Thread: Does your brush ever sing?

Being a long time pipe smoker I noted an odd convergence many years ago. There are some pipes and some tobaccos that seem to be created for each other. Each element, the pipe and the tobacco, are wonderful in their own right, but when one specific pipe comes together with one specific tobacco magic happens. It might have to do with the specific burning qualities of the tobacco combined with the specific geometry of the pipe, but when they meet their is music. I have always referred to this as the pipe singing.

I recently noticed the same thing with some soaps and some brushes. Most recently I noticed this with a brand new Kent 12. One morning I pulled out MWF and put the Kent to it and the entire shave was magic. The soap and the brush were amazing together. I thought it might be a fluke but every time I bring this brush and soap together it is a repeat performance. The brush seemed to be singing just like my pipes sometimes do.

Anyone else experience synergy like this with a specific brush and a specific soap?

Yes, We've always said, generally speaking that certain brushes are better for soaps, and others for creams. Personally, I have a brush hand made by deighaingeal.

It just excels with Martin De Candre. It's very soft, and does seem to make "music" if you will with that soap. I understand what you mean.

Sorry but I have never bought into that theory. All my brushes create great lather no matter the soap I use. I see no real difference. Maybe the smaller ones create a little less. Now I don't have any horse or boar of pure badgers so that may make a difference I can't say. It's very possible a really stiff brush might be better on a hard soap while a soft brush might be better for creams. So I guess in the end it will depend on your arsenal.

I (for the time being) have about 14 different brushes and have owned many, many more. I think I have owned every possible combination of size, material and shape. I have certain brushes that I use for certain soaps. Now, I also have some old stand-bys that seem to do well no matter the soap, but I have recently been playing with a knot I disregarded a few years back. It is one of only a few horse knots made by a friend of mine before he passed away. I revisited it because of his passing and now have found that it is amazing with very hard soaps.
So, yes, occasionally I have a "singer", but many times I also just have certain brushes that are generally humming a happy tune and will belt out an opera in certain situations.

When I see brushes I want they all sing the same song ...... Where's the money ?

Vie-long horse and arko ( smashed into a bowl, not face lathered). Made a really top notch lather. Both are good on their own, but they seem to really like each other.

Proraso works particularly well with my silver tip badger. It merely moans, though. No singing.

I have a very well broken in boar brush that turns Erasmic shave stick into mounds of pillowy soft lather on my face.