Hello, sirs!

Wasn't sure if this belongs here or in Soaps/Creams.

Of all the challenges that come with taking up traditional wetshaving, I have found building lather to be the most difficult. It always dries out on me, even when I'm using my DE, so I don't think I'm just being slow. I always lather on a wet face. I have tried a few different ways, always using the manufacturer's directions for each particular soap/cream if they exist. I have tried the way Mantic59 suggests, which is spinning a dryer brush on the soap for 3 seconds. I have tried the Leisureguy method of swirling a wet brush for 30 seconds. I've tried soaking the brush, not soaking the brush, tried the teaspoon of water on top of the puck, tried glycerin, bowl lathering, face lathering, loading upside-down... The lather always dries out.

The only thing I haven't tried yet is using distilled water, which I'm going to experiment with tomorrow.

When I loaded the brush for only 3 seconds, my lather was always thin, full of bubbles, and wouldn't "stick" to my skin. When I load for 30 seconds, I can achieve a thick, bubbleless lather, but it starts to dry quickly. If it was on the drier side, it dries quickly with cracks like when mud dries. If it was wetter, it dries a little less quickly and becomes transparent and full of bubbles. By the end of my shave, I will relather under my nose and my chin, and by the time I'm done with the chin (less than a minute), under the nose is already getting dry. This happens if I relather over the old lather OR wash off the old lather first. It's not extremely cold, hot, or humid in the room during my shave. Usually at about 74 degrees.

I'd really appreciate any ideas or tips. I hate feeling rushed during my shave, and I'd like to try everything before I resign myself to lathering one section at a time.

Thanks,

Max