Osma Savon à Raser à l'Alum

Hi everyone,

Today, I'd like to give my opinion on a soap I have had a lot of trouble reading feedback on. It's a French-made soap, which contains alum. Some say it's a threat to your straight razor's edge, but having shaved exclusively with a Merkur 37c for a few months now, I have not had to worry about that alleged down side too much. I first noticed it on The Superior Shave.com. I find the website a great online store, for it seems to be made by a man who focuses on the products he finds best, rather than boasting of a lot to offer.
As I live in New York, I picked up a pluck at Pasteur's recently, and have been using it for a few weeks now. At first, it was a pain in the neck. It really isn't an easy one, and getting good and lasting lather is tough. It's very easy to mix too much water in, and of course, with less, the chin has dried out before you are done with the rest. Plus, I was lathering with a brand new Semogue 610, which means new boar bristles, which means terrible lather.
Believe it or, not, this soap gave me my best DE shave ever with a thin, and seemingly inefficient lather.
The alum seems to do a lot of good to my skin, and you have to really butcher your face to leave persistent redness. With my still young boar brush, I need to make new lather between my two passes, which is kind of annoying, but it's well worth it. I may very well change for another soap when I get better with my Merkur, something more pleasant, and which would be less demanding, but I find it a great learning soap. Even if you haven't been great, your neck will look much better than it would with another soap. I've had Mike's Natural Soap, a little bit of Martin de Candres as well as Proraso in my den since I got my first DE (EJ89), and this one has been the best, maybe not in terms of sensations during the shave, but definitely in terms of results. That's all I've been looking for, and I will do until I feel a real difference in my technique.

I don't believe the alum is an issue for a straight razor. An edge is delicate, but it's still steel. The particles are microscopic, and if you edge resists your beard, I really don't see how such fine particles which you can by no mean feel in your lather, would do it harm.

By the way, the scent is very faint, which I favor, since I like to wear decent colognes.

Cheers