Shaving creams & soaps

Classic Wet Shaving

Classic wet shaving requires a good shaving cream or soap to soften the beard hairs and prepare the skin for shaving.

For a really classic wet shave, you should use a shaving brush to lather up your soap or cream. Then, apply the lather using circular movements to soften up the beard. This action is also exfoliating, removing dead skin cells. A good lather will completely surround even the smallest hairs and help provide a truly close shave. Let's take a look at the choices you've got.

Pre-shave cream

While a pre-shave is not absolutely necessary for a good shave, it substantially reduces any irritation that you might feel during or after shaving. Pre-shave cream moisturizes your skin and helps lift the stubble to make your skin ready for shaving.

Shaving Soap

Dates back to the 19th century, shaving soap is an integral part of a classic wet shave. Unfortunately, for the vast majority of shavers today, real shaving soap has been usurped by synthetic supermarket foam in a can, which we feel is a crying shame.

Real shaving soap contains a lot of fats that soften and lubricate your skin while shaving. It helps provide a close shave with less skin irritation. Shaving soaps vary in hardness from product to product and are most often sold in round bars. Proraso makes great shaving soaps that are slightly softer but form a rich lather very quickly. Soap is always harder than shaving cream, but they both work in basically the same way.