Thread: Glycerin + cream?

I use it every shave! Uber-lather just wouldn't be the same without it...6 drops for me!

Great! Now I have to get some glycerin and try it with my soap and cream lathers.

Note: The SRD soaps make a fine shaving lather...

When I first started straight shaving I mixed several drops of glycerin into my lathers and it made a noticeable difference. Funny enough I've backed off from using it as my shaving technique and lather making get better with experience. Still, made a difference from the get-go and would recommend to anyone struggling a bit to get their lather just right.

Glycerin forming is part of basic saponification. If you feel like you need to add glycerine to your soap and/or cream to significantly improve its performance, there either is something wrong with the product our your lathering technique.

However, if you add it for extra "fluffiness" or whatever, it's up to you. Personally, my experience has been that it seemed to cause my lather to dry out faster and to improve after care (moisturising) in lower quality soaps. So I got rid of my lower quality soaps and was left with no positive influence on my lather.

Maybe it's just me, but the highly photogenic merengue/whipped cream type lather that is often visible in shaving shots is is really just that, photogenic. For actual shaving I prefer a much wetter lather, with a consistency of thick yoghurt (sticking to dessert vocabulary here).

Slightly off-topic, but in my opinion relevant to the lather making process.

+1 to Pithor.

I tried the glycerin early on and decided the same. Not that anything is wrong with glycerin but it is not for me. Buy MdC, TOBS, Czech and Speake, Castle Forbes.

I started the überlather early in my shaving hobby. I personally like the addition of glycerine but I've only come to realize now ( a few months later) how "thirsty" it makes the lather.

Originally Posted by MandoRob

One of my cheap favorites is a few drops of glycerin and CO Bigelow cream.

+1 Great gets better. :-)

+1 Pithor and Rolodave

I am glad I am not the only one who thinks like this.

If adding a basic ingredient like glycerin to a soap makes such a vast difference then there was obviously something (e.g. glycerin) lacking in the soap to start with.

In case of creams even more so, as it is easy to add (more) glycerin to a shaving cream formulation without changing the consistency of the product. In fact, if someone craves more glycerin, creams may be the way to go.


In essence, I believe in Leonardo da Vinci's "Simplicity is the ultimate form of sophistication" and am deeply skeptical of overly elaborate rituals to get a job done that IMO should be (and was to our fathers and grandfathers) pretty simple and straightforward.


Lastly, while I may get a kick out of a cheap shaving soap or cream that compares favorably with much more expensive products, I do not believe that such a product should require additional preparation, or that I should have to alter my lathering or shaving technique to get it to perform adequately.
If it does, it's not for me. 👎


In the bathroom, I shave.
If I want to try my luck at chemistry, I go to the lab. 😈



B.

Originally Posted by FranfC

When I make uberlather I usually use a brush full of my favorite soap, a dollop of my favorite cream with compatible scent and four drops of glycerine. Males a luxurious slick lather with plenty of cushion.

Funny...That's exactly what I do...right down to the # of drops of glycerine.
Been doing it that way for a long time. Works fantastic!
Pete <:-}

Like all of us shavers do, I have changed my mind in regards to glycerin. I have found that when using real hot water in my scuttle, the lather dries out quicker when adding glycerin. I like hot lather a lot. I also figured out that when adding glycerin to a soap or crème or both in a ubelather, the lather requires more water during the shave. I really like the added glide when using glycerin though. I have not used it in a while and have been pleasantly surprised