Ok so here is the deal I have been De / Str8 shaving now for a almost 4 months...... I have gotten my technique down fairly well with all of my Razors and now and have really gravitated towards creams up until recently.... I have used VDH deluxe soap only. I know VDH is not considered high end by any means but I have been using it non stop for the last 2 weeks and have really come to like soap a lot more than creams I just find soap more slick and now can actually make a decent lather. so all that said I dropped some cash and bought a couple better soaps some of which I believe are considered high end. I bought D.R. Harris Arlington in Mahogany tub, Pre de Provence, Mitchells wool fat, and Prosaro green soap just as I really liked the cream. So here's the million dollar question which one should I try first ? What soap is going to make me say da## !!!!! and never look back ? I will be trying using all in my rotation but want to hear from the more experienced guys out there which should I break into first. thanks !!!
which one should I try first ?
- Thread starter Aschecte
- Start date
Williams Mug Soap! Wonderful soft lemon scent.
Arlington.
Personally I'm a PdP guy. I love it. Proraso Green has been rocking my world lately too though.
With it getting warmer I've noticed I have been reaching far more for Proraso Green + Proraso Splash then PdP + Their Shea Butter Balm (even though its a light balm).
With it getting warmer I've noticed I have been reaching far more for Proraso Green + Proraso Splash then PdP + Their Shea Butter Balm (even though its a light balm).
Although it's not on the poll list, you really should try the VdH Luxury since you liked the Deluxe version as much as you say. Most people find the Luxury is a good step up from the Deluxe..
Other than that, if it were up to me, I'd go with the PdP.
Other than that, if it were up to me, I'd go with the PdP.
Proraso Green... Many soaps come and go, the Italian classic though will always be a staple in my den.
MWF changed my opinion on soaps for the better. Proraso green in the tub helps keep that opinion strong.
I love MWF. The lather can be tricky to get right, but once you do it's amazing.
Have not tried a straight (someday I will!), but from what I have read on that forum it requires a lather that provides more slickness than glide which is what you want with a DE razor. I can say that Williams provides some of the best slickness of any shave soap at less than $2 a puck and probably easily available to you locally then give it a try while you wait to receive MWF. Just do a little research here @ B&B regarding cracking the Williams code.
- Thread starter
- #12
Ok I just realized I lied.... not on purpose but I have tried Williams mug soap but it was my first soap even before I had a De or straight razor. I got it at the same time as my VDH boar...... I've honestly only tried it a dozen or so times and gave up on it for two big reasons. The first reason and maybe it's just my water or even my technique as this like I said goes back further than when I even had gotten into traditional shaving was I could not build a lather for anything !!! lather would form but then within moments it would dry up literally dry up and it would turn almost to dust and believe me I tried adding water. It would also dry to almost a powdery consistency on my face even when I over watered it just to make a lather. The second reason I barely used it was because of the scent it smelled exactly like ivory soap and I almost think it is Ivory soap.... not that I hate Ivory but it is ( and separate this from my first comment) left my face like leather it sucked the moisture from my face to the point that my skin was flaking and yes I did 100% rinse it off. IDK maybe I'll give it another try now that I have more experience but I honestly don't have much faith the results will be much different. but I will try and report back later today or tomorrow morning.
I voted for D.R. Harris Arlington. Mostly because I would consider it the easiest to lather of all of them.
Ben
Ben
- Thread starter
- #15
Creams I'm good on ... Ihave enough cream to probably last a few years.... GFT, TOBS, AL, BBR, Prosaro, Pacific, MW, and multiple scents of each one. I want to try to focus a bit more on soaps as they just seem slicker and I've with my cheapo VDH alone been able to get amazing results and even though it's cheap it works awesome for me so that will def still remain in my rotation and honestly I like the smell of it too.
I voted Arlington. But Proraso and MWF are also excellent.
Start with the Williams and work your way up in quality.
Arlington.
I voted Williams because it's the first soap you tried.
Mitchells was the first shave soap I ever tried, so it became synonymous with first ( for me ).
