Comments on: Why all the shaving cream?

Question: Why all the shaving cream?

archaic — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 04:07:11 -0800

I was standing behind a young mother at the supermarket. Among her items I noticed about eight cans of Barbasol shaving cream. Any idea why someone would need that much shaving cream? Is there another use I don't know about?

By: cgc373

cgc373 — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 04:12:43 -0800

My totally speculative guess? At this time of year, perhaps it's for some kind of costume. Alternatively, there might have been a sale.

By: unclejeffy

unclejeffy — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 04:14:29 -0800

Years ago, a barber told me to use shaving cream as hair mousse. Old school brands like Barbasol work great. That doesn't exactly explain why she might need so much, though.

By: headnsouth

headnsouth — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 04:23:21 -0800

Shaving cream is a great creative toy for kids.

Also in the U.S. it's Halloween/homecoming season --- shaving cream is a creative toy for teenagers too.

By: louche mustachio

louche mustachio — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 04:24:06 -0800

Filling the bathtub with shaving cream can be an awful lot of fun. Barbasol is cheap and good for that kind of excessive activity. When we were kids, my dad filled a wading pool with shaving cream for us to play in - an event I don't recall but one that is commemorated with hilarious photos.

Just a wild, weird guess, but it would explain why she had eight cans of the stuff.

By: misteraitch

misteraitch — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 04:53:23 -0800

Isn't shaving-cream sometimes used in comedy 'custard' pies? Maybe she's preparing for a pie-fight.

By: ghost of a past number

ghost of a past number — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 04:56:20 -0800

Maybe they where making a Herb Alpert tribute art car.

By: watercarrier

watercarrier — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 05:01:57 -0800

Maybe she's using the aerosol to huff.

By: jack_mo

jack_mo — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 05:02:48 -0800

The last time I was in a supermarket, my basket had 10 tubes of toothpaste, 10 toothbrushes and loads of soap. I wasn't having a soapy toothpaste scrubbing party, they were all buy one get one free.

By: Tu13es

Tu13es — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 05:04:47 -0800

In 5th grade we used to clean the tables with shaving cream. Maybe she's a teacher?

By: Citizen Premier

Citizen Premier — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 05:05:16 -0800

Well, no one really needs twelve rolls of toilet paper, do they? The reason why we buy twelve or twenty-four rolls at a time is because it's very frustrating to run out. The same is true for most toiletries.

Alternatively, she could be using them to smuggle samples of dinosaur dna.

By: no1hatchling

no1hatchling — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 05:12:50 -0800

The simplest answer is that it was on sale.
Maybe she has a husband and 7 sons.
Maybe she wants to relive her juvenile delinquent escapades on Halloween, but is now mature enough to plan ahead.

We could make stuff up all day.

By: wile e

wile e — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 05:16:29 -0800

Well I can only speak for Northeastern US, but that kind of shaving cream bought in bulk during October is for one thing and one thing only. Halloween. Most places won't sell it to kids anymore in October, so perhaps she's buying for some teens somewhere.

See we used to pop the top off of the shaving can, stick a needle in the spout, and put the spout in a lighter flame. The spout would melt around the needle, making a pin sized hole. Now pop that top back onto the can, and you have a can of shaving cream that will shoot 10-15ft streams. Perfect for shaving cream fights in the streets. Fun times.

By: MsElaineous

MsElaineous — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 05:19:49 -0800

I bought 6 cans last week because it was on sale for $1 a can, which was a really good deal. It'll probably last 6 months or more. Maybe she was doing the same thing.

By: not.so.hip

not.so.hip — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 05:27:15 -0800

You can use shaving cream to create marbleized paper, which would be a fun kids craft project.

By: archaic

archaic — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 05:31:26 -0800

I am going back to the store to check on the "sale" theory. Its a high end grocery that almost never puts anything on sale. I WILL get to the bottom of this

By: watercarrier

watercarrier — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 05:37:39 -0800

Who knew you could loosen your nuts with it?

