face lathering technique
- Thread starter jonwilson
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It's not for me because I don't put my brush directly on my soap.
FWIW, my technique is to peel (hard soap) or scoop (soft soap) about 1/8 teaspoon of soap and press it to the bottom of my lathering bowl, then lather with a damp (not wet) brush. I then slowly add water with a 2 oz. fingertip sprayer. Works great for me!
FWIW, my technique is to peel (hard soap) or scoop (soft soap) about 1/8 teaspoon of soap and press it to the bottom of my lathering bowl, then lather with a damp (not wet) brush. I then slowly add water with a 2 oz. fingertip sprayer. Works great for me!
In using his technique you need to load your brush with a lot of soap. He states that, but it should be emphasized more. If you don't load the brush enough, you may break the lather by adding too much water. He does make great lathers.
I want it dripping wet and reload and rewet at least twice during a complete beard and head shave,
I tried it when I was feeling like my lather was top dry or bubbly. I got the best lather that I ever got until that day. Since then, I changed my technique just because I liked it more. Loading a brush heavy with slightly damp brush, swirling in a bowl and adding a few drops of water when it gets pasty. Once it stops getring pasty, I keep adding the water more frequently and working the brush more lightly. I get a dripping wet lather that's still thick and crazy slick.
A couple of things I like:
He really loads up his brush with soap.
He face lathers, therefore he can feel the lather on his face, where it is needed.
A couple of things I don't like:
He discourages the use of natural fiber brushes (i.e., boar, badger).
He squeezes the lather out of his brush at the very end. Its much faster if you squeeze it out as you build the lather and use the brush to paint it back on the face. That way the soap mixes better with the water right away. Less potential for brush burn.
Its one of the more reasonable techniques you can find on Youtube, but I've been a face latherer for 50 years, except for 2 months when I joined B&B last October and tried bowl lathering. I am biased toward face lathering.
He really loads up his brush with soap.
He face lathers, therefore he can feel the lather on his face, where it is needed.
A couple of things I don't like:
He discourages the use of natural fiber brushes (i.e., boar, badger).
He squeezes the lather out of his brush at the very end. Its much faster if you squeeze it out as you build the lather and use the brush to paint it back on the face. That way the soap mixes better with the water right away. Less potential for brush burn.
Its one of the more reasonable techniques you can find on Youtube, but I've been a face latherer for 50 years, except for 2 months when I joined B&B last October and tried bowl lathering. I am biased toward face lathering.
I mostly bowl lather but should I face lather I always use this technique. Works for me.
I can see why it works - start with a too dry brush and add tons of soap, add water until ready. How could you go wrong? It's too slow for me, and I'm guessing there's a fair amount of lather going down the drain at the end of all of that.
If you leave a little more water in the brush it doesn't take that long to load, but whatever works for you is good.
If you leave a little more water in the brush it doesn't take that long to load, but whatever works for you is good.
That’s… exorbitantly excessive. He’s got probably 5-6 passes available for a good shave.
I prioritize slickness over volume and cushion, and regulate razor pressure, angle and technique generally to get a smooth shave. straight users prefer a wetter lather, and that’s where I really dialed in what works for me.
Face lathering is the hardest learning curve to dial in, but if you have a bowl lather that works for you, just do the same process on your face (I pick up lather directly on the puck/stick on face, which is trickier still to dial in the right proportions). His painting on paste goes way longer than mine, before I start the swirl/build phase. Get it on the portions that will be shaved, build it, paint everywhere to even out the coverage is my method.
It’s really just trial and error and practice to get there. If you get face burn, synthetics help I’m sure. I use boar/badger. And as light a pressure with the brush as necessary. I did burn my face some starting out, and I attribute that to pressure and maybe mostly with horse hair. But again, self-induced pain from bad technique.
You don’t have to build a 3-__ pass lather on the first go. If you need to load more soap, load more soap. If it needs more water, add more water. If it all falls apart, start over. It’s just shaving.
Face lathering was worth dialing in for me, and learning to use sticks as well because it made traveling shaves dead simple and the same quality anywhere. The only variable then was water hardness. My well went hard on me and I figured that out too after getting tired of buying bottled water. I suspect I can shave anywhere now, with minor adjustments.
