Thread: Is there really a difference?

Hi guys,

The only criteria i had when i bought my soap was... the scent...
At the moment i'm using 'Vienna' from 'Crabtree & Evelyn'. It is also the only one i have.
Ever since i bought a straight razor (and safety razor) i never used 'Gilette Gel'.
I threw all the gilette stuff away. Planning on never supporting that company again.

I'm just wondering if there truly is a difference between soaps and creams.
What IS a good cream or soap?
Do you guys notice if a razor is shaving better with a different cream?

Thx

I've found that some soaps or creams are easier to lather than others. Beyond that, I am too inexperienced to tell much of a difference.

Oh yes, there are lots more to a good soap or cream than lathering easy and smelling good

There are cushion, glide and conditioning of skin.

Some are slicker than others, which will provide for a smoother glide of the razor across the skin.
Then there are the soaps or creams that will provide great cushion, in the sense that it provides a barrier between the skin and the blade itself.

In addition to those, there's also the ability to soften the whiskers of course.
Getting water to penetrate and soften the whiskers in other words.

Some soaps will provide all those things in various degrees.

Martin de Candre, Xpec, Castle Forbes and Mitchell's wool fat seems to be some of the better one's out there, IMHO.

I use a wide variety of both soaps and creams just to experiment and to have fun. However, if I were forced to choose then I would favor a cream because the overall consistency of glide, cushion, conditioning, holding of moisture, and beard softening just seems to surpass most soaps that I have used. Nevertheless, I still like trying them and for travel I continue to prefer a soap stick. Enjoy.

I completely agree with Birnando. To experience these sorts of things first hand, an experiment comes in handy.

You could purchase a second soap (of any value you wish - but keep in mind that Arko @ 99cents a stick is pretty darn good!). Lather each side of your face with a different soap, and as you shave, compare the cushion and glide. Then after the shave and throughout the day, compare how your skin feels. This may help to give you an idea of what B is talking about.

For example. I enjoy the Proraso for regular, every day shaves. On the weekend I tend towards MWF, and that soap is just lovely. My skin and MWF are a perfect combination.

Originally Posted by Birnando

Oh yes, there are lots more to a good soap or cream than lathering easy and smelling good

There are cushion, glide and conditioning of skin.

Some are slicker than others, which will provide for a smoother glide of the razor across the skin.
Then there are the soaps or creams that will provide great cushion, in the sense that it provides a barrier between the skin and the blade itself.

In addition to those, there's also the ability to soften the whiskers of course.
Getting water to penetrate and soften the whiskers in other words.

Some soaps will provide all those things in various degrees.

Martin de Candre, Xpec, Castle Forbes and Mitchell's wool fat seems to be some of the better one's out there, IMHO.

Thanks...
I'm going to test some of those out!

Originally Posted by Birnando

Oh yes, there are lots more to a good soap or cream than lathering easy and smelling good

There are cushion, glide and conditioning of skin.

Some are slicker than others, which will provide for a smoother glide of the razor across the skin.
Then there are the soaps or creams that will provide great cushion, in the sense that it provides a barrier between the skin and the blade itself.

In addition to those, there's also the ability to soften the whiskers of course.
Getting water to penetrate and soften the whiskers in other words.

Some soaps will provide all those things in various degrees.

Martin de Candre, Xpec, Castle Forbes and Mitchell's wool fat seems to be some of the better one's out there, IMHO.

Add Edwin Jagger (at least the creams) and St. James of London to that list. Both take loads of water, provide excellent cushion and their moisturising qualities are really good. The scents are great too, clean, fresh and still full of character.

Most tallow-based soaps I've used provide excellent cushion and glide, and at least decent moisturising, depending on the soap. In my experience P.160 outperforms Mitchell's Wool Fat, but only slightly. A cheap alternative to the more expensive tallow soaps is the Palmolive stick, its performance is on par with Mitchell's Wool Fat, I just like Mitchell's scent slightly better. I'm still looking to try out the Wilkinson stick which contains tallow, lanolin, glycerin and coconut oil and is very affordable.

In my experience melt-and-pour glycerin-based soaps provide less protection and less moisturising, but that might be me.

The way I see it, in terms of lather and other qualities there is not a difference between creams and soaps per se. I have some soaps that outperform some of my creams and vice versa; there are good and less good products in both categories. I have good products, which I use every now and then for variation and I have really good products which I use much more often. I don't feel like pampering myself once a week and using okay products the rest of the time, I enjoy using high quality stuff whenever I get the chance.

Otherwise I might as well use a Gillette Fusion during the week with canned gel, balanced out by an Edwin Jagger cream whipped to a lather with my silvertip Thäter using a Heljestrand on Sundays. I rather do the later four times a week (as I don't shave everyday).

My face has definitely shown preferences. Palmolive burns me and Speick stings. Arko just doesn't give me cushion or glide to slip whiskers away without nicks.

MWF and Institut Karite allow me to XTG slick as a whistle without irritation or blood and Tabac comes close. I haven't tried any creams as I really don't see an advantage. It would appear a cream is a diluted soap but I am a beginner and ignorant of much.

To muddy the waters further, cream vs soap isnt' really binary, so much as a continuum. On one end are hard soaps like Williams, DR Harris, and MWF, on the other are creams like Kiss My face, TOBS, and Proraso. Here's where it gets messy. In-between those are what are called soft soaps, which can vary from almost hard, but can be reshaped with enough force ( Arko) to the soft, putty like Razorock XXX.

In general, creams have stronger scents, and are easier to load, while soaps give a bit more value for your money, but have a lighter scent and take a bit of work, especially in hard water. Both can make a great lather and give an exceptional shave, however.

Hopefully that made things a little clearer.

Also find that some soaps are perfectly good with a DE but not with a straight razor. Experimentation! Isn't it wonderful ??