Shaving Cream

[JamesC]

Has anyone seen any shaving cream around lately? The only one I can find is a tub in one of the body shops, which is a little too big to carry around. Gillette seems to have taken over 711, boots, watsons, tescos, Robinsons etc etc. Everyone sells the same thing.

A definite (recent) sighting and location would be appreciated! Ideal would be body shop, but not the tub.

Thanks

James

[khunphil]

Big C / Lotus .. has Nivea or more. I found some in pharmacy also ...

Hope this will be not too late for tonight !

Philippe

[JSixpack]

Has anyone seen any shaving cream around lately? The only one I can find is a tub in one of the body shops, which is a little too big to carry around. Gillette seems to have taken over 711, boots, watsons, tescos, Robinsons etc etc. Everyone sells the same thing.

A definite (recent) sighting and location would be appreciated! Ideal would be body shop, but not the tub.

Thanks

James

The Body Shop (at large outlets such as at Central Chidlom) also sells their fabulous shaving cream in tubes. Ask. If you're not living out of a suitcase, you could buy a tub and then transfer some of the cream to a smaller container for carrying around.

At Crabtree & Evelyn, Emporium, you can buy tubes of their fine and variously scented shaving creams, but C&E cream is greatly overpriced, way out of proportion to what it sells for in the West. I can't imagine it is that much better than Body Shop cream, which is priced reasonably in Thailand, too--all considered. (Prices of imported goods never go down but always up, regardless of exchange rates.)

I assume you have a decent brush. No doubt these creams can be used without one, but what a waste.

[PadThaiGuy]

The supermarket...next to the razors.....

[JamesC]

Thanks for your replies.

JSixPack - I haven't checked the Body Shop at Central, but other places seem to have sold out of the tubes or stopped stocking them. Good idea about buying a tub and transferring - I still have my empty tube.  Maybe I'll check out C&E if desperate.  Of course, I use a brush - I guess they're going out of fashion - or perhaps the fashion is being dictated by Gillette, who make more money with their foam and gel and mach 3s... 

Padthaiguy...if only it was that easy...

Phillippe, the supermarkets I've tried, such as Tesco Lotus and Tops, and also a few small pharmacies, don't seem to stock shaving cream, as opposed to foam or gel.  I used to see shaving oil in some branches of boots, but even that seems to have stopped.

[PeaceBlondie]

I gave up on shaving cream when the mini-teensy Gillette aerosol cans cost over 100 baht. I was spoilt back home, easily buying a huge can for 65 baht. Now I just use the 500-ml bottle of Tesco hair conditioner, which works out to about one baht per shave.

[PadThaiGuy]

Padthaiguy...if only it was that easy...

Are we talking shaving cream or some exotic import you are trying to locate?

When I want shaving cream, I go to the supermarket and buy it. It's there.

[JSixpack]

Padthaiguy...if only it was that easy...

Are we talking shaving cream or some exotic import you are trying to locate?

When I want shaving cream, I go to the supermarket and buy it. It's there.

No, that ain't shaving CREAM, you see. That's brushless shaving FOAM and GEL, the fast-food equivalents that, along with the Fusions, the Mach 3s etc, now monopolize this particular market segment thanks to the Gillette cartel. Very different. The fact that you and PeaceBlondie mistakenly believe that foam or gel is actually cream attests to the effectiveness of marketing doublespeak.

Shaving can be just another boring routine task to finish as quickly as possible, or it can be a enjoyable little ritual to which one may even look forward. The latter uses cream or shaving soap, a brush, and most likely a traditional safety razor.

Edited May 12, 2008 by JSixpack

[JimmyTheMook]

Shaving can just another boring routine task to finish as quickly as possible, or it can be a enjoyable ritual to which one may even look forward. The latter uses cream or shaving soap, a brush, and most likely a traditional safety razor.

Shaving Fetish ?

[JSixpack]

Shaving Fetish ?

Up to you.

[Cuban]

...body shops, which is a little too big to carry around...

If size is important is carrying it around in your wash bag - consider switching to Shaving Oil, small bottle lasts for ages.

I made the move about 8 years ago - apart from a few occassions where it was easier to use cream I have used either oil or nothing (simply wet shave after a shower) for ages. A couple of drops of oil then a splash of water rubbed in is enough to aid the remove of a few days growth.

