Well my MWF arrived today so I gave it its first outing. Had to say I was dubious, living in a hard water area combined with using a soft Kent BK8 brush. After looking at advice for MWF I added some hot water to the top of the puck whilst I let my brush soak. After a couple of minutes I went to work on the puck for about 45 seconds and then began to apply to my face. Pleasantly surprised that I got a half decent lather and went on to have a great shave. I had to work the puck a bit more for subsequent passes which is ok I guess. As for the lather it was a little transparent if that's the right word but no worse a result than I get from Proraso soap in the green tub. Do others find the same with regard to MWF lather? I mainly use creams which possibly tend to lather a little better.
Mitchell's Wool Fat - First Attempt
- Thread starter adyf
- Start date
I do remember my first try with MWF a year or so ago. I got great thick/slick lather form the get go and never understood why so many people having troubles with the soap.
I treat it as any other soap.
Here we go:
1 soak good badger brush in warm water
2 give it a light shake or two
3 load brush with lather 20-30 sec
4 work it (for newbies I suggest bawl lather at first) add a few drops of water as you go
BOOM lather explodes - nice thick, slick glorious lather
enjoy it
I treat it as any other soap.
Here we go:
1 soak good badger brush in warm water
2 give it a light shake or two
3 load brush with lather 20-30 sec
4 work it (for newbies I suggest bawl lather at first) add a few drops of water as you go
BOOM lather explodes - nice thick, slick glorious lather
enjoy it
The lather starts off weak but thickens gloriously as you work it. It's fun to see it form gradually on the face.
I recently started using MWF myself, and it is quickly turning into my favorite!
Steve
Steve
+1
Absolutely! Working it on the face leads to a fantastic, rich, thick and slick lather.
I find it's very sensitive to too much water. I squeeze my brush bone dry, really load up, face lather, and dip the tip of the brush once or twice and the later explodes. I've actually adapted this technique for all my soaps in that I aim for a dry lather and really work it for a minute before hydrating it. I've gotten great results.
+1 on what newkie says, as well as what the others say about working the lather. I load MWF for a full two minutes, using the drier brush approach (wet the brush, squeeze, give it a couple of shakes), dipping the brush tips in water (and shaking off the excess) once in a while as I load. I then face lather--it starts out weak--for a full minute before either wetting the brush tips (and shaking off the excess water) or putting a couple of drops of water in the breach. What's really helped for me is that I then swirl the brush on the puck briefly, which really amps up the lather. I face lather for 3+ minutes. It turns out great--to me, well worth the extra work.
adyf, I've the same Kent brush (BK8) as you with no problems lathering with this soap ( I face lather). MWF is my all time favorite along with MdC. Keep using it for at least a week you'll get used to it...
I face lather too and use MWF as a big shave stick getting good coverage over my whiskers. Then lather up with Saville row badger that has been soaked and shaken out 4-5 times. Nice lather after a minute of working it in....sometimes have to add a little bit of extra water to the bristle tips. MWF also works insanely well as the soap base for a super/über lather.
- Thread starter
- #12
Thanks for all the advice, I think I need to start with a drier brush and work it for longer as many of you suggest.
- Thread starter
- #13
Thanks for your reply. I'm glad to read this about your BK8, I was thinking about trying a bit stiffer brush like a Simpsons Colonel. I should persevere a bit more first I think before spending more money.
I read this thread earlier and since my MWF showed up yesterday in the mail, I thought I would do a quick palm lather test.
Wet the badger brush, gently squeeze the excess water out and start to load the fat on the brush. After about 30 seconds, I started palm lathering(since I already shaved this morning). A couple dips in some warm water and the lather came out thick and heavy. MWF is a hearty soap, with a very rich lather and a leathery scent. I could feel the lanolin moisturizing my hand afterwards.
Now I know what all the hubbub is all about. Can't wait to really try it.
Wet the badger brush, gently squeeze the excess water out and start to load the fat on the brush. After about 30 seconds, I started palm lathering(since I already shaved this morning). A couple dips in some warm water and the lather came out thick and heavy. MWF is a hearty soap, with a very rich lather and a leathery scent. I could feel the lanolin moisturizing my hand afterwards.
Now I know what all the hubbub is all about. Can't wait to really try it.
My MWF deflated today. I worked the crap out of it and it started to dry on my face. When I went to get more out of the bowl it had deflated to nothing. That's why people have issues, yes I may have done something slightly different this morning (not sure what) but my Tabac has never done this to me!
