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am i taking too long to shave? or is the cream not very good quality? the cream i am using at the moment is fauldings. (a little off topic) but should i be re-oiling my face after each pass? my face seems dry even after splashing on more water and re-applying lather. unless it's the cream itself drying my face.
also i just ordered some vostok shave cream :) i like the sound of the so called ice-cold sensation and can't wait to try it out.
I dont know what it is I get the same thing happening to me but it is only with one particular lather and since i switched it no longer does that
Are you using a scuttle? How long does it take you to do a pass? These are things that might help us help you :) Also, how are you making your lather, have you experimented with more or less water?
currently i'm not using a scuttle, i'm using a rectangular tupperare container lol (yes i'm looking into getting a proper mug or scuttle!). my first WTG pass takes me around 3-4 mins in total. so around 2 or so mins into my shave the lather dries up a bit. i usually then dab the brush into the hot water and try to re-moisten the lather. at that point i just end up re-applying another lather. it could be not enough water, but i will dab more water but the lather keeps drying... maybe i'm just slowQuote:
Originally Posted by Catrentshaving
Try more water in your original lather. I find that if I make mine to look like the lather I see pictured all the time, with nice little pointy peaks, it is way too dry on my face. If my peaks fall over ever so slightly I get a much better shave.
Also I lightly wet my face in between lathering and that really seems to help quite a bit. Don't be afraid to experiment. You'll never know when you've hit the right spot until you've gone too far.
Charlie
Your lather is drying way too fast and it's not because of your shaving speed cause it's fine. The solution is try some more water with your lather. If that doesn't help try another soap.
thanks guys. i'll report back soon and share my results
I see lathering as a two tool event. Your brush and your hand. I first use the brush to bring and lather my face. After the 1st pass( yes. I know if done right I shouldn't need a 2nd). I wet my fingers in the water bowl and damp my face using any lather which is left on my face. Then relather my damp face and start my 2nd pass.
The soap that you use can also contribute. Used Vito's extra this am for the first time. For a soft soap it needed a lot of water. Didn't expect that.
You want it thick and AND slick, leave a can of whipped cream out the fridge for too long and spray some into your hand, thats what I aim for, more like a thick milk rather than whipped cream my experience of course.
I find if I lather until I've got slick lather that doesn't suck or make the brush stick on my face, I'm good to go.
Justalex: Not eating pie at your houseQuote:
Originally Posted by justalex
! I just started straight shaving but I can tell you if there is one thing I have learned is most creams can take a crap load of water. If its drying than you probably didn't use enough. The beginners section has a great video about how to lather. It was super helpful for me.
elgeeno,
I think you need more water, as well. Experiment to see just how much more water you need.
If I knew the OP personally I would really enjoy commenting on a thread titled "cream drying on my face".
:p
As a rookie I am/was (still experimenting) having the same problem too. I just started tinkering with different amounts of water. Someone else said that the creams can take a lot of water and I found that is true. Try adding a bit more water than you would normally think is enough and see how that works. You can always add a little cream if its too thin.
had a shave today and creamed up as normal (clean thoughts, people!). i added a little bit more water to the lather and ended up with too much water! so i added a little more cream.... TOO MUCH CREAM! then added SLIGHTLY less water than before, and basically ended up with lather overflowing all over the bathroom! although the lather 'in the end' was good, it didn't dry as before - but it did just a little as i finished the first pass. i also maybe thought if i added some pure glycerin to it it might be good? like a uber lather? i live in south austalia and i'm not too sure where i could find a bottle of it (then again, i haven't really looked too hard!!).