If you can't find one you like - add a few drop of your afershave to a light vegetable oil, I have used walnut oil but I understand coconut oil is good.

[JamesC]

Alas, Body Shop in Central has also sold out! I think they must be having supply problems.

Thanks for the hint, Cuban. I might try the coconut oil.

It truly is sad to see how foam and gel and gillette have taken over every outlet in Thailand. It's worse than coca cola in the drinks market - there, at least there's Pepsi for competition - though they produce the same sort of stuff. And then most people think that's all there is. That shaving could be satisfying, a pleasure, a meditation, even an art...

I might see if I can find a creamy soap for use with the brush, until the body shop restocks... what do you think?

[dekka007]

Clinique Shaving Creme or Aloe Shaving Gel....emporium, paragon, central, robinsons...

[thaihome]

Alas, Body Shop in Central has also sold out! I think they must be having supply problems.

Thanks for the hint, Cuban. I might try the coconut oil.

It truly is sad to see how foam and gel and gillette have taken over every outlet in Thailand. It's worse than coca cola in the drinks market - there, at least there's Pepsi for competition - though they produce the same sort of stuff. And then most people think that's all there is. That shaving could be satisfying, a pleasure, a meditation, even an art...

I might see if I can find a creamy soap for use with the brush, until the body shop restocks... what do you think?

You do realize there are something like 14 Body Shop Stores in Bangkok? You might want try a copule of others.

TH

[lomatopo]

I think most Americans would call this shaving soap, at least that's what my Grandfather called it. It was so long ago but I think it was some sort of soap, in a mug then you whipped up a lather using a wet brush and applied it to your face. It is still available from speciality stores, for the upscale versions and from on-line stores for the classic Burma-Shave brand, in the U.S.A.

I think if you have a brush you could whip up a lather using just about any bar soap, but that might not Zen enough for the OP.

I'm a Mach 3/Nivea Shaving Foam user.

King Camp Gillette invented/patented the safety razor early last century.

Pepsi leads Coca-Cola in the cola market here in Thailand.

[ricklev]

Off topic: The Mach 3 razor used with any cream, foam, oil, etc. gives me such a great daily trouble free and painless shave that I weep with joy and gratitude every morning!

[JSixpack]

Alas, Body Shop in Central has also sold out! I think they must be having supply problems.

Thanks for the hint, Cuban. I might try the coconut oil.

It truly is sad to see how foam and gel and gillette have taken over every outlet in Thailand. It's worse than coca cola in the drinks market - there, at least there's Pepsi for competition - though they produce the same sort of stuff. And then most people think that's all there is. That shaving could be satisfying, a pleasure, a meditation, even an art...

I might see if I can find a creamy soap for use with the brush, until the body shop restocks... what do you think?

You do realize there are something like 14 Body Shop Stores in Bangkok? You might want try a copule of others.

TH

A creamy soap . . . yes, try Yardley's English Lavender or Dove and then add a shot of rich shampoo like Pantene. Not bad at all for a quick homemade mix.

There are a lot of Body Shop outlets but most of them are quite small and don't carry the men's shaving cream. Thai men don't know about cream (even less than Western men nowadays, such is the power of Gillette) and most wouldn't pay the premium for Body Shop cream anyway (not realizing what a nice luxury it really is) , so the market is extremely small. And in Thailand inventory is usually spotty though of course there's always an incredible excess of *nam pla.

I might suggest calling the rep in BKK (02 652 6804) and asking what outlet has got product. If ever you're in Pattaya, the Body Shop at Big C in North Pattaya has sometimes got the shaving cream. When I see it, I buy extra. I think other fans of this fine cream, worried about shortage, must do the same . . . .

Edited May 14, 2008 by JSixpack

[JSixpack]

I'm a Mach 3/Nivea Shaving Foam user.

Of course you are. And let me guess: Bud's your favorite beer! Regular or Light?

Off topic: The Mach 3 razor used with any cream, foam, oil, etc. gives me such a great daily trouble free and painless shave that I weep with joy and gratitude every morning!

As do Gillette execs that you've paid the price for those ridiculously expensive blades! Next year, you'll need to change razor and blades AGAIN for the Mach 4 . . . .

