Soaps: necessary? Will household types work?

I've been looking into straight razors recently, since I really like having a small number of good-quality things. I have a fountain pen, and it's much the same situation: you use one because, while it has quirks and requires maintenance, it works beautifully.

What I'm not so sure about, however, are soaps. I use an electric right now and I like it for the simplicity of not needing shaving cream. I realize you need something for a straight razor, but I'm not a fan of having to order specific soaps to do the job.

So I suppose what I'm asking is: is it possible/advisable to use a straight razor with either: no soap, bathroom soap, or some easily-obtainable soap? I always shave right after showering, and I'm looking to switch more for personal satisfaction than for a perfect shaving experience, so I'm hoping I can make do with something more common.

Thanks! And sorry if this has already been discussed; I looked through all the beginner's guides and such and couldn't really find anything specific.

- Rippy

Welcome aboard- You will need a soap or cream of some kind to cushion your face. The problem is that there are so many to pick from you can experience "analysis paralysis," in other words be overwhelmed by too many choices. Taylor of Old Bond Street, Truefitt and Hill or Proraso are all good choices. You don't need multiple soaps or creams, though some of us go that route. Check over at classicshaving.com or saintcharlesshave.com. You'll also need a shaving brush, strop, and maybe some aftershave and you'll be set. Look into the beginner's guides and the wiki posted on this site and ask questions if you dont understand something Welcome to your new obsession!

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Originally Posted by rippy

I've been looking into straight razors recently, since I really like having a small number of good-quality things. I have a fountain pen, and it's much the same situation: you use one because, while it has quirks and requires maintenance, it works beautifully.

What I'm not so sure about, however, are soaps. I use an electric right now and I like it for the simplicity of not needing shaving cream. I realize you need something for a straight razor, but I'm not a fan of having to order specific soaps to do the job.

So I suppose what I'm asking is: is it possible/advisable to use a straight razor with either: no soap, bathroom soap, or some easily-obtainable soap? I always shave right after showering, and I'm looking to switch more for personal satisfaction than for a perfect shaving experience, so I'm hoping I can make do with something more common.

Thanks! And sorry if this has already been discussed; I looked through all the beginner's guides and such and couldn't really find anything specific.

- Rippy

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Check out the $12 to $15 van der hagen premium shave set that you can
find at many chain drug stores in the US and even on Amazon. You need
a shave brush a shaving soap and a lathering bowl is a big help for a small
price you get all the necessary lathering parts.

Combine this small investment with a $5 bag of BiC yellow handled tossable
razors and you are good to go in the wet shaving world.

This plan is low budget and makes a lot of sense when switching
from an electric. The yellow handle BiC razors are good for sensitive
skin and are great wet shaving training wheels.

You can upgrade the soap, the brush or the razor one at a time.

Remember, If you do buy a straight razor you also need to get a good strop.
i.e. A good strop plus a good sharp razor is a necessary pair.

There is a Wiki entry for beginners that outlines the entire kit
you will eventually need for shaving with a straight edge...
the above will get you started. Some folk make a left turn down
the double edge wet shaving lane.

I have a neighbor that uses one of those brand name tossable razors.
Now with a VDH kit he talks his girlfriends ear off about the great shave he
gets with his brush and shave soap. He is +70 clearly, lathering
is the place to start, no mater when you start.....(in my opinion).
I just upgraded his soap... ;-) for the new year.

Once you get hooked on wet shaving as many do you can upgrade
with a deluxe brush, a deluxe lathering bowl, a deluxe shave soap
a deluxe razor, a deluxe strop....


As for double purpose soaps there are some. van der hagen makes
a double purpose shave and bath soap. I think it is marketed at
women's legs.

A good bubbly lathering bar soap is Kirk's Bar Soap. It lathers under a brush
just fine and also makes a good bath soap. The cocunut oil makes
a great lather. It is inexpensive so try it.

Williams shave soap can be used like a bar soap. It is
inexpensive as heck.

You don't 'need' specialty soaps, or soaps at all, or even water for that matter, you can cut the whiskers dry.

The question is how tough your skin is, and how much you value it. Water is most important, then 'regular' soap would work but not very well, and then you can use something that's more suitable for shaving, with or without brush. It's all a matter of personal taste and choice.

If you're trying to do this on the cheap there are better options than dry shaving or using Irish Spring. Hand soap isn't recommended; it is not formulated to lather like a shaving soap will, nor will it provide the skin protection/conditioning that we have come to expect (one of our artisan soap makers could chime in and explain in more detail). You can use water only, but the chances of you walking out of the bathroom with your face intact is entirely dependant on your shaving technique; in other words, don't. And then there are the "budget" soaps: Williams, Van der Hagen, Proraso, Wilkinsons, etc. Out of those I'd recommend Proraso.