Getting the lather you want in the end is all that matters. At least now you have a little better idea on the water/cream ratio.There is a whole thread on glycerine (no doubt you've seen it by now) but I found mine at CVS. Don't know what you have down there other than kangaroos and koala bears :)
i'm getting a better idea of the water/cream ratio. today i made what seemed like a great lather, but when i applied it to my face with my brush, it quite literally - disappeared. i was very confused! taking a brush with seemingly good lather and watching it disappear was quite perplexing. i ditched the lather and made a new one but this time with some glycerine. i had found some at price line pharmacy, also chemist warehouse sells it but they had no stock (if you live in australia). the guy at price line asked me if i needed help. when i mentioned that i was looking for glycerine he then asked "what are you using it for?" i then replied "i'm making a bomb" his face almost fell off! i then reassured him it was for shaving and he seemed relieved hahaha. poor guy. but i guess i gave him a story to tell :).Quote:
Originally Posted by RFP357
anyway, in short, i seemed to find that the glycerine helped a lot. the lather didn't dry, it was thick, shiny and applied very well. i haven't seen any comments or reviews on fauldings shave cream but i guess it does ok with a bit of glycerine. i'm actually waiting for my order of vostok cream :) it should be here this week, i can't wait to try it.
Yeah i bet you got that pharmacists heart going. Yesterday I had the best shave since I started. I used probably a teaspoons worth of glycerine with my AOS shave cream. It turned out great almost no razor burn and my neck wasn't sensitive afterwards like it usually is. I'm hoping it was as simple as the extra glycerine. I'm going to do some experimenting so I can try and confirm it.Quote:
Originally Posted by elgeeno
That's weird that it dried up so fast before you used the glycerine, maybe someone else will have some better insight on that.
Dip your brush in water between passes. Re-lather if necessary. Don't rush when wielding a razor! Your speed will naturally pick up with time.Quote:
Originally Posted by elgeeno
More wata in the soap/cream.............
Backwards as it sounds, the solution for some soaps or cremes is to use less water.
You'll need to experiment with your particular soap.
For some soaps, too much water causes the bubbles to form larger. As the bubbles dissipate, you are left with a dry soap. These soaps or creams also respond well to lathering with more water, allowing the soap to settle, then re-whipping the lather.
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Originally Posted by driver/examiner
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Originally Posted by HNSB
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Originally Posted by CharlieTN
thanks guys :) i started tweaking the water with my cream but it just seems to make it a little sloppy lol. im trying to tweak as hard as i can, without putting goggles on and placing the lather bowl under a microscope and dropping minute droplets in the lather. the glycerine helps a lot. im thinking that it might be the water quality from the tap (too hard or something), as i hear that it might affect the lathers. so i think i might just stick to using the glycerine for now. actually i received my vostok cream today, so im in a hurry to go pick it up from the post office. im so excited! gonna come back and shave then i'll let you guys know what its like.Quote:
Originally Posted by thebigspendur
Hi,
I'm in South Australia (Mount Torrens) and though my water may be a little softer than yours if you live on the plains; I'm sure it would be similar. I have no problems creating a lather from most of the creams I use. How are you adding water? I shake the brush (that I've soaked in hot water) exactly five times so it's pretty dry. I then add the cream to the bowl (that is still warm from its soaking in hot water in the sink with the brush as I showered). I then mix the cream with the brush a little and then start adding water, just a few dribbles at a time using my hand. That is, I dip my hand in the water and dribble the water from my fingers into the bowl. I flick my fingers after each 'dribbling' to ensure I don't add unwanted water that is still clinging to my fingers by allowing it to drip down the brush. I've tried dipping the brush in water but find i can control the amount of water better by dribbling the water off my fingers. It takes maybe five 'dribbles' to get it right, but doing it a little at a time saves the problems you've had with too much water, then too much cream, etc.
I buy my cream on line, generally. Often from shaving.ie in Ireland and most recently from theportugalonlineshop.com. Also I've bought from Men's Biz. For me, the best latherers were Truefitt and Hill Trafalgar, Speick, Musgo Real (you can't go wrong with Musgo), C O Bigalow and O Melhor (very, very nice). have you tried soap, cream and glycerine are you using 'just' cream and glycerine? The mix of the three (an 'Überlather') makes a very nice mix that is very 'oomphy'.
Oh, BTW, I've found cream dissipating on the face can be caused by some oil based pre-shave oils . Basically they act as a surfactant, I think, essentially 'pooping' the bubbles....That's my theory, anyway :-)
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