I lather with cake soap that I leave in a coffee mug. Before getting into the shower, I'll run about a tablespoon of hot tap water into the mug to soften the soap some before loading the brush. I then build the lather in a bowl.

I've seen many different shave soaps offered in a wooden bowl. It appears that the soap fills the bowl up completely leaving little, if any, room to let water sit to soften the soap. How do users of these wooden bowl shave soaps soften the soap prior to loading the brush, if at all?