[bonobo]

Coming back from Iraq, the USO had set up a stand where we could pick up toiletries. I picked up a ube of "King of Shaves," and old-fashioned-looking green gel of some sort with minimalistic graphics on the tube. This stuff is great. I rub a small dab over my face in the shower, then shave away with no burn and a clean, smooth shave. I have had the stuff since 2006, and I still have 1/3 of the tube left.

(I also use the Mach 3.(

[Cuban]

The Mach 3 razor used with any cream, foam, oil, etc. gives me such a great daily trouble free and painless shave

Although I generally default to the Gillette twin blade, I have been going through a phase of single blade razors and really like them - no huge benifit IMHO when using the multi bladed brands including the Mach 4s.

[lomatopo]

I'm a Mach 3/Nivea Shaving Foam user.

Of course you are. And let me guess: Bud's your favorite beer! Regular or Light?

Off topic: The Mach 3 razor used with any cream, foam, oil, etc. gives me such a great daily trouble free and painless shave that I weep with joy and gratitude every morning!

As do Gillette execs that you've paid the price for those ridiculously expensive blades! Next year, you'll need to change razor and blades AGAIN for the Mach 4 . . . .

Nivea is a German company.

I am more of a traditional real ale fan, where available. As far as lagers go Budweiser isn't all that bad.

Gillette is of course owned by Proctor and Gamble. Hard to figure why offering quality products which customers like is somehow a bad thing, but you seem to have unique perspectives on many things.

I have been using the Mach 3 for almost 8 years; still happy.

Clearly irony is lost on you. You lament Gillette's hegemony in the local pharmacies, and global success, while extolling the virtues of the safety razor, a Gillette invention, albeit ~ 100 years old.

[taxexile]

everything you wanted to know about shaving and more

Now I just use the 500-ml bottle of Tesco hair conditioner, which works out to about one baht per shave.

the canned foams and gels are pretty useless i find , if like me , you are after a close shave without cutting your face to ribbons.

when in the uk i stock up with boots shaving sticks , they cost about 99p , last 3 months or so , and lather up nicely with a shaving brush , especially if you put some shampoo and conditioner on the brush first.

the website link above will give you reviews and opinions of all things shaving related.

shaving obsessives will love this site.

the price of gillette blades , i use those triple mach3 ones , is getting silly now and i'm looking for an alternative.

any suggestions ?

Edited May 14, 2008 by taxexile

[ashacat]

Shaving can be just another boring routine task to finish as quickly as possible, or it can be a enjoyable little ritual to which one may even look forward. The latter uses cream or shaving soap, a brush, and most likely a traditional safety razor.

Get out much?

[taxexile]

Get out much?

the morning shave is as much a time of contemplation and peace as it is a time of ritual.

it's a ten minute period of calm and meditation , when nothing should break the concentration and application needed to achieve a smooth and blood free result.

along with a succesful and easy early morning bowel evacuation , the perfectly executed morning shave is one of those tasks that when performed properly can make your day sink or swim.

stubble , nasal hair and hairs sprouting from the ears , badly trimmed moustaches and food encrusted beards are for neanderthals only , make no mistake , real men do shave , and shave properly.

goatees are acceptable , but only for the seriously overweight , those with poor or no fashion sense or for homosexuals.

Edited May 14, 2008 by taxexile

[JamesC]

lol taxexile.

Thanks for your replies and suggestions, everyone!  The idea of soap plus shampoo is a new one to me - I'll give it a try!

I've got nothing against other people using Gillette, whether they want to have a quick shave or do the full works. My problem is that I can't find shaving creme, and this does not seem unrelated to the fact that Gilette aren't selling shaving creme in Thailand.

Well done to Gillette for inventing the safety razor!  I'm sure if there was money in it, they could do a good advert on how a single blade safety razor used with a brush and creme gives the closest, most precise, and satisfying shave!  

And then we'd all want one, especially if you get to look like the guy in the ad...

[JSixpack]

Nivea is a German company.

I am more of a traditional real ale fan, where available. As far as lagers go Budweiser isn't all that bad.

Gillette is of course owned by Proctor and Gamble. Hard to figure why offering quality products which customers like is somehow a bad thing, but you seem to have unique perspectives on many things.

I have been using the Mach 3 for almost 8 years; still happy.

