New to a brush - should I?

[Kat]

If you've been doing fine so far without a brush, then no, you don't have to start using one. I rarely use one, and it's not because I'm worried about damage, but because finger-combing works fine (actually best, over brushes or combs) for me 99% of the time so I don't worry about fixing what's not broken. If you want one, then sure, buy one, but it's not something you're "supposed" to do or anything.

[Entangled]

The main thing for me is avoiding the basic ball-tipped brush that is standard in many places. I believe there are a few brushes out there that have flexible brushes and ball tips, but most of the ones I see used are not so hair friendly: the balls grip tangles and often break them.

[lapushka]

]Shed hairs are going to shed. If they’re not combed or brushed out they’ll cause tangles[/B]. You don’t have to use a brush if a comb suits you better. Brushes remove more lint than combs if you’re prone to that. A scalp massage will feel nice, promote blood flow and won’t cause damage unless you’re being too rough. As for what brush, that’s difficult to recommend as it’s personal choice. I have a couple of horn combs and 2 brushes (1 wet brush type, 1 BBB) that I use as I do NWSO.

This, you have got to get it out, if not by using a brush, do so by separating the hair a lot and getting sheds out, this is "finger detangling" the hair out (this does not mean rake your fingers through, because if you're gonna do that, better to use a brush).

It is a myth that you save the hair by not using a detangling tool. You have got to do it if you want healthy hair. Healthy hair is hair that gets its sheds out.

Do use a good detangling brush, though, like a Tangle Teezer or a Wet brush (for wet hair, used on dry hair, not the one for dry hair, if that makes sense).

[knobbly]

Whether to use a brush or not is very individual among folks on the LHC I’ve found. You just have to try it to see if it works for you, ie whether or not you can use it without tearing/snapping your hair and causing mechanical damage. As Entangled says above, the general consensus on ball-tipped brushes is that they can wrap around hairs and cause damage, but many folks use a Wet Brush with success, and those have a ball-tip, so even that isn’t a unanimous thought.

I personally use both combs and brushes; I like my wooden comb for detangling for the first couple of days after washing, and my wooden straight pin brush for the rest of the week. I also use a boar bristle brush for cleaning lint from my hair, distributing sebum, and exfoliating my scalp between washes; I use it about 2x a week. Lastly, I use a Tangle Teezer after washing to detangle when my hair is damp.

[missmyhair]

The heath shop only had a couple of baby and beard brushes and Sally's - what a disappointment! I usually like them but their (slim) selection was mostly plastics and some of the brushes had hair in them. <barf>

I may just get something inexpensive off Amazon for now and see how I like it.

Thanks for the input!

[Iyashikei]

The heath shop only had a couple of baby and beard brushes and Sally's - what a disappointment! I usually like them but their (slim) selection was mostly plastics and some of the brushes had hair in them. <barf>

I may just get something inexpensive off Amazon for now and see how I like it.

Thanks for the input!

Wait, how can a new unused brush have hair?

[missmyhair]

Wait, how can a new unused brush have hair?

Ewwwww! I know! Either someone tried them in the store or returned them. I found hair in more than one style, but one style had hair in more than one brush!

[shelomit]

I find that I pull out pretty much the same amount of shed hair whether I use a brush, a comb, or my hands. *shrug* I like brushing for a reason that hasn't been mentioned so far: I find it very difficult to rinse my hair thoroughly without using something to "scrape" my scalp a little. I don't know if the primary reason is that my hair forms an impenetrable layer when it's wet (it does) or that I keep my fingernails extremely short (I do), but I almost always wind up with some unrinsed portion if I try and get down to the scalp with just my fingers. A comb works for that, too, but the brush is much faster.

I use this kind. Picked one up at Target for years ago for something like $5, pulled all the little blobs at the ends of the tines off with a pair of tweezers, and it's still trucking along as a makeshift "wet brush." If I'm picturing the correct thing for "plastic Goody vented brush," you might find something like this--where the individual tines are stiff, but have a lot of flexibility to move at the base--a little more forgiving.

One thing to note is that, if you're looking for the scalp massage effect and/or detangling, you don't want a soft brush like a bristle brush. Not that you might not also want a soft brush, but it wouldn't help you with those particular tasks.

[Finda]

I find that running my hand over my hair behind the brush helps to tame some of the static. I still get some, but only about the same amount as I would with any other brush or comb.

Thanks, that actually helped a lot.

[MusicalSpoons]

My weapon of choice against shed hairs is a fine-toothed wooden comb (purpleheart, as it happens - my favourite). A brush is great and can be thorough but all of the ones I've tried so far sort of slick my hair into one position and it sort of sticks together - weird. I have one more in mind to try out but at this point my hopes are not high.

But Denman and Tangle Teezer, I can vouch that they are hair-friendly. I had hip~tailbone length hair for years before I found LHC, and I wish I had spent just that little bit extra on a Denman years before I finally did (i.e. £8-ish instead of a £4 standard plastic brush). Very nice brush indeed.

Edit: the Denman is FAR easier to clean than the TT, because the bristles are all in neat straight rows.