Phoenix Artisan Accoutrements - Brush Recommendations?

[BelfastBlade]

Hello folks,

I've been looking at the PAA brushes and I'm quite keen to try one out.

From what I gather they have a number of brushes with various synthetic knots.

In brushes they have Atomic Rooster, Peregrino, Star Craft and so on. Then these brushes all seem to come with different knots, namely the Roswell, Stygian, Nexus, Suave.. maybe more.

I'd been looking on the site but I can't really find much of a description of which knot is like/characteristics.. I mean which ones are softer and which ones have more backbone etc.

Their most popular brushes seem to be the Atomic Rooster which has a Suave knot. Also the Starcraft and the Peregrino which as far as I'm aware both have a Roswell knot. So unless I'm mistaken the difference in these two is mostly the handle.

They also have a nice looking brush called the Phantom Aerolite which has another knot called the Spectral Synth. I'd been watching some videos and one guy called Johnshaves101 seemed to like both the Peregrino and the Phantom Aerolite. I think he said the Pelegrino had his favourite handle but the Phantom Aerolite had his favourite knot.

Does anyone here have much experience with these brushes? I'm quite interested in them as they seem to be quite affordable (around £25 each) plus they seem to get a lot of great feedback.

I was just wondering if anyone here might give me some advice and which brush they would recommend from PAA.

Just to note, recently I've found myself liking softer brushes opposed to stiffer, scrubbier ones.. for the longest time I tried to find stiffer synthetics but now I'm the opposite. I've a brush I use by Executive Shaving Company which is quite soft and at one time I thought it to be too much so but I've grown to love it. It works very well for me. I do have a medium/21mm Muhle Silvertip Fibre synthetic which is nice and soft but also great for lathering however I find it a bit too small for my liking. I just wish I'd have opted for the larger size when buying it!

 

[FarmerTan]

Hmmm.... wish I could help you my friend, but all I have ever done with PAA is look at their brushes and lust after them! Many of them are beautiful (in my eyes) and are definitely affordable.

Perhaps one of our resident PAA brush lovers will chime in?

Come on folks! We have a friend in need here! And the only thing better than spending your own money is helping (enabling) a friend to spend his!

 

[jonwilson]

Hello folks,

I've been looking at the PAA brushes and I'm quite keen to try one out.

From what I gather they have a number of brushes with various synthetic knots.

In brushes they have Atomic Rooster, Peregrino, Star Craft and so on. Then these brushes all seem to come with different knots, namely the Roswell, Stygian, Nexus, Suave.. maybe more.

I'd been looking on the site but I can't really find much of a description of which knot is like/characteristics.. I mean which ones are softer and which ones have more backbone etc.

Their most popular brushes seem to be the Atomic Rooster which has a Suave knot. Also the Starcraft and the Peregrino which as far as I'm aware both have a Roswell knot. So unless I'm mistaken the difference in these two is mostly the handle.

They also have a nice looking brush called the Phantom Aerolite which has another knot called the Spectral Synth. I'd been watching some videos and one guy called Johnshaves101 seemed to like both the Peregrino and the Phantom Aerolite. I think he said the Pelegrino had his favourite handle but the Phantom Aerolite had his favourite knot.

Does anyone here have much experience with these brushes? I'm quite interested in them as they seem to be quite affordable (around £25 each) plus they seem to get a lot of great feedback.

I was just wondering if anyone here might give me some advice and which brush they would recommend from PAA.

Just to note, recently I've found myself liking softer brushes opposed to stiffer, scrubbier ones.. for the longest time I tried to find stiffer synthetics but now I'm the opposite. I've a brush I use by Executive Shaving Company which is quite soft and at one time I thought it to be too much so but I've grown to love it. It works very well for me. I do have a medium/21mm Muhle Silvertip Fibre synthetic which is nice and soft but also great for lathering however I find it a bit too small for my liking. I just wish I'd have opted for the larger size when buying it!

