Thread: Lather goes on strong but then wimps out

Originally Posted by Castel33

Couple questions:

1. The Taylor of bond street is that the cream or the soap?

2. This is your fist glycerine based soap?

3. You explained your loading process but stop after going to the bowl. Did you add more water?

4. Did you have good lather for the first pass even?


I am thinking your issue is that glycerine based soaps are different then all the other soaps and creams you have used. Creams need very little water, while the italian soft soaps are a bit of a water hog and the tallow based soaps like a far amount of water also. The glycerine needs more water the creams but a lot less the the Italian soft soaps. So I am thinking on your last try you didn't have enough water mixed in. Do the same prep you did last time but this time when you reach what you think is good lather add about three or four more drops of water. I mean wet your hand a let four drops of water drip from it into your bowl . I think this will get you there.

1. It is a cream.

2. Yes this is my first glycerine based soap. Actually this is my only real soap unless you count the Proraso. Not sure if it is a soap or a cream.

3. Very little. Lately my best success with it is when I actually squeeze the water from my brush. The brush is a Parker silver tip badger.

4. First pass lather was only fair.

I have been practicing (guess I need a life) with this soap and I get the best lather when I use very little water. It seems to be very unforgiving if you add a couple of drops extra. Applying it to a very wet face seems to dilute the lather noticeably! I have tried adding more water and it is reduced to suds.

I used it again last night when I shaved (not a practice session) and got decent results. What I did was:

1. allowed a puddle of water sit on the soap for about 10 minutes while I showered

2. squeezed the water out of the brush

3. loaded the brush for about a minute and built some lather right in the soap container

4. using the very loaded brush built a thick lather in the bowl

5. applied the resulting to my wet right cheek. The lather was rather dry so I

6. added about 4 - 6 drops of water to the bowl and lathered some more

7. applied that lather and shaved two passes

8. loaded the brush a little more and whipped up more lather

9. used it for the last pass and a little touch up.

I used a DE since my face was still healing from using a Dovo Shavette with a Personna blade (sharp!, sharp!, sharp!)

My problem, I believe, is a lack of experience with that type of soap and I have to get the water to soap ratio just right.

Thanks for your help!

Jim

Good advice... seems to be working better!

Originally Posted by Ryan82

Yes, that could be an issue. I would highly recommend sticking with one soap or cream exclusively for at least a week (depending on how often you shave) to get to know the soap well, learning the sweet spots and intricacies. Two weeks might actually be better, which is what I did when I was learning. Nowadays I still do a week until I feel I have it down pat. If you have more than one brush try to use only one as well (a top performer).

As well, it is possible to get a bad batch of soap every now and then, but if you're new I daresay it's not the soap...

They say "Beware of the man with one gun!"

Jim