Scuttle/soap holder.

Joined
Tuesday March 31, 2015
Hello people, I had a great find in the charity shop today. I'm not sure if its a scuttle or not, but either way it is for wet shaving, and only cost me a pound.

You fill it with hot water through a spout, and on top your hard soap goes, and there is holes for excess to drop into the water below. You wouldn't make a lather on this, its just for brush loading and soaking your brush, as it had a large opening to pour water in .

Heres a picture incase someone knows what it is called, I'm well happy with it for a £1.

 

Wrong end of the brush
 
Well done Sir on the find. I've been visiting charity shops for years and have never stumbled upon one of these yet, but I'm still looking!
 
I guess these are what men used in Olden Times before wash basins had piped hot water on tap. I have a couple as they look great but haven't tried to use them.
 
I own one or two (or maybe 8!). I like the peculiarity of them, most were picked up from flea markets and I haven't paid more than £5 for any of them. The style is quite varied which is how i've ended up with a few.

Fairly new to straight shaving but for me:

Pros-

Nostalgia of shaving like my Grandad
Allows the shaving brush to soften up a bit.
WARM SUDS (for the 20/30 mins it takes me).
My wife can use the bathroom sink without me needing to keep wandering around near her with a cut throat in my hand.

Cons-

Some seem to have fairly large holes where excess soap seems to disappear and be wasted.
Can't use with creams alone.
Unless you have a large scuttle or a small brush- you end up flinging soap everywhere.

Personally I love to use them and enjoy telling guests they are over sized coffee mugs for when I'm in the shower cause I can't wash properly without caffeine (no one has believed me yet- its partly true).

Some modern equivalents are a kind of hybrid- like a bowl in a bowl. I suspect they are great to use but without the nostalgic factor.

I think I'm rambling!
Martin.
 
I saw at least 7 scuttles at a local fete today. I didn't buy any though, the main reason being that they had the holes in the bowl part. Was it a flock of scuttles? A herd? A shoal? A gaggle?