Do you vary your loading and lathering techniques for different shaving soaps and creams or do you use a standard method regardless of what you are shaving with? If the former how do you adjust to get the best out of each soap or cream? If the latter what is your technique and what products work well for you?
We have lots of posts regarding how we adjust our shaving techniques for different DE razors based on aggressiveness, blade used, etc. While there is some discussion there are far fewer posts regarding adjusting our loading and lathering techniques for different shaving soaps and creams or we just focus a post on the technique for a specific product. If anything we tend to have a favorite method for doing this across all of our soaps. For example one of our highly respected members significantly downgrades a soap if loading take more than roughly 20 seconds. Not surprising that many of us have our favorite methods as building lather is one of our favorite zen like activities in the wet shaving process.
We started to touch on this topic in one of our Mitchell's Wool Fat (MWF) threads (link at bottom below, see posts #148-152) as there are both a wide variety of perspectives and lathering techniques for this soap. Successful MWF shavers often use one or more of a variety of techniques from use of a stiffer brush, loading longer (often a full minute) or blooming the puck to enable a shorter loading time. Shavers who try using a really hard puck like MWF or Williams may be challenged to generate enough good lather if the only load for a short period with a small soft brush.
If, like razors and blades, different soaps require adjustments to technique then could many of the lather issues we hear about be the result of use of the wrong lathering technique for the specific soap? Understanding this and the ideal lathering approach for the different soaps out there would be helpful. Based on preferences we could then either adjust our techniques as needed to get the most out of each shaving soap/cream or only select those products that work with our preferred methods. Additionally we can provide fellow B&Bers with more helpful reviews with specifics on how the soap or cream was used to generate the reported result.
I'll go first. Most of what is use are hard soaps including MWF, Williams, Tabac, Razorock What the Puck, Tcheon Fung Sing Red Bowl (TFS), Arko, Derby stick, Van Der Hagen and custom Van Der Williams blends. Also use one croap, Proraso Red, and just started using some LEA and Cyril R. Salter shaving creams. I always use the product as it was made, no blooming, dry hard puck, cream straight from the container etc, and I face lather. To get the most out of each product adjustments to my lathering technique were required as follows:
Usual YMMV disclaimer here as our preferred techniques and lather characteristics will vary. Realize there are other selection factors such as scent, ingredients sensitivities, artwork etc that also come into play. The question here is, to get the lather you want, from each of your shaving soaps or creams, how do you adjust your technique or do you stick with a preferred lathering method and only select products that work with it?
Best wishes to everyone for a happy holiday season!
www.badgerandblade.com
We have lots of posts regarding how we adjust our shaving techniques for different DE razors based on aggressiveness, blade used, etc. While there is some discussion there are far fewer posts regarding adjusting our loading and lathering techniques for different shaving soaps and creams or we just focus a post on the technique for a specific product. If anything we tend to have a favorite method for doing this across all of our soaps. For example one of our highly respected members significantly downgrades a soap if loading take more than roughly 20 seconds. Not surprising that many of us have our favorite methods as building lather is one of our favorite zen like activities in the wet shaving process.
We started to touch on this topic in one of our Mitchell's Wool Fat (MWF) threads (link at bottom below, see posts #148-152) as there are both a wide variety of perspectives and lathering techniques for this soap. Successful MWF shavers often use one or more of a variety of techniques from use of a stiffer brush, loading longer (often a full minute) or blooming the puck to enable a shorter loading time. Shavers who try using a really hard puck like MWF or Williams may be challenged to generate enough good lather if the only load for a short period with a small soft brush.
If, like razors and blades, different soaps require adjustments to technique then could many of the lather issues we hear about be the result of use of the wrong lathering technique for the specific soap? Understanding this and the ideal lathering approach for the different soaps out there would be helpful. Based on preferences we could then either adjust our techniques as needed to get the most out of each shaving soap/cream or only select those products that work with our preferred methods. Additionally we can provide fellow B&Bers with more helpful reviews with specifics on how the soap or cream was used to generate the reported result.
I'll go first. Most of what is use are hard soaps including MWF, Williams, Tabac, Razorock What the Puck, Tcheon Fung Sing Red Bowl (TFS), Arko, Derby stick, Van Der Hagen and custom Van Der Williams blends. Also use one croap, Proraso Red, and just started using some LEA and Cyril R. Salter shaving creams. I always use the product as it was made, no blooming, dry hard puck, cream straight from the container etc, and I face lather. To get the most out of each product adjustments to my lathering technique were required as follows:
- For all my hard soaps I load/build proto lather directly on the puck for a good minute or so.
- For my two hardest soaps, Williams and MWF, I use a stiffer boar brush that is soaked in warm water for a couple of minutes. For all other soaps my plissoft synthetic brushes work well. 26mm knots on all my brushes.
- For the Proraso Red croap just 20 seconds of loading with a wet plissoft synthetic brush is all that is needed. Then to right to face lathering. Load TFS for around 30-40 seconds.
- For my creams the required amount is applied straight from the container directly to my face and then face lathered. For LEA (both in tubes) I squeeze out the required amount to my finger and spread it on different areas of my face. Use a small expresso spoon to scoop out the Cyril R. Salter.
- The different soaps deliver optimal lather with varying levels of hydration that I add to my brushes while face lathering
Usual YMMV disclaimer here as our preferred techniques and lather characteristics will vary. Realize there are other selection factors such as scent, ingredients sensitivities, artwork etc that also come into play. The question here is, to get the lather you want, from each of your shaving soaps or creams, how do you adjust your technique or do you stick with a preferred lathering method and only select products that work with it?
Best wishes to everyone for a happy holiday season!
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Is Mitchell's Wool Fat the best ever shaving soap?
I was considering getting one just for the ceramic bowl, but I'm not sure if it's worth ~$25 or so. It is...
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