noob questions about shaving sticks

[saj]

In almost 27 years of wet shaving I have tried all major brands. My all-time favourite is La Toja.

im defo a noob compared to you so ill take your answer happily

 

[saj]

When I travel I use the Tabac stick. I rub the stick onto my damp face and then face lather, rather than rubbing the brush onto the stick as this keeps the stick cleaner and dryer. Only the very end of the stick gets wet, and by the time I have finished shaving it is almost dry. By the time I am packed and heading out the hotel door the stick is certainly dry. In any case you can just pop the top on the container and chuck it in your wash bag. As you use it the soap pushes up from the underneath and you can buy refills; it is inexpensive in the UK. Every bit as good as the Tabac in the glass bowl - a wonderful product.

View attachment 1265446

yea might order this

do you know if they sell tabac in supermarkets or health and beauty stores in the uk?

 

[EclipseRedRing]

yea might order this

do you know if they sell tabac in supermarkets or health and beauty stores in the uk?

I would say no. The Cardiff branch of Boots is large and they stock a few Tabac products but not the shave stick; Superdrug and Lloyds do not stock Tabac at all. My local Asda, Tesco, Sainsburys, and Morrisons supermarkets do not stock any Tabac products.

 

[Benzadmiral]

cool didnt know that about the sticks and pucks thanks buddy

which sticks have you tried and which did you like?

i've got the arko stick

Arko is great, as is La Toja and Tabac. I haven't tried any others, but people here recommend the Speick brand and Palmolive.

The advantages are that they are compact, good for travel, take up less space at home too, just as effective as the soap in a puck, and very inexpensive for what you get. I bought my Tabac stick over a year ago. While I don't use it every day, it is nowhere near used up.

 

[Abz88]

cool yea ill have to check out la toja

La Toja is definitely a must try product. If you decide you aren't a fan of shaving sticks in general, you can easily pressed it into a container and use it like a normal soap puck as well.

 

[Beefdrippings]

With all due respect I would not say la Toja can be easily pressed into a container. I tried last night with my stick and there was no way it was gonna happen. It’s way too hard. Maybe I got a bad stick?

La Toja is definitely a must try product. If you decide you aren't a fan of shaving sticks in general, you can easily pressed it into a container and use it like a normal soap puck as well.

 

[jdp93]

DR Harris also makes sticks, and it may be relatively easy to get those in the UK?

 

[BigJ]

Sir, my technique with shaving sticks is as follows:

1. Wet face, wet stick and rub the stick on the face until you see a thin white layer all over the shaving area.

2. Wet the brush and get rid of the eccess of water. Then load the brush from the stick until good lather starts to appear.

3. Apply the loaded brush to face, swirl and add little water, only when required.

It does work beautifully.

+1! This is pretty much my approach also: easy, peasy!

You can make most croaps or soaps into sticks using plastic containers. They are pretty much the same product presented in a different format.

 

[Ivo4u2]

ill check out youtube to see how they make it into a puck....

Either grate and press it together (just as you make a stick) or heat it up with your hands and squeeze (depends on the soap hardness and how old it is to work).

 

[Abz88]

With all due respect I would not say la Toja can be easily pressed into a container. I tried last night with my stick and there was no way it was gonna happen. It’s way too hard. Maybe I got a bad stick?

Probably not a bad stick, but it might have dried out a bit. You can always grate it or "bloom" the puck in the container with some warm water like a lot of people do with hard pucks before lathering them.

 

[Beefdrippings]

That’s what I normally do and am doing today. In fact I shaved some off into my bowl last night. Cheers.

Probably not a bad stick, but it might have dried out a bit. You can always grate it or "bloom" the puck in the container with some warm water like a lot of people do with hard pucks before lathering them.

 

[hairless wonder]

thats a good idea, so it kinda acts like ridges too?

If you mean cutting up the Arko into coins and placing them into bowls, not really. I am primarily a face latherer, but I prefer to start building my lather on the puck. By pressing the Arko into a bowl, I was able to treat the stick as a puck. See the attached picture for what I mean by pressing into a bowl.

That said, I have been playing with bowl lathering (using a bowl with a ridged bottom) lately. I suppose it may be possible to slice small slivers of Arko and put them into a bowl to build a lather.

