Sensitive skin, coarse hair, looking for a good soap for a ginger?

I'm looking for a shaving soap to either use to face lather or use with a bowl which works well for people with sensitive skin but rather coarse hair (I've got red hair and very fair skin, and while I've been using Tabac thus far because I like it's scent I've been finding that it sometimes irritates my skin and dries out before I can finish shaving my entire face). I chose Tabac because I like it's scent and it's what my father used, but I feel I can do better nonetheless. I shave with a straight razor (one of those "magic" straight razors which use the disposable blades. I'm planning to upgrade to a dovo in the near future but as a starving college student I can't exactly afford the blade/stones/strop combo just yet). But nevertheless I was looking for any advice on a great soap to use which meets my needs as well as any other pieces of advice you all would be willing to give to a shaving neophyte!

Also, I currently face lather and have a relatively cheap brush but I'd be happy to switch to bowl lathering if I'm going to end up with a better lather, a closer shave, and hopefully less skin irritation.

Most reactions are due to the fragrance used or one of the components (just found out the lanolin in MWF gets me if I use it everyday, occasional use was always fine)

So you could try a fragrance free (AOS has a nice one that should work well for you). If the soap itself is okay, you could try a scent (AOS Lemon is one of my all time favorites) and see if the scent causes you any problems. They also offer lavender and sandalwood. Most ss people can find a scent their skin can tolerate, but not all.

As to face/bowl, both work fine and while slightly different in technique, you should pick the method you like best (or switch off for variety or one way for soap the other for creams, whatever you like) point is it shouldn't make any difference (unless your face just doesn't react well to the brush agitation of face lathering, which is possible...)

Ken

From one "ginger" to another, I found that A LOT of my irritation was caused by face lathering. I have tried different grades of badger and one very well broken in boar. Some were less irritating then others but there was irritation to some degree with all of them. Switch to a bowl or (gasp) Palm Lather and see if that helps. As for soap, once I figured out that is was the brush causing my problems I haven't had a problem with any I have tried. I do believe that Van Der Hagen Deluxe is pretty good on sensitive skin, that being you do not have a lanolin sensitivity. It is available at most box stores and pharmacies and lathers really really well. Good Luck.

BTW: Welcome to B&B!

Welcome to B&B!

If Tabac dries out before you finish shaving, you might need to add a little more water to your lather, or maybe add more water and remix for the second or third pass. But if it irritates your skin then you may need an product with less fragrance. You might also want to try some creams, since they can be easier to lather.

Besides the unscented AoS, you might try unscented Kiss My Face (really - it's good stuff). Taylor of Old Bond Street (TOBS) makes a "sensitive" cream, and I find TOBS avocado to be great for my skin. Real Shaving Company might work for you too - I don't think it has much added fragrance, but it does smell like tea tree oil. As long as you aren't allergic to lanolin, Mitchell's Wool Fat (MWF) is a good option too.

Yeah I went to the Art of Shaving store in the mall of america and picked up some of their AOS shaving soap and shaving oil along with a new dovo shavette razor and some merkur blades. I'll probably shave tomorrow morning and be sure to post my results so that my experiences may help any other gingers out there!