Like others who have responded I too do both face lathering and bowl lathering. My choice usually relates to the brush/cream/soap combination I elect to use. My favorite face lathering is with a stick and stiff, boar brush. It is very important to be liberal with the wetness of the brush as face lathering is more likely to dry if not done properly. There are certain creams that are just made for the bowl and whip up a wet, slick foam just not achievable on the face. A bowl lathering can introduce more air and subsequent bubbles than is possible with face lathering. This is related to speed and surface area. It is not better, just different. I think both have merit for a given brush/cream/soap combination, and that is why I use both.
Why is face lathering so magical and great?
- Thread starter Doctor
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Face lathering is great because it gives me a free hand to hold my ice cold beer!
..plus I find that it saves me time (more time spent working the lather into my face). But the biggest benefit? No more complaints from my girlfriend about my brush clanking around in the bowl while she tries to sleep. hehe. =D
Personally, I can get a good lather (using soap or cream) with both face lathering and bowl lathering.
"Why is face lathering so magical and great?"
It isn't, in my opinion.
DD
It isn't, in my opinion.
DD
It's not, it's just the most efficient way to do it. It also gives immediate feedback with regard to lather production allowing you to make necessary adjustments to the water/soap ratio.
I prefer the bowl also. Face lathering to me is like mixing my house paint on the side of the house. Toss it on...stir it all over with the brush and then straighten it out. Not for me
I enjoy it, but use a small bowl to incorporate water, not air.
I really got into face lathering when I was shower shaving for about a year or so, for obvious reasons. Now it is second nature to me, while the bowl requires more work for me to get it right. Add in the extra brush time on the face to get the beard prepped well, the easier cleanup, and the ability to use the same process on the road without hauling the bowl with me, and it's an easy choice for me. Plus I love shave sticks, which are designed for face lathering.
Not really I'm using a boar brush at the moment, it doesn't effect my at all and my skin is sensitive
I love face lathering it feels good it exfoliates and preps your face and it's easier to judge how the lather is truing out by the feel of it, that's the main reason why I was never good at bowl lathering and switched to face lathering
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Both ways give good results, neither is necessarily better than the other.
Personally, I get brush burn from Pure bristles so I save the face lathering for the softer brushes, but that's about it.
Personally, I get brush burn from Pure bristles so I save the face lathering for the softer brushes, but that's about it.
It takes out what to me was a troublesome variable. In my early months of DE shaving, I tried the bowl way. I felt more like a chef or a chemist, fussing over adding water, testing....testing. Plus of course the bowl itself. Peeking through kitchenware wondering if this or that would be better. Pausing at the kitchenware aisle to examine possibles. Then there's scuttles, expensive (though I'm sure reasonably priced ones are to be found) and breakable. I found face-lathering to be more fun, more easy, and quicker. My only variation is the use of a little cup in a big cup to leave the brush in between latherings. I warm both with water as I wash my face, then leave the big one half-full, dropping the little one into it, and putting the lathered brush handle-up into the small one.
I like to use my scuttle for warm lather during the colder months. During the hotter part of the year, I prefer to face lather with a cooler lather.
This and some of the other replys about having a hard time face lathering sound like you don't load enough soap.
Load your brush and smear your face with soap and then load some more and repeat, dipping tips/adding water as needed, then lather/paint your face.
When I shave I get enough lather for 4 1/2 - 5 passes, 2 1/2 face, 2 head. The last pass I squeeze the lather out and put on my head by hand.
Each pass is as creamy and thick as the first.
Use more soap, I guess for cream use more of that too.
I use Badger Brushes, YMMV
Don't be afraid to hit the puck before the 2nd and 3rd pass if you need to. I also find just dipping the tips of the brush in the water before subsequent passes does the job.
+1!!! I had a few issues with bowl lathering when I first started. Constantly fussing with getting it right. I tried face lathering about my 7th shave and with the immediate feedback given I never looked back.
Aye. I've done that myself. I'm like what's the point?
I have never tried face lathering, guess ill do that in the morning. Not even sure why i started out by using a bowl just did and it seems to work well. I'm open to trying it out
+ 3million LOL
havent tried drinking an ice cold beer, ill try that when i face lather
If you load enough soap onto the brush at the start, you shouldn't be experiencing this, at least with a good size brush. I find that, after the second pass, there is a lot of super-thick lather deep inside the brush that can be squeezed out for a luxurious third pass or touch-up fourth.