Clearly irony is lost on you. You lament Gillette's hegemony in the local pharmacies, and global success, while extolling the virtues of the safety razor, a Gillette invention, albeit ~ 100 years old.

But surely one who enjoys traditional real ale (as I do, too) would enjoy traditional real shaving as well! It's only natural. What can be the explanation for the inconsistency?

Brainwashing, obviously.

No, that Gillette invented the safety razor (dam_n good invention) makes it doubly ironic that the company is essentially suppressing it now. But, you see, one finds nothing amusing about such irony when one goes to a shop to buy shaving supplies and discovers what Gillette's marketing direction really means. If Budweiser took away your ales and you were forced to pay triple ale prices for Bud Light, you'd be upset, now wouldn't you? Even though you do believe in free markets and capitalism.

For younger people, of course, ignorance is bliss, since they may never have even observed traditional wetshaving (by their dads, as I did), let alone tried it; and they think the expense of those Mach 3 blades is inevitable and somehow justified.

Germany, now, has got more than Nivea. Gillette's legacy is continued by the German companies who produce the finest modern safety razors in the world today--Merkurs--and one of the best brushes, the Shavemac, and at least one well-regarded shaving cream, Speick.

You really need to shave with a fine, heavy metal, well-engineered (for a lifetime) Merkur to realize what a silly overpriced piece of plastic marketing crap is a Mach 3. Whip yourself up some o' that Body Shop cream, spread it on with fine brush, and compare it to instant foam.

Once you get used to ales and stouts--almost nobody starts with them--you don't want to go back to Bud.

[kuma]

i would like to get some barbasol (sp?)

has anyone come across it?

Nivea is a German company.

I am more of a traditional real ale fan, where available. As far as lagers go Budweiser isn't all that bad.

Gillette is of course owned by Proctor and Gamble. Hard to figure why offering quality products which customers like is somehow a bad thing, but you seem to have unique perspectives on many things.

I have been using the Mach 3 for almost 8 years; still happy.

Clearly irony is lost on you. You lament Gillette's hegemony in the local pharmacies, and global success, while extolling the virtues of the safety razor, a Gillette invention, albeit ~ 100 years old.

But surely one who enjoys traditional real ale (as I do, too) would enjoy traditional real shaving as well! It's only natural. What can be the explanation for the inconsistency?

Brainwashing, obviously.

No, that Gillette invented the safety razor (dam_n good invention) makes it doubly ironic that the company is essentially suppressing it now. But, you see, one finds nothing amusing about such irony when one goes to a shop to buy shaving supplies and discovers what Gillette's marketing direction really means. If Budweiser took away your ales and you were forced to pay triple ale prices for Bud Light, you'd be upset, now wouldn't you? Even though you do believe in free markets and capitalism.

For younger people, of course, ignorance is bliss, since they may never have even observed traditional wetshaving (by their dads, as I did), let alone tried it; and they think the expense of those Mach 3 blades is inevitable and somehow justified.

Germany, now, has got more than Nivea. Gillette's legacy is continued by the German companies who produce the finest modern safety razors in the world today--Merkurs--and one of the best brushes, the Shavemac, and at least one well-regarded shaving cream, Speick.

You really need to shave with a fine, heavy metal, well-engineered (for a lifetime) Merkur to realize what a silly overpriced piece of plastic marketing crap is a Mach 3. Whip yourself up some o' that Body Shop cream, spread it on with fine brush, and compare it to instant foam.

Once you get used to ales and stouts--almost nobody starts with them--you don't want to go back to Bud.

[JamesC]

The good news is that Body Shop in Siam Central have some more tubes (perhaps only 5!?) and so my experiments with soap, shampoo and coconut oil can be deferred.

Good luck to anyone trying to find a safety razor!

Blades, of course, are no problem - Gillette sells them!!

[Cuban]

...the morning shave is as much a time of contemplation and peace as it is a time of ritual.

it's a ten minute period of calm and meditation...

It is not often that I will stand up and promote things French, only stayed there long enough to develop a taste for black coffee into which I will dip a fresh croissant. But I understand the French practice is to shave in the evening - as it is in the evening that you get close to your wife and that it is for her that you should reserve a smooth face, not your office.

[taxexile]

a true gentleman will shave twice a day , in the evening for his wife and in the morning because he never knows what may await him at the office.