I have all the PAA synthetic brushes. They are all great brushes, but my top 3 PAA brushes would be (in no particular order) would be the phantom aerolite, the doppler, and the star wisp. the aerolite is the softest out of the 3 with the doppler having the most backbone out of the 3 and the star wisp having less backbone than the doppler, but more so than the phantom aerolite. For the money, you really can't go wrong with PAA brushes. I believe their knots are both a bulb/fan which makes them pretty big knots especially the 26mm PAA brushes.

 

[jonwilson]

Hello folks,

I've been looking at the PAA brushes and I'm quite keen to try one out.

From what I gather they have a number of brushes with various synthetic knots.

In brushes they have Atomic Rooster, Peregrino, Star Craft and so on. Then these brushes all seem to come with different knots, namely the Roswell, Stygian, Nexus, Suave.. maybe more.

I'd been looking on the site but I can't really find much of a description of which knot is like/characteristics.. I mean which ones are softer and which ones have more backbone etc.

Their most popular brushes seem to be the Atomic Rooster which has a Suave knot. Also the Starcraft and the Peregrino which as far as I'm aware both have a Roswell knot. So unless I'm mistaken the difference in these two is mostly the handle.

They also have a nice looking brush called the Phantom Aerolite which has another knot called the Spectral Synth. I'd been watching some videos and one guy called Johnshaves101 seemed to like both the Peregrino and the Phantom Aerolite. I think he said the Pelegrino had his favourite handle but the Phantom Aerolite had his favourite knot.

Does anyone here have much experience with these brushes? I'm quite interested in them as they seem to be quite affordable (around £25 each) plus they seem to get a lot of great feedback.

I was just wondering if anyone here might give me some advice and which brush they would recommend from PAA.

Just to note, recently I've found myself liking softer brushes opposed to stiffer, scrubbier ones.. for the longest time I tried to find stiffer synthetics but now I'm the opposite. I've a brush I use by Executive Shaving Company which is quite soft and at one time I thought it to be too much so but I've grown to love it. It works very well for me. I do have a medium/21mm Muhle Silvertip Fibre synthetic which is nice and soft but also great for lathering however I find it a bit too small for my liking. I just wish I'd have opted for the larger size when buying it!

the phantom aerolite is a HUFE SOFT KNOT.I believe it's a timberwolf knot, Very soft with not a ton of backbone. The phantom aerolite has a beautiful handle to look at and it's just an incredible brush. A lather monster as well. In my opinion, the PAA peregrino and the starcraft have the most backbone out of all the PAA brushes. If you wanna buy a PAA brush and if you prefer softer brushes over stiffer, scrubbier ones, I would definitely go with the phantom aeroite. This is HUGE SOFT KNOT and feels lovely on the face. it's a lather monster and the handle is just gorgeous to look at. If you want soft, go with the phantom aerolite, if you want more backbone, go with the starcraft/peregrino.

 

[flask28]

the phantom aerolite is a HUFE SOFT KNOT.I believe it's a timberwolf knot, Very soft with not a ton of backbone. The phantom aerolite has a beautiful handle to look at and it's just an incredible brush. A lather monster as well. In my opinion, the PAA peregrino and the starcraft have the most backbone out of all the PAA brushes. If you wanna buy a PAA brush and if you prefer softer brushes over stiffer, scrubbier ones, I would definitely go with the phantom aeroite. This is HUGE SOFT KNOT and feels lovely on the face. it's a lather monster and the handle is just gorgeous to look at. If you want soft, go with the phantom aerolite, if you want more backbone, go with the starcraft/peregrino.

That's a great comparison @jonwilson!

I had the Peregrino and I was about to describe it as a HUGE SOFT KNOT! But reading @jonwilson's description of the Phantom Aerolite makes me think my HUGE SOFT scale might be off I'm mostly using natural fiber brushes so in comparison the PAA brush hit me like the Mother of All Makeup Brushes.

I have a 25mm Muhle STF and it has noticeably more backbone than the Peregrino, to compare it with a brush you have. The Peregrino also felt much much larger than the STF - the PAA is gigantic for a nominal 24mm diameter brush.

