Shaving Soap in a bowl, or cream in a jar?

Hi all,
I've been using an Edwin Jagger Shaving set for near 5 years now, very similar to the one in the photo. The set looks fantastic and I love it when I buy something that looks good and I use a lot.

However, one thing that's been creeping in my mind more and more is the usefulness of the shaving bowl with shaving soap. I mean, the bowl and hard soap gets the job done, looks cool, but it's a lot more work to produce a quality lather, especially when the soap is more than 1/2 finished. Now, compare this to shaving cream you get in a tube, or a jar. Soft shaving cream in a jar is a dream to put on and always lathers really well with very little effort. I spent good money on this beautiful shaving set but I'm wondering if I'm letting aesthetics get in the way common sense. ie: like screwing in a 100 screws with a manual screwdriver verses using an electric screwdriver or drill. If I switch to using shaving cream in a jar, does the shaving bowl become decoration that I wasted money on and just collects dust? Anyway, what are your thoughts?

Thanks,
Will

 

That is a good question. We wet shavers tend to own (many of us) many different products, applying some kind of method to rotate their usage. It's the rare bird that purchases something new and completely abandons the old. If you are interested in trying a shave cream in a jar, you should. You may find that you really enjoy it. There's a huge selection out there and the friendly and knowledgeable members of this Forum will be happy to enable inform you. Have fun.

 

IMO that type of bowl should be used as a bowl to build a lather not store a soap.

 

That is correct. Perhaps I have misunderstood the OP...

 

I use it to hold the soap. I build the lather on my face. I don't see a huge advantage on having yet another "thing" to lather the soap when building lather on your face works fine, IMO.

 

I like "things." Just how I enjoy my shave.

 

I face lather 99% of the time, I would find that particular bowl nothing more than I candy. It doesn't have a lid on it, judging from the size of the knot on the brush the bowl is rather small to get a good swirl going. Think marketing.

 

If nothing else, you can figure the bowl is there to catch any drips from the brush after your shave is done. Just keep some soap in the bowl, use it once in a while and enjoy how nice it looks while you use your cream.

 

It's your shave, do with it as you will. Keep your options open. I prefer creams and face lathering. I still have a bowl for when I do feel like bowl lathering. I also use my bowl to hold the wet/soapy brush while I'm shaving, and also use it to soak my brush. So, there are a lot of ways you can incorporate it into whichever style of shaving you choose to partake in that day.

 

Brush Soaking. That's why I still have my VDH bowl and use it daily. I've been a face/head latherer for years, but I still soak my brush for a few minutes (even my synthetics), and use the water from the bowl to freshen my lather throughout my shave, rather than going to the sink which has all of my shaved hair floating in it already.

As far as cream vs soap, I wouldn't stick with soaps just to make your nice bowl useful. Use whichever you enjoy the most. I enjoy soaps, so my stock is around 85% soaps, 15% creams.

 

Yeah man, so what you want and dont worry about it. I have a couple of soaps that stay in mugs for when I want to use them and I have a bowl just for lathering. I lather in a bowl because too much friction irritates my face. Sensitive skin and what not. If you are a 1 product guy then go with what make you happy. I know my travel rig is actually just a tube of proraso. I can actually get a reasonable lather on my face with just my fingertips and some water. I dont like hauling stuff on the road.

 

When I use creams I bowl lather. But face lather with soaps. So I keep a big latte mug for building lather.

 

I just enjoy the process of bowl lathering and wouldn't want to shorten my drive time. Of course If I had a real job it would be a luxury I couldn't always afford.

 

Hard soap I lather on top of the soap then on my face.
Soft soaps and creams I whip up in an empty taylor's of old bond street tub.
The dinky little bowl on the stand isn't really big enough for me but is useful for brush soaking and drip catching. (I have a very similar stand)
Tried some soap in a tube.. a Christmas present arran aromatics in bay citrus and driftwood. I can't get on with it, the lather is too thin either a brush so I'll try finger lathering. Their hard soap is the business though.

 

It's interesting that some people switch between shaving soap and cream. I've tried the cream, and it's very nice to use. It may be hard to justify going back to soap for me, but time will tell. For those who prefer soap, why do you like it better than cream? As well, for those who alternate between the two, I'm curious to know why do you do so?

 

I alternate strictly based on the scent I am going for that day or just for a change up. I picked up a bunch of samples when I was first getting started last year and still have some left. The only menthol I have is in soap form. Well, I guess Proraso green has a little but not the face tingling level of some of my soaps.

 

Can't remember the last time I used a cream. I do have a couple, just prefer soaps. Why? Like @preidy said, I enjoy the process. It's a little more involved, takes a bit more time, releases more scent (in my opinion). Just my shave and how I enjoy it.

 

Life's too short to limit oneself. I enjoy creams, soaps, croaps, etc.
I agree with @gwsmallwood , it looks like a perfect size for soaking your brush pre-shave.
Is that an Edwin Jagger Bulbous? Looks like a beautiful razor. I have the Chatsworth. I like the heaviness.

 

If I had a bowl, razor, brush, stand gizmo like that I would probably use the bowl for soaking my brush. I face lather all my soaps, creams and croaps. I have tried bowl lathering, but it just didn't suit my needs. If you used one soap every day you could store your soap puck in the bowl. It looks to be about the right size for a Haslinger puck. It also makes an nice decoration...which has value in itself. I suggest you do what works best for you and enjoy!

 

We've had some good discussion on this topic. I was curious to see what the manufacturer and distributor of this shaving set had to say, so I wrote them. Here is what The English Shaving Company and Edwin Jagger has to say:

From The English Shaving Company (where I ordered my shaving kit):

From Edwin Jagger (manufacturer/ designer of my shaving kit):

There you have it.