Kell’s Original Handcrafted Shaving Soap

What is your opinion on fine shaving creams and hard soaps? Do you like Trumpers, Coates, Taylors, Truefitt & Hill? Post your reviews and opinions here!
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gil3591
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Post by gil3591 »

i hate to add sour grapes to this party but,,,, i ranted and raved when i first got my samples. thought it was the best thing since sliced bread. today i don't know what went wrong. i loaded the brush, applied the soap to my face. added a little water to the brush and all the lather went away. i saw the lather virtually disappear in front of my eyes. i had to reload the brush and use the soap if a pasty form to shave. did i do something wrong? this is the first shave since i put the soap in the microwave for 10 seconds so it would form to the bowl i used. could this have damaged the soap? i really like the scents and pricing. too bad if i can't make this work.
Gil
futur/EJ357/ gillette redtip
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thater, shavemac.anchorset/tgn,sr3226
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gil3591
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Post by gil3591 »

part 2. ok, so i tried a fresh sample puck. no problem! lathered great and was slick. i didn't think that 20 seconds in the microwave would hurt a glycerin soap but something definately happened. dan k. was kind enough to send me a pm. he mentioned that heating the soap drives out the water and suggested that more water would be needed in that scenario. all i can say is: i think the problem was with what i did rather than dan's soap. i'll see how this new puck goes. i don't make soap but would assume that these glycerins are formed by making them liquid. so why would heat hurt them? i think this was more then drying out the puck. i added water during face lathering and things got worse. oh well, i like the soap very much and will assume i caused the damage. will not heat the soap again :cry:
Gil
futur/EJ357/ gillette redtip
iridium ,blue IP
thater, shavemac.anchorset/tgn,sr3226
dirty bird
and a prayer
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Squire
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Post by Squire »

Gill, when I used glycerin soaps I always melted them and never experienced any change in performance.
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Squire
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xChris
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Post by xChris »

I think some of the ingredients (e.g., clay) can come "out of solution" and precipitate to the bottom of the vessel when heating. Perhaps this is what happened, and the soap is no longer homogenous like it should be.
Chris
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aircraft_electrician
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Post by aircraft_electrician »

Gil,

I remember Sue, maker of St. Charles Shave products, used to warn all of us about re-melting cold pour soaps. Many members did it anyway, and I don't think there were many problems, but Sue did warn that it could affect the soap.

I don't remember the exact reason she said not to melt the soaps, and I'm too lazy to do a search on the matter right now, but she did say it could affect the soap, and I think you may have proved her right.

Tom
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superbleu
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Post by superbleu »

aircraft_electrician wrote:Gil,

I remember Sue, maker of St. Charles Shave products, used to warn all of us about re-melting cold pour soaps. Many members did it anyway, and I don't think there were many problems, but Sue did warn that it could affect the soap.

I don't remember the exact reason she said not to melt the soaps, and I'm too lazy to do a search on the matter right now, but she did say it could affect the soap, and I think you may have proved her right.

Tom
Some soaps have oils/ other ingredients that may separate out when melted.
they need to be mixed back in during the cooling/solidfiying stages. I think SCS soaps may have clay to add slickness that will settle out when melted
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Squire
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Post by Squire »

Come to think of it I also stirred but that's because I was adding some scent.
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Squire
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gil3591
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Post by gil3591 »

i am delighted to announce that all is well. the problem i had with the soap was due to my heating the soap. i used a new sample puck today and it was excellent! i tried making lather the way dan suggested. soak the brush, let the water drain out but do not shake or squeeze any additional water out of the brush. this didn't work with my shavemac. it holds too much water. so i loaded the brush when it was just damp. applied the soap to my face, dipped the brush into distilled water and lathered in the water as needed. result was a really good lather. when i did a final cold water rinse my face felt slippery as a greased pig (boar)
:) no nicks, weepers or burn.
i had a lavender shaving experience. used dan's lavender soap followed by st. charles shave lavender aftershave splash followed by a spritz of thayer's lavender witch hazel. i've come to the conclusion that i really don't like lavender. smells like a weed to me :lol:
i wish some of you experienced fellows would try this soap and give some feedback. for me, this soap is better than anything i've tried including mwf, tabac and tobs creams. i would like to know what these products have that dan's doesn't.
Gil
futur/EJ357/ gillette redtip
iridium ,blue IP
thater, shavemac.anchorset/tgn,sr3226
dirty bird
and a prayer
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Teiste
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Post by Teiste »

