PannaCrema and My Apology

[BBS Kirk]

A week or so ago I posted about how I disliked Panna and how the laather was horrible. Well, I want to apologize to the entire forum for being so blasphemous. I gave it another go and finally figured out this croap. It is awesome! The lather is so Slick Rick. I can't stop using it now. It has overtaken my rotation. So once again to the Panna Cult members, I am sorry for being so ignorant about the potentials of this croap.

Regards,

Kirk

 

[bmilcs]

We forgive you. We've all been there at one point or another. My opinions evolve over time as well.

My first puck of Panna is incoming. Can't wait.

 

[BBS Kirk]

You will enjoy it, Gent. Just remember to soak the brush longer and load with passion for at least one minute. You will be just fine.

Kirk

 

[markg]

A week or so ago I posted about how I disliked Panna and how the laather was horrible. Well, I want to apologize to the entire forum for being so blasphemous. I gave it another go and finally figured out this croap. It is awesome! The lather is so Slick Rick. I can't stop using it now. It has overtaken my rotation. So once again to the Panna Cult members, I am sorry for being so ignorant about the potentials of this croap.

Regards,

Kirk

What did you do differently the second time around? I have two of them coming and was wondering if lathering it like Cella is the way to go or the way their website suggests.

 

[Mbuckwash]

Yea, I was wondering the same - what did you do differently this time? How was the lather, other than slick? Thin? Creamy? Yogurty? Moisturizing? I've been considering trying this croap but haven't pulled the trigger mainly due to a satisfying experience with Mike's and MW.

 

[mftoms59]

Regardless of brand, any new soap or cream will take a couple of lathers to dial in your product/ water ratio. I always suggest a practice lather to learn how much water it takes to reach "Shave-Ready" lather. Keep adding small amounts slowly to learn how much extra water it can hold before breaking down to a runny mess.

Lathering Tips for a new product, I've posted previously; Try shaking out the excess water from your brush and load it until you get a White Root-Beer type head on your brush, apply to a damp face and start building. Give it a practice lather on your palm, going past the sweet spot of useable lather, slowly keep adding water and lather. Observe how much more water you can add until your lather becomes runny and unusable mess.

Rubbing some lather between your forefinger & thumb while building lather, will give you a feel for slickness. While slowly pulling your fingers apart observe how far the soap "stretches before separating, a good indicator of the hydration level. When your lather is well hydrated, you should be able to remove it from the razor with a few swishes through standing water, if it's too dry you'll have a good amount of soap sticking to the head.

 

[Patman27]

Yea, I was wondering the same - what did you do differently this time? How was the lather, other than slick? Thin? Creamy? Yogurty? Moisturizing? I've been considering trying this croap but haven't pulled the trigger mainly due to a satisfying experience with Mike's and MW.

+2!

 

[dvjohnso]

Regardless of brand, any new soap or cream will take a couple of lathers to dial in your product/ water ratio. I always suggest a practice lather to learn how much water it takes to reach "Shave-Ready" lather. Keep adding small amounts slowly to learn how much extra water it can hold before breaking down to a runny mess.

Lathering Tips for a new product, I've posted previously; Try shaking out the excess water from your brush and load it until you get a White Root-Beer type head on your brush, apply to a damp face and start building. Give it a practice lather on your palm, going past the sweet spot of useable lather, slowly keep adding water and lather. Observe how much more water you can add until your lather becomes runny and unusable mess.

Rubbing some lather between your forefinger & thumb while building lather, will give you a feel for slickness. While slowly pulling your fingers apart observe how far the soap "stretches before separating, a good indicator of the hydration level. When your lather is well hydrated, you should be able to remove it from the razor with a few swishes through standing water, if it's too dry you'll have a good amount of soap sticking to the head.

Thanks for this advice. I have two coming from the most recent release and I'm champing at the bit. I'll keep this in mind for all my new aquisitions.

 

[markg]

Thanks dvjohnso. That's a very useful overview how to approach a new soap/cream. My question to OP was whether he followed on his second attempt the suggested lathering technique form PannaCrema website. I have never lathered the way they suggest and was wondering if that is the way to get best out of the soap or if a conventional method is sufficient to create a great lather. Here is the PannaCrema suggested way to lather.

"

There are several ways to lather a shaving soap, but for PANNACREMA the following method is best, because it allows you to get consistent results by controlling the amount of soap and water used.​

• Soak the brush for about fifteen minutes in a bowl of warm or hot water.
• Shake and wipe the brush thoroughly to remove all excess water. The brush should only be moist.
• Empty all the water from the bowl and shake the drips out. It should be no more than damp.
• Pick up a piece of soap the size of a hazelnut.
• With one hand, clasp the brush tightly around the top of the bristles (to stiffen it), then with the other hand apply the soap, spreading it all over the tips of the brush.
• Begin the first lathering phase, by holding the brush normally and twirling it this way and that in the bowl.
• If you are using a boar brush, or one with stiffer bristles, it should only take 30 seconds, whereas with a badger or softer bristle brush, you will need a few more seconds.
• At this point you should have obtained just a light lather; that's fine because the goal of this phase was only to distribute the soap well over all of the brush tips.
• Now add some water, a few drops at a time. The number of drops depends on several factors, such as the hardness and temperature of the water, the type of brush etc., but let's say between 5 and 30 drops. Of course, you can always add more water, but you can't remove it once it's there.
• Finish the lathering by twirling the brush for another 30 to 40 seconds. If, after this time, the lather is still too thick, add a few (say five) more drops of water.
• At this point your lather is ready, but if you want to get a super-rich, luxurious, extra lather, then you can add a small amount of extra soap, the size of a coffee bean, again picking it up and spreading it over the brush tips before twirling the brush a little more in the bowl.

