THE HAIRBRUSH RENAISSANCE IS HERE

Never mind the cheap drugstore options you have stashed in a drawer. The latest wave of beautifully crafted brushes are a return to a bygone era of beauty.

- BY HANNAH BAXTER

SNASA rather than a self-care ritual. Blowdryers boast supersonic engineering while flat irons feature trademarked heat-protectant technology. Flashy chrome accents and a range of customizable attachments have elevated the curling, straightening, and smoothing processes to the pinnacle of high-tech innovation.

Yet the hairbrush, with its straightforward facility—and lack of power cords—is proving to be the year’s most in-demand hair accessory, an elegant reminder of the industry’s return to “slow beauty,” and push towards more conscious consumerism. “I love innovation, and all these tools and gadgets are so fun, but there’s something about the simple foundational things that change the way we feel,” says Dianna Cohen, founder of the haircare company Crown Affair.

Brushes have been a staple of human grooming for thousands of years. The contemporary kind, in the style of a paddle, handle, and bristles, found its footing, like so many categories of beauty, in France. “All the royal courts were very fond [of] beauty and fragrance, but also about brushing tools and combs,” says Pauline Laurent, one of the cofounders of hairbrush company La Bonne Brosse. “You had very lovely objects in silver and ivory, that were like a collection.”