OK, it's been about a week with my new Semogue SOC boar in cherry, and it is my new favorite brush.
Softness - the tips are very soft, with no scratchiness. It's not as soft as my Muhle silvertip fiber, but it is soft enough to be completely comfortable.
Backbone - really nice backbone, which is why I am a boar brush fan. Enough backbone for soaps, enough backbone that swirling on my face feels like a massage.
Lathering - it's a big knot (24 mm), so it lathers up my Stirling considerably faster than my B&B Essentials. I am a "lather on the puck" or bowl latherer, so the size matches up very nicely to my extra-wide tins.
Applying lather - it's a big knot. It's not nearly as precise (or small) as the B&B, but for slathering tons of slick lather all over my face it works great. I am someone who enjoys the feel of a large brush.
Handle - my only real complaint. It feels just fine, but I don't care for the look.
Cost - I paid under $30 from Vintage Scent with the online coupon (coupon code "foroafeitado"). Arrived in 2.5 weeks (1 week to shipping, 10 days roughly being shipped). In retrospect, I was impatient enough that I wished I had paid more to get it more quickly.
Initial "boar smell"/break-in - slight boar smell, not bad. Gone after several days although I haven't stuck my nose into the thing to check. Started out pretty soft and certainly useable, now at least as soft as my B&B and the tips are beginning to split. My only real break-in was for the first 2-3 days where, after I was done lathering with it, I let the lather sit and dry and didn't rinse it out until soaking the next morning.
In short - if you like boars (or haven't tried them) and like big brushes, get one.
Happy Thanksgiving, by the way! I'm off to get ready for an early dinner at a colleague's so I don't need to cook.
Softness - the tips are very soft, with no scratchiness. It's not as soft as my Muhle silvertip fiber, but it is soft enough to be completely comfortable.
Backbone - really nice backbone, which is why I am a boar brush fan. Enough backbone for soaps, enough backbone that swirling on my face feels like a massage.
Lathering - it's a big knot (24 mm), so it lathers up my Stirling considerably faster than my B&B Essentials. I am a "lather on the puck" or bowl latherer, so the size matches up very nicely to my extra-wide tins.
Applying lather - it's a big knot. It's not nearly as precise (or small) as the B&B, but for slathering tons of slick lather all over my face it works great. I am someone who enjoys the feel of a large brush.
Handle - my only real complaint. It feels just fine, but I don't care for the look.
Cost - I paid under $30 from Vintage Scent with the online coupon (coupon code "foroafeitado"). Arrived in 2.5 weeks (1 week to shipping, 10 days roughly being shipped). In retrospect, I was impatient enough that I wished I had paid more to get it more quickly.
Initial "boar smell"/break-in - slight boar smell, not bad. Gone after several days although I haven't stuck my nose into the thing to check. Started out pretty soft and certainly useable, now at least as soft as my B&B and the tips are beginning to split. My only real break-in was for the first 2-3 days where, after I was done lathering with it, I let the lather sit and dry and didn't rinse it out until soaking the next morning.
In short - if you like boars (or haven't tried them) and like big brushes, get one.
Happy Thanksgiving, by the way! I'm off to get ready for an early dinner at a colleague's so I don't need to cook.
