Thread: Shaving soaps?

I have a friend who is a DE shaver. He is into soaps. Fortunately his recommendations have been good, because I've tried a few of them:

1- Col. Conk (Almond)
2- Synergy Soaps (Lavender Cedar)
3- Proraso (Green)
4- Tabac
5- Aged Spice (Mama Bear Soaps)

This is roughly the order I purchased in, and Col. Conk is probably the soap I've used the most, but I have a few shaves on all of the others. I use Proraso with the pre-shave and the soap. Proraso works well and it isn't very expensive, but I have to be in the mood for menthol. Tabac is very nice with a subtle sent and a nice glide.

Only recently did I try the Aged Spice, I was really surprised at how soap, blade, and skin worked together. I have no idea if this is because it is hand made and bit more expensive. I've read the library info on soaps. I've read the information on the Mama Bear site as well. There is a lot to soaps and fragrances. Right now I'm interested in good shave performance, and complimentary scents for aftershave and soaps.

The only thing I've taken away from the SRP library on soap so far is that I use very low power in the microwave to barely melt the soaps to fit my cups and bowls. Two or three on the power for 30 seconds at a time seems to just melt them without much heating. Is that hurting the soap at all? Smells and feels the same pre and post melt, but what do I know...

I think I'd like to try more handmade soaps like Mama Bear Soaps. Does anyone have recommendations for handmade soaps? Also if you pair them with a particular aftershave or splash what do you use? Last I see Mama Bear uses a sample shop, I like that, any other vendors selling samples?

Best Regards,

Ed

Ed, yes I have used another soap company , Sterling soap,, inexpensive and I haven't found one I didn't like, they have samples and Rod is very generous with them tc

Originally Posted by EdHutton

I have a friend who is a DE shaver. He is into soaps. Fortunately his recommendations have been good, because I've tried a few of them:

1- Col. Conk (Almond)
2- Synergy Soaps (Lavender Cedar)
3- Proraso (Green)
4- Tabac
5- Aged Spice (Mama Bear Soaps)

This is roughly the order I purchased in, and Col. Conk is probably the soap I've used the most, but I have a few shaves on all of the others. I use Proraso with the pre-shave and the soap. Proraso works well and it isn't very expensive, but I have to be in the mood for menthol. Tabac is very nice with a subtle sent and a nice glide.

Only recently did I try the Aged Spice, I was really surprised at how soap, blade, and skin worked together. I have no idea if this is because it is hand made and bit more expensive. I've read the library info on soaps. I've read the information on the Mama Bear site as well. There is a lot to soaps and fragrances. Right now I'm interested in good shave performance, and complimentary scents for aftershave and soaps.

The only thing I've taken away from the SRP library on soap so far is that I use very low power in the microwave to barely melt the soaps to fit my cups and bowls. Two or three on the power for 30 seconds at a time seems to just melt them without much heating. Is that hurting the soap at all? Smells and feels the same pre and post melt, but what do I know...

I think I'd like to try more handmade soaps like Mama Bear Soaps. Does anyone have recommendations for handmade soaps? Also if you pair them with a particular aftershave or splash what do you use? Last I see Mama Bear uses a sample shop, I like that, any other vendors selling samples?

Best Regards,

Ed

Ed, some soaps will melt down just fine in the microwave, and some will be ruined. I know MWF doesn't respond well to the microwave, so I use a hand held grater then pack the shavings into an 8 ounce pyrex bowl. The whole process takes about 10 minutes and the soap seems to lather better after it has been grated.

Maggards does several different sampler packs of soaps, creams, aftershaves, preshaves etc. Also Garys sample shop has a decent selection. Always try to do a sample before I buy. Cant stand to have buyers remorse because of a scent or performance I don't like. Looks like you started out with some good soaps. Nothing wrong with that line up.

Whoo's Soap is not bad at all.
Martin de Candre (MdC) is great but very pricey mainly because the only shipping option is air from France.
Mama Bear is great
I also enjoy SRD soaps India Bay and Opus X

Originally Posted by Wayne1963

Ed, some soaps will melt down just fine in the microwave, and some will be ruined. I know MWF doesn't respond well to the microwave, so I use a hand held grater then pack the shavings into an 8 ounce pyrex bowl. The whole process takes about 10 minutes and the soap seems to lather better after it has been grated.

+1 - After an "incident" involving a puck of soap and the microwave that went...shall we say..."sideways" I have switched to press in for the soft stuff and the hand crank grater for all the others. Pack it in layers and I found it helped shorten the MWF learning curve. The first couple of times you use the grated stuff you will pick up small bits of soap, this ends shortly.

Smooth Shaving...

Thanks! After reading a few people's comments on MWF, I thought I have to give that a try. It's on order. I'm going to try samples of other soaps recommended here too. Many years ago I did a lot of medical instrument work; which means washing your hands and wearing surgical gloves a lot. We kept a small tub of lanolin in the shop. It really kept your hands from cracking in the winter. Sounds like great stuff to put in shave soap. I will definitely try the grater approach to MWF soap and avoid the microwave.

Any other soap not like the microwave? It is really nice to have the soap fit the container perfectly and it is easy to do, but I don't want to screw up an expensive cake of shaving soap.

Best,

Ed

I've been using the Sterling soaps mentioned above. They are soft enough to simply press into a bowl or tin without heating or grating.
I have found a few "flavors" that I am not particularly fond of, but none that I find offensive. An added bonus is that they sell bath soaps in many of the same fragrances, carrying the "matching scent" of your shave to an extreme.

Lately I've been using Red Leaf Soaps. They have some different scents. The smell takes over the bathroom while shaving, but it washes right off so it doesn't interfere with aftershave or cologne afterwards. The soaps are glycerin based and samples are available.

The important thing about melting soaps is that treatment is only for glycerin based soaps. The other types will be ruined and create a big mess if you try it.

I've found just about every soap no matter how strong smelling the scent, will totally wash off once you're finished shaving. The only soap I've used that produces a lingering scent is X-pec. So, matching soap to other scents isn't necessary unless you have one of the few that does linger.