The Very Best Budget Soaps / Creams Where Money is The Object!

Thanks to Barrister_N_Mann's earlier contribution to this thread, I'd grabbed some Nivea Men Sensitive shaving cream (for all of $4 on Amazon ... really). This morning I had my first shave with it, and I must say, I'm very impressed. It lathered easily and provided plenty of slickness. I didn't use that much, and it was too much; I think a little goes a long way. For the price, this is tough to argue with. I like that it has chamomile and witch hazel in the formula, too. My only negative, really, is the scent, which is basically dihydromyrcenol, that cliché aromachemical of generic men's fragrances. No matter, though; it's minimally offensive. Glad to find this stuff.

+1 for nivea sensitive cream. Best part is that it's easy to find any any major brick and mortar.

Mix it with Williams Mug soap. It stabilizes the Williams and provides an absolutely incredible shave with what I believe is the most outstanding post-shave feel I've ever experienced. Highly moisturized and well toned, with no sticky residue or buildup. The citronella scent of the Williams kills the aroma-chemical scent of the Nivea, in my opinion.

I get Nivea Sensitive locally for about $3 a tube, and Williams Mug soap for about $1.25. Less than $5 for an incredible super lather.

Thanks to Barrister_N_Mann's earlier contribution to this thread, I'd grabbed some Nivea Men Sensitive shaving cream (for all of $4 on Amazon ... really). This morning I had my first shave with it, and I must say, I'm very impressed. It lathered easily and provided plenty of slickness. I didn't use that much, and it was too much; I think a little goes a long way. For the price, this is tough to argue with. I like that it has chamomile and witch hazel in the formula, too. My only negative, really, is the scent, which is basically dihydromyrcenol, that cliché aromachemical of generic men's fragrances. No matter, though; it's minimally offensive. Glad to find this stuff.

+1 for nivea sensitive cream. Best part is that it's easy to find any any major brick and mortar.

Mix it with Williams Mug soap. It stabilizes the Williams and provides an absolutely incredible shave with what I believe is the most outstanding post-shave feel I've ever experienced. Highly moisturized and well toned, with no sticky residue or buildup. The citronella scent of the Williams kills the aroma-chemical scent of the Nivea, in my opinion.

I get Nivea Sensitive locally for about $3 a tube, and Williams Mug soap for about $1.25. Less than $5 for an incredible super lather.

I shall have to try that. I have a puck of Williams hanging around that I've never used. Thanks for the tip, BadDad!

Van Der Hagen Deluxe soap and Kiss My Face crem for me. At $2 for a 2.5 oz puck, Van Der Hagen performs as well as soaps costing many times more. At $7 for 11 fl oz, Kiss My Face cream is a fine bargain.

It is a good thread. Slight sidetrack: It's exactly this type of thread and me making VERY similar cost comparisons vis-a-vis soaps that almost got me banned on another site. What a difference on DFS.

Then perhaps that other site needs to close for the good of traditional wetshaving.

I think this thread has influenced some members to try out some budget options judging from some of the SOTD pictures I've seen lately. I think thats great because it presents a balanced approach to wet shaving - there really is something for everyone in wet shaving.
Marko

I think this thread has influenced some members to try out some budget options judging from some of the SOTD pictures I've seen lately. I think thats great because it presents a balanced approach to wet shaving - there really is something for everyone in wet shaving.
Marko

Yes, indeed! It is good to see that those of limited funds have not been forgotten. Traditional wetshaving is about much more than spending a ton of money on mountains of expensive products.

I think this thread has influenced some members to try out some budget options judging from some of the SOTD pictures I've seen lately.  I think thats great because it presents a balanced approach to wet shaving - there really is something for everyone in wet shaving.  
Marko

Yes, indeed!  It is good to see that those of limited funds have not been forgotten.  Traditional wetshaving is about much more than spending a ton of money on mountains of expensive products.

Very true Tbone , and lets not forget those folks afflicted with that virtue of frugality no matter what their means may be.  Tightwad, cheapskate, thrifty- call me what you like, they're all compliments to me

Well said gents! One can certainly achieve good results without spending a lot of money.

One of the things that I appreciate about DFS is that I have the opportunity to discuss and hear of the experiences of other real people regarding practices, techniques and products - especially products.  The internet brings the world to our doorsteps and we can, with the click of a button, have products delivered to us from the four corners of the earth.  Without the opportunity to touch and judge quality directly, however, we are at the mercy of the vendor.  Who among us has not experienced the disappointment of a product arriving at our door that did not live up to the marketing hype or vendor's description exactly?  I think my first experience with that was as a small boy enticed into sending several cereal boxtops to get a set of very cool looking toy soldiers.  I'll tell you that was the longest 6 to 8 weeks of my life and when they arrived....well disappointment hardly begins to describe the feeling.  They sure looked like they were three dimensional on the back of the cereal box but the ones I got were a bunch of flat stanleys.  Two dimensional.  I digress, DFS lets us get a better idea of whether or not a product is something we might be interested in.  Its still not the same as the hands on experience but in some ways its better - I can't judge the performance of a soap by looking at it but I can interact with people who have used it on DFS and get an idea of how it likely will perform for me.  Just because a product is cheap (inexpensive) doesn't necessarily mean its good value and just because a product is expensive doesn't necessarily make it good quality.  Thats something that has to be judged first hand by the individual and while many of us may occasionally think that DFS has encouraged us to spend more money on wet shaving, think of how much money you've likely saved by not buying products you otherwise may have (and would have discarded or PIF'd) but for the sage advice of DFS members.  
Thanks,
Marko

Since I figured I'd explore these inexpensive-but-loved creams, today I received both Palmolive Classic and La Toja. I was surprised to see that La Toja has sodium lauryl sulfate and a bunch of related surfactants. In the past these compounds have done a number on my hands (when included in hand soaps), so I'm wary of what this might do to my face. Anyone notice La Toja being a bit irritating in this regard?

When I tried it a while back, I found La Toja quite drying and uncomfortable. Consequently I have only used it once. That said, I can't say if the drying effect was due to the SLS or something else.

Edit: I should add that Marko nails it with his comment above. Well said sir! This is a great thread.