soaps affecting shave?

When I first started wetshaving I used emsplace soaps and it was a bit rough. I figured it was just because I was new and that my technique would improve. It has gotten much better, but while I was still learning I switched soaps to another brand and was getting great shaves. Now I am pretty good at wet shaving and have returned to my original puck of emsplace soaps, and it seems like my face is a bit irritated/mildly burned after wards. Could the choice of soap be causing less than stellar shaves. I know blades can have a big impact on shave quality, but what about soaps?

Unfortunately I ran out of the other soap I was using so I cant make a comparison, so I was wondering if it would be worth a trip to walmarts for a puck of VDH to see changing soaps would lead to any noticable differance.
Thaks

I haven't used Em's soaps so I can't speak from a place of absolute experience, but aren't they glycerin-based?

As a QED fanatic I've used plenty of Charles's soaps, along with Mama Bear's (glycerin) soaps. In order for you to do a real A/B comparison though, I'd suggest using a triple-milled soap as opposed to another glycerin variant.

You might want to try Tabac or one of the D.R. Harris soaps if you want to try a tallow-based product. Trumper's soaps are no longer tallow-based (but still triple-milled & creamy).

Everyone's skin is different & everyone's needs are different. This could be a very interesting comparison for you. You might find, as I did, that the triple-milled, tallow-based soaps are kinder both to your shave and your skin.

Whatever you wind up doing, enjoy yourself. Oh, and btw ... be prepared to start shelling out some cash. LOTS of good products out there.

Could be any of a few things; lather quality, soap ingredients, blade choice, etc.

I have not used Em's place, so I can't comment on their quality from a personal perspective. However, it may be that either the ingredients didn't agree with your skin or the lather from the soap was not cushioning or "protective" enough and left you with some irritation. This is why, by far and wide, I prefer tallow-based triple-milled soaps as opposed to glycerin-based. However, like Evan, I'm a huge fan of QED. It could even narrow down to how much water you're using, different soaps and creams perform at their pinnacle with different ratios of waterroduct. Have you played around with water ratios with the Em's place? One product may in fact work very well for you, but if you use too much (or too little) water you may end up with a subpar shave.

I'm sorry, I don't mean to make this sound like some kind of rocket science but it can be confusing at times if you haven't experimented with a boatload of products. It sounds like the Em's place just isn't the soap for you, but don't immediately discount what I've said above as it could be something else as well. Ingredient sensitivity is very common, and if your face is mildly burned after the shave this definitely sounds like the culprit.

Again, sorry for the confusing post and happy shaving!

+1. What he (Allen) said.

Ill go grab a puck of VDH and give that a try next shave just too see the results. While I like emsplace and am not trying to give bad publicity, so far I just dont have good luck with her soap. It seems too thick or too runny, I just cant find that right ratio. Im sure if I played around a little longer it may get better, but in the mean time ill do an easy comparison.

yes dude, some soaps suck. especially cheap cooks w/ oils.

and some soaps simply suck for YOU. odd, but true.

petr said:

yes dude, some soaps suck. especially cheap cooks w/ oils ...

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> cheap cooks w/ oils ???

I've not used em's place soap, but the VDH Deluxe is a good soap at a great price.

schwartr said:

... Could the choice of soap be causing less than stellar shaves ... ?

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Absolutely.

I've had happy results with HBS, Conk & ProRaso.

Not happy with Williams as a shaving soap -- found plain water to be preferable (tho' it makes a decent shower soap) .

- Richard

schwartr said:

Ill go grab a puck of VDH and give that a try next shave just too see the results. While I like emsplace and am not trying to give bad publicity, so far I just dont have good luck with her soap. It seems too thick or too runny, I just cant find that right ratio. Im sure if I played around a little longer it may get better, but in the mean time ill do an easy comparison.

Click to expand...

i have not done this much longer than you; apparently

but if you are getting inconsistency in the soap; that is a YOU issue.

if the soap consistently is too soapy, or not enough lather, or too watery; then that is a soap problem

now the irritation and stuff.... that could be a reaction from the EO in the soap.

i have not used Em's place soap; i have used her ASB and hydrosols; they are quite good. so i would say her quality control and quality of work is on par with some of the other companies favored on this site.

a comparison with VDH is not QUITE the same as Em's place. that is not to say that VDH isnt a good soap. it is quite good; and very inexpensive.

first of all, what flavor are you using? use a similar flavor (or sample) from mama bear and/or qed. then at least you can know whether it is the EO or the soap.

just my two cents.

I just tried some soap from TSD and VDH and it was a huge improvement. For some reason, emsplace soap just does not work for me.

well if you decide to get rid of the em's place soap; depending on what scent.....i might take it off your hands

after all; YMMV

try Ogallala bay rum soaps
They are heaven in a soap puck!