Proraso Red Shaving Cream Tube Review
Proraso Red Shaving Cream Tube
Proraso Red Shaving Cream in a tube is geared towards those gents that require a more oily type of lubricant. It lathers up very quickly, has a mild sandalwood scent, and makes an ideal travel companion.
Pros
A mild scent if you don't like strong scents but like to smell a barber-type soapy scent while shaving
A very easy lubricant to lather up and quickly
The ingredients can help those with dry skin and are generally good for slickness
Good value for money or price point
The tube container makes it ideal for travel
Cons
The scent is mild and wears off fast
Not best suited for oily skin types
Proraso Red in a tube is a shaving cream lubricant I have used on and off over the years.
I’ve returned to a new tube recently to test it out for a review and as a good cream base for testing out a few other shaving products (i.e., pre-shaves, shaving brushes, and bowls).
Wet shavers can’t go wrong with a tube of Proraso, based on its price point, and it’s most definitely one of the best bargain creams that provide a quality lather on the market.
Proraso is also a perfect option for those new to wet shaving based on its cost, and it is a great cream to compare with others once they begin trying out other, more expensive brands (Proraso is a great base to measure price vs. quality on future creams).
I won’t go into any detail about other Italian Proraso creams or soaps today–it’s all about a tube of Red.
Description and Features
Most traditional shaving creams come in a plastic tub, unlike Proraso, which has a tube style. These tubes are fine until they start to near their end of use, and like a tube of toothpaste, they become about squeezing the last bits out. I do prefer my tubs, but it is no deal breaker, as I know what I get with Proraso.
One thing I will give to a tube is its ease of travel advantage. If I had half a tub of shaving cream, it could mash around in the tub, and I have to make sure it is super sealed, whereas a tube of this stuff is like carrying an extra tube of toothpaste (you can trust this guy).
So, Proraso states this is the cream for coarse beards. Why would that be? It’s going to be about those ingredients!
Ingredients
The stars of the show are sandalwood oil and shea butter, which are well known to moisturize very well and provide a thick type of lubrication to help a razor glide. The cream also contains coconut oil, which should boost the moisturizing ability and create a thickness in the lather layer once applied.
The soap in a tube is a glycerin-based mix, and this promotes making a razor glide from its slickness.
With that combination of ingredients, it’s easy to see why the Proraso Red from the Proraso range is geared toward coarse beards.
See the full list of ingredients below if you have sensitivities, as some are not totally natural (Proraso states 95% natural) or could be irritants to some users. However, most of these are fine in small amounts for most people and safe, and of course, approved.
INGREDIENTS: Aqua (Water/Eau], Stearic Acid, Cocos nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Potassium Hydroxide, Glycerin, Butyrospermum parkii (Shea) Butter, Lactic Acid, Sodium Hydroxide, Parfum (Fragrance), Santalum album (Sandalwood) Oil, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Sodium Metasilicate, Pentaerythrityl Tetra-di-t-butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate, Tetrasodium, Glutamate Diacetate, Citronellol, Geraniol, Linalool, Coumarin.
Scent
The sandalwood barber scent of this soap is quite mild, but it is noticeable when I am lathering with a brush. It’s not very powerful and does not last that long if you want a scent to linger.
I have recently been using and reviewing a bottle of TOBS Sandalwood Pro-Shvae Oil, and this was way more powerful in scent than the Proraso Red.
If you like a mild scent to enjoy while shaving, then this will be fine.
Lather and Shaving Experience
It has been great to revisit Proraso Red, and even better, I have had to think about how to tell you guys about it rather than just use it.
I’ve been using and reviewing a new Simpson Trafalgar T3 Synthetic, so this brush spent some time with the cream.
I found bowl lathering a much better experience, and as expected, the lather was created very fast. As I have been using a synthetic brush, face lathering was not as good, and the lather was either too dry or I had to deal with water leaking from the brush.
I used about an inch of cream from the tube, and this created enough lather for a shave with some left over.
The lubrication from Proraso Red was slick and did what it was supposed to do–enable the razor to glide.
After the shave, I did feel my skin was moisturized, but not to the level I get when using some of the higher-priced soaps and creams I have used. I missed that feeling after the shaves, but of course, at this price, it’s impossible to grumble.
Lathering instantly made me think how easy this cream would be for men new to lathering with a brush.
Value for Money
I reckon I have covered the fact that this stuff is well worth its money. I don’t know if any other shaving cream at this type of price is as good, especially in the UK and Europe.
Cost – A 150ml/5.2 oz tube costs $10. In the UK and Europe, less than £6 – €6.
Final Thoughts – Should You Try it?
If you need a shaving cream that’s in the best affordable range that produces a quality lather (quickly), then Proaso Red (or any of the others in the range) is one to check out.
While the ingredients mix provides plenty of needed glide and lubrication, it could be possible that gents with oily skin might not find this best suited. On the opposite side of that, gents with dry skin could benefit from the oils and shea butter.
As mentioned, I would recommend any of the Proraso range to those new to wet shaving and whipping up a lather rather than using the canned foam. It’s a great introduction cream that will provide a benchmark for future shaving cream buying and use.
Is it the best shaving cream or scent that I have used? Nope, but it’s all about the price point on this one.
A perfect travel companion that’s not going to leak for sure!
