Just realized how much I missed Williams Mug Soap

After years of avoiding it because of my sensitive skin I again bought a pack of Williams Mug shaving soap. I figured that it might work again now, because I have given up on finding the mildest possible soap, and instead focus on using pre-shave and after-shave treatments to avoid getting uncomfortable. This seems to work well with other soaps, so I whipped up the Williams lather and oh boy, that fragrance is just sooo sweet. Love it. Turns out that I was also previously too impatient when making the lather from this soap, now I work on it until it is nice and thick. What do you guys think of Williams?

I've been using it at least once a month for several years and still like it. Love that clean scent.

Personally, I have to work too hard to get a good lather from modern Williams so it is at or near the bottom of my list of soaps to use.

Bob

There are much too many great new artisan soaps to bother with Williams, either old or new, for me.

I'm certain I will never get around to trying out Williams as what I've got sounds much better and will last me 1.5 lifetimes anyway.

I sure love the plethora of soap/cream choices in this sport; there's something for everyone plus several more to boot.

I’ve got a puck of vintage Williams which I use once in a great while, the scent is way different than the new stuff, and it’s tallow base gives gobs of creamy lather. The new stuff is horrible by comparison. Just my 2 cents.

Gentlemen,

In my youth, I used Williams soap a few times. I loved the fragrance: clean and soapy, like stepping into a barbershop. Whether the soap was any good or not was not that much of a consideration; I was too uneducated in the proper shaving world. I used other soaps, too, one of which must have been Van der Hagen.

Looking back on those days, with today's vast supply of fine shave soaps and creams available, the only thing I miss about the Williams is the fragrance. I love that fragrance — as I do the old time barbershops.

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Originally Posted by celestino

There are much too many great new artisan soaps to bother with Williams, either old or new, for me.

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Amen, brother!

When I started shaving decades ago, I used either Williams Mug Soap or Old Spice. They worked, but modern artisan soaps and creams are far superior, but you have to pay for that performance.

I also like Mama Bear and Trumper's by the way. But I still think there is a certain freshness to William's that I like. Would be curious to know if any of the artisan soaps you talk about has a similar scent though.

I have a couple pucks of Williams; one I bought when I first started shaving with a straight and now use to clean strops and one a friend gave me I have not used yet but am going to. Have always liked Williams, although there are better brands out there, and have never had a problem with it but it does like water and lots of it, added slowly of course...............

Guess I'm going to have to break in that new puck!

I think I like my new method of whipping up lather, which seems to work well with this water-loving soap.

I basically have two relatively wide bowls (actually small cereal bowls), one a bit smaller than the other. I put the puck in the larger bowl, and try to "glue" it to the bottom with some hot water. I rinse scolding hot water through the small bowl, to warm it up a bit, then fill it with hot water, and pour this on top of the puck in the big bowl for a few seconds. Then the water goes back in the small bowl again. I dip the brush into the water in the small bowl and whip up lather in the big bowl, dipping the brush into the warm water whenever needed. The lather built up much quicker this way than my old methods. I also mixed a little Trumper's Skin Food in when making the lather. When I'm all done I rinse out the lather, and put the small bowl into the big bowl upside down, as a lid on top of the puck.

There is a certain Nostalgia for using Williams stacked in an old coffee cup, whipping up a lather using a Boar Brush

Well, I had a chance to use Williams with a few drops of glycerin, thanks to a tip from Sharptonn. Tom's tip made a notable difference in the cushion of the shave. I did like the kind of lemony scent and had an excellent shave.

The trick to Williams, is to keep it well hydrated, and on the soft side. Leaning towards a croap yields best results.

If your a slow shaver, then a small dollop of creamo, or your favorite soap or cream, will add to the life of the lather. But yep. It does love water.

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Originally Posted by outback

The trick to Williams, is to keep it well hydrated, and on the soft side. Leaning towards a croap yields best results.

If your a slow shaver, then a small dollop of creamo, or your favorite soap or cream, will add to the life of the lather. But yep. It does love water.

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My favorite ingredient to add is Trumper's Skin Food. :)

Well people who knows me already knew that Williams(modern and vintage)is my go to soap. For the modern version is it the best soap in the world! No but to me it works the very best, I have NO TROUBLE to lather it as a matter of fact to me it works almost like any other soaps that i’ve Got. I bowl lather and face lather it whit no trouble, I also used the puck like a shave stick and it works the very best. Here’s pics of what I get for results whit bowl and face latherAttachment 301317Attachment 301318 1Attachment 301318Attachment 301318 Like I said it’s not my #1 but it’s my go to soap and I also enjoy it whit a straight. Gino

Might have been my water or my technique, but "good lather" and "Williams" never made it into the same sentence. I long ago threw it out. Life's too short!

The trick to using Williams is to get a puck made before WWll.

I wouldn't use it now if you paid me.

I learned to shave with William's snd used from teens to late twenties when I discovered this site. Now that I've tried others I won't use Williams again. But if the same thing worked for everyone and everyone liked the same then we wouldn't have such a large choice.