Lathering Bad Olive Oil Soap

Discussion in 'Shave Soaps' started by JimR, Jul 28, 2009.

  1. JimR

    JimR Active Member

    So I picked up this new soap in a shop the other day--I was so excited to find one in a shop that I didn't even think about it--and it turns out it's not the best latherer. I'm not surprised, but I'd like to get it to work if possible. The scent is pretty good, and the skincare isn't bad at all, but when I lather it up I get a foamy, fizzy mess. I've tried a wet brush, and a dry brush, and an in-between brush. With a dry brush, I get something akin to good lather that promptly fizzles away when it hits my face.

    Here are the ingredients:Soap Base (Olive Oil, Palm Oil, and Coconut oil), Bentonite clay, Fragrance, Almond Oil, Castor Oil, Shea Butter and Tocophero

    Does anyone know any techniques on how to get a good lather out of a soap like this, WITHOUT superlathering? I'd just as soon use a cream by itself, if that's the only way to lather a soap.
     
  2. herzi

    herzi Active Member

    Try to use less water. This is what I always hear when somebody complains about olive oil lather.
     
  3. omegapd

    omegapd New Member

    wow- that's a lot of oils. Try it like a shave stick? If that doesn't work, my only advice would be to use it like a pre-shave lather. I bought a "shaving soap" off of E-bay that is full of oil and lathers poorly, also. Started trying it as a pre-shave face wash and was pretty surprised how well it worked after I applied lather over it. (quick rinse leaving some suds still on)
     
  4. 1969Fatboy

    1969Fatboy New Member

    I had a SS called Cade. It was made with Laurel and very heavy in the olive oil. I didnt lather worth a damn. I mean not at all. However it did provide a very slick barrier and very moisturizing. I couldnt stand it it and sold it off. There is a very thorough review of it across the street. Quite interesting to see the different feedback. I believe some folks and companies that arent accustomed to making shave soaps seem to jump on the bandwagon without doing the proper research. Good luck with it though Jim!
     
  5. omegapd

    omegapd New Member

    Agreed. The book I recently bought on how to make soap has pages and pages of recipes, with only one listed as a shaving soap (and that recipe is for a liquid soap).

    But, luckily, you can always use those crap soaps in the shower and feel better about not wasting your money. :D
     
  6. TG_Charles

    TG_Charles Member

    Does this soap have a name... a brand name?
     
  7. JimR

    JimR Active Member

    Thanks for the feedback, guys. I've tried olive oil based soaps before and had similar problems. My wife really likes the scent on this one, and I paid decent money for it, so I'd like to get it to work...

    "Narcissist". It's sold by a Japanese company called "Tree of Life", but it's apparently imported from the states and rebranded...
     
  8. TG_Charles

    TG_Charles Member

    I'll have to look for it, JimR, thanks for the info. I've often tried to find a good shaving cream or soap in Japan, but alas, no joy as of yet.
     
  9. Kratos

    Kratos New Member

    Hmm. Sounds a bit like re-branded Herban Cowboy. I'll have to look up the ingredient list.
     
  10. JimR

    JimR Active Member

    If you're at Yokosuka, you should be able to get stuff in Tokyo pretty easily.
    If you don't mind paying for it, AOS, T&H and Penhaligon's are available in some department stores but they charge about double what it costs in the States. I got a puck of AOS Sandalwood at Iwataya...but paid for it in blood. They also had Santa Maria Novella colognes and aftershaves, and T&H creams, soap etc.

    On the net, without importing, you're pretty much limited to Durance L'Ome, AOS, and E-Shave. The only one not overpriced is L'Ome...but I've not tried it yet.
     
  11. Teiste

    Teiste New Member

    Durance is a good soap my friend,youre gonna like it.Its hard to lather a based olive oil soap.I find that I have to add a little bit of cream to make a good lather from it.On the other hand its skin properties are really high as well and its slickness.
     
  12. _JP_

    _JP_ Searching for a Forum title

    I have an Italian brand of olive oil soap that is also hard to lather. What I've learned is that I have to work like crazy with it. It's a hard soap, so it requires some scrubbing with the brush to load it up. Once I'm done face lathering it, I don't dare dilly-dally around because the lather partially reduces but doesn't disappear completely. It is real slick, though.

    If I could pop it out of the tin that it's in, then I would use it as a shower soap.
     
  13. JimR

    JimR Active Member

    I give up. I used a much drier brush than usual, and this time the lather disappeared into a thick, sticky mess. Meh. It smells good, but it's no shave soap as far as I'm concerned. If anyone wants to try it, PM me and I'll trade it for some pocket lint or something. Otherwise, it's shower soap.
     
  14. Austin

    Austin Member

    It will probably make an excellent shower soap. You can mix a little shave cream in your brush to give it a boost.
     

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