I prioritize slickness over volume and cushion, and regulate razor pressure, angle and technique generally to get a smooth shave. straight users prefer a wetter lather, and that’s where I really dialed in what works for me.
Face lathering is the hardest learning curve to dial in, but if you have a bowl lather that works for you, just do the same process on your face (I pick up lather directly on the puck/stick on face, which is trickier still to dial in the right proportions). His painting on paste goes way longer than mine, before I start the swirl/build phase. Get it on the portions that will be shaved, build it, paint everywhere to even out the coverage is my method.
It’s really just trial and error and practice to get there. If you get face burn, synthetics help I’m sure. I use boar/badger. And as light a pressure with the brush as necessary. I did burn my face some starting out, and I attribute that to pressure and maybe mostly with horse hair. But again, self-induced pain from bad technique.
You don’t have to build a 3-__ pass lather on the first go. If you need to load more soap, load more soap. If it needs more water, add more water. If it all falls apart, start over. It’s just shaving.
Face lathering was worth dialing in for me, and learning to use sticks as well because it made traveling shaves dead simple and the same quality anywhere. The only variable then was water hardness. My well went hard on me and I figured that out too after getting tired of buying bottled water. I suspect I can shave anywhere now, with minor adjustments.
It's quite possible that I'm "doing it wrong" but I've never spent anywhere near that amount of time building a lather--in a bowl or on my face. I mean, for me, half the point of face lathering is it's quick.
This is my approach too.
I think I'll keep bowl lathering. This face lathering seems to take way too much effort. By the time he has his lather going, I'd be on my second or third pass....lol
I don't use a bowl anymore, and only load my brush once, paint my beard to distribute the soap, then go straight to scrubbing and building the lather on my face, dipping the brush to add water as needed. I know his painting strokes are to add water, but I can get there a bit quicker, using a lot less soap.
To each their own, but once you can get a repeatably good face lather built, it’s not any slower to me than a bowl. And it’s one less thing to clean. And plenty of guys think it’s part of the face prepping by building the lather on their faces.
It’s all about the practice and iterations for me.
LOL...
Ever notice how bowl latherers say face lathering is too slow, too time consuming, while face latherers say bowl lathering is too slow, too time consuming.
Ever notice how bowl latherers say face lathering is too slow, too time consuming, while face latherers say bowl lathering is too slow, too time consuming.
I have found that to be the key to quick and foolproof face lathering, particularly with bigger brushes. I don't load for nearly as long as he does, and after working the lather into my face a bit if I need more lather I pass the brush between my thumb and index finger on my left hand to deposit lather on the back of my hand. I can then paint that onto my face. Often I don't need to do that until the second pass.
... You don’t have to build a 3-__ pass lather on the first go. If you need to load more soap, load more soap. If it needs more water, add more water. If it all falls apart, start over. It’s just shaving.
Right on Brother!
It takes me about 5 seconds to load my brush and maybe another 8 to 10 seconds to build a lather on my face and start the shave. Some people just put way too much thought into this. Its lather! Make it creamy not bubbly and get more soap if you need.
Right on Brother!
It takes me about 5 seconds to load my brush and maybe another 8 to 10 seconds to build a lather on my face and start the shave. Some people just put way too much thought into this. Its lather! Make it creamy not bubbly and get more soap if you need.
is there a way to paint on lather without scrubbing the face. i paint paste on and then dip in water and paint and then dip water and paint till it looks shiny and yogurt like. is this valid. it works but the lather is pretty thin and not quite as slick as i get with scrubbing. but scrubbing irritates my face and i cant get a decent distribution of the kind of lather i like with the bowlk method. i only get a good distribution of bowl lather if its on the dryer side and ive noticed by painting on its actually quicker that way than with scrubbing maybe ill try with very very lkittle scrubbing maybe one scrubbinbg pass on my face for very quick
Funny you asking. I used to lather in a bowl and this exact video changed me to the lather on the face team. I do it just like him in the video.
if it works for you, it works for you.
palm lathering is very much like bowl lathering, but you can scrub and squeeze out and scrub and build, then just paint it on your face to limit brush burn. and it's a simple travel technique to cut down things to bring.
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