Honestly though, sampling amazing luxury shaving products is half the fun of this sport. I would almost guarantee that if you tried some of our favourite soaps/creams you would be hooked too.

Variety IS the spice of life, afterall.

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Originally Posted by gugi

The question is how tough your skin is, and how much you value it.

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:roflmao

Thanks for my SRP Laugh of the Day...

For easely obtainable i guess you mean pop to the store to get it
Palmolive shave stick is probably the easyest to pick up here.
The body shop has a cream, but thats not soap :p

Talk about fast, quality responses! :)

I think what I'll do is check the local stores next time I'm out and see what's available before I go ahead and find anything online (and get a razor etc along with it).

Also, I'm curious as to the difference between the low-end soaps some have recommended and a shaving cream, i.e. the stuff in an aerosol can I generally associate with safety razors. Any differences a newbie like me would notice? I have some at home, and it lathers up and such and works fine with a safety razor.

You probably want to read a bit on starting up, selecting a razor etc., or you may end up with a razor-shaped decorative object - a good starting point is probably the stickies at the top of this section and the links in them.

The aersosol goo works sort of, but it's not soap. It's also designed for long shelf life with all compromises stemming from that. You can probably find the william's mug soap at your local drugstore - it's not the most moisturizing soap, but it's widely available and probably as good soap as you can buy for 99c. Of course, the cost of soap is negligible over the long run since it lasts really long time. I think Utopian was using a puck of williams for 2 years or something, so a big sized triple milled soap could probably last close to a decade, if one choses to be super frugal.
Then there are shaving creams, which are less economical and many people prefer making lather out of them (I prefer soaps). There are also brushless creams and I forgot which were the ones I tried but one of them worked quite well.

A wonderful shaving cream is Real Shaving Company cream. Its only about $5 at rite aid, but it could easily sell for just as much as art of shaving or T&H creams.

Do what I do, go to some Wal-Marts or nearly any of the CVS or Walgreens in your area.

$5-6 for a Van Der Hagen boar brush
$5-6 for Van Der Hagens soap.

They come in green-trimmed boxes in my area.

Plop the soap in a coffee mug and
Voila, problem solved...you've got my favorite soap and brush that is certainly adequate for less than a pack of cartridge blades. The soap might cost you $20 a year, as I've never kept track of how long one will last. First brush only lasted me 2 years...not bad for $5.


(Don't tell the guys...they like their "fancy" soaps...although I have to admit I'll be trying a new Christmas present tomorrow morning:beer2:)

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Originally Posted by rippy

Talk about fast, quality responses! :)

I think what I'll do is check the local stores next time I'm out and see what's available before I go ahead and find anything online (and get a razor etc along with it).

Also, I'm curious as to the difference between the low-end soaps some have recommended and a shaving cream, i.e. the stuff in an aerosol can I generally associate with safety razors. Any differences a newbie like me would notice? I have some at home, and it lathers up and such and works fine with a safety razor.

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The goo in a can has two things wrong from the start.

One is that it is just goo in a can.... (most make me
sneeze). YMMV...

The other issue that is very important. You can grab
the can slather the goo and try and shave. i.e. Way
too easy to rush the shave.

The process of cleaning your face, building a rich shave
lather and then shaving takes time and softening whiskers
also takes time. It is key to shaving the hard to shave face.

Try this.... splash some cool water on your face.
Grab that can of goo and look at it for 30 boring seconds.
Splash a little more cool-warm water on your face
Stare at that can of goo for another 30-40 boring seconds
another splash and then apply a small blob of goo to you other hand
and rub on your face. Does it smell boring? I think so. Grab an inexpensive shave
brush and lightly scrub your face lifting those whiskers up just a bit.
Rinse and apply another blob of goo then after a total of two or three
min shave. My gentle wager is that your shave will improve by a lot
but still be boring.

Now try the same sort of trick with a fine lathering shave
soap. You get a much wider range of fragrances
from none to OMG.... They seem to self time
the shave prep. They are also compounded to improve
the glide of a razor... If you read the latest razor junk
mail they have special glide strips... because the
goo in the can does not glide as well as a well made
classic shave soap lather...

OMG can be subtle and full of joy like Mitchell's wool fat soap,
or have an in your face punch. It can be pleasantly odd like Tobac,
it might have a hint of rose like Cella or spicy with menthol
and eucalyptus rich like Proraso. Burts Bee's shave soap
is full of in your face spices, cloves, bay, cinnamon that
it has a home here for Christmass and Thanksgiving. Our
sponsors have many more choices... read about them.

