Hairbrush

“ In ordinary cases once every two or three weeks is often enough to wash the hair and head. The extreme length of ladies' hair will sometimes render the process of washing it very troublesome and inconvenient. In such cases the patient and assiduous use of a clean, good hairbrush, followed by washing the partings and the crown of the head with soap and water, may be substituted.
The occasional washing of the head is absolutely necessary to preserve the health of the scalp and the luxuriance and beauty of the hair when much oil, pomatum or other greasy substance is used in dressing it. ”

“ After the hairbrushing, which is performed by means of a rude hand brush, the women adorn the men’s faces with paint; if in mourning they put on black paint, and if going to fight, sometimes put a little white paint under the eyes, which assists in contrast to the other in giving a savage expression. The women paint each other’s faces, or if possessed, as sometimes occurs, of a fragment of looking-glass, paint their own. ”

“ A is a regular wire-bound bristle brush which can be had at a paint or hardware store in several sizes; B is known as a “sash tool”; C is a flat floor or varnish brush; D is a sizing, kalsomine, or whitewash brush; and at E a round-liner or stipple brush and a flat tool are shown. For light work the tin-ferruled, cedar-handle flat bristle brush can be had in sizes ranging from one to six inches in width.
Fig. 1. Fig. 2.
There is nothing that freshens up a room so much as repainted wood-work, newly papered or tinted walls, and kalsomined ceilings ”

“ Bristles and fibers and hair are the brush of the brush. The finest brushes are of bristle and hair and the less fine are of fiber save where bristle would not function any better for the job than fiber. Hair is used in some brushes where fine work and delicate surfaces are involved. For example, the shaving brush is of hair, the silver brush of bristle, the whisk of fiber. A room wall brush, too, is often of hair to save the paper or wall finish. ”

“ In pressing and dressing this scalp, I will assume that merely the points of the lower hair are to be removed, therefore push back with a comb the same as though you were about cutting a lady’s hair, and remove the ends with a sharp razor. Even this must be done in a particular manner, and is to be produced by a kind of sliding motion. Let me tell you the object which is to be attained, that you may the more readily understand what and how to do it. The natural ends of hair are finer and more pointed than they would be if cut. ”

“ A dozen or two strong strokes each night will remove the day's dust and dirt, will promote circulation and sweep out flaky matter. The brushing must be done firmly but gently, and not with the violent methods of a carpet sweeping machine. Really, it is simply appalling the way some women dress their hair. A few tugs and yanks with a comb of uneven, unsmooth teeth, a scattering brushing back of scolding locks, some singes here and there with a red-hot curling iron, a twist, a roll, a pat and the application of a dozen hairpins, and the hairdressing for the day is done. ”

“ Small brushes called tools are numbered from 1 up to 10, the latter being the largest. Brushes are generally used in sets, as, for example, in painting a body or gear, a large brush for laying the paint would be used, and a small tool for cleaning up around the moldings, nuts and bolt-heads. It would be an almost endless task to illustrate and describe all of the many varieties of paint and varnish brushes, and a few of the principal ones only will receive attention here. Russia is the great bristle growing country, and her exports reach as high as 5,000 tons of this commodity every year. ”

“ If it is of fiber, this brush will mat and become of no avail in short order. Such a brush can be used as a [260] bath-tub cleaning brush and will not break the back when functioning.
Baldness is the worst disease of bad brushes. Bristles and fiber must be stitched and anchored so as not to shed. The frosting brush would be a danger if a bristle were swallowed with a bite of cake. You probably know the agony of a clothes brush that sheds bristles. The backless twisted-in-wire brushes give brush area on all sides, and are so secured that the bristle is fixed indefinitely. ”

“ A woman’s head with flowing, wind-blown hair seems 150especially adapted to the work. A bristle brush and the ever-useful rag will spin the hair out, and toss it about in decorative masses. For the face you will need a small pad made of soft silk, or muslin, and raw cotton—indeed, several pads will be found useful. Cut the silk into a four-inch square, place in the centre a wad of raw cotton about the size of a hickory nut, and, drawing the silk smoothly over the cotton at the bottom, bring it together at the top; wrap with thread close to the cotton and tie securely. ”

