Soap review - Sudsy Soapery Lavender & Peppermint

[SamariJack]

I did discuss that with Jonathan as well. He's going to send me a small sample to try and comment back to him on. He tells me there's lots of things in it that are great for your skin. Once he's done tweaking the aftershave he'll make it available. It will be a non alcohol based splash. He also told me he also has a lot of small sample vials that at some point he's likely going to fill and include with shaving soap purchases (while supplies last) to let some other people give it a try.

What is the benefit of a non alcohol based AS? It seems most soap makes have alcohol based splashes. I use the non alcoholic Thayers WH - but like the slap in the face with my AS. Are there other splash AS that come to mind so that I can compare?

Thanks for all the information from SS. It's great to have a relationship with the vendors and to have a peek into their process.

 

[dfoulk]

What is the benefit of a non alcohol based AS? It seems most soap makes have alcohol based splashes. I use the non alcoholic Thayers WH - but like the slap in the face with my AS. Are there other splash AS that come to mind so that I can compare?

Thanks for all the information from SS. It's great to have a relationship with the vendors and to have a peek into their process.

You know, I'm more of an aftershave balm type of guy. Jonathan was telling me some of the ingredients and how good for your skin they are so I'm sure there's some things in there that will soothe and repair. While they are fairly new to wet shaving they are extremely knowledgeable about how all of the ingredients they use work and they're passionate about creating really high quality natural products that are great for you. Once I try it myself I'll share my thoughts.

I'm personally not convinced that an alcohol based splash does all that much, which is why I find myself reaching for balms most days or following a splash with an unscented balm. Sure the alcohol can help cleans your face but what does it do to help soothe and heal it?

 

[Ad Astra]

I think the alcohol helps disinfect any micro (or major) cuts.

When I use witch hazel, I always use an alum bloc first, which also kills bugs (I believe).

So it's either alcohol-based AS, or WH/alum.

I never do alcohol AS and alum- unless there's a cut/weeper. THINK alum helps with weepers.


AA

 

[tclobaugh]

Just used the Twice Mint, smells exactly like spearmint chewing gum. Which I find mildly pleasant. Loved the awesome cooling. Very moisturizing post shave, which oddly seems to not be noticeable immediately after the shave. I shaved with it 12+ hours ago and my skin is still quite moisturized. But I didn't find it as protective as I would have liked. And protection is what I'm after. With hard as nails water I find there are few soaps/creams that deliver. I will continue to see if the soap delivers under different weather/skin conditions. Everything is so variable with shaving if you have sensitive skin that one shave is never really enough to tell!

If you have water that hard you might look into adding some citric acid to your toolkit. A pinch of cheap powder will soften your water to a more usable state. Or you could use distilled or bottled water. You only need this for creating the lather, so it's not very much water (I'm guessing 5 oz at most). Grab a 20 oz bottle of water and give it a try. Cheaper than buying more soap

 

[Naes12]

If you have water that hard you might look into adding some citric acid to your toolkit. A pinch of cheap powder will soften your water to a more usable state. Or you could use distilled or bottled water. You only need this for creating the lather, so it's not very much water (I'm guessing 5 oz at most). Grab a 20 oz bottle of water and give it a try. Cheaper than buying more soap

This is an interesting perspective, you might be right that getting some water softener might be cheaper than going through new soaps looking for the grail. I will look into it. I've tried a solid amount of products over the past 8 years. So far the only majorly protective ones I've found are Stroppe Shoppe, MdC, Valobra. Also, oddly enough, I used an AoS sample of their unscented cream that was pretty damn good back when I started. I ignored it at the time, but I'm wondering if I should go back and try it again.

I will say though that I really enjoyed the moisturizing effect from the sudsy soapery. Just wish it was slicker.

 

[dfoulk]

This is an interesting perspective, you might be right that getting some water softener might be cheaper than going through new soaps looking for the grail. I will look into it. I've tried a solid amount of products over the past 8 years. So far the only majorly protective ones I've found are Stroppe Shoppe, MdC, Valobra. Also, oddly enough, I used an AoS sample of their unscented cream that was pretty damn good back when I started. I ignored it at the time, but I'm wondering if I should go back and try it again.

