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An Appreciation of the St. Sue Blue Beagle

As the doubly-blessed recipient of the St. Sue Beagle, I thought I should share some thoughts after using it for the first time.

TLDR version: It's great!

Baseline

Just to articulate a few trends and biases that I bring to any new brush coming in.
  • I dislike prickle or scritch
  • I face lather almost exclusively
  • I tend to use primarily a painting — let's call it slapping — motion when building lather
  • I use my chin to splay periodically
  • I enjoy density but don't require it
  • I generally prefer bulbs for their precision and tidier application (spoiler: I am a slob)
B&Beagle vs St Sue

Here left to right are the B&Beagle fan, bulb, and St Sue. I've used the fan the most, the butterscotch bulb a few times, and the blue beagle was washed once on receipt and used this morning for the first time.

IMG_1816.jpeg


The butterscotch Beagle has a reported loft of 46mm; the St. Sue bulb reports in with 48mm. B&Beagles are 2-band, while the St Sue is 3-band. With somewhat less density in the 3-band, and greater loft, you can see the difference in the bloomed knots, above and below.

IMG_1815.jpeg


The St Sue is extremely soft and pleasant on the face, albeit with considerably less backbone than the B&Beagle bulb in particular. It made lather easily and gave it up willingly.

With the B&Beagle I've come to prefer the fan, to my surprise. I think primarily because I don't seem to get lather down the handle as often as I do with the bulb. The bulb has great backbone but when I splay it, or work it hard, I think I tend to push lather down the short handle more than I do with the fan, which splays more linearly and takes a gentler push. I am a bit of a splash monster so if I can make a mess with lather, I generally do. I dislike lather on a handle, which is why I was so surprised I get along with small brushes like the Wee Scot and Eagle (and Beagle Fan). Turns out there are more factors at play than I thought.

So after gravitating toward the fan in the B&Beagle, I worried a bit that the St. Sue in a bulb might be a tiny disappointment. Au contraire! The blue Beagle gives up lather nicely, splays easily, and the slightly reduced knot density makes the smallish bulb essentially perfect for gentle face feel.

Perfect size, perfect shape, deluxe face feel, and a stunning appearance. You, St. Sue, are a dreamboat.

iu.jpeg

I look forward to seeing you in the morning often.

Your Mileage May Vary

Doesn't it always? Who might not like the blue beagle?

If you favor scrub and backbone over softness you might find this knot lacking, although maybe less loft might tighten it up a bit.
 
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As the doubly-blessed recipient of the St. Sue Beagle, I thought I should share some thoughts after using it for the first time.

TLDR version: It's great!

Baseline

Just to articulate a few trends and biases that I bring to any new brush coming in.
  • I dislike prickle or scritch
  • I face lather almost exclusively
  • I tend to use primarily a painting — let's call it slapping — motion when building lather
  • I use my chin to splay periodically
  • I enjoy density but don't require it
  • I generally prefer bulbs for their precision and tidier application (spoiler: I am a slob)
B&Beagle vs St Sue

Here left to right are the B&Beagle fan, bulb, and St Sue. I've used the fan the most, the butterscotch bulb a few times, and the blue beagle was washed once on receipt and used this morning for the first time.

View attachment 1354871

The butterscotch Beagle has a reported loft of 46mm; the St. Sue bulb reports in with 48mm. B&Beagles are 2-band, while the St Sue is 3-band. With somewhat less density in the 3-band, and greater loft, you can see the difference in the bloomed knots, above and below.

View attachment 1354870

The St Sue is extremely soft and pleasant on the face, albeit with considerably less backbone than the B&Beagle bulb in particular. It made lather easily and gave it up willingly.

With the B&Beagle I've come to prefer the fan, to my surprise. I think primarily because I don't seem to get lather down the handle as often as I do with the bulb. The bulb has great backbone but when I splay it, or work it hard, I think I tend to push lather down the short handle more than I do with the fan, which splays more linearly and takes a gentler push. I am a bit of a splash monster so if I can make a mess with lather, I generally do. I dislike lather on a handle, which is why I was so surprised I get along with small brushes like the Wee Scot and Eagle (and Beagle Fan). Turns out there are more factors at play than I thought.

So after gravitating toward the fan in the B&Beagle, I worried a bit that the St. Sue in a bulb might be a tiny disappointment. Au contraire! The blue Beagle gives up lather nicely, splays easily, and the slightly reduced knot density makes the smallish bulb essentially perfect for gentle face feel.

Perfect size, perfect shape, deluxe face feel, and a stunning appearance. You, St. Sue, are a dreamboat.

View attachment 1354878
I look forward to seeing you in the morning often.

Your Mileage May Vary

Doesn't it always? Who might not like the blue beagle?

If you favor scrub and backbone over softness you might find this knot lacking, although maybe less loft might tighten it up a bit.
Congrats on the brush. I was in for early bidding and I woke up and it was out of reach for me.

Forget about having a great “one of“ amazing brush... you donating a bunch of money to a great cause is the best part. 👍

What’s your address again?
 
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