For the moment, forget about scent...or cents for that matter! In my limited experience, I found Muhle soap to be the best for lather making, but I've not tried many different brands.
Which is your favorite?
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For the moment, forget about scent...or cents for that matter! In my limited experience, I found Muhle soap to be the best for lather making, but I've not tried many different brands.
Which is your favorite?
I usually suggest the Arko shave stick. Gives a great lather no matter how hard or soft your water is. Also can be picked up for under $2.
The four soaps that I use regularly are:
Mama Bear
Proraso
Tabac
Trumper's Officers & Gentlemens
There are many other great soaps out there.
For strictly making lather (my two all-around favorites)
1-Al's Shaving cream
2-MWF
I don't mean to hijack this thread, but...
Thesus, do you face lather using the Arko?
I just got a few sticks of it and tried it yesterday, I spread it on my wet whiskers and face lathered. Although I got an acceptable lather, it was not quite to my satisfaction. I've since packed the softened stick into a small bowl and will try to pick some up on a wet brush and lather in my DIY scuttle, which creates great lather with Proraso.
Your thoughts?
I use it both ways. When I use a bowl I just slice a thin sliver of the stick into the bowl and lather up like normal. Face lathering while using a shave stick, like everything in wet shaving, just takes practice. The technique is pretty much the same as lathering in a bowl but you need to figure out the nuances of water control with the brush. Once figured out you will get great lather with the stick.
In a scuttle it's a tie for me. MDC or RazoRock artisan limited shave soap
There's too many great performers out there to narrow it down to one. I suppose if I had to list them the usual suspects would be mentioned: Tabac, MWF, DR Harris, Xpec, TOBS, T&H......
Arko, Palmolive shave sticks.
That's a hard one. So many good soaps. but the best hard soap seems to be MDC.
I'm also pretty impressed with DR Harris soap, I just picked up the Marlborough Soap, and the Arlington Shave Cream...Thanks Ryan....
You used to have Prairie Creations, Artisan soap, Tallow based, I'm not sure if Krissy is still making it, but it was/is good stuff.
I've been getting really great lathers, both in the scuttle and on the face, from my MWF. Honourable mention goes to the eminently latherable Proraso.
Thick slick suds from Cella !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Then in 2nd Proraso
Only three I will ever use,yes,they are packed in Deodorant containers as I face lather and am cheap:)
http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b3...econe/deos.jpg
eflatminor,
For me, Cella & the tallow based Palmolive shave sticks give absolutley superb lather :)
Both are very well priced too :)
Have fun !
Best regards
Russ
Gentlemen,
The choices run a long list and it is difficult to pick and choose. For luxurious lather, then, I'll have to go with three: Martin de Candre, Provence Sante, and D.R. Harris lavender.
The EU Palmolive stick and Arko stick for me, with the Wilkinson Sword stick thrown in for good measure. Speick stick works extremely well also.
Wow, there really are a lot more choices that I thought there would be. Thank you guys, you've given me some good stuff to try myself.
MWF and Tabac are summer soaps for me, they dry out way too fast in the winter. I use a homemade soap called suds law, it lathers super quick, thick, and doesn't dry out. proraso cream is always a good choice as well.
Its pretty tough to beat Als Shaving soaps. Proraso is another that works for me and even the old Body Shop stuff works pretty well.
Yeah I've been using both TOBS lavender soap and Palmolive cream separately and together and the TOBS gives a good lather.Not forgetting the effects of the brush as I found out recently when I got my first Silvertip.Wow! what a difference it makes.Still can't get over it.:)
When it comes to soaps, the Martin de Candre is at the very top for me.
MWF makes a good lather, but I rarely use it, because it is so hard to lather in my water. Cella and Arko both make amazing lather, and are easy to lather, otoh. My current favorite is Cella, but there are some soaps that I haven't had the pleasure of trying (yet).
The shaving cream that Dovo puts its name on thick lather that refuses to dry out. used it since I started shaving and even a first time shaver can get suds outta it no problem.
Well, I like the lather I get from all of my soaps, but I would have to say I get the best and most consistent lather from Tabac.
Right now: Irish Moos stick and MWF bowl, but there are SO many more to play with.
I'm enjoying shaving for the first time in about forty years.
What I've found is that different soaps respond to the texture of your brush in different ways. I Iike to try each soap or cream with a: Badger, Boar, and Horse.
Example ; I've found that the stiffness of the horse works very well with MWF .
It may also be the amount of water or the way that they carry water to the soap that also affects the way that it responds.
So before you put that puck of soap away in the bin you might want to try a different textured brush on it,
Martin de Candre, Tabac, Irish Moos, Vetiver Cyril L Salter and Alraz's Vetiver, Castle Forbes Lime and SRD Bulgarian Rose all explode into mounts of lather without any effort.
Combo of Col. Conk & Cella.
I also am a huge Arko shavestick fan. The scent is often chastized but to me it smells pretty close to like Williams or plain old Ivory soap. You just can't beat it, affordable as all get out, not particular to water variables, and lathers like a champ every time. The VDH line also fits neatly into this category. More often than not, I use the VDH Deluxe but VDH Glycerin is a bit more to my liking. A life time supply can be had on Amazon for about $20. I haven't tried the new VDH Yuppie soap yet but continual hear good things about it.
MWF is also a favorite but can sometimes be a bit picky. I'm also quite surprised that Speick shavestick has not been mentioned, thick very nice lather every time and a nice smell too.
I've really got to try out Cella and Tabac. I've told myself for years that I would but somehow just never got around to it.
I just tried the EU Palmolive stick recently and found that it lathers just as great as the Arko.
If you don't have MWS, you are a heretic and your name will not be uttered in my presence.
Fitjar and Tabac, with Fitjar my favorite..
For puck in mug, Tobac. For face lathering, Cella. But, for ease of lathering, hands down.....
Van der Hagen Deluxe
I've only have 4 soaps to base this on but judging only on it's lathering ability I'd have to go with La'ocitaine cade. This stuff practically lathers itself! I can whip up a nice bowl of creamy meringue in seconds with it. And it's got a great smell to boot.
1 - Xpec
2 - Razorock (I like the XXX Scent)
For me is that absolutely Mama bear.
I tried several hard soap but the give me not that smile on my face when i lather up.
First time i used MB i was in a cranky mood, but at the time i latherup the smile was there back again.
Second and third, Cella an Proraso they lather up easely but they not so creamy as MB