Last Saturday, I attended a craft show with my wife. While wandering about, I came upon some soaps made on a farm in southern Alabama. A display of inexpensive shave brushes caught my eye, drawing my attention to a basket of small shaving soaps. I felt in an adventurous mood, so I bought one. This has got to be the slipperiest soap I've ever used! However that's about the only good thing I can say about it. I've bee trying for four days to get a decent lather, but have been only able to obtain an airy, sudsy foam. The foam provides a slick film, but absolutely no cushion whatsoever and quickly dries. The film is quite oily and hard to rinse. The thin film allows a close shave, but with no cushion it is quite uncomfortable. Although the soap was said to be bay rum scented, the predominent scent is oiliness.
Here's the ingredient list: lard, coconut oil, palm oil, castor oil, sodium hydroxide, French green clay, and essential oil.
Just as tallow is rendered beef fat, lard is rendered pork fat. Theoretically, just about any fat or oil can be combined with lye (sodium hydroxide) to make soap. However this formula doesn't seem to work.
If you happen to run across shaving soap from Gray-Zen Acres Farm, proceed with caution.
-Clarke
Here's the ingredient list: lard, coconut oil, palm oil, castor oil, sodium hydroxide, French green clay, and essential oil.
Just as tallow is rendered beef fat, lard is rendered pork fat. Theoretically, just about any fat or oil can be combined with lye (sodium hydroxide) to make soap. However this formula doesn't seem to work.
If you happen to run across shaving soap from Gray-Zen Acres Farm, proceed with caution.
-Clarke
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, and it turned out fine for me. Now, by fine, I will admit that the lather was thin, but being one of my first shave soaps it was fairly likely to happen anyway. 