By: krautland

krautland — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 05:47:23 -0800

I once went into my best (male!) friends bathroom to wash my hands after having helped him with his car but couldn't find soap. he instructed me to look below the sink. I opened the two doors and there were literally fifty bars of dove soap. I always thought he was rather neat but this was beyond that. the answer? they were on sale at costco.

so yeah, seconding that theory.

By: Solon and Thanks

Solon and Thanks — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 05:50:42 -0800

Perhaps she just likes to stock up on toiletries and you saw her on the week she ran out of her last stash of shaving cream.

By: softsantear

softsantear — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 06:18:18 -0800

Buying in bulk is not uncommon, esp. when it comes to toiletries, since they tend to go fast, and you run out right when you least expect it. Would you buy one roll of toilet paper? It's the same principle.

By: Fuzzy Skinner

Fuzzy Skinner — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 06:20:17 -0800

Shaving cream is a common thing to spray on a car as a prank. I've seen it on newlyweds cars to spell out "just married." Or as a Halloween (or "devil's night") prank. Even young moms prank their friends. Or buy it for their mischievous little brothers.

By: phunniemee

phunniemee — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 06:28:15 -0800

I'm going with sale, too. One of my dad's fondest (?) memories from when he and my mom were newly married (and had no money) was when she came back from the store with 50 glade plug-in refills because they were on sale. Apparently, he stacked them up around the house like dominoes.

She's also been known to do this with toilet paper, barbeque sauce, and box brownie mix.

If you know it's something you're going to use forever, why not stock up?

By: Gungho

Gungho — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 06:28:55 -0800

Homecoming weekend? Wedding? Halloween? Devil's night? No. I thing she's using it as a dessert topping. No- A floor wax!

By: nougat

nougat — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 06:30:18 -0800

Maybe she was making Shaving Cream Cards for the holidays see here

By: JohnnyGunn

JohnnyGunn — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 06:31:24 -0800

I once bought 11 pairs of a specific brand of sneaker when I heard a rumour they were going out of business. Alas, I still have 3 pairs and they are still in business. Maybe whe was worried about a short squeeze?

By: kimdog

kimdog — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 06:32:23 -0800

I'm going to suggest decorating a car after a wedding. I often see shaving cream on the car that the bride and groom take off in.

By: InfinateJane

InfinateJane — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 06:37:09 -0800

When I used to babysit young kids, shaving foam was a PERFECT rainy day diversion. Cover the top of a table (or a kitchen floor) with it, let the kids go wild ("fingerpainting" with it, covering themselves in it) - afterwards, damp towel on floor / table, quick rinse of the kids - nothing else comes CLOSE for easy toddler toys to clean-up.

Not saying she's using it for this. But if not, she should be. ^_^

By: pearlybob

pearlybob — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 06:38:49 -0800

My daughter's school recently made care packages for a homeless shelter. We bought ten of all kinds of toiletries.

By: arimathea

arimathea — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 06:41:17 -0800

She's putting together a Marshmallow Man costume for her son.

By: SuperSquirrel

SuperSquirrel — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 06:48:54 -0800

Shaving cream is a good carpet cleaner. Maybe her kids have made a mess of her carpets.

By: Ironmouth

Ironmouth — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 06:56:42 -0800

She's likely buying so much because Barbasol specifically is very hard to find these days. I went to the trouble of looking into it and they were having distribution issues. The brand is dying, which sucks because I love that brand.

By: clarkstonian

clarkstonian — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 07:00:17 -0800

When my daughter was first learning to shave her legs, she went through a can every couple of days. We frequently had 8 or more cans in our cart. Also, a lot of people collect toiletries for vets and for homeless shelters.

By: defreckled

defreckled — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 07:35:42 -0800

We just bought 6 cans of shaving cream. Just stocking up.

By: GilloD

GilloD — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 07:49:11 -0800

I used to have a friend who shot fetish videos for a living. Some of them required large quantities of odd product. Ala, this.

By: theora55

theora55 — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 08:06:34 -0800

I totally hope she's planning a shaving cream fight. That would really be fun.

