Synthetic Shaving Brush with Resin Handle

Product Overview

A shaving brush with synthetic bristles and a resin handle. It builds lather from a shaving soap or cream and is compact enough to travel with.

Why You Want a Brush at All

A brush is not nostalgia. It does three things a hand cannot:

• It lifts the beard hair away from the face so the blade meets each hair side-on rather than flattened against the skin. That alone gives a closer, more comfortable shave.
• It works lather down to the skin instead of leaving it sitting on top of the hair.
• It exfoliates gently, which helps against ingrown hairs.

A brush is also the only way to use a shaving soap, and soap gives a slicker cushion than anything from a can.

Synthetic or Badger?

• Synthetic — dries in hours rather than a day, so it travels well and does not go musty. Cheaper, contains no animal hair, and modern synthetics lather as well as mid-range badger.
• Badger — holds more water and has a softer feel that enthusiasts prefer. Expensive, slow to dry, and an animal product.

For most people starting out, and for anyone travelling, synthetic is the sensible choice.

How to Build a Lather

1. Soak the brush in warm water for a minute, then shake out the excess — damp, not dripping.
2. Load it by swirling on the soap for 20 to 30 seconds, or take a small amount of cream.
3. Whip it in a bowl or on your face, adding water a few drops at a time until it turns glossy and holds a peak.
4. Paint it onto the beard in circles so it works down between the hairs.

Thin, bubbly lather almost always means too much water too fast. Load longer and add water slower.

Care

• Rinse it thoroughly after every use. Soap left in the knot degrades the bristles.
• Shake out the water and hang or stand it bristle-down to dry.
• Do not store it wet in a closed bag.
• Never use hot water on it, and never leave it standing in water.

Hygiene

• Do not share razors, blades or trimmer heads. They break the skin, and anything that breaks skin can pass on infection.
• Rinse and dry a razor after every use and stand it somewhere it can air. A wet blade in a closed bathroom cabinet blunts and grows bacteria.
• Clean a trimmer head between users if it is shared inside a household.
• Do not shave over a spot, a mole or broken skin.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use it with canned foam?

You can, but there is little point — foam comes out of the can already lathered. A brush earns its place with soap or cream.

Bowl or face lathering?

Either. A bowl gives more control while you learn; face lathering is quicker and exfoliates as you go.

How long will it last?

Years, with rinsing and drying. Synthetic bristle does not shed the way cheap animal hair does.