gil3591 wrote:i am delighted to announce that all is well. the problem i had with the soap was due to my heating the soap. i used a new sample puck today and it was excellent! i tried making lather the way dan suggested. soak the brush, let the water drain out but do not shake or squeeze any additional water out of the brush. this didn't work with my shavemac. it holds too much water. so i loaded the brush when it was just damp. applied the soap to my face, dipped the brush into distilled water and lathered in the water as needed. result was a really good lather. when i did a final cold water rinse my face felt slippery as a greased pig (boar)
:) no nicks, weepers or burn.
i had a lavender shaving experience. used dan's lavender soap followed by st. charles shave lavender aftershave splash followed by a spritz of thayer's lavender witch hazel. i've come to the conclusion that i really don't like lavender. smells like a weed to me :lol:
i wish some of you experienced fellows would try this soap and give some feedback. for me, this soap is better than anything i've tried including mwf, tabac and tobs creams. i would like to know what these products have that dan's doesn't.
I can tell you that Kells soaps are really good.The Hemp blend Casbah mint is a winner and its skin care properties are high as MWF,Tabac,La Toja, and so on.
I had the same experience with you and Dan gave me the same recommendations.The last time that I used the soap(was on saturday) I made a lot of thick,protective lather.All my respect to Dan and his work.
DanK
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Post by DanK »

If you plan on re-melting, cut the soap up into chunks and give it 5 seconds shots in the microwave. If you use your mug make sure its microwave safe. Try not to get it too hot as you'll boil off the water in the soap if you do.

Its best to do about a 85 to 95% melt, stir and let the residual heat do the rest of the melting. Stirring will help it melt and keep anything from separating out. Be aware you might lose some scent strength doing this. Slower is better than faster when it comes to re-melting.
Kell's Original Handcrafted Shave Soap www.kellsoriginal.com
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Teiste
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Post by Teiste »

I tried today the Aloe blend Lime and I already repeat what I have wrote before:great skin care properties and very moisturizing.The Lime scent is also nice for summer days.
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gil3591
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Post by gil3591 »

so far, are there only three posters using this stuff? anyone else out there trying it? would like to hear your opinions
Gil
futur/EJ357/ gillette redtip
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thater, shavemac.anchorset/tgn,sr3226
dirty bird
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iancevans
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Post by iancevans »

You guys win. I'm ordering samples.
Ian

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--Vanilla Ice
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alabamalawyer
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Post by alabamalawyer »

I have some on the way. I will update once I have used it a few times.
Chris
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Squire
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Post by Squire »

Please do Chris, this is getting interesting.
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Squire
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gil3591
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Post by gil3591 »

received my supply today. arabian spice, lavender, english rose and sandalwood. i put a puck in my scuttle and built the lather in it kinda dry. applied to my face and added water to the brush as needed. what a nice lather! i have yet to nick or cut myself with this stuff. not even a weeper. the razor just glides over my beard without a thought of sticking or bouncing. time to turn the futur up a notch! :twisted:
Gil
futur/EJ357/ gillette redtip
iridium ,blue IP
thater, shavemac.anchorset/tgn,sr3226
dirty bird
and a prayer
Leisureguy

Post by Leisureguy »

I continue to like the soap, the lather, the fragrance, the packaging, and the price. I do have a small complaint about the label, though. :)
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gil3591
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Post by gil3591 »

this stuff is so slick that it inspires confidence. i took the futur with an iridium up to 4 today (new territory) and was even able to apply a little pressure. you may critique the smell, the packaging, the lather, whatever, but you certainly cannot say that this stuff is not slick. and for me it's ultimately about what happens when the blade meets your skin. ok, i need to take a breath and stop ranting and raving here :?
Gil
futur/EJ357/ gillette redtip
iridium ,blue IP
thater, shavemac.anchorset/tgn,sr3226
dirty bird
and a prayer
CMur12
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Post by CMur12 »

I just ordered a bunch of samples.

Can anyone speak to the performance differences between the 3 types of soap (Hemp, Hemp/Aloe, and Hemp/Ultra Aloe)?

- Murray
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gil3591
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Post by gil3591 »

i only have the ultra aloe version. my thinking is that if they are all the same price then you might as well get all you can! :lol:
Gil
futur/EJ357/ gillette redtip
iridium ,blue IP
thater, shavemac.anchorset/tgn,sr3226
dirty bird
and a prayer
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