Thread: Grapeseed Oil.

So I've been reading different things about shaving soaps and decided to add 4 or 5 drops of grapeseed oil to my bowl before making my lather. I wet my boar brush and loaded it with proraso white. At first the lather didn't produce as quickly as usual and I had to add a little more water but when the lather did come up it was thick, creamy and looked like meringue!!! When I put it on my face it was so pleasantly warm and slick; I instantly noticed a difference in the feel.

With the first pass of the blade my wish was granted and my favourite razor in my rotation, my 1920's boker king cutter, started gliding over my face. I feel like I normally get an exceptional shave with this razor so I wanted to see the difference. Surprising!

As usual it was a 2 pass shave to bbs but it just felt so much better than normal! My skin was also left feeling more supple and smooth.

I guess grapeseed oil is essentially pure vitamin e and is great for your skin to begin with.

Has anyone else experimented mixing this oil or others into their lather??

My wife is Italian so we have enough olive oil to last us nuclear holocaust; I'm thinking of trying it next shave, just to say I did it.

Well I tried a home mix of castor oil, olive oil and a few drops of lavendar EO for scent. I used it once and tossed it in the garbage lol. Saw the thing on the internet so I decided to give it a try and failed miserably, it felt like I was smathering on used motor oil. My other trial was glycerin and that worked well. I will have to give grapeseed oil a try.

It does sound like your mix was a little oil rich there! I loaded my boar brush with enough soap to have lather for a 3 pass shave and used only 4-5 drops. I really noticed a difference!

Speaking of lavender, I would stay away from the stuff. It is debatable but has been mentioned on the forum before and there are quite a few articles on it. Apparently prolonged use of lavender can cause a depression of the production of testosterone in men.

Originally Posted by brooksie967

It does sound like your mix was a little oil rich there! I loaded my boar brush with enough soap to have lather for a 3 pass shave and used only 4-5 drops. I really noticed a difference!

Speaking of lavender, I would stay away from the stuff. It is debatable but has been mentioned on the forum before and there are quite a few articles on it. Apparently prolonged use of lavender can cause a depression of the production of testosterone in men.

That isn't good. I need all the help I can get in that department!

I have used Jojoba oil with good results.

The other day I had to apply some "Bag Balm" to our dog's belly. I cleaned up my hands with some Dr. Bronner's soap. I noticed the soap and bag balm combined into a very thick and slick "cream" in my hands. I'm going to experiment with this in the near future. Bag Balm is mostly a mixture of Lanolin and Petroleum Jelly, though it does have some antiseptic also.

If you DO use grapeseed oil for anything, only buy it in the smallest size you need. That stuff goes rancid very rapidly. Try keeping it in the fridge for prolonged storage.

Originally Posted by Scookum

Well I tried a home mix of castor oil, olive oil and a few drops of lavendar EO for scent. I used it once and tossed it in the garbage lol.

There may have been a problem with your mix. You used the same ingredients used by one of the Art of Shaving pre-shave oils that I have: castor oil, olive oil, & fragrance.

Originally Posted by brooksie967

My wife is Italian so we have enough olive oil to last us nuclear holocaust; I'm thinking of trying it next shave, just to say I did it.

My brother melts down a cheap shave stick, then mixes in olive oil and fragrance to make a great soap. He raves about it. I haven't tried it, but I might just have to start experimenting.

Myself, I use 5 drops of glycerin in my soaps and creams. That gives me a great lather.

I use 50/50 glycerin and grapeseed oil as a pre shave oil. After I apply the hot water to my face then I apply the oil. After that it's lather and go!