Thread: MDC...what am I doing wrong?

I know this stuff is supposed to be awesome but I just can't get a decent shave with it. I do really well with Tabac soap and Arko, and the AOS creams are just terrific and very easy to use. With MDC I've tried different brushes and varying amounts of soap and water, and occasionally I get a nice thick lather but it doesn't seem as protective or smooth as the others. Help?!
I bought it on a trip to Paris and the clerk was very emphatic that I leave it open to dry completely before putting on the lid...why?

Thanks,
Alan

What the clerk said, does not ring with me. I just put the lid back on.

I work the MDC lather a little different than other creams/soaps. I have the large jar of MDC,,,, put some hot water on the top of the soap to moisten it , as my brush soaks,,, a bulb knot with a little scritch to swirl 15 clockwise & 15 counter clockwise circles on the top of the soap,,, this loads the brush,,, then I create the lather on the face. The brush stays loaded for over 2 complete passes.

Working the lather on the face, has been my success with MDC.

That "leave it open" thing sounds strange to me too. My experience with MdC is that if makes a luxurious lather with almost no effort. Very odd.

I don’t even do that, 4-5 swirls and face lather, boom. Yea, put the lid on a jar will last well over a year of daily shaving.

Well actually that is MDC, s instructions to leave open to dry, but I have done it maybe a couple of times and it's just fine as a matter of fact here is my first jar bought 1 month after I joined which is 2 years 3 months ago and a month later I bought the Fougere scent . I finally finished the first jar and my second has less than half, so I don't know what's going on . Here in the Memphis area I do about 8 swirls both ways and it's enough for a 3 pass , and as of right now 13-4 hours after my shave before church my face feels great. So for those of you who have never seen the bottom of a MDC jar here it is. Tc

I've thrown them out, but I'm pretty sure that the "instructions" that came with my large jar of MDC said to leave the lid off and let it dry out and it will last longer.

Regardless, it also said to do almost exactly what Hirlau is doing, and that face lathering was the preferred method. It works well for me very well. It is a thick soap and likes water added to the brush as I go along.

In - Structions…? It’s soap…

If it doesn’t work… then, look in the trash for the instructions…

Fortunately, never knew, there were instructions

As said leave the lid off for a few hours after using according to instructions, in fact I do this with all my soaps. I doubt this will help with lathering though.
For me I find that 10 swirls and a tiny amount of water face lathering works wonders.
I tried loading like a normal soap for 1 min and it just wont work, seems less is more in MDCs case.
I believe the five month drying process MDC use makes it very receptive to water.

Cigar,

I top the puck with a little hot water on the way to the shower. This will soften the soap. Then I empty the water in my brush scuttle. Squeeze my brush so that it's just damp and begin to load it with the soap, adding a few drops of water if needed. Then I face lather, adjusting the water accordingly. Martin de Candre likes water.

It's a great soap, but a wee bit demanding. The lather is a hint thinner than I like, but the soap's overall quality makes up for it. Oh, and I leave the top off for several hours so that the soap can dry.