Today I used a coupon I had kicking around for 20 percent off at bed bath and beyond. I thought it would be a good idea to pick up a bunch of different shaving creams to test out. The idea is to eventually find a product I love and buy only that until I die, with the occasional new product when I'm feeling lively.
Today I tried the Van Der Hagen shave butter. This particular product came in a matte orange plastic squeeze container and a black cap with a crinkle coat like texture. The presentation is nice and contains six ounces of cream for a cost of $7.99.
The directions recommend using a nickel sized amount applied to the face via fingertips or a brush. My experience revealed that using a shave brush did not result in a lather I was accustomed to. I was using a horse hair bristle brush and the nickel sized amount of cream quickly vanished in the soft array of bristles. Adding water didn't help. It was clear more product was needed. I double the amount of cream, applied into the brush and began face lathering. I experienced no appreciable increase in lather.
I shaved two passes, with and across the grain, with what appeared to be minimal lather. View second photo for details. I was using a Gillette Gold Tech which is very mild. I had to apply more pressure than I am accut to in order to cut hair. Due to this fact I decided to do a third pass against the grain. This decision was not made lightly as I have not attempted a three pass shave since my last terrible experience about seven years ago.
The third pass was preempted by reapplication of the shave cream however my application technique utilized the hand and not the brush. The nickel sized amount immediately became enough to cover my face in a luxurious yet suitably thin layer of shave butter. It quickly became obvious that this particular product is not ideally suited for use with brush application. I have not provided a photo but suffice to say the lather looked right to me on the final pass.
Reluctantly I began the third pass against the grain and all felt right. My face was sufficiently lubricated by the new layer of butter and the mild angle of the razor resulted in an effortless and painless ATG pass.
My final impression is that this is a good product that delivers the right lubrication for a smooth, moisturizing shave. Seven bucks for a tube of pleasantly scented shave butter that'll last a couple months seems like a decent expenditure. My only complaint is that this shave butter by its very nature robs me of the pleasure of using my favorite brush for face lathering.
Tomorrow I'll be reviewing Burt's Bees shave cream.
Today I tried the Van Der Hagen shave butter. This particular product came in a matte orange plastic squeeze container and a black cap with a crinkle coat like texture. The presentation is nice and contains six ounces of cream for a cost of $7.99.
The directions recommend using a nickel sized amount applied to the face via fingertips or a brush. My experience revealed that using a shave brush did not result in a lather I was accustomed to. I was using a horse hair bristle brush and the nickel sized amount of cream quickly vanished in the soft array of bristles. Adding water didn't help. It was clear more product was needed. I double the amount of cream, applied into the brush and began face lathering. I experienced no appreciable increase in lather.
I shaved two passes, with and across the grain, with what appeared to be minimal lather. View second photo for details. I was using a Gillette Gold Tech which is very mild. I had to apply more pressure than I am accut to in order to cut hair. Due to this fact I decided to do a third pass against the grain. This decision was not made lightly as I have not attempted a three pass shave since my last terrible experience about seven years ago.
The third pass was preempted by reapplication of the shave cream however my application technique utilized the hand and not the brush. The nickel sized amount immediately became enough to cover my face in a luxurious yet suitably thin layer of shave butter. It quickly became obvious that this particular product is not ideally suited for use with brush application. I have not provided a photo but suffice to say the lather looked right to me on the final pass.
Reluctantly I began the third pass against the grain and all felt right. My face was sufficiently lubricated by the new layer of butter and the mild angle of the razor resulted in an effortless and painless ATG pass.
My final impression is that this is a good product that delivers the right lubrication for a smooth, moisturizing shave. Seven bucks for a tube of pleasantly scented shave butter that'll last a couple months seems like a decent expenditure. My only complaint is that this shave butter by its very nature robs me of the pleasure of using my favorite brush for face lathering.
Tomorrow I'll be reviewing Burt's Bees shave cream.
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