I started with a puck of VDH Deluxe that I got at Walmart. I melted it into one of the small pyrex bowls (the tight fitting lid is great for traveling.) I've been using it for a week or so and have noticed a couple of things. I lather it right in the pyrex bowl. This seems to not work very well. It also seems to use a tremendous amount of soap. In a little over a week I have used enough of the VDH to reach the glass at the bottom of the bowl in the center (still a bit of soap around the edges, but not terribly much. What is the proper way to use soap in a bowl? I obviously haven't figured it out. I've had little luck with face lathering so far, and I find bowl lathering to be a bit more enjoyable. Second, I happened to stop by CVS the other day and found a puck of williams. I like the scent slightly more than VDH, but as it's a real puck of soap I have no idea how to use it properly. I can't melt it into a bowl like the VDH and I don't have any bowls that are close to the right size for the smallish puck. I've used it a few times as a loose puck, but I end up with a big mess and no good place to store it. One of these days I'll have a chance to pick up some quality soaps. My intent is to make my own shaving soap, but I really need to use some well regarded products to have a target to aim for. L'Occitane, MWF, and Irisch Moos are probably the varieties that I will try to track down and get some experience with. (I gather that Irisch Moos is the same soap as Tabac, but with an Irish moss scent that is more universally appreciated?)
VDH should last 2-3 months, much shorter than most soaps but certainly more than a couple weeks. You must be using a large brush in addition to direct lathering. Either face lathering or lathering in a separate bowl once your brush is loaded will make your soap last longer The Williams can either be placed in a coffee mug, or grated with a cheese grater and pressed into whatever container you prefer. It sounds like you may not have watched the videos from Mantic on You Tube. Other than the fact that he uses a little less soap/cream than most of us, he shows realy good lathering technique. These videos should answer 90% of your technique questions.
Have you watched the Mantic videos on you tube? He has one on lathering. In regards to a container for Williams, you can grate it into small flakes that you then press into any container. I like to use Anchor Hawking bowls myself for my soaps. I would think you went through the VDH fast; however, I can't recall how large of a puck those are. When you get some better quality trippled milled soaps, you will find that they last a lot longer.
I have watched Mantic's excellent videos, but some of the details on lathering either weren't covered or I just plain missed. I think he's a big proponent of lathering on the face, so gave a bit more detail on that method. VDH Deluxe is a mix of synthetic detergents and soaps and is very soft. My brush is a very run of the mill Tweezerman badger. Lathering in the soap bowl is very convenient, but it just doesn't give me good results (not enough lather and it devours the soap.) I think I just need to find some small bowl that I can put the williams in (I'll probably try to mill it into the bowl) and use a separate bowl for the lathering. It's also worth mentioning that my water is pretty hard, which I think is one of the reasons I have trouble with face lathering.
My water is pretty hard as well and I face lather. I just can't get a decent lather in a bowl. Some people suggest letting about 1-2 tbsp of water to soak on your soap while you get ready. This softens the soap and gets it ready to work with. I used to do this but found as my technique improved I didn't need to do this anymore. Soak your brush and then give it a few good shakes until water doesn't drop out. Work it on the soap until the sound changes. You will be starting to build some lather, but you want to really load the brush with soap. Get your face wet and then face lather. The soap may be too dry at first so dip the end of the brush in water for a second and then lather some more. Eventually you will get just the right consistency and the extra brushing helps prepare your skin for shaving. You should have enough properly moistened soap in your brush for your other passes, just rinse and lather for the other passes. If the lather is getting thin, hit the soap for a few seconds with the brush to re-load.
That is excellent advice. I face lather with all my soaps. The williams is not a bad soap at all. I prefer it over many of the more expensive soaps that I have. Another important thing to remember is to add water slowly. That is why you just dip the tips of the brush in water. Practice is the best. Mill the Williams into something. Or just use a coffee mug for it. Works great either way. Have fun and enjoy. That is the most important part. The shaves just get better with practice.
Like my friend above, I love Williams. I found out that I need to add a lot more water to make it work than other soaps, though...keep at it! Good Luck.
Hmm, I think the VDH should last more than a few weeks, personally I tend to get a year per soap. I wonder if your lathering techniques are correct.
The VDH is definitely supposed to last longer. Trying to lather in the soap bowl is the problem there, I just was wondering if lathering in the soap bowl was a common practice, because it sure isn't working for me. Thanks for all of the feedback everyone. I'm fairly pleased with the Williams so far. I like it much better than VDH, if for no other reason, there's a lot more actual soap in a puck of Williams. The scent of Williams isn't bad, but I'm looking for better. I really don't much care for the scent of VDH Deluxe. Maybe that's from bad childhood memories of aloevera and sunburns.
