La Toja stick to face?

[KRpdx]

Just can't seem to get the straight stick to face thing to work. I'm going to grate my La Toja stick into one of my shaving mugs. Anybody have success in gently microwaving it, or do I need to just compact it?

Thanks for any suggestions,

Keith

 

[the_edski]

Before you sacrifice the La Toja, have you tried this pretty much foolproof method from our esteemed steward, Mick?

"Using a shave stick does take a little while to get used to so I always recommend this method for those just starting out:

Make sure your face is moist/wet before you start
Dip the end of the stick in the sink to moisten it
Rub the stick all around and apply a thick even coating making sure you get a lot of soap (no such thing as too much)
Remove your brush from the water and give it a gentle squeeze to remove most of the water
Take the brush to your face and make a thick paste out of the soap all over your face.
Bring the brush to the sink and quickly dip it in the water touching just the tips of the bristles
Go back to your face on one side and turn the paste into a lather
Back into the sink for another quick dip
Go to the other side of your face to make a lather on the other side of your face
If you feel you have enough water in your brush turn the paste on the throat and chin into lather otherwise dip again first.
Your lather should be thick and shiny on your first building. If it does not look like this, dip again and go over your entire face.
Finish by painting your face in a back and forth motion to even out the lather

This should create a thick creamy heavy lather on your face and place enough lather in your brush for several more applications.

This method may go against what most will recommend but I find it a fail safe method for getting a perfect lather out of any shave stick"

 

[njpaddy]

I liked it better grated and pressed into a bowl (don't microwave), but it still irritated my face so I had to get rid of it.

 

[Vlad]

I grated my first sticks because I just hated rubbing them on my face. But now I love them! Give it a chance.

 

[5savages]

I have a difficult time taking the stick straight to my face. I'd end up with too much soap on my face and it wouldn't all get incorporated into the lather and I'd end up scraping the excess onto the blade, clogging it up.

 

[Ronnie Aloha]

Boy I just used the LT stick for the first time over the weekend and it was great! Lots of lather. I'd venture so say as much as MWF produces for me and that's a lot! I generally used the method that edski posted above except I didn't wet the stick first. I just wet my face and ran the stick over it dry. I used a Muhle Blackfiber brush to bring it to life adding a little water along the way. It did start off as a paste initially and after that a couple of dips of water and it bloomed.

 

[Luc]

Did you see the tutorial on shave sticks? http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/40-Tutorial-how-to-use-a-shaving-stick

 

[flutewhistler]

Stick to the face is the only way I will shave now - it ensures that my face is protected by the soap each and every time.

 

[ackvil]

Dunking the LaToja stick sit in water was what made it work for me. The stick is harder than some others such as Valobra or Speick. As a result it may be more difficult to put on your face when it is dry. However, wetting the stick seems to make it much easier to use. Of course, your face should be wet before you apply it.

 

[Acmemfg]

Some sticks are just going to work better than others. Arko is arguably the best of the bunch, smell be damned. LaToja is probably my favorite. Everything about it is just right. I'm not a big fan of Palmolive. Nothing bad really, it's just not as good of a lather than the other two.

 

[Catalin]

Give it some time. I get epic lather rubbing the LT stick on my wet stubble.

 

[Neffarious]

do not microwave it. I grated mine but I prefer to bowl lather and I don't think there is a puck option

 

[Cornishman]

Here's a great video on how to use a La Toja stick:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hN9lnVxhHQs

 

[KRpdx]

Big help -- thanks for all the input, links, etc!

 

[Khedquist]

edski's technique is right on. I travel with my LT stick and love it. Sometimes I even take the brush to the stick just for a bit more . Great lather and I get easily get enough for 3 passes and touch up. The key is dipping the stick to keep it wet as you apply it to your face.

 

[KipNoxzema]

La Toja is good, has a great scent, but I found Arko to provide a thicker lather. YMMV

 

[SteveWY]

I love my La Toja stick. Try the proven technique posted above before you grate it. Think of using a stick like a big crayon.. just color all over the place like a little kid until you have visible soap all over your beard and then hit it with a damp (not wet) brush and lather for a minute.

 

[jwilock]

Just can't seem to get the straight stick to face thing to work. I'm going to grate my La Toja stick into one of my shaving mugs. Anybody have success in gently microwaving it, or do I need to just compact it?

Thanks for any suggestions,

Keith

I bought several sticks and so could easily spare one to experiment with. I used a micro grater to grate it into really fine shreds. Then I put them all into a pyrex bowl sized just about the same size as most normal pucks of soap. Pressed hard with my fingers. Then used a smaller pyrex bowl that fit inside of the one with the soap in it to press even harder and to smoothe out the surface. Finally I added a few drops of water and let it sit over night, then went back and pressed again the next day and let the whole thing dry out for another day or two. Voila! A wonderful puck of LT. There's no reason to deny yourself a "pucK' of LT if you want one. It's easy to do and makes a fine puck if you it it right.

Having said that I take one of the other sticks with me when I travel. They're small and work great for the road. I found they work best for me when I wet my face a lot first, but also hold the stick under running water for a few seconds. If it dries out while applying it, I just hold it under the water again for a few secs. The water on the face and on the stick help it to go on pretty smoothly and pretty evenly. I end up getting a great lather once I take a brush to it for a bit.