I will say though that I really enjoyed the moisturizing effect from the sudsy soapery. Just wish it was slicker.

I find it to be plenty slick, in fact one of the slickest soaps I own. I suspect that using bottled water will yield much different results as you're likely getting different results from everyone else because of your water. You can lather longer and it will help but it's still won't get you the same results that you'd get from improved water conditions.

I was reminded this week about what a difference a water softener does make though as mine broke. I've since replace it (last night) but we have some extremely hard water, some of the worst in the country in fact. The water softener not only helps the later of my shave soaps it also extends the life of my appliances, allows the dishes to look clean and not cloudy, and saves the faucets from a quick death due to all of the corrosive properties of the hard water. We do use half the normal amount of soap in the dishwasher and washing machines as well, so there's a small savings there. These benefits don't even touch upon how much better my hair and skin feel. If you have really hard water like I do I'd highly recommend getting a water softener.

I did reach for Sudsy Soapery this past week when the softener was down and it did take more work than normal. I find the soaps I really enjoy using, in really hard water, are Martin de Candre, Le Pere Lucien, and WSP Formula T. They are just easier to lather in hard water so I'm getting a better lather likely because I'm not patient enough other soaps for twice as long. Someone with soap making experience will know why they work better with harder water from an ingredient standpoint.

 

[Naes12]

If you have really hard water like I do I'd highly recommend getting a water softener.

I am moving to an apartment so it would have to be something I can clip onto what ever sink I end up with. But really I'm not sure it will make a difference, if at the end of the day if I am prepping in a hard water shower. But I'll check out my options. I've been hesitating about buying an actual jar of MdC (my results come from samples), so I'll look at costs and see if it makes more sense to water soften.

Damn, I do like the tingle from mint oil soaps!

 

[dfoulk]

I am moving to an apartment so it would have to be something I can clip onto what ever sink I end up with. But really I'm not sure it will make a difference, if at the end of the day if I am prepping in a hard water shower. But I'll check out my options. I've been hesitating about buying an actual jar of MdC (my results come from samples), so I'll look at costs and see if it makes more sense to water soften.

Damn, I do like the tingle from mint oil soaps!

From a quick search there are shower head water filters that apparently help to soften your water. You just replace your existing shower head with it. I found one on Amazon by Culligan for $30 that gets great reviews. These things seen to go up to about $100 depending on the brand. This would handle the shower part of it and likely give you much softer hair and skin. This, in addition to buying a gallon of filtered water to keep under the sink and using it for your shave lathers, would likely make a huge difference. So for $31 you'd probably see a large performance difference in most of your soaps. You could try the softened shower water from the shower for your lathers as well.

Will this work as well as an expensive whole house water softener, probably not, but someone used test strips before and after in one of the reviews and it made a large difference there. So it appears it'll work well.

You'll probably have to replace the shower head every 6 months to a year but you'll know after the first one if it's worth it to you.

 

[SamariJack]

Anyone know what an empty 3.5 oz sudsy diaper container weighs? And is that with or without the lid - I weighed mine: 116grams (w/o lid) 131 (w. Lid) - but I'd like to know how much soap there is in there. 116 grams is over 4 oz so it's looking like they over fill nicely.

 

[dfoulk]

They try to put about 3.7 oz of soap in a tin to be sure everyone gets at least 3.5. Sometimes more goes in and sometimes less. It's not an exact thing as I don't believe that they weigh every tin.

 

[NyquistRate]

They told me:

The product and tin weighs approximately 4.3.

My tubs weighed 131.9g (Lavender& Peppermint) and 148.7g (Sandalwood& Myrrh).

