Say that three times fast! Gosh it's been so long since I've been here. As a soaping hobbyist I took a loooong break from formulating shaving soap, but I'm back at it. I'll start by making some for a few of my testers and friends. I have a love/hate relationship with packaging so thought I'd ask the experts. What type of packaging is your first choice? A simply wrapped puck to put in your own mug, or soap poured directly into a tin or tub for lathering up. This inquiring mind wants to know
I really like the tubs soap commander comes in. big enough to load the brush right from there, to face lather. also it has a screw on top. it has waterproof labels. very nice packaging, in my humble opinion.
I would rather buy a cheaper refill and put it in my own mug/ container than have to pay extra to receive a new tin or tub each soap. BUT if they were the same price, probably rather have one poured right into the tin or tub! Just my .02 . As an aside, I believe a lot of people have mugs that they like to use to store their soaps. An example being all the old spice mug enthusiasts out there.
I don't care, but the price should be commensurate with the packaging. IOW, if your charging $15 for soap in a tub, I would not want to pay that for a puck wrapped in paper. MHO.
Some of the artisans use a plastic tub or tin using a replaceable puck. I like that concept well. Oh and BTW welcome back!
Either a nice large bowl, as stated by @david of central florida or just a puck that I can put in my own large bowl.
Number one Welcome Back, thought you got lost in the woods, and were gone forever. I have to agree with Gary. But I also like being able to put the Puck in my own Mug or container, that I can label.
Hey Patrick, I was getting ready to contact you tomorrow. In my mind, such as it is/was, I thought I notified you last year that I was taking a shave soap sabbatical. I feel like I've been lost in the woods...but hey life happens and I'm back at it!
I prefer my soaps in simple refill packages since I have my own containers I can stack on top of each other without issues.
Now that I have a few empty tubs, just a refill puck wrapped in paper is good for me... and hopefully more economic.
My preference is usually to just use refills and put them in my own oversized tins. The problem I find with most tubs is they are too narrow and are filled right to the top, so make a mess when used. I like tins that are wide and deep so the soap level stays half an inch or so below the rim when 'full'. That way the tips of the brush stay inside the tin while loading, without it all spilling out. I use these excellent stainless steel tins from Nanny's Silly Soap. They're heavy duty and go in the dishwasher when empty, to be reused for another puck of soap or cream. This one's loaded with HTGAM Synergy Gondalier:
I like the simple wrap as well. Keep the price as low as possible and I can figure out what to do with it. Often I slice the pucks of Stirling I get and use a slice in a mug and then switch it up. That's annoying to do with soaps that come in a container.
I like the concept that Tabac and MWF where you buy the soap with a container then afterwards you just buy a refill. I also like Soap Commanders containers, they just feel like solid, quality containers.
