How do I lather a shaving soap?!

[rcmii]

I've tried finding a few threads on this topic but couldn't seem to find any that really commented on how to lather a soap. As a newbie, I'm experimenting quite a bit, so that might be my first problem as I've not really focused on one soap or cream. However, for the 2 or 3 soap pucks I have tried, I just cannot get a LOT of lather...and one, not even much of a later at all.

The one puck I do get a decent (but not great) lather from is RazorRock What The Puck in orange. So, I'm going to keep trying and experimenting on that one. However, does anyone have any experience in lathering a puck and that they would like to share?

I've tried soaking the puck in warm water for 5 minutes or so, and that seems to get the soap soft, but not sure that's the right technique.

Any technique suggestions for a newbie will be appreciated! I'll also continue to scour YouTube for videos, but most seem to be just building a lather and not talking about how to actually do it with a puck, other than the "work it for 30-45 seconds to load the brush" comment. That might be it...but as I've read in many related posts, people have trouble lathering a soap puck at times...so what have people done to improve their lather creation?

Thanks in advance.

Richard

 

[FoolishMortal]

Lots of people swear by "the Marco Method". Maybe someone can post a link for you.

Here are my tips:

1. Soak the brush, not the puck - put the brush in a mug of warm water for 5+ minutes
   
2. If your brush is boar, it will be a "lather-killer" for a while until it's broken in
3. >>> There are tons of threads about breaking in a boar brush
4. "Bloom" the puck by putting a tablespoon of water on it for 5+ minutes
5. Some people pour off this bloom water before loading - I don't
6. Either way, swirl your brush on top of the puck for 20 to 60 seconds to load
7. >>> Longer for harder soaps, shorter for softer soaps and croaps (cream/soap)
8. Build your lather in a bowl or on your face, adding small amounts of water as you go

My guess is that you have too much water too soon, and the brush isn't getting sufficiently loaded.

What are the other soaps you've tried? What brush are you using?

 

[Pedict]

Series of three methods....start here:

 

[rcmii]

Lots of people swear by "the Marco Method". Maybe someone can post a link for you.

Here are my tips:

1. Soak the brush, not the puck
2. If your brush is boar, it will be a "lather-killer" for a while until it's broken in
3. >>> There are tons of threads about breaking in a boar brush
4. "Bloom" the puck by putting a tablespoon of water on it for 5+ minutes
5. Some people pour off this water before loading - I don't
6. Either way, swirl your brush on top of the puck for 20 to 60 seconds to load
7. >>> Longer for harder soaps, shorter for softer soaps and croaps (cream/soap)
8. Build your lather in a bowl or on your face, adding small amounts of water as you go

My guess is that you have too much water too soon, and the brush isn't getting sufficiently loaded.

Thanks. I'll pay more attention to the water. It 'seemed' like I didn't have much at all, and when I added more (I did get more lather, but nothing on the "frothy" side of the business of lather.

I have a Silvertip brush, and I've read that those can be more difficult to build lather. No idea personally if that's true. Maybe I'll buy a mid-grade badger and see what happens. Maybe that won't be enough of a move down the badger grade.

The one thing I have to pay attention to is the hardness of my soap. I don't read close enough to know if double or triple milled. I do have a water softener at my house so I assume my water is fine but not sure how to tell on that.

The one thing that I do, and should have mentioned, is I pull the soap out of the plastic case and I soaked (did mention that part). Based on your comment, maybe I'll keep it in the container and then add the small amount of water and load in the soap container? Or do you recommend a lather bowl? I presume a lather bowl but heck, maybe I need to stay with the soap. I really do need to be patient...I want this all to be fixed now!