Here's the 24mm Peregrino next to a 26mm RazoRock Big Bruce (another fantastic synth you might want to check out). Facefeel-wise, the PAA dwarfs the big bruce.

 

[BelfastBlade]

Wow. Thanks so much for all the advice with the PAA brushes, guys! It has been a great help.

In that case I'm thinking I'll definitely get me one of the Phantom Aerolite brushes then! I figure as they're quite affordable really, I could almost get a Peregrino or Star Craft and a Phantom Aerolite for less than the price of one Muhle STF XL brush. If I get the two and then I'd have a softer one and a scrubbier one I could compare the two knots and decide which I like best.

So the only difference between the Peregrino and the Star Craft is the handle? Just personal preference really? I like the look of the Star Craft better but the Peregrino looks a little bit more.. comfortable! Difficult to know which.

I had been interested in the Atomic Rooster before I posted.. it seems to have a different knot to all the others and I couldn't find much about it except for a few posts on here, which seemed to indicate it was pretty soft. From what I gather it is called a "Suave knot" and doesn't seem to be offered as a replacement knot on the PAA site. Have any of you folks tried that one?

Once again many thanks for all the help! I'll definitely be getting the Phantom Aerolite now anyways, and maybe one of the others too.

 

[jonwilson]

Wow. Thanks so much for all the advice with the PAA brushes, guys! It has been a great help.

In that case I'm thinking I'll definitely get me one of the Phantom Aerolite brushes then! I figure as they're quite affordable really, I could almost get a Peregrino or Star Craft and a Phantom Aerolite for less than the price of one Muhle STF XL brush. If I get the two and then I'd have a softer one and a scrubbier one I could compare the two knots and decide which I like best.

So the only difference between the Peregrino and the Star Craft is the handle? Just personal preference really? I like the look of the Star Craft better but the Peregrino looks a little bit more.. comfortable! Difficult to know which.

I had been interested in the Atomic Rooster before I posted.. it seems to have a different knot to all the others and I couldn't find much about it except for a few posts on here, which seemed to indicate it was pretty soft. From what I gather it is called a "Suave knot" and doesn't seem to be offered as a replacement knot on the PAA site. Have any of you folks tried that one?

Once again many thanks for all the help! I'll definitely be getting the Phantom Aerolite now anyways, and maybe one of the others too.

when in doubt, GET ALL 3. should cost you a little over 60 bucks, but it will be worth it because you will have 3 brushes for life. The atomic rocket has a PLISSOFT type knot. PAA calls it their suave knot, but it's just a plissoft knot. the plissoft knot is known for being a pretty soft knot. holds and makes a ton of later. The plissoft knot is kinda an older knot. it came out a few years ago. it's a great knot and many people love it (I still do), but there are so many newer knots out nowadays it kinda makes the plissoft obsolete, but it's still a great knot as I said. the atomic rocket is a huge brush.

 

[BelfastBlade]

That's a great comparison @jonwilson!

I had the Peregrino and I was about to describe it as a HUGE SOFT KNOT! But reading @jonwilson's description of the Phantom Aerolite makes me think my HUGE SOFT scale might be off I'm mostly using natural fiber brushes so in comparison the PAA brush hit me like the Mother of All Makeup Brushes.

I have a 25mm Muhle STF and it has noticeably more backbone than the Peregrino, to compare it with a brush you have. The Peregrino also felt much much larger than the STF - the PAA is gigantic for a nominal 24mm diameter brush.

Here's the 24mm Peregrino next to a 26mm RazoRock Big Bruce (another fantastic synth you might want to check out). Facefeel-wise, the PAA dwarfs the big bruce.

View attachment 1726333

I'm going to get one of those Razorock Big Bruce while I'm at it. I see they do a Bruce and big Bruce.. I think I'll go for the Big Bruce because every time I buy a brush and I'm between two sizes, I opt for the smaller one then regret it afterwards!

I was watching a video on YouTube about the PAA brushes and from what I make of it, there's guy a YouTube called Tobin and has all their brushes he notes all the new brushes have all the same fibres.. that everything from the Peregrino onwards is the same and names that I thought referred to the knots actually refer to difference in the colour.. eg: that the Rosewell means the grey/white, and the black and white one is Stygian etc etc.

