Have you ever gotten fed up with how the cake of soap sits at the bottom of the shaving cup, being wet and gross and all that stuff? Me neither, but in our defence most of the people treating traditional wetshaving as a hobby have more than one soap. And most of us don’t keep it in a single shaving mug. But way back then, when a single cake of soap kept in a mug was the order of the day? I can definitely see the appeal of John Richardson’s 1892 patent for a shaving soap holder.

And it is a nice, simple idea too. But before we look closer, let us see what John wanted to achieve:

Design patents are a different breed. A utility patent, which most of the patents I write about are, protects a new new or improved – and useful – product, process, or machine. A design patent, on the other hand, covers any any new, original and ornamental design for an article of manufacture. Designs like Herman Griebel’s design for a shaving-mug, which he got a 3½ years design patent for in November of 1882.