 

[saj]

I would say no. The Cardiff branch of Boots is large and they stock a few Tabac products but not the shave stick; Superdrug and Lloyds do not stock Tabac at all. My local Asda, Tesco, Sainsburys, and Morrisons supermarkets do not stock any Tabac products.

thanks for the heads up mate

 

[saj]

Arko is great, as is La Toja and Tabac. I haven't tried any others, but people here recommend the Speick brand and Palmolive.

The advantages are that they are compact, good for travel, take up less space at home too, just as effective as the soap in a puck, and very inexpensive for what you get. I bought my Tabac stick over a year ago. While I don't use it every day, it is nowhere near used up.

yea maybe before i order online i'll check out some local supermarkets maybe, unless i get tempted to order something online, im very impatient lol

 

[saj]

DR Harris also makes sticks, and it may be relatively easy to get those in the UK?

never heard of this one

 

[saj]

If you mean cutting up the Arko into coins and placing them into bowls, not really. I am primarily a face latherer, but I prefer to start building my lather on the puck. By pressing the Arko into a bowl, I was able to treat the stick as a puck. See the attached picture for what I mean by pressing into a bowl.

That said, I have been playing with bowl lathering (using a bowl with a ridged bottom) lately. I suppose it may be possible to slice small slivers of Arko and put them into a bowl to build a lather.

thanks for the pic

yea i assume that would work out cheaper if you get the sticks and use them as pucks wont it?

 

[hairless wonder]

thanks for the pic

yea i assume that would work out cheaper if you get the sticks and use them as pucks wont it?

I don't know if it will be cheaper, but it was more convenient for loading my brush.

 

[ackvil]

Often, shave sticks are used by individuals who like to face lather. I used them when I traveled extensively since they pack easily. Here is a great tutorial on how to use them.

Tutorial - how to use a shaving stick

Gents, It has come to my attention that many individuals are not familiar with shave sticks and their use - so here is a picture laden tutorial! Enjoy! Step One - Twist off the lid :P The Stick to be used in this tutorial is a QED Essentials Peppermint Shave Stick... this sucker has...

www.badgerandblade.com

 

[saj]

Often, shave sticks are used by individuals who like to face lather. I used them when I traveled extensively since they pack easily. Here is a great tutorial on how to use them.

Tutorial - how to use a shaving stick

Gents, It has come to my attention that many individuals are not familiar with shave sticks and their use - so here is a picture laden tutorial! Enjoy! Step One - Twist off the lid :P The Stick to be used in this tutorial is a QED Essentials Peppermint Shave Stick... this sucker has...

www.badgerandblade.com

Thanks will check it out when I get a chance

 

[Atlantic59]

hello people im a noob when it comes to shaving sticks so i wanted to ask a few questions in regards to shaving sticks,
first of all i didnt realise you had to apply the shaving stick on the region you want to shave then apply a shaving brush with water to create the lather,
when i was shaving in my teens, i would literally just wet the shaving stick and work the lather by rubbing the shaving brush against the stick then apply it on my head to shave, obviously i was getting it all wrong lol :/

first of all why do people use say a shaving stick as oppose to a shaving soap? i mean isnt a soap better?

one of the main reasons i could think of someone wanting to use a stick instead of a soap is due to the cost maybe?
i assume sticks last a lot longer and are cheaper compared to soaps, just to clarify this is me just assuming this, feel free to correct me

anyways which are shaving sticks considered to be the good ones out there?
whats the going rate for say examply a palmolive shaving stick in the uk?
also which supermarkets or health and beauty shops sell them in the uk?

I think people have answered most of your questions, but I'll give you my piece.

Sticks are great for people that like to face lather. It is the same soap as what is in the pucks, just a different format. Sticks are compact and ideal for traveling. They are efficient as soap is applied where it is needed and only as much as is needed.

You don't need to be limited by what sticks are available ready-made for sale. You can make your own fairly easily. In fact, my favorite sticks are homemade ones using Haslinger shaving soap. I'm currently using Schafmilch (sheepmilk) and Ringelblumen (marigold).

Some favorite ready-made shave sticks are:

• Speick
• Wilkinson Sword
• Tabac
• La Toja
• Palmolive
• Arko