Whether you're completely new to wet shaving or just switching from shaving cream to shaving soap or shaving cream , the shaving brush plays an important role in your overall shaving experience. Choosing the brush that suits your facial hair and shaving style is essential. Once you have found a suitable brush, you will never go back.
With a shaving brush you generate a rich and warm foam by whisking in soap or cream. The richer the foam, the better the skin is protected against razor stress. The nice massaging friction of the hair also ensures that pores open and hairs become softer. This contributes enormously to the perfect preparation for a comfortable shave.
The shaving brush also ensures that moisture is transferred well and evenly to the skin and facial hair via the hair. That works much more efficiently than throwing water in your face with your hands. The friction of the hair of a shaving brush also has an exfoliating effect on your skin. Dead skin cells are removed with it.
Enough benefits about shaving brushes! The hardest part is finding a suitable brush. There are so many different shapes and sizes that most men already avoid them in advance. That is unfortunate and unnecessary. With the right information you can filter quite easily and make your ideal choice. That's why we're going to tell you everything you need to know.
The different types of hair in a shaving brush
The first consideration to make is the type of hair used in the shaving brush. We will cover the three most common types of hair here.
badger hair
Badger hair shaving brushes are known for their luxurious feel. The bristles are soft on the skin, flexible and can absorb a lot of water. This makes it easy to make a rich foam. Badger hair can be divided into different categories of price and quality. The more expensive types of badger hair brushes can last up to 10 years.
- Silver tip
Silvertip is the best and most expensive type of badger hair. They come from the badger's neck and are the softest and most water-absorbent hairs. The hairs are known for their white dots that naturally look like this.
- Super Badger
Known for their sturdiness. From the top of the tie. The hairs have a high density. The softness is still sublime and does not cause any irritation on the face. This makes the super badger hair suitable for sensitive skin.
- Dear Badger
From the bottom of the tie, slightly firmer and harder and suitable for heavier beard growth. The best badger is popular among men who do not like very soft brushes, but want a little more resistance. Especially useful with the harder soaps that soft brushes have a little more trouble with.
- Pure Badger
The Pure badger is the most accessible badger hair shaving brush. The Pure badger bristles are less soft than the more expensive variants, but more flexible than boar bristle brushes. The quality of the Pure Badger is still very good, long lasting and suitable for men who like a massaging effect during the preparation of their shave.
Pig bristle
Cheaper than badger hair shaving brushes and above all very different. Pig bristles are a lot stiffer and harder. The advantage of this is that the brush easily removes soap from the somewhat harder soaps. Pig hair absorbs less moisture than badger hair and therefore needs a little more to make a rich foam. Over time, the tips of the hairs become slightly softer but are still stiff enough to exfoliate your face nicely.
Synthetic
Free from animal hair and also very suitable for men who suffer from allergies or sensitive skin. You have synthetic shaving brushes in different price ranges and the softness and firmness also varies. Some synthetic shaving brushes match the softness and qualities of Silvertip badger hair. The quality is often just as good nowadays.
The bristles generally dry faster than those of pig and badger bristles and make the brush suitable for traveling.
Let's take a look at the characteristics per brush:
badger hair
- Gentle on the face
- Absorb a lot of water
- Easily creates a rich lather
- Last a long time
Pig bristle
- Sturdy hair
- Easy with harder soaps
- Less gentle on the face
- Accessible price
Synthetic
- Free from animal hair
- Suitable for sensitive or allergic skin
- As soft as you want
- Dries quickly
- Price varies
The size of the shaving brush
- Sturdy hair
- Easy with harder soaps
- Less gentle on the face
- Accessible price
Synthetic
- Free from animal hair
- Suitable for sensitive or allergic skin
- As soft as you want
- Dries quickly
- Price varies
The size of the shaving brush
An important factor when choosing a shaving brush is size. This largely determines the ease of use for your needs. We determine the size of the brush itself with two properties:
The length of the tassel (loft)
The loft is the length from where the hair starts to the tip. A longer loft spreads more when you press the brush against your face, allowing it to cover a larger surface area. The shorter lofts give more control over the small areas of the face, such as the moustache.
The knot
This is the base of the brush, where all the bristles from the brush come together in the handle. The thickness of the knot says something about the firmness of the brush and how many hairs have been used. The thicker the brush, the more water it can hold.
Men who are going to use a shaving brush for the first time usually buy a brush with a loft of around 50 mm and a knot of around 20 mm. These are precise and give good control. Larger brushes are suitable for larger surfaces. In the end it all comes down to what you like.
The full length of the brush.
The most important thing is that a brush fits comfortably in your hand and is balanced. To find the right length, you can go for a shaving brush with a handle that is about the same length as the length of your palm to the tip of your thumb.
Ultimately, the size and thickness of the brush depends on what you want and what you like to hold.
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