By: bonobothegreat

bonobothegreat — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 08:08:28 -0800

ATTENTION TEENAGERS..for the hallowe'en thing, better than monkeying around with flames and aerosol cans is this:

-pop off the top and replace it with one from a can of furniture polish or some such spray product. You have to find a brand fits the same (slightly larger) stem size as the shaving cream. It shoots really far in a tiny, narrow stream. It's hilarious.

By: caddis

caddis — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 08:26:18 -0800

Yes, kids love to play with shaving cream, the foamy kind not the gel. Since it is essentially detergent clean up is just requires rinsing.

She's likely buying so much because Barbasol specifically is very hard to find these days. I went to the trouble of looking into it and they were having distribution issues. The brand is dying, which sucks because I love that brand.

Agreed. However, I think Neutrogena Men Razor Defense, Shave Gel for Sensitive Skin is even better. You might give it a try, although such things are rather subjective.

By: restless_nomad

restless_nomad — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 09:16:44 -0800

I had parent-supervised shaving cream fights at Halloween as a kid - that was my first guess.

By: misha

misha — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 10:41:25 -0800

In looking up shaving cream, I fond this description, which is NOT Markov-generated:

"Truefitt & prominence knows that reassure is a inevitability , not a opulence . The definitive Traveler Truefitt shaving cream position is a just right method on the road to indulgence physically otherwise furnish the present of splinter on the road to a companion . This Truefitt shaving cream position is packed by means of soaking splinter essentials and is nicely package into a Truefitt & prominence autograph present sachet . The tour sized untainted pester mane splinter difference of opinion into Truefitt shaving cream position is only existing into price collection ." via

I think she's probably getting the Barbasol for a kids' shaving cream fight, but I just wanted to share that paragraph because it is the reason I now have a headache.

By: Clyde Mnestra

Clyde Mnestra — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 10:51:09 -0800

1. Sale/special.
2. School project/theater supplies.
3. Bigfoot, having been spotted, going incognito.

By: alpha_betty

alpha_betty — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 12:46:45 -0800

She could be sending it to somebody who doesn't have access to it. Like somebody in another country, soldiers, et al.

By: alpha_betty

alpha_betty — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 12:47:20 -0800

*"it" being Barbasol specifically.

By: sportbucket

sportbucket — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 13:39:21 -0800

Shaving cream is a standard supply in youth ministry. People in youth ministry leadership tend to get married young and have kids right away. Those two facts, taken together, lead me to believe you may have been standing behind a Young Life leader.

Or maybe shaving cream was on sale. Or she's gonna go apeshit on Halloween.

By: tatiana wishbone

tatiana wishbone — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 14:09:12 -0800

I teach preschoolers with autism and many of them have sensory impairments/aversions. Playing with shaving cream is a good way to expand their tactile repertoire, overcome aversion to wet/sticky stuff, and practice pre-handwriting. She may have been buying a bunch of the cheap stuff for several classes to play with.

By: craven_morhead

craven_morhead — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 17:11:07 -0800

She could be freezing them, then cutting the cans off of the solidified cylinders of shaving cream, dropping them into someone's car (or room) and letting the space fill to the brim with shaving cream.

By: tamitang

tamitang — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 17:38:31 -0800

When I taught second grade, I used to let the kids practice their spelling words in shaving cream.

By: Lesser Shrew

Lesser Shrew — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 20:49:40 -0800

This is barely relavant. However, horses get fungus infections. As it turns out, some of these can be treated with over-the-counter products normally sold for "Lady problems." So you may have seen me, one rainy spring day, at Walgreens with a whole basket of those "Lady products" and thought I was a skank to rival Paris Hilton. (Which may be true, but would not be the reason for buying those products in bulk.)

My vote? She has a father or uncle in an old folks home and she's stocking up for him and his cronies who like the old school stuff.

By: obiwanwasabi

obiwanwasabi — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 03:27:46 -0800

Pull the nozzle off the can and replace it with an ordinary aerosol nozzle - voila, instant shaving cream guns for the kids. Much cheaper than that stupid Spider-man spray string stuff.

By: Sufi

Sufi — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 13:55:05 -0800

We used to play with shaving cream (Barbasol actually) on tables in daycare.