 

[Kreator82]

Sudsy Soapery Lavender Peppermint

Slickness 10/10 this soap is a full-on 10 out of 10 for slickness. I still have not seen the ingredients however I know it has some clay in it and apparently this clay really adds to slickness. After this review I'm going to look up the ingredients and see what I can copy for my own recipe because this is outstanding slickness.
Cushion 8.5/10 I really like this soap when it's wet as you can tell from the pictures... as a result the cushion stuffers a little. As a new shaver this may not be the best soap but for me I would rather have less cushion and more slickness because I'm not going crazy with my Razor in the morning.
Moisturizing 9.5/10 and post shave feel is a 10/10. I did not put on aftershave for any of my three shaves and I certainly did not need it. I don't know what they have in here but I'm about to look it up because this is some of the best post-shave feel I have come across. This is even better than MdC if I may be so presumptuous.
Scent 10/10 as I said in my previous post my wife barely lets me out the door in the morning before work when I shave with this. That alone is enough to give this up at 10 however I personally love the cool sensation on my face and feel it is a perfect summer soap!
Overall 9.5/10 I will definitely be buying a full tub of this and sharing it with everyone in the office. I also know that I will be looking into the ingredients today or tomorrow and trying to copy it for my homemade soap recipe. This is not a true soap, it is more of a CROAP but that is fine with me so long as I have a container to put it in. I am so fortunate that @dfoulk shared this with me because I would never have bought this on my own. It sounds too obscure and no one else has written a review about it so it would really be last on my list. Instead This has become first on my list of soaps to buy!

Well dang, I might need to get a tin of this.

 

[dfoulk]

Well dang, I might need to get a tin of this.

Yeah, I used it today as well. It's my second favorite soap of the 400 plus soaps I've tried. For me it's only bested by PannaCrema Nuavia. So, my favorite soap is a $65 premium soap that's imported from Rome, and my second favorite soap is Sudsy Soapery that can be had for eleven bucks.

If you haven't tried it yet I'd order a tub or two. It's pretty impressive and when you add in the low cost it's a hell of a deal as well.

 

[Kreator82]

I've been told by a few people to try it out. It's on my short list when I use up some of my current stock of soaps. I'm trying to show restraint, but it's tough to when good products like this are out there.

 

[vtmax]

The consistency is a little harder in the new 6oz jars but it's still a croap. I just scoop out a bit, spread around the beard and face lather. Easy, fast and amazing performance due to those wonderful ingredients. New jars are nice too.

 

[dfoulk]

The consistency is a little harder in the new 6oz jars but it's still a croap. I just scoop out a bit, spread around the beard and face lather. Easy, fast and amazing performance due to those wonderful ingredients. New jars are nice too.

View attachment 682290

The thickness that the soap was at in my tub certainly wasn't a croap.



Is yours like this or something different?

 

[vtmax]

David, yes I shouldn't have said croap, typing in a work meeting! Exactly like that. I like the fact I can scoop out a bit as I said and face lather. Great scent this Sandalwood.

I was worried about melting as it sat outside for a while in the heat but all good...and they fill the jar to the top.

 

[dkeester]

So, I have a small concern. It might be more of a nit.

I placed an order with SS on evening the 17th. That same evening I placed an order with Bain Amour. BA sent me a shipping notification the next day, but I haven't received a shipping notice from SS. Was this the same for the rest of you that have ordered from SS?

As long as my order (one L&P, one S&M) arrives in a timely manner it is not really a problem, but notice with tracking information would have been nice.

 

[Naes12]

I've used the soap a few more times, and with a new blade. It is indeed pretty good, especially considering the price. Unfortunately I find that the soap is too moisturizing for my skin in the summer months (to give you an idea, any kind of balm is out of the question even in the dead of winter) I'll definitely revisit it come winter though.

Its damn good for the price. I still think I prefer strop shoppe, mdc, and valobra to it though. I get slightly more buffer from those soaps and less moisture. I suspect it will be awesome for nasty winter days where surfing has dried the hell out of my skin.

 

[vtmax]

I see what you mean. It's 90f (32c) in Vermont right now and I agree. This soap will be great when we all cool down. I don't think I have used any balm at all this summer. It's been hot & dry.

Doug, I never got a tracking also but I ordered the new jar on Mon AM, arrived Thurs. It'll make it.[emoji1362]