He also said that he believes the PAA company realised with their Peregrino and Star Craft that they had got the ultimate synthetic knot. He seems to be familiar with the owner of this PAA company also too, he mentions him numerous times in the video. It's a very good video for anyone interested in these PAA knots. He also gives recommendations at the end.

The part I was talking about begins around 15:15.

 

[BelfastBlade]

So I got one! I debated over which one to get.. it seems one of their most popular is the Peregrino.. but I wasn't taken by the green, however the Star Craft has the same Roswell knot as the Peregrino and is essentially the same brush just a different handle style and colour so yeah, I went for the Star Craft! I liked the nice blue and white colour scheme and the "Space Age" look which is inspired by a vintage Mohawk 5-341 brush.

Well I used it today.. and I hadn't shaved in three days previously. I think that's a recent record for me. I wasn't quite sure what to expect from the Star Craft.. I've heard various takes on these brushes, admittedly most of it seemed to be overwhelmingly positive.. but you never know until you try an item for yourself.

As soon as I put it in water I felt it was different to any synthetic I'd used before. It seemed to really load with water.. like, absorbent. As if fibres really held the liquid well.. you could see it and feel the extra weight of the water. Yet it was holding it very well.. then I shook some out prior to lathering.

I'll give better thoughts after a few uses but first impressions are I think it's a fantastic brush. I'm well impressed and pleased with it. Maybe theres a little excitement of finding a new brush line I like but I'd honestly say it's as good a synthetic brush as I've ever used. I used it with Barrister and Mann "Spice" in a Fine Accoutrements lather bowl and it really made a great lather.. really nice brush to use, feels great in hand and on face. Great value for money. I'll definitely be picking more of these up. I'm looking forward to trying some others from the line too!

 

[rudygu]

So I got one! I debated over which one to get.. it seems one of their most popular is the Peregrino.. but I wasn't taken by the green, however the Star Craft has the same Roswell knot as the Peregrino and is essentially the same brush just a different handle style and colour so yeah, I went for the Star Craft! I liked the nice blue and white colour scheme and the "Space Age" look which is inspired by a vintage Mohawk 5-341 brush.

Well I used it today.. and I hadn't shaved in three days previously. I think that's a recent record for me. I wasn't quite sure what to expect from the Star Craft.. I've heard various takes on these brushes, admittedly most of it seemed to be overwhelmingly positive.. but you never know until you try an item for yourself.

As soon as I put it in water I felt it was different to any synthetic I'd used before. It seemed to really load with water.. like, absorbent. As if fibres really held the liquid well.. you could see it and feel the extra weight of the water. Yet it was holding it very well.. then I shook some out prior to lathering.

I'll give better thoughts after a few uses but first impressions are I think it's a fantastic brush. I'm well impressed and pleased with it. Maybe theres a little excitement of finding a new brush line I like but I'd honestly say it's as good a synthetic brush as I've ever used. I used it with Barrister and Mann "Spice" in a Fine Accoutrements lather bowl and it really made a great lather.. really nice brush to use, feels great in hand and on face. Great value for money. I'll definitely be picking more of these up. I'm looking forward to trying some others from the line too!

Good choice. The Star Craft is one of my favorites. A little backbone, but not a lot - just enough to load really well from a tub. Excellent splay and soft tips.

 

[Alex Jr]

Green ray would be my choice.

 

[Zora]

Have the Starcraft and really like it.

 

[BelfastBlade]

Good choice. The Star Craft is one of my favorites. A little backbone, but not a lot - just enough to load really well from a tub. Excellent splay and soft tips.

Agreed. Really nice brush. Glad to hear you like it. I actually ordered another one today.. The Doppler. I figured I'd try one of the 26mm knots also. I saw a review of them all on YouTube and the reviewer said if you're not sure where to start with you can't go wrong with The Doppler but that any of them are great. I liked the colours of the doppler.. the cream/butterscotch and the nice screw thread like style.. so I ordered it too. They cost about £25-£27 here.. from what I can see they're only $17-$18 in the US. But I suppose then there's international shipping plus import fees and taxes.. so even if buying from the US they'd probably end up the same if not more.

