Serious question about blooming soap. Should i bloom all my soaps or do certain ones need blooming while others don't, and if that's the case how can I tell which ones do and which ones don't?
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All My Soaps
- Thread starter Graybeard57
- Start date
Dave in KY
Shave Newbie
I don't bloom any of mine but some do bloom harder soaps to soften them to load onto the brush easier. I'm sure some that do it will chime in with thoughts soon.
Blooming just helps you load soaps faster/easier by softening up the upper surface of the soap. So ask yourself this.... are you having issues loading any of your soaps? Do you want them to load faster? If so, bloom them.
Generally speaking, all glycerin melt & pour soaps or any triple milled or similarly hard soaps will perform better if bloomed first.
Generally speaking, all glycerin melt & pour soaps or any triple milled or similarly hard soaps will perform better if bloomed first.
Agree 100%. Softer soaps absorb water faster, so a wet brush is usually all that's necessary. Have you tried CBL Premium Soaps? Those soaps only need a wet bush to produce excellent lathers.
I'm an exception to the above statement, even though I readily agree with it. I bloom every soap, with the exception of Declaration Grooming's Bison Tallow base and CBL Soaps, as they are so soft and don't present any issues at all in loading. Do I need to? Absolutely not...soaps such as A&E (both bases), Declaration Icarus, Grooming Dept., Stirling, Wickham, Wholly Kaw, Noble Otter, and Lisa's will load just fine with a brush that is just a tad bit more wet than I usually go to the puck with. Normally, I soak, then wring out and shake 3-4 times to get a brush that is barely damp. If I don't bloom, I'll only shake maybe once and not wring out the brush quite as much. I'm a big proponent of "load it like you hate it", and blooming allows me to do just that with a 15-30 second load.
SteveChuckFrank
Close Enough*
Well you may have just helped me solve an issue with my new brush Josh. I haven’t been wringing or shaking the brush out nearly enough!
Have I tried CBL??
Maybe a few....
I’m a CBL Fanboy for life!
KJ, you have a CBL storefront display!
LOL, pretty much. I fell in love with Dragons Blood and Roasted Oatmeal Stout, so I bought a few tubs of each. Enough to last me through the shavepocalypse.
I also have two CBL Coffee mugs. Like I said, I’m a fanboy!
Mine's kind of in the middle. Not minimalist by any means, but no where near what some others have.
Here are a few I reach for most often. My CBL, Lisa's, MW, MDC, Chiseled Face, CRSW......
Some more I like to keep handy in with my blades.
The 3 tubs of Cangelosi & Sons are now known as Dandy Shave Co. These are from before he started his own shop.
And lots of other stuff I don't have room for at the sink. I just put another set of drawers in to catch some overflow and have a place to proudly show the display I got from Dave.
Some Razo-Rocks, Cella, 4 pucks of the tallow AOS sandalwood, couple Bain Amour, Pana Crema, and a few others.
Here are a few I reach for most often. My CBL, Lisa's, MW, MDC, Chiseled Face, CRSW......
Some more I like to keep handy in with my blades.
The 3 tubs of Cangelosi & Sons are now known as Dandy Shave Co. These are from before he started his own shop.
And lots of other stuff I don't have room for at the sink. I just put another set of drawers in to catch some overflow and have a place to proudly show the display I got from Dave.
Some Razo-Rocks, Cella, 4 pucks of the tallow AOS sandalwood, couple Bain Amour, Pana Crema, and a few others.
Dave in KY
Shave Newbie
Add all that up and it's more then somewhere in the middle brother. Looking good ?
Add all that up and it's more then somewhere in the middle brother. Looking good
I'd say so. Then again, if you throw out the outliers (KJ and myself), it may be in the middle. I like many of the soaps you use, Shawn.
Dont forget to throw out Chad.... He has more soap than me!
I've gone through some stuff through trading and PIFs. I'm down to ones that I know work well for me and I enjoy now. Those photos were just taken last night, so that's where I currently am. I do still have a few samples I haven't gotten around to trying yet, but that's where I'm at right now. At least until I have some extra income and can stock up on a few more flavors I've been wanting. I've got room now haha.
Wait.. What!?! What did I miss? Who's throwing soap away?
Not me!