 

[oldtrout]

No worries.

Our hobby is so much a YMMV thing that negative posts on my favorite products are (so far) of no concern.

 

[markg]

One more thing.... their method is describes bowl lathering, whereas I exclusively face lather. I'm having little trouble visualizing how I'm spreading the hazelnut size of soap all over the tips of my brush using my face....

 

[dvjohnso]

Now that's funny, I don't care who you are!

 

[Pudu]

The easiest way to hazelnut face lather is to simply pop the hazelnut in to your mouth. Work it a bit from cheek to cheek before using your brush to build lather on your tongue.

A stiffer brush will build lather more quickly...



but a soft one works just as well in the end and provides a more luxurious feel.



As your cheeks start to fill with delicious lather you can move the brush to your face and start a' painting. Working the lather around your face, just push more of that white fluffy goodness out between your lips each time the brush comes past your mouth, or once you get more comfortable with your technique you can simply jut your bottom lip out to form a little bowl of lather into which you can dip your brush as needed. You can easily hold enough for subsequent passes in each cheek.

Pro tip: have a cup of hot milk before you shave and your lather will be as lovely and warm as if you were using a high end scuttle.

 

[mftoms59]

One more thing.... their method is describes bowl lathering, whereas I exclusively face lather. I'm having little trouble visualizing how I'm spreading the hazelnut size of soap all over the tips of my brush using my face....

If you missed it the first time, load directly from the puck until you get a White Root-Beer type head on your brush, apply to a damp face and start building.

 

[Ronnie Aloha]

Pudu

you've got waaaay to much time on your hands! Thanks for an early morning laugh!

 

[ackvil]

Thanks dvjohnso. That's a very useful overview how to approach a new soap/cream. My question to OP was whether he followed on his second attempt the suggested lathering technique form PannaCrema website. I have never lathered the way they suggest and was wondering if that is the way to get best out of the soap or if a conventional method is sufficient to create a great lather. Here is the PannaCrema suggested way to lather.

"

There are several ways to lather a shaving soap, but for PANNACREMA the following method is best, because it allows you to get consistent results by controlling the amount of soap and water used.​

• Soak the brush for about fifteen minutes in a bowl of warm or hot water.
• Shake and wipe the brush thoroughly to remove all excess water. The brush should only be moist.
• Empty all the water from the bowl and shake the drips out. It should be no more than damp.
• Pick up a piece of soap the size of a hazelnut.
• With one hand, clasp the brush tightly around the top of the bristles (to stiffen it), then with the other hand apply the soap, spreading it all over the tips of the brush.
• Begin the first lathering phase, by holding the brush normally and twirling it this way and that in the bowl.
• If you are using a boar brush, or one with stiffer bristles, it should only take 30 seconds, whereas with a badger or softer bristle brush, you will need a few more seconds.
• At this point you should have obtained just a light lather; that's fine because the goal of this phase was only to distribute the soap well over all of the brush tips.
• Now add some water, a few drops at a time. The number of drops depends on several factors, such as the hardness and temperature of the water, the type of brush etc., but let's say between 5 and 30 drops. Of course, you can always add more water, but you can't remove it once it's there.
• Finish the lathering by twirling the brush for another 30 to 40 seconds. If, after this time, the lather is still too thick, add a few (say five) more drops of water.
• At this point your lather is ready, but if you want to get a super-rich, luxurious, extra lather, then you can add a small amount of extra soap, the size of a coffee bean, again picking it up and spreading it over the brush tips before twirling the brush a little more in the bowl.

The above is right from the PC website and I am sure it will work. I, however, get good results by loading the brush directly on the product left in the jar. Because of the size of the jar, however, I find that smaller brushes are easier to load.

 

[Pudu]

Pudu

you've got waaaay to much time on your hands! ...

Sometimes it's easier if you can watch someone with practised technique do it first.

 

[tsimmns]

Sometimes it's easier if you can watch someone with practised technique do it first.

+1. I have yet to see a video of someone making lather with this. Can't wait until I actually do to see if my lather looks like the one they make. With that being said, who's up for the task?

 

[25609289]

I basically follow the directions on the website but lather from the small container. I use a slightly wet brush and add water as needed. You will end up with a slick, creamy, cushiony lather that softens and protects your face as well as providing for a close shave.