What makes a good lather bowl?

[mbrossar]

I know, this is likely to be a big YMMV topic, but I've been playing with various bowls and found an odd one that I can generate lather like crazy. It's a small kid's snack bowl. It's plastic (it's only downfall because it doesn't retain heat), 1.5" deep (I have a Rooney 1/1 so I need a pretty shallow bowl), it's slightly oblong and is 4" across at its narrowest point and 4.5" across at its widest.

I have tried a myriad of other cups and bowls both metal and ceramic, all of them round, most of them pretty shallow. I'm trying to figure out why this works so well for me. Maybe it just fits my lathering style. Maybe it's the oblong shape versus round. Maybe it's the plastic versus metal/ceramic.

I figured perhaps comparing your preferences, I might zero in on something.

 

[Leche]

A small dipping bowl or a latte cup. Something wide with sloped walls. Ridges will help build lather. The ceramic type materials will retain heat well. Dark colors will help you see the lather building. Target has a great dipping bowl for 3.99 in blue and white.

 

[Luc]

Ceramic works well for this. Your size seems great. I am thinking of getting a metal bowl since I always manage to drop mine every 3 months. I have no idea if this will work well as metal will heat up very quickly but also cool off quickly.

 

[BroJohn]

mbrossar --

IMO, a lather bowl should be 4.5in to 5.5in diameter, 1.5 to 2.5in tall, non-white glazed textured interior so you can see the lather develop, crockery or stoneware to retain heat, and cheap; $2-$5 at Wal-mart, Target, K-mart, etc.

I recommend you avoid 'purpose made' shaving bowls/mugs --generally they're a poor value and most are unsuitable for mixing lather

Most 'purpose made' soap bowls offered by shaving vendors (C&E, EJ, and the like) are too small, and overpriced for what they are, IMO. Many of them are quite attractive and can be quite high quality; I just find them to be inadequate for the lather mixing task. The exception are some of the offerings by potter-artisans who make scuttles and bowls for the on-line wet shaving community.

The other exceptions are soap bowl/containers offered by some brands of triple-milled shave soaps where the container is sized and specifically made for their product. These are best used to hold a cake of soap and are not used as a 'lather bowl'. The appropriate use for these is to hold the soap. In use, the user loads the brush on the soap held in the bowl, then builds the lather directly on the face. The bowl is really too small for any other usage.

I've been quite satisfied with a bowl and find most mugs to be somewhat confining.

-- John Gehman

 

[Dubbya]

Soup mugs, cereal bowls, small mixing bowls, large custard dishes, etc., I've tried just about everything and I like either a purpose made scuttle or a metal mixing bowl with the outside hammered a little for texture on the inside(the hammer marks act like the ridges in a scuttle) floated in a sink of hot water. It's very nice.

 

[Emmett]

I'm using a soup mug right now, which works well except for being a little deep. But I'm paranoid of breaking it and I'm considering making/finding a wooden bowl.

 

[Dubbya]

I'm using a soup mug right now, which works well except for being a little deep. But I'm paranoid of breaking it and I'm considering making/finding a wooden bowl.

Feel free to use my hand hammered stainless steel bowl idea. Wood doesn't stand up too well to repeated soaking unless it's shellaced/pitched beyond belief. Also, the metal bowl floated in the hot water makes for superbly hot lather.

 

[sapito318]

A small dipping bowl or a latte cup. Something wide with sloped walls. Ridges will help build lather. The ceramic type materials will retain heat well. Dark colors will help you see the lather building. Target has a great dipping bowl for 3.99 in blue and white.

That is what I have, and it works great.

 

[BobS]

I normally use a nice, Japanese rice bowl. It has sloped sides and is deep enough hold the brush.

I preheat it and then put it in the sink with the hot water.

I also have a DB, 1 1/2 X Scuttle that is really nice, but I usually just use it on the weekends, because I take extra time to heat the water in the microwave.

 

[adonnellyr]

I actually prefer a deep shaving bowl. That way I can whip my brush around as quickly as I want without having any splash risk, plus I can get a ridiculous superlather built up in it if I want. I also feel like the heat is retained better and the lather doesn't dry out from lack of airflow on the lather in a deep bowl. What are the benefits of the shallow bowls?