I use a stainless steel bowl. I don't have chemical reactions that way. I mostly use face lathering, as I said, because it's a lot faster, but I am beginning to wonder that there are some soaps that I feel a little sting after shaving and you all have gotten me to thinking that maybe it is from scrubbing my face with a soap that is already a little bit harsh. This calls for some investigation and experimentation.
Bowl Lathering: Boy, did I have it wrong!
- Thread starter Goblin
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- #42
I might be imagining it, but I am convinced that bowl lathering is already making a difference for me. It will take a while for my skin to fully recover, but it already looks a little more settled.
On the one hand, not to worry as we all knew what you meant!
On the other hand, who is Paul and what has he ever done to you?
That’s my story, but I ended up with boars. My best badgers are too harsh, even painting.
“Floppy” brushes are underrated.
Apparently, Paul talks too much.On the other hand, who is Paul and what has he ever done to you?
Paul has always been a problem.
Another advantage to bowl lathering is that you can add stuff to the bowl. I, and quite a few people here, add a few drops of glycerine into the mix. I does a world of difference during the dry winter months.
As a ”bowl” I use a travel soap case bottom. It lets me know when the lather is ready when the suction between the case/lather/brush is able to lift the case into the air unsupported.
As a ”bowl” I use a travel soap case bottom. It lets me know when the lather is ready when the suction between the case/lather/brush is able to lift the case into the air unsupported.
Ron R
I survived a lathey foreman
I have been bowl lathering for 7 years with shaving soaps and 90% of shaving soaps manufactured work great for bowl lathering and others 5-10% just work it seems better loading brush and face lathering I have experienced.
I made a list of the benefits on bowl lathering on a thread because there are folks who where arguing on face lathering was the best method. I still use both methods of face and bowl lathering and my skin seems to like that way of shaving.
Most shave soaps are Alkaline on the PH scale of 8-9 has been my testing.
www.badgerandblade.com
Have some great shaves!
I made a list of the benefits on bowl lathering on a thread because there are folks who where arguing on face lathering was the best method. I still use both methods of face and bowl lathering and my skin seems to like that way of shaving.
Most shave soaps are Alkaline on the PH scale of 8-9 has been my testing.
PH Levels of shave products I use. PH scale 1>6(Acidic) 7 neutral(distilled water) 8-14(Alkaline).
I have lots of shave products I have been using over the years and I really have no idea what some of the PH levels are on some of them so I bought some litmus paper to give me some idea & others to keep it interesting for a while when shaving! Maybe I will learn something along the way also...
www.badgerandblade.com
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- #48
That makes sense to me - my schoolboy chemistry suggests that the lye is heavily (even dangerously) alkaline, and even though it should be used up by saponification, the resulting salts are presumably going to be alkalkine too to some degree, as will quite a lot of the additives in posh soaps (e.g. various clays or butters).
Broke up The Beatles to get away from the unfathomable depression he felt comparing himself to Ringo Starr while letting Yoko take the blame.
On a more serious note, my only regular face lathering is when I travel, using either Proraso stick, or a squeeze-out cream (Creamo, Nivea, Gillette), using a Wee Scot. I do feel I get a bit more exfoliation doing this, but that's a very subjective observation with multiple variables (soaps, water quality, sun-time-on-face, etc .)
I may have to explore this a bit more...
I may have to explore this a bit more...
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- #51
I want to revist the statement I made above in response to @The Coffee Bandit. After some additional experimentation with more different soaps and creams I have realised that in fact the initial amount of water required can be surprisingly variable. I test lathered up some commercial creams yesterday that barely responded to a third of a teaspoon - they needed several more additions of water to get the party started.
So, I guess the moral of the story is: Gentlemen, know your soaps!
But all things being equal it is still far better to start with too little water than too much. It seems all soaps and creams have an inflection point at which the amount of water is suddenly enough to make the lather explode, but quite where that is can vary a good bit between different products. It's better to come up on it gradually, than overshoot and end up with something too foamy that can't be whipped back into shape.
