ago after eating dinner. When I squeezed the toothpaste onto the brush, I thought about this thread. Wait a second... I didn't dab a bit of toothpaste on each tooth! No, I put a bit on the brush as I've done since I was a kid and started brushing my teeth.

So I grabbed a shave brush and a tube of Proraso to try the same thing. I used the method as described by @Big_T and @ajkel64 in previous posts in this thread.

I'm very happy with the results and this may be what I'll be doing in the future when face-lathering shaving creams from a tube. This method is both simple and effective. Live and learn...
:cool:

I squeeze a healthy bit INTO the center of a wet brush and go crazy on my moistened face.

Makes for a robust lather but can create a splash zone if you’re not careful

Damp brush, but not dripping wet. Synthetic brushes will release too much water into a cream making for a miserable lathering experience. Natural hair brushes are therefore my preference for face lathering Proraso cream. Start with a less hydrated brush, and you can always add water as you go.

I also like to bury the cream in the center of the knot about a half inch below the top surface.

This makes sense and is similar to loading the brush with cream from a tub.

I'm still going to try some different methods to figure out which I prefer.
 
Over the past month I have abandoned my beautiful Captain's Choice aquamarine bowl, and have been face lathering my TOBS creams and hard soaps by loading my wet brush and creating the lather on my beard/face.

So...what is the technique for face lathering cream (like Tabac and Proraso) in a tube?...smear it on your face and lather with a wet brush?...squeeze a dollop onto the wet brush and face lather?

Curious about the methods you all use.
I use LEA cream in tubes and Cyril R. Salter in tubs. The key difference I've found between my creams and hard soaps is the creams can be lathered faster as I skip the typical 45-60 second brush soap loading/proto lather generation step and go right to face lathering.

While from other B&Ber posts it appears that most any lathering approach that work with soap, once the brush is loaded, will work with creams I've had success by either spreading the dollop of cream on my wet face or placing in directly into the brush before face lathering. While my preference leans towards the former approach my recommendation would be to experiment with both approaches and do whichever you prefer. I've found that the lather quality from either method is the same. The key for me was dialing in the right cream/water ration for each product to generate my preferred lather.
 

Raven Koenes

My precious!
I put a dollop in a bowl with about a tablespoon of water. Then I prep my face with a warm washcloth for a couple of minutes. I wet the brush and shake the water out, I use an Omega Evo synthetic. I then load the brush from the bowl swirling it until the tips are white. Then I fill the bowl with hot water for dipping the tips of the brush as I face lather.
 
I put a dollop in a bowl with about a tablespoon of water. Then I prep my face with a warm washcloth for a couple of minutes. I wet the brush and shake the water out, I use an Omega Evo synthetic. I then load the brush from the bowl swirling it until the tips are white. Then I fill the bowl with hot water for dipping the tips of the brush as I face lather.

Oh no!...I'm PIF'ing my Captains Choice bowl. I suppose I could use any old mug, or just put a dab in the palm of my hand.
 
Usually very much a soap guy but on those occasions when I use a cream I just put a dollop directly on the bristles of a wet brush and then right to the face. Seems to work better for me than the other options mentioned.
 
There's more than one way to skin the cat.

The old Italian barber technique is to put a blob of shaving cream into the middle of your damp brush knot and work the cream into the knot a bit with your fingers. Spread the cream that's left on your hand onto the face, then start face lathering with the brush. Add a bit of water to the brush two or three times to get the right lather consistency.
 
There's more than one way to skin the cat.

The old Italian barber technique is to put a blob of shaving cream into the middle of your damp brush knot and work the cream into the knot a bit with your fingers. Spread the cream that's left on your hand onto the face, then start face lathering with the brush. Add a bit of water to the brush two or three times to get the right lather consistency.
Definitely a great method for boar brushes
 
Top Bottom