aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh!!! My head hurts!!!!!!! Too. Much. Thinking. I don't over think my shave. I use soap because it makes the shave more comfortable than just using water.
Well we have progressed in many ways since 1905 technically in terms of understanding the human body and how it functions. 1. Oils in soaps soften hair when applied with water for a period of time. Hair is not a impenetrable to water and oils or natural hair shaving brushes would not hold water (and soaps and creams) as they do. Natural hair would behave like synthetic brush fibers so the 1905 statement is incorrect scientifically. They missed the correlation between natural human hair and natural animal hair. That is why preparation is critical not only to soften hair but to allow the hair to become more pliable. See a more modern article about hair softening in general below. http://www.newhealthguide.org/How-To-Soften-Hair-At-Home.html 2. When a brush is used with soap the softened hairs are under a more pliable state and begin to be adjusted, lifted if you will by the action of the brush, lather, water and softened hair. In addition water, soap (with proper oil contents) allow the skin to become more slick and the hydration allows the skin to expand (by absorption) to help the hair follicles to stand up more than when dry. This process is confused by the shaver with opening and closing of pores which is also a fallacy scientifically. The truth: Despite what your mother told you, you can’t steam your pores open... http://www.besthealthmag.ca/look-great/skin/myths-and-truths-about-your-pores Is what you read bad advice, not completely but much of it has been superseded by additional knowledge gathered over the last 100 years.
I admit that I'm in complete agreement with much of what's printed in this book. Ancient or not, it makes sense to me. I don't discuss it here, or actively point others toward it, or promote it in any way because it's contrary to what seems to be common knowledge today and "swimming against the current" is often not looked on as a simple difference of opinion or viewpoint, but rather an invitation to social conflagration, and I don't want that. However, because it was brought to attention by someone other than me, I would like to suggest a simple experiment to anyone who is genuinely interested in what's written in the book about shave soap and how it affects hair. Try this for yourself and see if it seems reasonable. When you can, hold off shaving for 3-4 days. Then when you are at the sink preparing to rid yourself of this growth, take a minute and feel your whiskers carefully. If what is written in the book is true, your whiskers will naturally have some amount of oil in them and they will be relatively soft and flexible. Wet and wash your face using your shave soap and your shaving brush. It's important to use shave soap, not something else. Shaving soap is formulated with the proper ingredients to promote the bonding of the oil in your whiskers and the soap so that oil can be rinsed away. So take your time and really work that lather into your beard. (prep is everything, right?) Take at least 1 full minute, and give your mug a good scrub. Rinse well with warm water, pat dry with a towel, and feel your beard again. How do those whiskers feel now? Are they stiffer, or softer? I'll offer one more observation about this, and then stand clear. Have you ever shaved, and actually heard the razor blade "singing"? You know, those little pings and pops you hear as the blade moves across your face? Think about that. If the hair is soft and flexible, why does the blade ping and pop as it cuts? I liken this to cutting a soft/limp piece of spaghetti, and then a dry/hard one. It seems to me more reasonable that those pings and pops are the result of cutting something hard/brittle. But you decide for yourself. I tried to attach a copy of the 1905 book "Shaving Made Easy", but got an error message saying the file was too large. So, if you'd like a copy you can download the .pdf file from the Library of Congress website here: https://archive.org/details/shavingmadeeasyw0020th Be warned, it challenges several things that are accepted as fact today. Some may like it, others may wish to use it as bird cage liner.
I'm pretty much with Bristle Me on this, but at the same time don't care enough to bother with 'proving' facts and theories. At the end of the day, your process is still your process.
Hard to say, because I suspect the shaving soaps from over 100 years ago were different than today's shaving soaps and creams. But even if they were somewhat the same, it's common for serious shavers of good will to disagree.
Very interesting don't know if it's bad advice it not, but it is fuel for thought will take the time to read it
