I know that when we usually discuss shaving soaps the topic normally goes to commercial varieties. A few years ago I was gifted some glycerin blocks and some molds by a friend of mine as I had expressed an interest in soap making. I did it once and the supplies got exiled to the back of a closet but, recently, I started thinking on it again and decided to pull the stuff out and do something with it.
The thing I did differently this time was to get some Peppermint essential oil to add to the melted glycerin prior to pouring it into the molds and some food dye for decoration. Initially I was just going to use this as shower soap, but I remembered a company called Van der Hagen that makes shaving soap cakes that are sold at Wally World. So, the next time I melted glycerin I made the usual soap bars and also filled up my shaving mug with it. This stuff worked great, smooth shave, close with no cuts or nicks. Another bright spot was the cooling feeling that I got from the peppermint.
The glycerin that I have been using is sold at Hobby Lobby and, when compared to the price of individual bars or cakes, is not very expensive at all. There is another variety on Amazon that I'm going to try when the Hobby Lobby stuff is gone just because it's cheaper. The initial outlay for this is a tiny bit pricey because of having to purchase the molds and a pitcher for melting the glycerin but it levels off and actually becomes a way to save money on supplies relatively quickly.
I have some other essential oils like Tea Tree and Lavender that I'm going to try in the future as well as some of the doTERRA or Young Living oils that are touted as immune boosters. If you try making your own and use some other types of oils post up and let me know the result.
Sounds like a great hobby. Do you intend on selling the products you make?
I’ve never used a shaving soap on my head. What do you use a brush and straight razor? I’ve used a straight razor once and it was a blood bath.
My neighbor and his wife are into all kinds of handicraft copies, Such as working with stain glass and creating useful objects etc..
His wife has been making homemade soap for as long as they been married she makes very many different types and adds different essential oils and natural scents to them. The soap Keeps forever and the longer they store them the harder the bars become.
It is a bit of a process so she only does it about once a year.
Sounds like a great hobby. Do you intend on selling the products you make?
I’ve never used a shaving soap on my head. What do you use a brush and straight razor? I’ve used a straight razor once and it was a blood bath.
At present I don't have any plans on selling the bars. Right now I'm content to just make enough for me to use but who knows what's around the next corner.
As far as how I use it, I just soap up my head with the bar in the shower like with any other bar soap and then scrape it off. I use a 5 blade cartridge razor, an old Personna M-5 Magnum. No blood loss so far, the glycerin in the soap apparently really lubricates the skin. When I use what's in the mug (It's an old coffee mug that a friend of mine from Ulster gave me years ago) I do use a brush. No straight razors for me, though. I don't have that kind of courage.
My neighbor and his wife are into all kinds of handicraft copies, Such as working with stain glass and creating useful objects etc..
His wife has been making homemade soap for as long as they been married she makes very many different types and adds different essential oils and natural scents to them. The soap Keeps forever and the longer they store them the harder the bars become.
It is a bit of a process so she only does it about once a year.
Yeah, I think the scents are only limited by a person's willingness to experiment. So far I've just used the Peppermint because I like the smell but Tea Tree is a natural disinfectant so that might be a good choice, too. But the options are pretty much open to imagination.
When I first started shaving, my gf had some bar soap from Bed, Bath and Beyond that was super slippery. She said it had alot of glycerin in it. I liked it, it worked great.
That sounds like some great stuff you got going, Buddha
I just use some conditioner on my scalp. Seems to work great althogh it doens' have to cooling or the scent effect but at lease i get to press down hard and no nicks. Whatever works , works.
That sounds like some great stuff you got going, Buddha
A big advantage to it is the longer I make my own soap the cheaper it gets. I get 4 good sized bars per pound of the glycerin base so 20 bars per block. A 5 pound block goes for $15-20 When I compare that to Dr. Bronner's Castille Soap with the same scent I'm spending about 1/4-1/5 the cost per bar.
I just use some conditioner on my scalp. Seems to work great althogh it doens' have to cooling or the scent effect but at lease i get to press down hard and no nicks. Whatever works , works.
Haha, I haven't used conditioner since I had hair. You're right, though, about whatever works, works. Part of it for me is I felt like I needed a hobby that I could do indoors.