We are all different. If my lather doesn't have enough water, my razor literally sticks to my face.
Why lather the soap?
- Thread starter Brassplyer
- Start date
Very dangerous indeed. By my calculation, 15 pounds (only about 60 normal sized tubs) of soap could last 50 years if you only apply the amount needed for lubrication and use your fingertips, and I think you could easily stretch to 100, 200 years, skipping days and going lightly. Imagine if someone only did one pass a couple times a week! I am almost afraid to say, but 500 years.
Someone with a less modest stock of 150 soaps could easily need until... 3017!
Your humor came through just fine...and someone made a joke in response. All is well.
This kind of subversive talk could collapse the entire shaving economy if it gets out.
I like to face lather. What level it gets lathered up to or not is really dependent on the soap. If I use DG or B&M I don't really get a big lather. It's a slick coat, I make suer it has water enough so I feel my brush passes slickly, easily but not too much to diminish the performance. This is not at all 'lathery' in a fluffy sense at all - and I get a phenomenal shave.
I lather so that the soap or cream reaches its fullest potential in form and function…this helps my shaves to be as nice as possible.
Plus I think it’s a fun little diversion…the whole process really!
Plus I think it’s a fun little diversion…the whole process really!
So people don’t get Humor, those people are up tight.
Many of the Comics loved as a kid, would find no work in 2024.
It was a misunderstanding on my part. I was, unfortunately, not able to delete this post.
It's hilarious to read some of the responses here, like the entire idea of not lathering the soap just doesn't compute.
OP - "What if you don't lather the soap?"
Response - "You mean lather directly on the puck?"
OP - "No, like just load if from the puck and put it on your face without lathering."
Response - "Oh, you mean lathering on your face?"
OP - "No, I mean not lathering at all, just put it on your face and add a bit of water."
Response - "Oh of course, you could always add more water to your lather."
OP - "No no no. Not any lather. Just soap, no lather."
Response - ". . . I don't understand"
OP - "What if you don't lather the soap?"
Response - "You mean lather directly on the puck?"
OP - "No, like just load if from the puck and put it on your face without lathering."
Response - "Oh, you mean lathering on your face?"
OP - "No, I mean not lathering at all, just put it on your face and add a bit of water."
Response - "Oh of course, you could always add more water to your lather."
OP - "No no no. Not any lather. Just soap, no lather."
Response - ". . . I don't understand"
Who's on First
Whether I bowl lather or face lather, the result is a medium wet lather. This gives me good slickness and cushion.
Hey, whatever works. A person could shave with water alone, olive oil, Crisco, anything's possible I suppose for the creative person.
The point of soap is to make your skin slick. Soapy water will work fine until it dries out, so you make some lather (any what you'd like) that stays wet while you shave.
Too much soap is sticky, too little and the bubbles all pop and you get dry soap, which is sticky, you want a happy medium.
I tend toward the very wet side, all I care about is slickness. Usually only rinse the DE razor once per pass, you don't need more than that.
Too much soap is sticky, too little and the bubbles all pop and you get dry soap, which is sticky, you want a happy medium.
I tend toward the very wet side, all I care about is slickness. Usually only rinse the DE razor once per pass, you don't need more than that.
- Thread starter
- #35
I feel some folks here didn’t understand your question or maybe you could have written a little differently.
I do exactly what you said on your question. I don’t swirl, scrub or introduce any air into the mix.
I load with a properly wet brush, paint it on, add water as needed with painting strokes only and go to town.
There’s no “building up” for me, it’s soap and water without ANY agitation.
I want slickness, not volume.
Is this not considered a lathering process? That’s debatable.
Maybe you could’ve asked “do you guys swirl, agitate and look for volume and cushion when lathering? Or use painting strokes only?”
It would’ve triggered the answers you’re looking for.
I do exactly what you said on your question. I don’t swirl, scrub or introduce any air into the mix.
I load with a properly wet brush, paint it on, add water as needed with painting strokes only and go to town.
There’s no “building up” for me, it’s soap and water without ANY agitation.
I want slickness, not volume.
Is this not considered a lathering process? That’s debatable.
Maybe you could’ve asked “do you guys swirl, agitate and look for volume and cushion when lathering? Or use painting strokes only?”
It would’ve triggered the answers you’re looking for.
Compute? You said compute? What makes you think there is more than one human posting here?
AI? Hello? Have you heard of it?
I get what your saying. I just started bowl lathering for the first time in ~30 years this year. I was an unabashed face latherer all that time. I always went for the thickest lather I could get without getting it "foamy" if that makes sense. Just a thick, "creamy" coating as I belive you are describing. To me this aways offered the best combination of slickness and hydration. I use a bowl now, because it's changed things up and I think it's fun, but I still aim to get as thick as I can without getting foamy. When I have a foamy lather on my face, I feel like it's too thin at the skin's surface and doesn't provide enough slickness and glide, if that makes sense?
Anyway, different strokes for different folks as they say. There's really no wrong way to do it. If what you're doing works for you, then it works. That's all that matters.
You don't actually need lather to shave. i shave the back of my neck with beard oil (after I've softened the hair there with hot water). I do this mainly for visibility.
If you soften the hair you are shaving, and provide lubrication for the blade, there are multiple ways to do it...
If you soften the hair you are shaving, and provide lubrication for the blade, there are multiple ways to do it...
Steve56
Ask me about shaving naked!
During my working years (decades) I shaved with a Redken Amino Pon bar and a Bic disposable, usually the Bic Metal which I still use on the back of my neck again with no lather. The most desirable attribute was that it was very fast when I was trying to get out the door. It worked well enough for government work, but as far as enjoying my shave it was definitely underwhelming. I’d put the enjoyment level as 1-2 on a scale of 10, with 10 being the most enjoyable.