I got out a soap that I know will give me a very slight tingle and I bowl lathered. I used a Rudy Vey brush with a 25mm Mühle Silvertip Fibre brush that is nice a soft. I painted and did not scrub or splay. It made no difference to my face. Though the yogurt like lather was incredibly slick, the soap still gave a tingle. It went away within the usual three or four minutes after shaving. Here is my bowl and brush after the shave was finished.
Yes. It's like mixing sakrete. You want to sneak up on it. You can always add more water but you can't take it back out.
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- #54
That's a shame the outcome wasn't more positive.
I think a lot is going to depend on how the skin reacts to a particular soap. The soaps that cause a violent allergic reaction, i.e. the tingle, are probably doing so based purely on contact. However, I alos have soaps that seem alright at first, but the longer you go the more the skin starts to complain and is eventually dessicated and raw about 30 minutes after the shave.
It is that kind of phenomena that I hope might be alleviated a little by lathering in the bowl rather than on the face. But I don't think it is going to miraculously let me use Cella without my face looking like a British tourist after a week in the Costa del Sol.
You might want to try the non-tallow Cella. It doesn’t have the benzaldehyde in the regular versions.
Maybe Stirling beeswax is really the most gentle. There is no Lanolin in to irritate some peoples faces and it is really soft and soothing. I certainly have found some soaps that really are not face friendly and I just simply don't use them although I know people that love them. I also don't use bore brushes and Badger brushes anymore. I use very soft synthetics. That works for me, but it is not necessarily what would work for someone else. There is a brush, I think Plisoft, and I think also there is one even softer that might be good for you to try @Goblin.
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- #57
@Doc Dan if I could get my hands on Stirling Sheep or Beeswax I would definitely give them a try. The problem is that people think, "nobody wants unscented soaps" so they don't import them. I can get just about every other Stirling flavour from the UK distributors, but not those two.
I once had a conversation by PM with the fella who runs Barrister and Mann and he said that compared to fragranced soaps the demand for unscented was just so low it wasn't worthwhile manufacturing it, and that is why they dropped unscented soaps from their range. Anecdotally, I feel like that might be changing - plenty of folks here seem to see the value of unscented products - but I guess maybe B&B isn't representative of the market as a whole and the majority still like their smellies.
I once had a conversation by PM with the fella who runs Barrister and Mann and he said that compared to fragranced soaps the demand for unscented was just so low it wasn't worthwhile manufacturing it, and that is why they dropped unscented soaps from their range. Anecdotally, I feel like that might be changing - plenty of folks here seem to see the value of unscented products - but I guess maybe B&B isn't representative of the market as a whole and the majority still like their smellies.
I don't know what the import duties would be like, but I could recommend a place in Malaysia and also in the USA that could ship you some. I have to often times get things from overseas myself.
My skin is sensitive to some, but not most soaps. Mostly, it is the fragrances that get me and I can use most soaps I want to try. However, I really like the Stirling Unscented. It is one of my "always keep on hand" soaps. The point is, I don't think you'd be disappointed.
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- #59
@Doc Dan, thank you but I am happy with my UK stuff for now.
Also, and this is me being a crank, I feel like I shouldn't have to order this stuff from overseas when there are UK distributors for it! If they won't stock the products I want, I am quite happy to spend my money supporting domestic artisans instead. After all, buying artisan products is supposed to be about buying local!
Also, and this is me being a crank, I feel like I shouldn't have to order this stuff from overseas when there are UK distributors for it! If they won't stock the products I want, I am quite happy to spend my money supporting domestic artisans instead. After all, buying artisan products is supposed to be about buying local!
Well, they do say your lather should be yogurty.....
In that case I have the perfect shaving bowl for you:
It may be metric (get used to it, the rest of the world has already), but it’s probiotic, which must be good for the skin….
Also available in other flavours, like lemon (for summer shaving, I presume).
Seriously, I have a suitable mug and bowl, so I might give it a try tomorrow when I shave with a shaving cream for a change. As I have no issues with my skin, I’d be surprised if the change will be permanent, but you never know…
B.
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