Green ray would be my choice.

I liked the look of it but wasn't crazy about the colour scheme of the Green Ray. Similar to the Peregrino, the green wasn't really grabbing me.. plus the yellow/patina look on the Green Ray. I think it was based on an old Ever Ready brush which would have originally had that part white or cream and it yellowed over the years. I figured I'd try the Solar Flare instead as it's very similar just with a different colour scheme. One thing I like about the brushes is that there's usually two options very similar so if you're not crazy about one you can opt for the other. Similar to the Peregrino and Star Craft, or the Phantom Aerolite and Autumn Aerolite

Have the Starcraft and really like it.

Same here! Really nice brush. I'll be sure to add more to my collection. I just ordred the Doppler today and I think I'll maybe get the Atomic Rocket next.. possibly the Star Wisp, the Solar Flare or the newer one the Astraeus although it seems to be a bit on the smaller side compared to the others. I used to always choose smaller brushes but I've totally changed and now I tend to like a larger brush. I find the loft being every bit as important if not more so than the knot measurement.

 

[awk_m4]

So I got one! I debated over which one to get.. it seems one of their most popular is the Peregrino.. but I wasn't taken by the green, however the Star Craft has the same Roswell knot as the Peregrino and is essentially the same brush just a different handle style and colour so yeah, I went for the Star Craft! I liked the nice blue and white colour scheme and the "Space Age" look which is inspired by a vintage Mohawk 5-341 brush.

Well I used it today.. and I hadn't shaved in three days previously. I think that's a recent record for me. I wasn't quite sure what to expect from the Star Craft.. I've heard various takes on these brushes, admittedly most of it seemed to be overwhelmingly positive.. but you never know until you try an item for yourself.

As soon as I put it in water I felt it was different to any synthetic I'd used before. It seemed to really load with water.. like, absorbent. As if fibres really held the liquid well.. you could see it and feel the extra weight of the water. Yet it was holding it very well.. then I shook some out prior to lathering.

I'll give better thoughts after a few uses but first impressions are I think it's a fantastic brush. I'm well impressed and pleased with it. Maybe theres a little excitement of finding a new brush line I like but I'd honestly say it's as good a synthetic brush as I've ever used. I used it with Barrister and Mann "Spice" in a Fine Accoutrements lather bowl and it really made a great lather.. really nice brush to use, feels great in hand and on face. Great value for money. I'll definitely be picking more of these up. I'm looking forward to trying some others from the line too!

Nice report @BelfastBlade !!! Solid first impressions! Sounds like you'll be enjoying this brush for years to come!

 

[awk_m4]

I took a look at their website. I didn't think I'd be in the market for another synth. I'm definitely intrigued!

 

[CaptainBlood]

Got the Green Ray myself last week. I'm interested as to which of the other PAA is closest to this as it is the best brush I recall ever using, it copes with anything soap wise.

 

[Alex Jr]

Got the Green Ray myself last week. I'm interested as to which of the other PAA is closest to this as it is the best brush I recall ever using, it copes with anything soap wise.

I’m not the biggest synthetic fan as I’ve wrote here in the past, but I got this brush just for the looks.

It changed my view on synthetics. Nice brush indeed.

 

[BelfastBlade]

Got the Green Ray myself last week. I'm interested as to which of the other PAA is closest to this as it is the best brush I recall ever using, it copes with anything soap wise.

Glad to hear you like it so much! They definitely impressed me also. It seems everyone who does give them a go, all seem to love them, even those who are initially sceptical.

I'm still waiting on my Doppler.. I ordered it from a new store as my "go to" didn't have the Doppler in stock. The new store is very slow at processing! Not that I'm in any rush for it.. it's just with the other stores I use they have on your doorstep the following morning!

