Thread: Lathering difficulties

Originally Posted by BobH

You have to load the brush well from the puck and add a bit of water from time to time as you build up your lather. The lather should be thick and and creamy when ready to go. When you pull the brush away from the lather it should leave a peak in the lather. Hard to describe. Here is a guy bowl lathering your soap.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpfhqeGPKvA

One to show you how to load the brush.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icTC...AYHiXYBRrIMYJQ

Bob

Bob the first video exceptionally helpful. I know now it is not the soap it is my technique. Error #1 I did not load properly i.e. I did not do enough swirls in the soap bowl. Error #2 He attacks that soap with his brush, I haven't been going 1) that hard and 2) for that long making my lather. Thank you so much for that. I guess I could have googled but haven't seen much talk of it around the forum.

Originally Posted by S0LITARYS0LDIER

Bob the first video exceptionally helpful. I know now it is not the soap it is my technique. Error #1 I did not load properly i.e. I did not do enough swirls in the soap bowl. Error #2 He attacks that soap with his brush, I haven't been going 1) that hard and 2) for that long making my lather. Thank you so much for that. I guess I could have googled but haven't seen much talk of it around the forum.

That is something that I have experimented with. Some brush makers, notably Thater , instruct not to press hard on the brush in building lather, or in applying it. Some manufacturers say you should only build lather and/or apply it with painting strokes, not swirls. I can't agree with that. I assume in both instances, pressing hard, and swirls they are assuming those techniques will damage the bristles.

Anyway, one knowledgeable straight shaver, doing it a couple of decades recently told me he gets better face lathering when he only builds the lather on the tips of the brush. I've tried that but I seem to do better applying some pressure. BTW, I haven't watched any of the videos, so I don't know if they cover bowl lathering. For a considerable time I had given up face lathering for bowl lathering. I found it easier to generate thick, creamy lather that way. I've since gone back to the face lathering but just thought to mention it. If you haven't tried bowl lathering it is another arrow in the quiver.

Originally Posted by S0LITARYS0LDIER

Bob the first video exceptionally helpful. I know now it is not the soap it is my technique. Error #1 I did not load properly i.e. I did not do enough swirls in the soap bowl. Error #2 He attacks that soap with his brush, I haven't been going 1) that hard and 2) for that long making my lather. Thank you so much for that. I guess I could have googled but haven't seen much talk of it around the forum.

Glad it was helpful. Vids are always better than trying to write what to do. As far as attacking the soap goes that is a yes and no. There is a balance between just kissing the surface lightly and mangling the brush down into it. I usually "load" with enough pressure that the knot splays a little bit but don't flatten it.

I then face lather to "build" my lather to the consistency I want using both circular and painting strokes to spread it once built. When using circular strokes to build the lather on my face I do not flatten the knot either. I use enough force to get it to just splay a bit. Imho the warning from brush makers against using circular strokes is to guard themselves against overzealous brush mangling face lathering folk. The other way is to "build" your lather in a bowl. Loading and building are two separate operations.

Bob