Alas! I've finally hit the point in my blogging career where I no longer have any indie purchasing experiences to talk about for our Company Overview segment. I'd like to correct this before my next turn, what companies would you like to see, dear readers? Please let me know in the comments if you have any ideas or suggestions!
In the meantime, here's a review on my quest for a men's indie shaving soap.
As I mentioned in my first Red Leaf Bath and Body post, men's shaving soap is apparently entirely different from women's shaving soap and most companies that specialize in soap, don't venture into the facial shaving variety. Red Leaf had a few that looked promising so I picked up samples of both the Men's Soap and Shave Cube (the sample labeled "Men's Shaving Soap") and the Men's Extra Large Soap Bar (labeled "Men's Rich Lathering Soap"). As an aside, the Extra Large Soap Bar is the only size that the soap comes in besides in sample form. There is no Small, Medium, or Large to complement; the Extra Large is a description not a comparison in this case.
I had no idea - and still don't really know - what makes a good men's shaving soap. My good friend Greg tried to explain this to me but once he got into pre-shave and brushes I started to get a little @.@ on the concept. I hadn't realized before that the women's shave industry is much more cut-and-dry.
But so I picked up two, thinking that the one labeled a Shaving Soap would be a good choice, especially since it mentioned being able to be used with a shave brush, and Rich Lathering was something that Greg had emphasized as being a key characteristic in any good shave soap.
Shave Cube Ingredients: coconut oil × sustainable palm oil × castor oil × safflower oil × vegetable glycerin × purified water × sodium hydroxide × sorbitan × oleate soybean protein × wheat protein × fragrance
Lathering Soap Ingredients: olive oil × shea butter × coconut milk × water × kukui × vegetable glycerin × sodium hydroxide × sweet almond oil × fragranceAs you can tell from the ingredients, the only similarity they share is that they're both made with a vegetable glycerin base. Other than that, totally different.
On my hands, I can definitely see that they're made differently. The Men's Soap and Shave Cube makes a creamy lather whereas the Men's Rich Lathering Soap makes bubbles. But to be honest, when I tried both on my legs, I couldn't tell the difference. As leg shaving soaps, it didn't matter which I used; they both provided enough slip and coverage to give me a nick-free smooth shave. If you're looking for a soap to serve this purpose, I'd suggest picking based on the oil that you like best - coconut oil in the Shave Cube and olive oil in the Rich Lathering Soap - as they both performed similarly.
But since we're really looking for a good men's shaving soap, I enlisted Greg for the task.
He shaves in the fancy legit way with a badger-hair brush and bowl. His results were very different from mine. As you can tell, the Men's Shave Cube made a nice thick lather that covered in a smooth layer. He said that it made for a nice experience. The Rich Lathering Soap, however, nope. Definitely not meant for the face. In the picture above, Greg applied a pre-shave oil (I still have no idea what this is or what purpose it serves but am dutifully reporting) before putting the soap on - he saw in the bowl that the lather was going to need some help - but you can tell from the bowl picture that it's not nearly as thick as the Shave Cube.
Knowing that there are many people out there that don't have a shave brush or a special bowl for the task, I also handed to soaps to my boyfriend for testing in the more straightforward way - lathering straight on the hands then rubbing the resulting lather on the face. He really likes the Men's Shave Cube and says that it gives him a close shave with less nicks than the commercial gel he'd been using prior. Same issue with the Men's Rich Lathering Soap though. It just didn't give enough coverage to help.
I feel like I'm making it sound like the soap's fault though. Honestly, as a soap, the Men's Rich Lathering Soap performs very well. It is not it's fault that I decided to test it for something it wasn't intended for.
In conclusion, the Men's Shave Cube got a thumbs up from both male test subjects. The Men's Rich Lathering Soap makes a pretty good shave soap for women - despite the name - but both test subjects recommend keeping it away from the face razor.
Men's Rich Lathering Soap: Purchase Link
Men's Soap and Shave Cube: Purchase Link
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