[Soap] Stirling Shaving Soap

Gran Hermano

To save clogging up the "What I got in the post' thread, I'll post my initial thoughts on Stirling Shaving soaps here.

I don't like posting up reviews until I've used a product several times so please take this only as a summary of my initial feedback based on using for the first time. (I'll update and add to this thread as I use more and try others in the range).

I tried the Anise shaving soap last night. Soap puck is a good size and as a hard soap is on the softer side compared to the likes of MWF/3Ts hard soap. It is pliable enough to mould to fit into whatever bowl/mug you wish to use.
It is not as soft as the Italian soft soaps.

I used a Weber DE, new feather blade and a New Forest 2221 high mountain badger brush along with the puck.

Eight pucks of shaving soap plus a couple of bars of bath soap worked out at
around EUR 53 including postage.

The first thing you'll notice with this soap is the scent. I don't recall every trying an anise as a scent in shaving soaps/creams but it really works! This soap is a sweet smelling and aromatic liquorice type scent. (Think back to your childhood and Black-jack sweets).

I stuck the puck in a shaving bowl, filled it up with hot water to soften for a few minutes before decanting and starting to lather. I have soft water and no issues with lathering soaps like MWF which others might often describe as fussy or difficult.

Initial impressions are that the Stirling soap is not the easiest to lather. I spent some time building lather on the top of the puck before continuing the process face-lathering. First lather was thin looking and I feared it would not provide enough cushion for a new feather blade. First with the grain pass proved my fears were unfounded and it performed well. I re-lathered for an against the grain pass and had better success in creating a better lather.
It provided enough glide and cushion for a very comfortable shave but was still a thin and weak looking lather compared to what I'm used to. No fear of it looking like I was whipping up a batch of meringues.

I've read feedback on other fora recommending to use a high walled mug and to build up a paste using the puck and a few drops initially before adding more water a few drops at a time for better results. I'll try this over the next few shaves and see if it helps.

Post shave, skin felt great. This soap gets top marks for moisturising and leaving the skin feeling well conditioned. No need for a balm. Scent didn't seem to linger to long, did not feel I was like Bertie Bassett wandering around.

It performs as well as Nanny's but I prefer the 'bigger' lather from Nanny's range. Stirling might improve with more practice on my side. I am tempted to add a few drops of glycerin (skin food or plain Kiss My Face) to see if it helps build the lather but wanted to judge the soap on it's own merits and not as a super lather.

Short summary: Top marks for price and scent. Lather appears weak and insubstantial but provides more than enough cushion and is very slick. (performs better than it looks). Leaves skin feeling very fresh and moisturised.
Not sure if I'd recommend to someone starting out.

jpb1974

Short summary: Top marks for price and scent. Lather appears weak and insubstantial but provides more than enough cushion and is very slick. (performs better than it looks). Leaves skin feeling very fresh and moisturised.

I'd thoroughly agree with your assessment.

I've used several different brushes with this soap and the lather does vary... strangely enough though, my best results have been with my New Forest Super Badger two band brushes which are pretty firm and have the slightest bit of scrub to them.

At the time I declared my undying love for the Anise I was getting some excellent lathers. I've since tried whipping up a lather with a silvertip, can't remember which one, but the lather wasn't as good as previous results.

So, whilst the lather can vary a little, the protection and moisturization are still excellent.

I like Nanny's too... but considering how much you get in a jar and the cost, Stirling is better value... even after the postage costs.

Gran Hermano

Today I used a Semogue 2000 boar brush with the soap to see whether it'd make a difference.
I also only added a few drops of water to the top of the puck and created a paste like lather before adding a few more drops of water and continued to build the lather. Results were much better and lather much denser.
Skin feels great and seriously moisturised after last couple of shaves with the soap.

On the other hand i 'm beginning to think it doesn't provide as much cushion as Nanny's.

jpb1974

Spotted this on a thread over at B&B -

Lot of work involved, but the end result looks good.

jpb1974

I haven't used Stirling since the initial post on this thread, had been trying a few other bits and pieces, but today I decided to take some time out and try to methodically whip up a lather.