 

[HouseOfChains]

Soak your brush for a couple of minutes to hydrate the bristles and squeeze out all the water. It will still be wet enough to pull soap from the puck.
Swirl in circular motions with minimal pressure-hard enough that the brush is biting into the soap somewhat but not splaying your bristles flat. Dip your brush into a very small amount of water and repeat the whole process again. You should either have a lather built at this point or you should see a lot of soap in your bristles.
Start a bowl lather or a face lather and add water as needed until it looks nice and thick with a nice sheen.
You can always add water but you can't take away.
Once you get the hang of it this will be second nature and you'll do it fast without even thinking about.
Hang in there as everything worth doing isn't always easy. [emoji106]

 

[GearNoir]

No soap needs to be bloomed, in fact if you aren’t careful to let your soap dry some between uses, that can cause problems of its own. The less water you put on your product the better. You can always add water, but you can’t take it out.

Just start with a damp brush (shake out excess water). Swirl your brush or make circular strokes very slowly on the puck for 30 seconds or so (soft creams and some soft croaps you only really have to swirl once lightly). You will notice a little lather around the puck bowl, that’s OK, but keep in mind you aren’t making your lather on your puck, you’re making it in a bowl/scuttle or your face.

After the load you should see a decent coating of product on your brush. Use this to build your lather, adding a few drops of water at a time to increase the build. Final product should be like a whipped cream with the slickness of sour cream. If it’s frothy like bubble bath, you have too much water; if it feels like you are spreading toothpaste on your face, you need more water.

 

[rockviper]

I've found these two threads to be very informative:
Glycerin Soap Tutorial - Part 1
Glycerin Soap Tutorial - Part 2

 

[John Rose]

Something that took me a few months to figure out is that it does not matter what the lather looks like, nor how much there is.
You don't have to have an inch of lather all over, like a Santa Claus beard. (Or the guy on the Arko soap stick label.) A millimeter or so all over is fine, as long as it gives you the slickness needed for the duration of the pass, doesn't dry out, etc.

This can vary from one soap to another. I find that a thin film of lather from Williams Mug Soap gives me better results than a thick layer of lather from Proraso Green, which is why I don't like Proraso Green. Proraso Red is a different story. I love that stuff.
I do seem to get better results with the Proraso Green (or White) though if I go directly from charging the brush to face lathering.
Actually, my favourite thing with the Williams is to shred it, wet it a bit, mash it into a stick form, then rub the stick on my face.

 

[HouseOfChains]

Something that took me a few months to figure out is that it does not matter what the lather looks like, nor how much there is.
You don't have to have an inch of lather all over, like a Santa Claus beard. (Or the guy on the Arko soap stick label.) A millimeter or so all over is fine, as long as it gives you the slickness needed for the duration of the pass, doesn't dry out, etc.

This can vary from one soap to another. I find that a thin film of lather from Williams Mug Soap gives me better results than a thick layer of lather from Proraso Green, which is why I don't like Proraso Green. Proraso Red is a different story. I love that stuff.
I do seem to get better results with the Proraso Green (or White) though if I go directly from charging the brush to face lathering.
Actually, my favourite thing with the Williams is to shred it, wet it a bit, mash it into a stick form, then rub the stick on my face.

Agreed. It doesn't have to be the thickest lather. Just has to be slick and if it looks like thick sticky cream it will probably not be slick.

Trying practicing a bowl lather even if you're not shaving.

 

[Heron]

And for tips on how to lather any particular soap, do a search for that soap in the 3017 thread.

 

[kluber]

I load soaps with a damp but not soaking brush. Swirl on soap for about a minute until it’s a bit pasty on brush and not foamy. (I never bloom unless it’s MWF soap).

And then bowl or face lather adding bits of water as I go until its how I like it. Use lots of product has always been the advice I was given and it has worked well for me.

I am probably one of the very few that doesn’t prefer Marco method because it’s a bit messy and takes longer to build lather for me. You should try that method first though as many members really like it.

 

[rcmii]

I also got to thinking about what I've been doing, and I think I have been putting a bit too much pressure on my brush. So maybe I've been loading more soap deeper into the brush and maybe that's why I'm not getting a lather.