I recently picked up a jar of Løthur Grooming “Tears” shave soap. It turned out to be a nice Springtime addition for me.
Løthur Grooming “Tears” Shave Soap Background And Specs
From the site’s ‘About’ page:
“During a difficult time, our founder Jonny discovered traditional wet shaving, and with it a moment to be mindful. Løthur was born from the desire to share this moment and the impact it can have. We aim to support men’s mental health through the ritual of a traditional wet shave; a place to take the time to check in on yourself, relax and be present. Our goal is to grow the hobby in the hope that more men find their moment of calm.
“Suicide is the leading cause of death for men under 50 and in the UK 75% of all suicides are men. Motivated by these harrowing statistics and the need for action against male suicide we created TEARS.”
From the ‘Tears’ Webpage:
“A nod to colognes of the past, ‘TEARS’ opens with citrusy bergamot, lemon and mandarin combined with delicate herbal notes. The heart is a full on assault of neroli blossom, lavender and jasmine resting upon a gentle musk accord at the base.”
Ingredients V2 Base: Potassium Stearate, Potassium Tallowate, Glycerin, Potassium Kokumate, Aqua, Sorbitol, Parfum, Potassium Castorate, Dimethicone, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Cetyl Alcohol, PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Sodium Lactate, Xanthan Gum, Geraniol, Hydroxycitronellal, Linalol, d-Limonene
What Other Reviewers Are Saying About Løthur Grooming “Tears” Shave Soap
I only found one other review that was specifically about Tears:
“The Tears scent is really nice. It reminds me of a fragrance, maybe Tom Ford Neroli Portofino? The scent strength was disappointing though. It was barely detectable during the shave but it did linger for a few hours after the shave, “every cloud”.
“The ‘soap’ is basically a cream (why can’t artisans make a firm/hard soap these days?). Loading direct from the tub was a mistake as I got big clumps of product in the brush. I face lathered with little success. I added some more product to a bowl and things started to improve. (after an age) I couldn’t get enough water into the product to get it to soft peaks consistency. I found it lacked protection/cushion and slickness. No doubt this is down to my shameful lack of patience…oh and technique. 
I’m sure things will improve once I’ve used it a few more times.
“Post shave: I didn’t use a post shave product as this is where the soap supposedly really shines. I wasn’t a fan of the ‘feel’ of the post shave for the first hour but after that I can report the post shave was very good. [LINK]
I found a couple shaving videos that featured Tears.
Kevy Shaves did a “shave of the day” video with Tears. His comments about the soap’s scent and performance were pretty brief but a good summary quote is, “Beautiful scent, great performance on the soap.”
Full video HERE.
Latherhog did a “shave of the day” video with Tears. Some of John’s comments:
“So this scent based on the product description was inspired by traditional Colonia. It’s a light pleasant, Mason cologne.
“I got a little bit powder , a little bit of muskiness, very clean scent. And I would say on a scale of one to 10, the scent strength, probably about three or four. So it’s not in your face at all. It’s pleasant. It kind of fades into the background.
“This is quite a thirsty soap.
“Dimethicone, as part of the ingredient list, there can be a lot of confusion as to what is safe, what’s unsafe. So I just want to put that on their radar. I’m not trying to bury that information is out there, that there are people were concerned. Johnny addressed it directly, on his Instagram page.
“So really an excellent shave today.”
Full video HERE.
Tears aside, Løthur Grooming shave soaps generally have a pretty good reputation in the wet shaving community.
My Experience With Løthur Grooming “Tears” Shave Soap
Scent
My notoriously insensitive nose gets not-strong-at-all light floral (mainly jasmine) and citrus notes. I think this is a nice springtime or summertime scent.
Lathered on the face the scent drops even more, to the just-barely-noticeable level to my dull nose.
Lather
I get abundant, creamy lather with Tears, even in my hard water. As others have mentioned it is somewhat “thirsty” and you may need to take a bit of extra time to get Tears properly hydrated.
Performance
I find performance of Tears to be excellent in both lubrication/glide and cushion/protection: right up there with the best shave soaps I’ve tried. However, unlike other comments I’ve read I do not find post-shave moisturization at the “elite” level of some other shave soap, even with the somewhat controversial (apparently) addition of dimethicone. Very good but not great. Maybe it has something to do with my hard water?
Summing Up
[Note: West Coast Shaving links are affiliate]
Løthur Grooming is one of the up-and-coming artisans in wet shaving soaps, appearing in the UK and recently getting a wider distribution. I think Løthur “Tears” shave soap is a nice, well-performing shave soap for the Springtime.
Tears is available at West Coast Shaving (affiliate link) in the U.S. Also on the Løthur website (check Løthur’s stocklists page for other sources).