So what I did was...

Soak the brush (super badger) and soap in a little warm water for less than 10 minutes.

Gave the brush a good squeeze out to ensure there wasn't too much water onboard.

Spent about 30 seconds loading the brush on the soap.

Transferred to a deep bowl (load brush only) and started whipping, adding about 1/2 teaspoon of water 4 times along the way.

Total time taken was probably somewhere in the 2.5 minutes range.. could have been less but I was managing it slowly. I have to say, the results were very good- whilst I didn't actually shave, I was applied to apply the lather 5 times to my face, you could see a little thinning on the 5th application but nothing major, I'm sure I could have gotten a 6th too.

So, like many soaps where I am concerned, I more or less have to take a slow and controlled approach if I want a quality lather. Of course, there are exceptions to this rule... my recent Pannacrema arrival goes wild without much attention.

jpb1974

Just applied the same process to Tabac as a comparison. The Tabac produced more lather in less time, but on visual inspection it looked like it had way more air bubbles and was much drier. The Stirling (Sharped Dress Man btw.) was much creamier and appeared a lot slicker.

jpb1974

Just went back to the Stirling for another run, just so I can be sure of my results.

Compared to the Tabac -

Needs more attention, in the region of 3x times the attention
A lot thirstier... Stirling took about 2.5 teaspoons of water vs. maybe 0.75 for Tabac
Doesn't produce as much lather

...

but the quality of the lather is very good, much richer and creamier than the Tabac, noticeably fewer air bubbles.



BTW. The 'Sharped Dress Man' is a bit disappointing scent wise.. very faint. A lot of people rave about it, but for me it's just not strong enough.

jpb1974

Had to give the Anise a test too.. takes more work and more water than the Sharped Dress Man, but the results were good

jpb1974

Just did a Nanny's hard soap test there before I head out...

Took just a tad longer than the Tabac to lather... required a relatively small amount of water compared to the Stirling, but a little more than the Tabac, and produce a huge amount of high quality lather.

Must be said too... that's the first time I've got a decent lather from Nanny's hard soap... so I'm pretty pleased that I'm developing a decent technique. I think usually after getting out of the shower I'm probably rushing things.

beardybrewer

jpb1974 wrote: »

Must be said too... that's the first time I've got a decent lather from Nanny's hard soap... so I'm pretty pleased that I'm developing a decent technique. I think usually after getting out of the shower I'm probably rushing things.

I've been playing with the Nanny's soft soaps and have impressive luck. I just ordered the Eucalyptus & Tea Tree and Ice & Slice olive oil today. I really like the look of these new wide, flat, stackable aluminium tins. I really enjoyed the spa like scent of the latter. Couldn't resist ordering a full tin. Will be interesting to see how the olive oil affects the results.

beardybrewer

Just to follow up my hijack I received my order today which included a spare tin (£1.50) to transfer my arabian nights. They aren't as wide as Mike's but they are better and shallower than the jars. They also stack nice and neat and after a quick reorg have managed to squeeze in and stack my 3 nannys alongside 4 stacked mikes, DRH windsor (excellent btw), and MWF I have on rotation. My overflow bag (no boxes yet!) is getting quite full and I may have to do a PIF soon rather than be caught again by the wife.

So the new nannys are the olive oil variety as I really wanted those tins. I'll have to go between the standard arabian and the olive oil varieties for a few days to pass judgement on the olive oil addition. I suspect it might make it a bit more slick, as per other reviews, but it's still nowhere as slick as Mikes or DRH.

Gran Hermano

Nanny's olive oil is a great range. Compared to her regular soft soap, I find if I use slightly less soap and slightly more water I get great results.

I'm still using the Stirling soaps. I also stuck a puck of margaritas in the Arctic into rotation. (I think I've overdosed on aniseed over the last fortnight).
It is a really good range but lacking a little something to be a great soap. I've added a small amount of La Toja cream to the lather over the last couple of days and it seems to help.

jpb1974

Used Nanny's Hard Soap last night with my new found technique but a different brush... results were bad, thin lather, had to go back to the puck 3 times.

Maybe it's the brush?