Hard creams/soft soaps - how do you lather them? Directly in the bowl?

[_MementoMori_]

Sorry if that's unclear. I'm a bit buzzed at the moment. I'm referring to soaps like Cella or The Body Shop Maca Root. Do you guys stick your brush right into the containers, or do you spoon a bit out and lather in a bowl or on your face? Something tells me that spooning a portion out into a lather bowl or directly onto the brush and then face is the way to go.

Thanks in advance!

 

[jgkeegan]

Oh my. Quite often I whisk my brush into the container. Other times, I grab a bit of cream on my finger, and place that on the brush and then face lather.

But then, I am doing all of this in the shower!!

 

[Leche]

I just give the brush a few swirls to pick up a bit of soap (in the container) and then face lather away. You could go to a bowl also.

 

[azmark]

Pretty much do all my creams by loading on brush and going to a bowl.

 

[kg0mz]

For me it's 10 or more revolutions of the brush in the soft soap/hard cream, and then on to the scuttle. My brush spends most of its waking hours in the scuttle and not on my face. I know some brushes get a workout on a face, but not mine. I don't particularly like lathering on my face, and in my experience is it doesn't add much to my preparation. Well, A couple of elders have told me I'm missing the point of owning a brush. Maybe so.

 

[mitasol]

I just got my first soap - a Proraso. What I do is swirl a brush on the soap and then grab my empty TOBS container and lather in there - I add a little moisture as needed.

 

[johsa]

I load hard creams like Cella the same way as soaps.

 

[cymric]

I'm referring to soaps like Cella or The Body Shop Maca Root.

Ahm... You're confused a bit I'm afraid. Bodyshop is a cream, not a soft soap. A cream is so soft and sticky it really has a cream-like consistency. A soft soap on the other hand is more like silly putty: if you press your finger on it the product will yield, but not as easily. Also, there will be very little product sticking to your finger compared to the cream case. (Of course some products are stickier than others: Valobra soft soap is noticably stickier than Cella or P.160, for example.)

One loads soft soaps as if they are hard soaps, so by taking a damp brush to their surface and then through a combination of gentle swirling and dissolving working soap into the brush; one loads creams either by gently pressing the brush into the cream, or by scooping out a small amount and putting that in a bowl or onto the brush, whatever one prefers. It's better for the cream if one uses the scooping method, otherwise the moisture in the brush might negatively affect the quality of the remaining cream.

 

[_MementoMori_]

Ahm... You're confused a bit I'm afraid. Bodyshop is a cream, not a soft soap. A cream is so soft and sticky it really has a cream-like consistency. A soft soap on the other hand is more like silly putty: if you press your finger on it the product will yield, but not as easily. Also, there will be very little product sticking to your finger compared to the cream case. (Of course some products are stickier than others: Valobra soft soap is noticably stickier than Cella or P.160, for example.)

One loads soft soaps as if they are hard soaps, so by taking a damp brush to their surface and then through a combination of gentle swirling and dissolving working soap into the brush; one loads creams either by gently pressing the brush into the cream, or by scooping out a small amount and putting that in a bowl or onto the brush, whatever one prefers. It's better for the cream if one uses the scooping method, otherwise the moisture in the brush might negatively affect the quality of the remaining cream.

I know The Body Shop Maca Root is a cream. I intended the "hard cream/soft soap" descriptor to serve as a sort of catch-all for products with this consistency. Thanks for your input on how to load the two materials though. Your thinking is in line with mine there. I'll probably do this in the manner you suggested going forward.

 

[PhatMan]

David,

For Cella & P160, I spoon out a small dollop, and smear it onto the end of my soaked and shaken out shaving brush, I then swirl it vigorously in my shaving bowl, adding very, very small amounts of water until the dollop has worked itself into a paste. Proceed with lather making as usual. Takes longer to describe than to do !

Have fun !

Best regards

Russ

 

[Luc]

I charge the brush then face lather!

 

[pghwetshaver]

In the bowl after 10-15 swirls on the cake with my Tabac.

 

[Klopstick]

Swirl directly on the soap with lightly shaken brush with Cella or P160(duro), just like any soap. It just picks up a bit faster than something like Tabac.

 

[Empty Words]

I produce lather with soft soaps the same way I do with hard soaps: directly on the soap. After about 30 seconds of loading the brush I then face lather. Though with Cella, I find the red container too small so I transferred the soap to an Anchor Hocking glass bowl. I have a few shaving creams in tubs that are old and have become dry, so I lather those like a soap.