“ Rub the color with curled hair or hair cloth, dust well, and put on your color varnish; some say with a bristle varnish brush, but I prefer to mix it so I can use a camel hair brush. For this coat mix drop black to a workable paint with equal parts of turps and good body varnish. When this coat is dry, give the body a coat of good rubbing varnish, using a fine bristle varnish brush. Flow on a free coat, lay off to right and left, and finish with up and down strokes across the work. Never put a full brush at the lower edge of the body, because in that case, you will be apt to get a fat edge. ”

“ When the practice of shaving off the beard was again revived in Europe, instrumental music was employed in the barber's shop, to amuse customers waiting their turn; but, at the present time, newspapers are furnished for this purpose. In taking off the beard, soft water, good soap, a brush, and a sharp razor, are the usual requisites. The razor should be placed nearly flat on the face, and be moved from point to heel. Barbers have usually some regular customers, many of whom have a box of soap and a brush appropriated to their individual use. ”

“ No one should be without a finger-brush, and to none is it more indispensable than to those who have the most of the family work to do. Wet the brush and rub soap on it; then brush the nails and inside of the hands with it before you finish washing them. Nothing more effectually removes the stains and dirt, which will of course settle on the inside of the hands when handling pots and kettles or working over the stove; and even if your hands are roughened by no such labor, the nail-brush is of great service. ”

“ Then use the brush for a time in oil paint, suspending the brush when not in use in raw linseed oil. In the course of two or three days the brush may be put into other paint if desired and suspended in water. Suspend the brush just up to the butts of the bristles, or so they are just covered, and invariably keep the water up to that point. Under no circumstances permit a brush to rest upon its point when not in use. It destroys the form of the tool and lessens its spring and elasticity. The bristle paint brushes require a clean storage quite to the extent that the color or varnish brushes do. ”

“ For this reason, the intelligent, practical and thoughtful workman will always look for the best tools. Good bristle brushes cannot be made of any substitute for imported bristles, and cheaper grades are always produced by adulteration and mixtures. The cheapening of goods is generally done so that
Fig. 2. Badger Hair Flowing Brush.
it shows least to the eye, in the center of the brush, and covered by good quality to make the goods as marketable as possible. Such goods cannot be expected to be durable or give satisfaction. ”

“ For burnish gold, always take yellow size for ground work. Dip a finely ground bristle brush in the gold size prepared for use; fill a well-cleaned glass (holding 1 pint) half full of water, and add the size contained in the brush, also about 4 to 5 spoonfuls of pure alcohol. It is advisable not to take too much size; the liquid, when applied, must hardly have a yellow tint. When this is dry soon after, commence applying the size, for which a hair pencil is used. The essentials are to paint evenly and not too thickly, so that the tone remains uniform. ”

“ Soft brushes only must be used during the growth of the young hair.
Ammoniacal Pomatum for Promoting the Growth of Hair.—Take almond oil, quarter of a pound; white wax, half an ounce; clarified lard, three ounces; liquid ammonia, a quarter fluid ounce; otto of lavender, and cloves, of each one drachm. Place the oil, wax and lard in a jar, which set in boiling water; when the wax is melted, allow the grease to cool till nearly ready to set, then stir in the30 ammonia and the perfume, and put into small jars for use. Never use a hard brush, nor comb the hair too much. ”

“ Your brush should carry its colour so that you only have to use force enough to work the colour out on to your surface. You don't try to load the furniture with colour, but get on so much as easily passes from the brush to the wood. In filling your brush only dip the end into the paint, and then knock it against the side of pot or tin so as to distribute it through the hair and then it will not drop about when you use it. So many amateurs try to get a lot of colour on at once, and so get it on too thickly in places. ”

