Williams Institute for Shaving Excellence (WISE)
Greetings Fellow Wet Shavers!
Welcome to the New and Improved B&B club
dedicated to Williams Mug Shaving Soap!
Welcome to the New and Improved B&B club
dedicated to Williams Mug Shaving Soap!
Whether you are a fan of Vintage Williams (and who isn’t) or one of the growing numbers of fans of Modern Williams, this is the place for you to discuss all things Williams. Got a great Williams stash or a recent Williams score? Show it off here! Do you have a video showing your skills of lathering modern Williams or have a great Williams lather or Williams SOTD pic? Post it here. We love all things Williams! Got questions about how to get a great lather from modern Williams? Well, just read on and ask away!
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If you want to be a member of this glorious B&B club,
just post in this thread, and then add “WISE” in some
form or fashion to your forum signature block.
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If you want to be a member of this glorious B&B club,
just post in this thread, and then add “WISE” in some
form or fashion to your forum signature block.
**********
First, off I must pay homage to our roots; the thread that led to this one here. The original thread was inquiring if there was enough interest in having a B&B club dedicated to Williams Mug Soap. Indeed there was, and it quickly took off. However, the club never had an official name; something the members could identify with, unite under, and put in their forum signatures. So we decided to take a vote an officially name the club, which led to this new thread. But to not lose any of the history of that thread and all the fun, knowledge, and eye candy therein contained, here is that original thread: Williams shave soap club?. Browse through that thread at your leisure.
Vintage Williams
Williams Mug Soap began production in 1840 as Williams Genuine Yankee Soap by James B. Williams. This was the first soap made for use in a shaving mug. By the Early 1900s The J.B. Willaims Co. was known throughout the world. The formula was presumably unchanged until the 1980s, where small changes in the forula occurred as the product changed hands to different parent companies. However, up until 2004, when Combe Inc. bought the brand, tallow (sodium tallowate) had always been the primary ingredient. We consider any “tallow first” Williams formula to be Vintage as there is little performance difference between the different formulas and ages of these Williams’ soaps. Of course with all things vintage, the older it is… the more coveted it is. Any box or puck made in Glastonbury, CN is 1960s or earlier and is thought to be the original formula (as best as we can determine).
For more information on the Williams company history, check out the following B&B wiki entries:
http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/Williams_Timeline
http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/Category:Williams
Vintage Williams came in a few different forms. Most notably is the original Williams Mug Shaving Soap. This mug soap also came in a mentholated version and Luxury, which was rose scented. However, since Williams is not sealed airtight, any menthol or scent has long dissipated from those products. They also made a tonsorial puck (which came in a roll of 8 pucks) as well as tonsorial shaving soaplets for lather machines, both of which were designed for barber’s use. Williams also produced a shave stick.
A few different boxes of Williams.
For information on identifying and dating a box of vintage Williams, read through this awesome thread:
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/147700-Identifying-Vintage-Williams
And if you ever come across any different Williams packaging, please add it to that thread!
My full stash of vintage Williams
Modern Williams
When Combe Inc. bought Williams in 2004 they changed the formula, which majorly affected its performance. They decreased the amount of tallow in the product, and now the first two ingredients in Williams Mug Soap are potassium stearate and sodium tallowate (in that order). However, when questioned about the change, Combe Inc. denies changing the formula. They do admit to a small formula change in 2010, due to the availability of an ingredient (presumably sodium palm kernelate).
B&B Wiki entry for Modern Williams
http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/Williams_Mug_Shaving_Soap
Official web site: http://www.williamsmugsoap.com/
Williams also still makes a shaving stick, which must be imported from South Africa. This stick has a rose scent, but it is also made with their own formula (which I believe contains no tallow). Despite that, I’ve heard it lathers very well.
For many, the Williams Mug Soap formula change in 2004 signified the end of Williams’ usefulness as a shaving soap. Many assert that they cannot produce a shaveable lather from Modern Williams. Other state that they can produce a lather, but is disappears (dries) quickly on their face, becoming unusable.
But others, The WISE Men, realize or have discovered that not only can modern Williams produce a perfectly shaveable, stable lather, but with a little bit of attention and technique can actually produce a very thick and silky lather that rivals many of the far more expensive products out there.
So what’s the trick? Simply put, it’s water! It has been said before, but Williams is a thirsty soap. You want to start with a puck that has been soaking in water, to soften up the surface, making loading easier. Then load as normal 20-30 seconds is good for a well hydrated puck, up to a minute for harder pucks. Then add a little bit of water and begin to build your lather. Bowl, palm, face, it doesn’t really matter. Now add a little more water. Now add a little more. Just when you’ve got it to the point where you would normally stop adding water with other soaps, go ahead and add some more. The more hydrated the puck is, the easier the whole process is. And using the puck and soaking it daily, makes it a very easy soap to lather in just a few days. For more info and help on lathering see the info and videos below:
My Williams Shave Soap Secret thread.
My First Williams Lather Video:
And just to show you what some good Williams lather looks like:
My Lather “Snow Man” or Latherman inspired by the vintage Williams Ad below:
1896 Ad From Harper's Magazine
Showing the thick lather holding up a $1 coin
And just remember, if you can’t bring yourself to admit that you use Williams Mug Shaving Soap, just say you use:
"Sir William of Combe's Olde Fashioned Beef Fat Shaving Soap"
-credited to B&B user: insomniac
Williams hardware and collectibles
Williams offered many different mail-in promotions on their boxes or the paper wrappers inside. Three of these were shaving mugs.
The first, from around 1946, was the Currier and Ives shaving mug, offered for $1. The mug is decorated with Currier and Ives artwork titled “Winter In The Country: The Old Grist Mill.” This mug was also available for sale in a gift set with a puck of soap.
1946 Ad:
The second, in 1975/76, was the Bicentennial Mug, honoring the 200[SUP]th[/SUP] Anniversary of America. It was hand cast in Armetale, which was dubbed the “New Pewter”. It could be purchased through the promotion for $3.75, with a comparable value of $6.75 on the 1975 boxes (marked with a Save $3.00 offer) or on the 1976 boxes (marked save $4.00 offer) it was listed at a $4.95 cost and $8.95 value.
The last mug offer was for a reproduction of an antique porcelain colonial shaving mug (actually a scuttle), featuring crossed American and British flags, for $4.95. This scuttle was also available for sale as a Williams Collectors set with soap and an unmarked wood handled brush.
And here they are in person:
Another promotional item were cufflinks in gold or silver. This picture is all the info I have seen about them:
Currier and Ives partnered with Williams to release several items. This includes the previously mentioned Currier & Ives Mug Gift Set and also Currier & Ives Wooden Bowl full of Williams Shaving Soap.
One final mug I have is a milk glass mug featuring the Modern Williams logo and was made in Canada. Pictured with the mug are the Williams promotional key rings from the early 1900s. One is a bottle opener and screwdriver, the other is just a screwdriver. The bottle opener shows a patent date of 27 Jan 1903.
The last item in my current Williams collection is my Williams-rebranded Made Rite Brush, shown below with it's sister Made Rite.
So... Are you a WISE Man?
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