Do not get me wrong the goo in a can works. In fact it is OK for a lot
of folk - it is however BORING as heck, to me.

A nice selection of German, English, Italian and American
shave soaps and creams -- well just the spice of life. I am
a fan of the venerable brands. They are still made and sold because
they are simply "made right" for shaving, men and yes women
that like men.

You sound kind of like me. When I started with a str8, if someone would have asked me why I wanted to shave with one, I would have answered a question with a question....Why does a man climb a mountain?! LOL! Seriously though, I found myself wanting to go the practicle route. I've been using the Williams mug soap since I started and am perfectly happy with it. $1.00 per puck and lasts a couple of months for me. The one thing you will probably want to spend a little extra on is a good strop. I like the Red Latigo I got from SRD. My brush is a $15.00 Tweezerman badger hair I ordered online and am happy with it too except, my bristles just fell out after a year. I'll be able to glue them back in though. BTW: Just like gugi said, you should be able to pick up the Williams at most pharmacies and some grocery stores.

Hope this helps, good luck & happy shaving!

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Originally Posted by Ryan82

snip...

there are the "budget" soaps: Williams, Van der Hagen, Proraso, Wilkinsons, etc. Out of those I'd recommend Proraso.

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I finally got some new Williams. I was surprised at how good it was for the cost.

--Shoki

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Originally Posted by Soilarch

(Don't tell the guys...they like their "fancy" soaps...although I have to admit I'll be trying a new Christmas present tomorrow morning:beer2:)

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A+...

I have been know to use a dab of body wash with Arko and it make a nice lather along with excellent glide for the blade...

Right now what I'm using isn't working to well... That will go into another thread...

Let me begin by saying, forgive me, but I'm a bit of a soap snob.

Most (usually all) of the soaps on drug store, supermarket and mega mart shelves are not true soaps but rather detergents. Look at the ingrediants for your bar soaps, hand soaps, body washes, shampoos even toothpaste. They usually contain some form of sodium laureth sulfate. Even the high-end stuff. That chemical is a degreaser and a foaming agent. Remember "Zestfully clean?" The reason it left no residue in the shower and rinsed clean off your skin, so your skin felt squeaky clean, is because it is made mostly of cheap detergent. The degreaser strips all the oils off your skin. Trouble is your skin needs oils to be healthy. That and there is much discussion and debate going on as to the safety of using those chemicals (and the chemicals used in fragrances) on the skin, because by applying them to the skin, they are absorbed into the body. But thats another thread.

So a good soap will clean off the dirty oils from your skin, but will leave behind clean, healthy oils to replenish/moisturize your skin. I make my own soap (real soap) and have for years now. My recipe does just that. Cleans but leaves behind oils to make your skin soft and nourished, even in winter when the skin on my hands would normally crack and bleed and my knees and elbows would get all flaky and itchy. I have also found that the oils in my soap make for a nice slick shave and don't dry out my face either.

So having said all of that, I'm not sure how well a standard soap will perform as a shave soap. If it is slick enough, it may dry out your face if you don't treat it with something else like a heavier aftershave lotion or something. But the only way to find out is to try it. As for the foam in a can, well in addition to my rant about chemicals, I agree with what has been said already about losing a part of the straight razor experience if you go that route.

my 10 cents worth

My 2 cents:

If you are moving from electric to straight, you are also going to moving from chore to enjoyment. Whipping up a nice lather out of a quality shaving soap is one of the pleasures of shaving, and you would be shorting yourself if you did not at least try that part of the experience. You can find decent shaving soaps and brushes for very reasonale prices, or super expensive prices. IMHO, you should not go for the cheepest, as you won't really get a good experience with them.

Secondly, some people don't lather up at all, but shave with water only. I would not recommend starting this way, as good technique is more important when shaving like this. It is something you may want to experiment with once you once you have straight shaving down.

I just got some soap at cvs for $1 and a septic pen for $4

Haha, well I think I'm sold. Time to do some thorough reading of the guides/FAQs.

I'll probably only be using it on weekends anyway, since there's no way I can convince my mother of the sanity of this venture until I can just whip it out and do a decent shave (I'm a student still living at home and I share the bathroom in the mornings :P)

Again, thanks for all the tips!

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Originally Posted by gugi

You don't 'need' specialty soaps, or soaps at all, or even water for that matter, you can cut the whiskers dry.

The question is how tough your skin is, and how much you value it. Water is most important, then 'regular' soap would work but not very well, and then you can use something that's more suitable for shaving, with or without brush. It's all a matter of personal taste and choice.

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+1 on the above ,the least expensive way would be to go the BEARD route.