Hi
@Mong.
I really like glycerin soaps and enjoyed Col Conk until fellow P& C members (the peanut gallery) offered good advice regarding other dubious ingredients.
Have you tried Stirling? I find them to be one of the lowest irritant soaps on the market while still having a decent scent, and now available in Aus thanks to
Artisan Arcade.
Rumor has it the owner and soap creator has sensitive skin himself.
I should clarify that I think the localised nature of the irritation suggests it's a technique or 'mechanical' issue relating to being unable to go WTG due to the randomness of beard direction on my neck. It's possible it's a combo of poor blade angle from changing razors all the time and raw skin being irritated by soap ingredients.
Stirling are definitely on the list to try, but I've still got 10 tubs of other stuff to get through. Maybe time for a shave den cull to raise some funds for Stirling, it sounds like a winner.
Hi
@Mong. as
@Holiday said you might want to look at the Stirling soaps on Artisan Arcade. Many of their soaps (perhaps all?) contain glycerin of some kind. They also sell pure glycerin soap:
https://artisanarcade.com/product/glycerine-soap/ .I have fairly sensitive skin and the ones I've tried so far have given me no issue.
I have hated every pure glycerine soap I've tried in the past, but they've been cheap and random knick-knack soaps or Col Conk. They've never lathered well for me, but I am a fan of tallow soaps which is a high bar for lather thickness and density. Two votes for Stirling though puts it to the top of my list to try.
With sensitive skin,consider a scentless soap.
Some people like Olive oil soap as a pre shave,rinsed off before shaving.
Most people love Mitchell's Wool Fat,they also make a good bath soap you can use as a pre shave.
To keep it as simple as possible,use warm water as a pre shave.
Perhaps content yourself with a single WTG pass,and skip weekends.
When the Speick runs out t try Thayers alcohol free unsecured toner
Thanks for the specific suggestions, I do love the MWF. I generally stick to a single WTG plus touchups, so that's ok. The Speick is a winner, but I will try the Thayers and probably look for a more moisturising balm too.
Stirling soap’s is the best for anybody who has sensitive skin, also watch out for cinnamon as well, otherwise, you might be allergic to cinnamon which can give out irritation from the skin. Pay attention to the fragrance oil about the soap before you buy, either you could be allergic to some EO and FO in the soaps as well.
Another vote for Stirling! Good point about the EO/FO, that was a problem with a fragrance heavy soap I've tried before. Hugely drying of the skin, which amplified any problems. Thanks for the tips.
Thanks for sharing this mate, definitely an interesting article. I'm going to think a bit about cleansers, and whether a hot towel might do some good to prep.
Cheers everyone for your feedback, I will definitely reflect on it. I'm generally pretty happy with technique and materials, and most of my regular soaps/creams aren't super heavy on the scents and are pretty pure in terms of ingredients/additives. I think what I'm looking for is a product or approach to increase glide and improve face hydration. It's occasional irritation, and in a localised spot which makes me think it's just a tricky patch of neck rather than a sensitivity to ingredients. But I will consider Stirling, some change to aftershave and a cleanser.
To circle back around - the Razorock Charcoal/Lime pre-shave might fit the bill as a cleanser, and add some glide to whatever I add on top.
I wonder if the answer is a more holistic point of view, involving a daily cleanser for the shower and a face-specific moisturiser. It seems perverse to spend all this money on shaving kit, and very little on skincare.
