Thread: soap/lather mug/bowl

hello,

i am new to straight razor shaving and i was wondering about the soap or lather bowls/mugs.

in the wiki tutorial i see that a separate bowl is used for building the lather. however, elsewhere i read that somebody was using the same mug to store the soap as well as build the lather. he would fill the mug (with the soap at the bottom) with hot water and soak his brush in it, after empty the mug of the hot water and start to build up the lather.

i was just wondering if this is just preference or is one method better than the other?

also, is there difference in end result between a bowl and a mug.

thanks in advance for anybody's help.

Preference.

I usually just load of the brush with soap and build the lather on my face.

I think most people start out just lathering in the mug. I did that for years and years and never thought about it. Then, last December I got a scuttle and discovered the advantages of bowl lathering, which basically gives you more control over the amount of soap used, the water content and the consistency of the lather. For example, if you add water to the brush and go to your face, you risk runny soap and water dripping off your face. If you add water to the brush and then mix it into the lather in the bowl, you can mix the lather to right consistency before going to your face. Plus, with a scuttle, you get warm lather, which I think helps soften the beard more.