If a lather is too dry, I know it can cause the razor to jump and push the skin. But does a too dry of a lather make more difficult for the razor to cut the whisker? How opaque or dense of a lather do you need to create a nice balance of lubrication and not too runny? Should the lather be so that you can still see some skin underneath when you apply it?

I treated myself to a nice long shave to get ready to go out to dinner with the wife, so I was really able to take my time and shave carefully. I showered and washed my face, by the way. My lather did get too dry and I reapply another layer that was a bit runny and it helped, but I still had "skips". My razor was stropped and it was sharp enough to cut a slither off a strand of hair (I actually did that to test the sharpness) so I know the razor was shave ready. But still had skips. I have been straight razor shaving since the beginning of this past May and I am using a Dovo Best Quality. Since I am a rookie with SR shaving, am I expecting too much too soon?

I started out today using the SRD 100% Essential Oil shaving soap and felt it got too dry, then I went back to my Van der Hagen. I am thinking maybe with the SRD shaving soap I didn't have enough water mixed in because I had a lather that looked like white paint and i thought that is what you want to achieve in lathering. I wanted to stick with the SRD brand, but I thought maybe it was too dry for me.

I will truly appreciate my fellow members' feedback/input/advice.
Thank you in advance!
Patrick