But anyways, in regards to your question, as far as I'm aware, the Solar Flare is said to be quite similar to the Green Ray.. in both size and performance. Who knows, it may even be a matter of like the Peregrino and the Star Craft.. almost the same brush just different handle and colour scheme? A lot of their brushes seem to have another which is very similar, but in another colour.. I guess if you aren't crazy about one's look you can opt for the other.

I think the Solar Flare has what they call the Nexus knot but I think a lot of the names for the knot actually just alludes to the colour.. the fibres actually being the same. Just like you said also, Tobin noted how the Green Ray and the Nexus were great for handling anything, great for softer soaps/croaps and creams etc too.

Another one that may be of interest is the Atomic Rocket.. it says on the PAA site that the Green Ray was essentially designed as a little brother of its predecessor, the Atomic Rocket. Both based on classic Ever Ready brushes. I think the Atomic Rocket was PAA's very first brush.. it is the only one with the "Suave" knot. Which is like a Plisson style knot. Its quite a burly brush and one of their largest offerings.. 26mm knot, 64mm loft. That said, the Green Ray isn't really much different as it has a 24mm knot, 59mm loft. I intend to get the Atomic Rocket eventually too.

I would highly recommend spending ten minutes and watching the video I posted a few posts above by Tobin Fetters on YouTube. It's a really great in depth analysis and explanation of all the brushes. Really give you a good idea of them when you're starting out and helps you make a decision. The only one missing from the video is the Astraeus which was released afterwards, but he posted a review video on the Astraeus also.

Come to think of it, the Astraeus may also be of interest to you if you want something similar to the Green Ray. The Astraeus is their first 22mm knot offering. It was said to be slightly smaller and slightly less backbone than some of the others but I believe Tobin said it was basically the same as the Green Ray and Nexus.. or at least that any difference was barely noticeable and how the splay was almost identical when you put them together against one another.

The Astraeus gets very good reviews also. I saw a number of YouTubers giving it high praise when I was researching them. I'm pretty sure I'll pick it up soon also..

 

[BelfastBlade]

I’m not the biggest synthetic fan as I’ve wrote here in the past, but I got this brush just for the looks.

It changed my view on synthetics. Nice brush indeed.

Glad to hear you like your brush too!

I've heard so much good things about the Green Ray but for whatever reason I'm just not a fan of the colour scheme. I know it's silly of me but.. I've just never been big on green and yellow.

I'd probably have liked it much more if they'd have just done the yellow part in a regular faux ivory/cream colour.. I think the idea of the yellow is like a faux patina. I read that on their site.

The original Ever Ready brush it was based on would have been green and cream coloured originally (similar to say the Peregrino) but over the years the cream part yellowed. I tend to choose brushes I like the look and colour of.

However, I think their Solar Flare brush is very similar to the Green Ray in all respects. I'll do some more research and if it truly is I'll maybe pick it up too.

I don't know if you've seen it but I think the Solar Flare looks really good. It has a nice butterscotch and ivory coloured handle with a very light cream coloured Nexus knot which I saw referred to as albino somewhere!

Best wishes!

 

[Alex Jr]

Glad to hear you like your brush too!

I've heard so much good things about the Green Ray but for whatever reason I'm just not a fan of the colour scheme. I know it's silly of me but.. I've just never been big on green and yellow.

I'd probably have liked it much more if they'd have just done the yellow part in a regular faux ivory/cream colour.. I think the idea of the yellow is like a faux patina. I read that on their site.

The original Ever Ready brush it was based on would have been green and cream coloured originally (similar to say the Peregrino) but over the years the cream part yellowed. I tend to choose brushes I like the look and colour of.

However, I think their Solar Flare brush is very similar to the Green Ray in all respects. I'll do some more research and if it truly is I'll maybe pick it up too.

I don't know if you've seen it but I think the Solar Flare looks really good. It has a nice butterscotch and ivory coloured handle with a very light cream coloured Nexus knot which I saw referred to as albino somewhere!

Best wishes!

The green and yellow in combination with the darker fibers is what attracts me the most, go figure

I liked the not so big size as well and I’m glad I pulled the trigger.

I’ll have a look at the solar flare, I have a feeling this won’t be the last one.