Wholly Kaw loading

i am trying Wholly Kaw for the first time with their Hiatus in Creme Fraische base and don’t seem to be ached as protective a cushion as other soaps (GD Pura, A&E St. Bart’s).

I am using the same process as my other soaps and adjusting the water volume as needed.

I soak the puck with about a tablespoon’s worth of water for a few minutes while I shower, dump soap water into Timeless bowl, dunk my Razorock Bruce 24mm synthetic brush into my sink, squeeze out the excess water and then swirls the brush with some pressure on the puck for about 4 seconds before moving to the bowl and working up the lather until I get it to a micro bubble stage.

Prior to doing this I already applied and rubbed in GD Preshave.

I lather up my beard for a minute or so, adding more water a brush tip dip at a time from the sink to keep the dampness up and not dry out on my face. 

i get more than enough lather for my two passes. So, I can’t imagine how much soap would be wasted if I loaded the brush for 30 seconds as per Wholly Kaw’s instructions. It seems I would be buying more soap more quickly and probably by design lol

Anyone else have any experience using this soap and base?

Also, I am not particularly enamored with the actual scent profile. Too pineapple forward and not the character of pineapple i prefer. It’s like not yet ripe, super tart pineapple. An unbalanced cocktail in my opinion. I will probably be offering this up for sale or trade.

Any updates?

no updates yet. May try tonight and will report back. Either way, the scent isn't exactly to my liking. So, I'll probably unload it anyway, but give the "base" another shot anyway in case I decide to try one of their other scents like Noce de Cocco.

I wouldn’t give up on the base. Crème Fraîche is an excellent base. I have it in Amber Bomba which is beautiful. I really like it. I generally use a well broken in and soaked boar brush and scoop a bit of the soap and press it into a lather bowl and I’ve had no problems generating plenty of great lather. I know it can be frustrating when you have difficulty with a particular product but it happens. I had similar problems with Mystic Water soap a few back. I found a video on YouTube on lathering mystic water soap and I eventually managed it. It really was about focusing on my technique and gradual hydration. I’m glad I persevered because Mystic Water became one of my favourite soaps.

another try…

used my 10+ year old Omega Pro boar brush
Timeless bowl
same Schick razor

put brush in bowl with water 
applied GD preshave
squeezed excess water out of brush, dumped bowl
swirled on dry soap for 20 seconds
moved to bowl and added a small amount of water a little at a time during about 1 minute of lather building
i had micro bubbles and enough lather for a small pony

1-day growth to knock off

lather was smooth, dense and slippery. a good consistency.

razor glided well and i did three passes just for thoroughness and to use up the gobs of lather. 

results are good. i like this creme fraiche base, but this scent isn’t really to my liking. The pineapple note is just very tangy to my nose and isn’t pleasant to me. i would consider trying a different scent in this base.

another try…

used my 10+ year old Omega Pro boar brush
Timeless bowl
same Schick razor

put brush in bowl with water 
applied GD preshave
squeezed excess water out of brush, dumped bowl
swirled on dry soap for 20 seconds
moved to bowl and added a small amount of water a little at a time during about 1 minute of lather building
i had micro bubbles and enough lather for a small pony

1-day growth to knock off

lather was smooth, dense and slippery. a good consistency.

razor glided well and i did three passes just for thoroughness and to use up the gobs of lather. 

results are good. i like this creme fraiche base, but this scent isn’t really to my liking. The pineapple note is just very tangy to my nose and isn’t pleasant to me. i would consider trying a different scent in this base.

If you want to speed up the loading process a bit, try blooming the soap while you are soaking your brush.

You can use the bloom water as your pre-shave.

yep, did the bloom the first time

another try…

used my 10+ year old Omega Pro boar brush
Timeless bowl
same Schick razor

put brush in bowl with water 
applied GD preshave
squeezed excess water out of brush, dumped bowl
swirled on dry soap for 20 seconds
moved to bowl and added a small amount of water a little at a time during about 1 minute of lather building
i had micro bubbles and enough lather for a small pony

1-day growth to knock off

lather was smooth, dense and slippery. a good consistency.

razor glided well and i did three passes just for thoroughness and to use up the gobs of lather. 

results are good. i like this creme fraiche base, but this scent isn’t really to my liking. The pineapple note is just very tangy to my nose and isn’t pleasant to me. i would consider trying a different scent in this base.

If you want to speed up the loading process a bit, try blooming the soap while you are soaking your brush.

You can use the bloom water as your pre-shave.

Not recommended for WK

I wouldn’t give up on the base. Crème Fraîche is an excellent base. I have it in Amber Bomba which is beautiful. I really like it. I generally use a well broken in and soaked boar brush and scoop a bit of the soap and press it into a lather bowl and I’ve had no problems generating plenty of great lather. I know it can be frustrating when you have difficulty with a particular product but it happens. I had similar problems with Mystic Water soap a few back. I found a video on YouTube on lathering mystic water soap and I eventually managed it. It really was about focusing on my technique and gradual hydration. I’m glad I persevered because Mystic Water became one of my favourite soaps.

Not a Creme Fraiche fan. Love Siero, even Vegan is good

my wife is now using it

It is a lovey scent - more tropical drink but winsome