I'm having trouble getting a thick lather on my face.

Sorry for the confusion here, but is the C.O. Bigelow just Proraso the same product packaged in a different tube, or is it a different product that's equally good in terms of its quality? Thanks.

 

It's exactly the same product just different packaging/distribution. An outstanding mentholated eucalyptus Italian shaving cream

 

Excellent! Thanks for clarifying that.

 

nickshaves reviews it, he uses a bit much water at first. But I think if you start off a little drier you will be better off and you will have better control of the lather

 

Shave review


He says he loads it 30-45 seconds. He also says that its not easy to load, not hard but not easy to load =P

 

Ha! My first thought was Williams, as well.

Thin lather is a greater water to product ratio. Try less water.
I never soak a puck before use, but that's me. I know it's helpful for some.

I was thinking about this whole soaking, blooming thing and was wondering... of those who soak/bloom your puck, do you have hard water?
I would say my water is average as I have been to both hard water and soft water areas and I do notice a big difference in how a soap with lathers - difficult with poor results in hard water and very easy with good results in softer water.

 

TRUTH

 

Is 7dh hard water?

 

According to this, soft.

 

It's completely OK to discuss a product by name as long as it's done the way you did it.
VDH, I like the stuff! Here's what I'd recommend to you. Practice building lather using the palm of your hand, do it in between shaves so you get a feel for how much water you should use. Start drier and add water as needed.
Again welcome!!
Kerry

 

I have the VDH deluxe soap, I really like it and find it cushioning and slick, the nice scent is a bonus. With this soap what I find is don't be afraid to press your brush into it, really work it in there and pump that brush if you want. I get better lather from it by not drowning it in water. Practice and have fun above all else.

 

I bloom to not only soften the the surface, but to get a little more of whatever aromas are present. It's my shave and I'll enjoy it my way, darn it.

 

Is your boar brush fully broken in? What brand and model is it? I have a Semogue 830 and it took quite a while until I could get it to lather properly.

 

As you should. But back to my question to those who choose to bloom - do you have hard water?

 

I have the VDH as well. I melted mine and turned it into a shave stick. I works really well, but it pretty much stays in the RV for travel. I should get another puck for my rotation.

 

Nope.

 

Then it's a "want to", not a "have to." Cool.

 

Eggsackly

 

Thanks for all the replies and advice here, you guys. I tried using less water like some of you have suggested to do and that really helped in terms of getting it nice and thick in the bowl, but I still couldn't get it to build up nice and thick on my face. It was thicker than before when I was using more water, but still a pretty thin layer overall. It didn't seem to matter how many times I tried to load the brush. I just couldn't get a thick application on my face. It seemed like a lot of it stayed on the brush.

I'm not sure if the brush is fully broken in, or what model it is. I just know it's a Van Der Hagen brush. I purchased a basic starter kit that came with the VDH deluxe soap, a boars hair brush, and a ceramic bowl. It does seem softer than when it was brand new, but it loses hair every time I use it.

This is the set I purchased:

 

Here's how I lather soap. So far its worked for every soap I've tried even bar soap and Lava pumice soap(don't try that it'll ruin razors and exfoliate deeper then you want).

I only bloom Modern Williams and MWF.
I have city water that smells like a pool. My moms new place in FL has very hard water full of iron and sulfer I lather everything fine there too and her old place in the mountains has spring fed water great lather there but everything gets silica sand in it from the spring. My lather sparkles from Mica and silica in the water.

Back to the OP

I face lather exclusively (except for the Lava and super lathers) I wet my brush no matter the hair type for 5 or 10 min while I get everything else out and soak M beard with a hot towel. I shake out the brush so its damp but not wet. I load the soap like it knocked over my motorcycle and owes me money for 30sec to a min. I then brush the thick pasty soap on my face. If it wont cover I reload in the puck. When my face is crusted I duo the tip 1/2 inch of brush in water and start working it into the soap on my face. If it still looks dry I'll repeat this. Maybe 3 to 5 times. I lather it on my face then smooth it out and pick up the extra with the brush. I have enough lather for 3 to 6 passes depending on the hardness of their soaps. So far I haven't met a soap I cant lather. I accidentally lathered a preshave soap once and didn't notice till an hour after the shave. I also keep Williams in my regular rotation.