[foundlingofdollar]

I discovered, completely by accident a great super lather technique using Mama Bear's soaps. I havn't done any experiments or tried other options, so I'm not saying this is the best, I'm just saying this works for me.

First of all, I lather in a high sided rice bowl. This bowl is not one of the kind where the sides slant off at a consistant 45 degree angle, rather it curves upwards. When I press my brush down into it, it is just wide enough that the bristles fill up the bottom. Using a narrower bowl, rather than say for instance a large latte mug I think gives me the ability to slap the lather around a bit more and build the lather more effectively because there is a smaller area to work in. Most importantly, this bowl sits right in one of my coffee mugs and only goes maybe 1/4 inch into the mug.

Here's what I do:
I fill my coffee mug with water and place it in the microwave for 4 minutes, then strop my razor while it gets boiling. By the time I take it out of the microwave it is at full boil. I put the mug on a plate and carry it to the bathroom. Next I dip my brush (best badger) into the water. I only dip about 3/4 of the way. I assume there is some truth to the rumor that boiling water can destroy any glue used to hold the bristles to the handle, so I keep the handle/bristle interface fully out of the water. Next I pull the brush up and let it drain back into the mug, giving it two very gentle shakes when it stops running.

Next I put the bowl on top of the mug and put a small spot of Speick into the bowl. The amount of cream I use is small enough that it won't fall off the tube by itself, but must be taken off with a finger or by touching it to the bottom of the bowl. Speick is the only cream that I've really used as it was given to me for free. Its smell doesn't interfere with the soap, and I just find that it works great with these water quantities. Once I put the cream in, I shake a bit more water from the brush onto the cream, place the brush on top, and let it rest while I finish stropping and prep my face. I found that with slippery soap in a mug, a dab of Speick tends to just slide around in the bowl and not get mixed in, this method solves this problem. When I am ready to shave, I take my brush out and go to the soap puck, which I have just taken off the shelf (it has not been soaked in water or warmed or anything). The Speick has mostly turned from pink to white/transparent, and much of it has dissolved into the water.

I next load my brush in the soap. First I swirl the brush around a few times mixing the water and picking up soap on the tips. Next I briefly squish the brush into the soap while swirling, then i return to less pressure while rotating the brush.

Next I move back to the bowl. Using only light pressure I whip the brush around until suds begin to form, then I pump the brush a bit while swirling. Following this I go back to a fast, light swirl. I make sure to really slap the brush against the sides of the bowl. Periodically I will push the brush into the bowl and swirl once or twice before running the brush around the top of the bowl to collect any soap gathered there. By the time lather has formed, the brush slapping against the side of the bowl will sound like a nice thick merangue being whipped up. You will hear a definite slapping sound.

Following this I apply it and shave, then refresh the lather before my second pass. I find that the result of all this is a great smelling, thick and comfortible super lather that goes on wonderfully hot and feels warm throughout the shave.

Hope this helps someone, anyone!