One of the easiest things you can do to get healthier, less frizzy hair? Brush it regularly. But you have to do it the right way . The benefits of hair brushing have been confirmed on various occasions by many hair experts over the years.
And not just because brushing eliminates build-up and activates blood circulation of the scalp, but because “by brushing the cuticles in the same direction, downwards, the hair is more polished and with more shine,” Maria Baras of Madrid’s Salon Cheska explains. As a beauty editor by profession and a hair geek by devotion, hair brushing is something that I have always kept in my beauty routine. But recently, a hairbrush by the legendary Mason Pearson fell into my hands, any my belief in hair-brushing turned into an obsession.
Following the advice of experts, I started brushing two or three times a day, always in the morning and at night. I followed the recommended technique: start at the ends, work up to the middle, and finish at the roots. The result of this gesture, practiced almost religiously, did not take long to arrive: suddenly my hair was shinier and frizz-free .
Brushing beauty Now that you’ve read my manifesto on brushing, let’s get real about the benefits of the hair brush that everyone loves to discuss: the Mason Pearson. It’s celebrated but also pretty expensive: depending on the model, its price ranges from around $80 to $325. Still, people are obsessed.
The hype generated by Mason Pearson brushes has been fueled by various factors. There’s a long list of celebs who allegedly love Mason Pearson brushes: Kim Kardashian, Kate Moss, Kate Middleton and Jenna Ortega, just to name a few—and many of them claim a real emotional attachment to their brush. “I remember my grandmother every time I use this brush,” the actress Phoebe Dynevor said in her Vogue Beauty Secrets video.
Of course, stylists who have praised the benefits of brushes by Mason Pearson; Guido Palau and Jen Atkin have been using the brushes backstage and on-set for several years. And, who could forget the infamous scene in The Devil Wears Prada , when Anne Hathaway’s character gifts a Mason Pearson brush to her bestie? Clearly, these brushes are an icon in the beauty industry. They’re regular bestsellers at beauty retailers—in fact, the retailer jcApotecari, who is the official distributor for the brand in Spain, confirms that the brushes are an absolute bestseller that consistently sells out.
“Customers come to us from all over the world looking only for the Mason Pearson” they say. Is a Mason Pearson worth the investment? To find out more about the brush, I decided to do a deep dive. The first Mason Pearson hairbrush was created in 1885 by an actual person named Mason Pearson, who was an engineer and an inventor.
Inspired by what he learned in wood processing, he developed and patented the first hair brush with a pneumatic, rubber-cushion that allowed for softer and more flexible brushing—you could say that Mason Pearson was the Dyson of brushes at the end of the 19th century. Although you can immediately appreciate the shine a Mason Pearson brush brings to your hair and its ability to reduce frizz—Anna Arbós of Glow by Anna , claims that “it works magic”—it’s truly worth the investment if you think about the future of your hair. On the one hand, it provides soft and effective brushing that distributes natural hair oils to provide luster instantly.
But it also gives the scalp a nice massage that is not only pleasant, but also activates the blood circulation of the hair follicle. As I can attest: the feeling is quite different from what can be achieved with other brushes. All of this is excellent for healthy hair growth.
And, if you add all these reasons to the fact that the brush is a luxury item meant to last many years that can even be passed from generation to generation, it’s easy to see why it might be worth the investment. “At jcApotecari, we have been selling the brush since 2010 and we have many customers who bought it then and who continue to use it today. It is a clear example that you can buy less and better,” the team explains.
“The phenomenon and the investment are pretty clear.” For those who want to get started on its benefits at a lower cost, there is always the option of buying the pocket version—as many of its followers say on TikTok. Looks like the Mason Pearson is worth the price and the hype: it is not just a brush, but a true hair treatment.
.
