What cultures use a brush, what immigrants would anyone say come from a culture that brush shaving is mainstream. India is one, do hispanics in South America use a brushes, Maybe Eastern Europe,...where and what culltures could you market to.
I don't know about South America, but I'd bet Eastern Europe has some countries where wetshaving is alive and well. India is under assault by the "new" cartridge/can shaving revolution. I see it in marketing as well as in their movies. But I doubt it will ever fully displace wetshaving simply because of the huge lower-class population. The movie "Raincoat" has a scene where Ajay Devgan face lathers with a cream and a tiny black brush (brand of cream was visible but I've never heard of it)...the razor wasn't a DE though.
I can see the ease of using canned foam anywhere in the world although I would never go back to it, However I cannot see the love affair with high priced Gillette and Schick products here especially. I think all in all the brush is on the decline from what I have read so far.
Ever since I went to traditional brush & cream soap, canned stuff just is SO ineffective by comparison. In fact, in my mind there is NO comparison between a water-based lather whipped up with a brush and a "lather" of rubbed on foam/gel. Brush use died here in the US because it just took too much time & effort IMO. And look at brushes themselves: if you go with badger it's (1) expensive and (2) you might wish that you had gone with a different one once you've used it awhile, i.e., "I wish it was denser/softer/had shorter loft because I want to try face lathering." I mean, even I have 3 brushes and I never saw myself as someone who needed more than one. But you get curious. For people like us that's fine, but for John Q. Public, it's just another complication to something that should be simple (which is what the majority of people I've encountered think of shaving...that it should be simple). As far as grocery store synthetics go, I couldn't imagine having one to be honest. I'd feel like I was rubbing toothbrush bristles on my face.
My friend, the laugh was not just like that. It was remembering donkey's years rubbing synthetic brushes on my face... You feel like a piece of ceramic in the bathroom getting a nice scrub wash.
+1 that and synthetics don't like heat. They get destroyed with heat. The omegas boars take plenty of it. I dip them in absolutely scalding hot water and when I face lather, its heaven !!
I tried lathering cream last night with the Omega (48 Pro) and it didn't do much of anything. But it was a different story when I tried it with the puck of Godrej soap. The lather exploded! Incredibly thick and luxuriant. How do you get good lather with creams using an Omega?
I have childhood memories of my father face lathering Palmolive lime SC with a Palmolive nylon brush and then using a 3-piece DE with a Savage blade. (Still remember the Palmolive ads featuring Kapil Dev ) I can't believe how much times have changed. Now, my father uses canned goo with a Gillette Mach 3 and the son is using shave creams and soaps with a straight.
Initially the omegas were lather eaters with creams. Now they have broken in. I give 1-2 jerks to let all the water out. I rub the shaving cream all over the face in circular motion and start the face lathering in circular motion as well for a minute or so. Dip in hot water as and when needed to balance the lather out. Voila !! Lather for 3 passes.
Okay, thanks. The brush already seems very soft but I'll give it some more time to break in before I try creams again.
Just to add to this, I put about a pinky (5th finger) nail sized dab of the cream on each cheek, the chin, and on each side of the neck, then just start with one of the dabs in a circular motion, moving all over the face to incorporate it all. I haven't bowl lathered in quite some time now....
India, from what I understand is no longer safe from canned stuff, or cartridge-razors either, although traditional wetshaving, the way we like it is still quite popular. In Europe now, the traditional wetshaving scene is shrinking, somewhat. Scandinavia is almost entirely Gillette, Greece is almost entirely Gillette, Russia is becoming very Gillette, although certain good traditional products can still be found there if you know where to look. Israel is still fairly traditional, but not as much as before. In the rest of the Middle East, it is still mostly traditional, but even so, the canned stuff from Gillette, and cartridge razors are quickly becoming popular.
I live and work in Morocco in North Africa. The people here(specifically the barbers) use shaving brushes. A majority of younger men in my area go to the barber periodically(twice a week or less) to get their faced shaved; the price equivalent is about US $0.55-0.95. Most all of them use Palmolive or Fa shaving gel with Iridium Super Extra Stainless blades; there are no other local options. Next time I see a local desert nomad, I'll ask him how he shaves.
Ahlan Wasahlan, ca me fait plaisir, Habibi! Ma femme est juive-marocaine, et moi, je suis juif-polonais, mais j'ai grandi en Israel.
Ok - let me try to brush up my school french.. My wife is from morocco I am from poland, I was brought up in Israel
