I struggled for over a year to get Mystic Water soaps to lather. I read the success of so many where brush to soap produced easy lather, yet that was never my finding. I sold my soaps, ordered more, sold, ordered, and sold again, such was my failure.
I recently started a thread where I used a whole 1/2oz sample as a stick, and was rewarded with some of the best lather I had ever experienced. An extreme approach, but it was the lather that came from this method that made me realise I should be able to get them to work using a brush on the puck and face lathering in my usual fashion.
Roll on a few weeks and I have to say that Michelle's soaps are performing wonderfully. Knowing there a quite a few members out there who have had similar experiences to me in having difficulty lathering Mystic water soaps, it was suggested by my very good friend, Celestino, that I should post a thread, explaining my new successful approach. So here goes.
As much as I thought I was loading my brush with enough soap, I clearly wasn't. To ensure this happening, I use Michelle's suggestion of "roughing up" the soap surface. I then add a little water to the surface just to soften it a bit more.
I soak my brush for approx 30 seconds in warm(not hot) water and then shake the brush gently 4-5 times to get most of(but not all of)the water out. This is what differs for me with other soaps as I use "Marco's Method", with a wet brush, for everything else.
I then tip away the surface water on the soap and GENTLY swirl the brush on the soap. Again, my mistake before was that I was pressing down too hard, thinking this would encourage better loading. I keep swirling until a lather begins to form. After 30 seconds, I then add a few more drops of water to the soap and continue swirling for another 30 seconds. A total of one minute is all I now need. I scoop up with my fingers any lather on the soap and rub it over my face and neck, and then begin to face lather.
One very important thing here, and this was also my previous big mistake, is that I usually wet my face before face lathering. I have realised now that doing this with MW soaps simply adds too much water in to the lather building, and if not enough product is used, then a thin airy lather is almost certain to be had. So, no wetting face beforehand, I rub the lather from the soap surface on a my DRY face, and then continue to face lather that way.
A few swirling motions over the face and neck, then more importantly, paint brush strokes to thicken the lather. This will become thick and quite dry, so I dip the tips of the brush in to warm water very slightly, then continue to paintbrush. I repeat this one more time.
At this point, I now have a lather created that really is one of the best I have experienced. Having gone through so much disappointment for a year, I now understand all the errors I was making. The sweet spot for these soaps is very small compared with my other soaps. I know from my experience there is a learning curve, and I strongly believe, also, that water type does play a part, but get it right and these soaps are up there with the best.
I truly hope that this thread will inspire those who have struggled with Mystic water soaps, to try again. It has taken persistence on my part that many will consider unacceptable, but persistence does reward, and I am delighted to have come this far with total success.
I recently started a thread where I used a whole 1/2oz sample as a stick, and was rewarded with some of the best lather I had ever experienced. An extreme approach, but it was the lather that came from this method that made me realise I should be able to get them to work using a brush on the puck and face lathering in my usual fashion.
Roll on a few weeks and I have to say that Michelle's soaps are performing wonderfully. Knowing there a quite a few members out there who have had similar experiences to me in having difficulty lathering Mystic water soaps, it was suggested by my very good friend, Celestino, that I should post a thread, explaining my new successful approach. So here goes.
As much as I thought I was loading my brush with enough soap, I clearly wasn't. To ensure this happening, I use Michelle's suggestion of "roughing up" the soap surface. I then add a little water to the surface just to soften it a bit more.
I soak my brush for approx 30 seconds in warm(not hot) water and then shake the brush gently 4-5 times to get most of(but not all of)the water out. This is what differs for me with other soaps as I use "Marco's Method", with a wet brush, for everything else.
I then tip away the surface water on the soap and GENTLY swirl the brush on the soap. Again, my mistake before was that I was pressing down too hard, thinking this would encourage better loading. I keep swirling until a lather begins to form. After 30 seconds, I then add a few more drops of water to the soap and continue swirling for another 30 seconds. A total of one minute is all I now need. I scoop up with my fingers any lather on the soap and rub it over my face and neck, and then begin to face lather.
One very important thing here, and this was also my previous big mistake, is that I usually wet my face before face lathering. I have realised now that doing this with MW soaps simply adds too much water in to the lather building, and if not enough product is used, then a thin airy lather is almost certain to be had. So, no wetting face beforehand, I rub the lather from the soap surface on a my DRY face, and then continue to face lather that way.
A few swirling motions over the face and neck, then more importantly, paint brush strokes to thicken the lather. This will become thick and quite dry, so I dip the tips of the brush in to warm water very slightly, then continue to paintbrush. I repeat this one more time.
At this point, I now have a lather created that really is one of the best I have experienced. Having gone through so much disappointment for a year, I now understand all the errors I was making. The sweet spot for these soaps is very small compared with my other soaps. I know from my experience there is a learning curve, and I strongly believe, also, that water type does play a part, but get it right and these soaps are up there with the best.
I truly hope that this thread will inspire those who have struggled with Mystic water soaps, to try again. It has taken persistence on my part that many will consider unacceptable, but persistence does reward, and I am delighted to have come this far with total success.