“ Black bristle is often made into pipe, window, stove, wall, radiator, milk bottle and percolator brushes.
The color, black or white, of bristles doesn’t stamp quality. In some cases black bristles are bleached for esthetic reasons. For example, a white tooth brush is more attractive. The natural white bristle usually comes from China and the natural black from Siberia.
Fibers in browns and whites, blacks and whites are mixed in brushes for appearances. Color in brushes is a matter of attractiveness and does not alter the usefulness or the wear of them. ”

“ The hair is now ready for the brush-maker, who cups and combs it out, weighs the quantity required, and places it into the ferrules or tin bands. It requires skill to handle the short, slippery hair and keep it in shape. It is not many years since work of this kind was all done abroad. Now, it is claimed by experts that the American manufacture of most kinds of brushes excels the foreign goods. The chiseled camel's-hair brush is something entirely new, and is certainly a very fine brush and well calculated to do smooth, particular work. ”

“ The best way in which to clean hair-brushes is with spirits of ammonia, as its effect is immediate. No rubbing is required, and cold [Pg 584] water can be used just as successfully as warm. Take a tablespoonful of ammonia to a quart of water, dip the hair part of the brush without wetting the ivory, and in a moment the grease is removed; then rinse in cold water, shake well, and dry in the air, but not in the sun. Soda and soap soften the bristles and invariably turn the ivory yellow. ”

“ The hair-brush should be combed free from hair or dandruff every time it is used, and laid by an open window till well aired and dried, if ladies will persist in wetting the hair or brush. A brisk movement of a dry brush through the hair will soon create a fine lustre on the hair, whereas wetting diminishes the gloss so beautiful in well-kept hair ”

“ Many attacks of neuralgia, especially in the fair sex, are due to the effect of getting into a draught while the hair is still wet.
There are several points to be borne in mind in connection with the growth and preservation of the hair. With many persons the scalp is very tender and will not tolerate vigorous brushing. In such instances the brush should always be a soft one; indeed, a hard brush cannot be recommended under any circumstances. ”

“ There is no economy in using a half worn out body brush for trimming colors. A good trimming brush is just as essential as a good body brush, as it is impossible to cut in on cornices, corner boards and window and sash frames with a ragged edged brush, a good chiseled sash tool or a 1 inch or 1+1⁄2 inch chiseled varnish brush for brackets or mouldings, also a 1⁄2 inch flat chiseled varnish brush for sash colors, a good duster and putty and scraping knife. This completes an ordinary kit of tools and is sufficient to do good work. It is not economy to attempt to work with less. ”

“ It is scarcely necessary to say that it is presumed the workman will know what brushes he will require according to the work he has in hand. His large ground paint brush, called a “pound-brush;” [Pg 9] his half-size, for smaller work; his fitch and sash tools, duster, pallet, putty and hasp knives; oval and flat varnish brushes, varnish-pot, step-ladders and long ladders, mahl-stick, pallet-board, gilding-knife, camel and sable hair-pencils, whitewash brushes, jack for window work, cushion, tip-pole, etc., etc. ”

“ The bristles of the brush must be stiff enough to warm, but not to scratch, the scalp. Brushing and massage remove any loose hairs that are ready to fall, but they will soon be replaced by new vigorous ones.
Combing simply disentangles the hair. The teeth of the comb must be far apart and have rounded ends. In no case should a fine-toothed comb be used. It tears out the hair, and often causes an irritation of the scalp which leads to disease. ”

“ The brush with moderately stiff whalebone bristles may be passed gently over the hair several times during the day, to brush out the dust and the dandruff, and to keep the hair smooth, soft, and clean; rough and hard brushing the hair with brushes having very stiff bristles in them, especially the metal or wire bristles, is of no service, but often irritates the parts and causes the hair to fall out. ”

“ BRUSHING AND IRONING It is impossible to overestimate the value of continual and regular brushing. With one of the finest quality cloths, unless the climate be damp, once or twice a week at the outside will be enough for the iron, if the brush is used as it should be. At the conclusion of play the brush should always be used freely and at once, so that all the chalk marks may be removed before they are rubbed through the cloth. Remember always to use the brush with the nap—that is, from the bottom towards the top of the table. ”