DIY soap

first report on caffeinated shave soap.

the soap was my version of faux MdC. (55% stearic, 45% coconut, via potassium hydroxide). the razor was my very fine Karl Peters Jr. Solingen blade honed to 10k and stropped on linen then scotch shell. the brush was silvertip badger.

the caffeine was anhydrous white powder purchased on eBay. it came in a zip lock baggie looking for all the world like some sort of illicit drug.

I worked up a little lather off of the puck and transferred it to the bowl where I mixed it with the caffeine. I worked the lather a bit more - enough to feel like it was well mixed in. I didn't measure - just a tiny pinch. other than that I tried to do everything the same as always. there is nothing scientific about it... this is all subjective.

the result... I got a nice smooth single pass shave with perhaps slightly less post- shave irritation than usual. but that may be illusory...

I shaved around midnight, right before going to bed. we'll see if I have trouble sleeping.


I can't draw any conclusions from this one shave. I'll be trying different amounts of caffeine in future lathers. so far all I can say is that caffeinated soap isn't necessarily a disaster.
 
bridger said:
first report on caffeinated shave soap.



I can't draw any conclusions from this one shave. I'll be trying different amounts of caffeine in future lathers. so far all I can say is that caffeinated soap isn't necessarily a disaster.
Click to expand...

And of course it has the added advantage - if your partner says "I would love a coffee" you can respond "Lick me" :)
 
I shaved a second time with caffeine powder added to the lather, but this time I used a lot more. I don't have a convenient way to measure milligrams so I used the tip of my straight razor to scoop a bit out and dump it in the bowl. the pile of powder was about the size of a pea, probably the equivalent of a dozen cups of coffee or so at 95 mg. per cup of coffee. I shaved about 7:00 PM or so, and I'd say I did see a small stimulant effect- we stayed up and watched a movie which I had no problem staying alert for. it was a pretty engaging piece though, and I didn't really have trouble sleeping after that, so not sure I can attribute any stimulant effect to the shave.

as far as the effects of the caffeine on the shave, again nothing dramatic. I nicked myself a little on my chin and it barely bled- I'd say less than I'd think it would have normally- but again subjectivity is an obstacle to hard data. I didn't use any pre or post shave products per usual and had very little irritation, but again no dramatic changes.

I can try upping the amounts again. at some point I'll run into the undesirable effects, whatever those are. it doesn't look like overdosing on caffeine is likely by adding it to shaving lather, and the trend seems to be away from skin irritation which seems a bit counterintuitive to me, but consistent with some comments elsewhere. since the application only lasts for a few minutes and is washed off it seems to me that it would be difficult to get into real trouble with this, but I am not a medically trained person. I suppose at some level there may be an effect where there is a loss of circulation in the skin, which could cause problems. I'll be watching out for something like that. if there is a stimulant effect similar to drinking coffee it is very slight, but in theory that could come into play at high quantities. I certainly won't be giving up my morning cup of coffee for caffeinated shave soap. however, if it proves to allow a closer shave with no negative effects it might get included in my rotation.
 
It's unlikely you will OD on caffiene by smearing it on your face. From memory 150 mg of a crystalline powder is about as much as you can pile onto an Aussie 5c coin. Swallowing or inhaling 200mg would give you a pretty big caffiene rush, heart palpitations, but is unliekly to do long term damage, unless you have an underlying condition and die!
 
I'm not worried about overdosing on caffeine but I do want to know if I can expect to feel the effects of it as a stimulant. I drink coffee and tea and enjoy the lift, but if for instance I were to shave in the evening before bed I would prefer to not dose myself with caffeine. even when shaving in the morning I would prefer to at least know how much of an effect it would have so that I might adjust my coffee intake accordingly.

so far it seems that the effect of caffeine applied topically is minimal, but I'll need accurate measurement to have meaningful data, and still it will be largely subjective.
 
at the moment I'm testing a new soap, so no caffeine added. however soon I'll be back to playing with the white powder. I intend to sneak up on a pretty big dose, assuming that I don't find any adverse effects first, just to see what happens. caffeine is pretty cheap. 1 oz was about $5:00 on eBay, so I don't feel like I need to conserve it. if I find that it does something great in a shave soap I'll be happy to have contributed to the general knowledge, and if as I suspect there is no great improvement or even a reduced performance or bad side effects I'll at least have satisfied my curiosity.
 
Chem Watch says it will not do much if anything.

If I could upload the MSDS I would.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top