Shaving 101

Why does my new badger brush smell bad?

Paul
Stillwater, OK

First it's important to remember that badger brushes are made from the hair of an animal. We eat hamburgers without thinking of how the beef was processed; similarly we often enjoy shaving without considering the origin of the badger brush. Shaving brush manufacturers sterilize the hair before they knot it into a handle, but sometimes this process fails to completely remove the animal odor from the hair. Usually, you can simply just lather and rinse the brush a few times using your regular shaving soap or cream, and that will wash out most of the smell. If the brush has a strong odor that will not go away, you can soak it in a cup of warm water with a teaspoon of either Borax soap or vinegar. Allow the brush to soak in the solution for a minute or two, rinse thoroughly, and then allow it to dry. The next time you use your new shaving brush, it should have a noticeably less offensive odor.

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