I'm pretty new to the joys of DE wet shaving but am hooked after just a few months. Now that I have my technique going and blades that suit me, I'm trying to find a soap with plenty of glide. If you had to recommend either DR Harris or B&M to a noob, which would you choose? The most important quality in a soap for me is "glide." The lack of it is one of the many things I hate about the cheap brands like Williams I've tried or even pricier L'Occitane. I've read very positive reviews of B&M and Arlington here and elsewhere. People seem to love Arlington for its fragrance, but how's the lather and the glide? Is B&M comparable, better, or worse? I know it's all a matter of personal preference, but your opinions and insights would be appreciated. My bias is for buying American, so B&M would be my choice if all other things are equal. If, however, Arlington is the holy grail of wet shaving, I don't want to miss out.
Both are excellent performers as far as glide, cushioning, post shave skin care, etc. Arlington is a hard triple milled puck, so you may have to spend more time loading if you have a very soft brush. Not a problem, just something to be aware of. The tallow formula of Barrister & Mann is a thirsty soap, so you may need to add more water than you're used to in order to get a thick slick lather. Again, not a problem, just something to be aware of. Barrister & Mann's vegan formula (Tre Citta) performs every bit as well as the tallow in my opinion, and is less picky about water. So my recommendation would be to get both! Or otherwise to make your decision based on the scents you prefer.
Glide alone doesn't make a good shave soap. Probably the slickest soap I have ever used is Herban Cowboy. It is a lousy soap overall because the lather is incredibly short lived. The slickest soaps I have used that are also great overall are: Valobra Crema di Sapone Purissima, Kell's Original Hemp Blend and Prairie Creations Tallow and Lanolin.
Good to hear this. I have had my eye on the Kell's soaps. Did you try the original hemp or the aloe\hemp?
Mikes natural soap are amazing to. Might want to look at them. But I've heard great things about the 2 you posted.
wow....what a tough choice...dr harris arlington vs barrister mann cheshire....both awesome...the barrister comes in a nice tub...the harris is either a puck or a wooden bowl....as far as performance...they are both great...i currently finished my arlington puck and am using the barrister...if i had to rebuy one...hmmm..i might pick the barrister cheshire.
For me, the triple milled DR Harris soaps last longer than the Barrister and Mann soaps. The Barrister and Mann cost less. They are both excellent, but I prefer Barrister and Mann Lavanille to ANY soap and the B&M Fougere Aromatique to any DR Harris soap. FYI, the B&M Fougeres will be available again 5.5 hours from now. They will sell out quickly, I bet.
Both are excellent quality soaps. Do you prefer a more floral scent (Arlington) or an Earl Grey tea scent (Cheshire)? I am not a big fan of most floral scents, so I prefer the more "aristocratic" Windsor scent to the floral Arlington scent out of the DR Harris soaps. B&M is one of my top 5 artisan soap makers and I like several scents. You can't go wrong with either from a soap quality standpoint, so it just comes down to personal scent preference.
