Buy a full case and the price per unit drops automaticallyRequest a sample
AccountCart0
All ContainersBottlesJarsCaps & ClosuresPumps & SprayersTubs & PailsJugsDroppersTinsTubesAccessories
Industries
Personal CareShop all 934 items →
AromatherapyBathBath →Body careBody care →Color cosmeticsColor cosmetics →DeodorantDeodorant →FragranceFragrance →GroomingHair careLip careLip care →NailNail →Oral careOral care →Skin and faceSkin and face →Soap and washSoapmaking →Sun and protectionSun and protection →
Learn:BathBody careColor cosmeticsDeodorantFragranceLip careNailOral careSkin and faceSoapmakingSun and protectionEverything we have written →
Learn
Beekeeping100Hot sauce making90Jam and preserves96Pickles and ferments64Sauces and condiments36Syrups36Oils and vinegars34Nut butters and spreads33Dairy and alternatives33Coffee and tea36Confection31Resin and casting27Supplement liquids23Laboratory17Dispensing13Photography and darkroom14Industrial chemical14Prepared and deli15Body care14Color cosmetics13Bath14Pet health15Toiletry decanting14Oral care14Capsules and tablets14Nail14Fragrance15Deodorant17Fossils16Janitorial16Baking and dry goods16Seed storage17Specimens16Paint and ink18Automotive fluids18Wax melts17Diffusers17Detailing15Sun and protection18Dish and hand16Soapmaking91Candle making93Beverages92Cleaning products92Lip care89Minerals and rocks93Powders91Skin and face91Spices and seasoning91Findings and components16
All 1,895 pages we have written →
Nail
All Containers›Shop by use case›Nail›The brush›Choosing a brushShop all nail →
The brush

Choosing a brush

By Dwight Davis, Founder

Updated

On this page8
The brush is the whole user experience of a nail polish, and it is a closure.

Width against the nail

A wide brush covers a nail in fewer strokes and floods a small one; a narrow brush is controllable and slow. That is a product positioning decision disguised as a component specification.

Length and flex

A longer, more flexible brush lays down a thinner film and follows the nail’s curve; a short stiff one gives more control and more brush marks. Neither is better and the choice has to match the lacquer’s flow.

The wiper is half of it

The wiper in the neck meters how much lacquer stays on the brush. Too tight and the brush comes out dry, too loose and it floods the cuticle. It is part of the closure and it is rarely specified deliberately.

Which means the lacquer and the brush are one decision

A thick, fast-drying lacquer wants a different brush and wiper from a thin sheer one. Tuning the formula against a brush you have not chosen yet is how a good lacquer becomes a bad polish.

Solvent resistance, for the bristles and the stem

The brush sits in the solvent for the life of the product. Bristles that splay, soften or shed, and a stem that softens where it meets the cap, are all slow failures that reach customers.

Match the finish, not the diameter

The four brush caps here are on 18-400, 18-410, 20-400 and 28-400. The 18-400 and 18-410 are a digit apart and not interchangeable, which is the same trap the fragrance sprayers have.

Test it by painting nails

With the real lacquer, the real brush and the real wiper, repeatedly, over weeks. Everything on this page is a feel judgment and a durability one, and neither shows in a specification sheet.

References

21 CFR 701.3, the cosmetic ingredient declaration, which requires ingredients in descending order of predominance on the label of a cosmetic in package form. law.cornell.edu
29 CFR 1910.1200, Hazard Communication, which sets what a shipped container of a hazardous chemical carries and requires a safety data sheet. law.cornell.edu
Written from federal regulation and from measured catalog data, not from a salon. Whether a formula crosses 5 percent methacrylic acid or 500 mg of acetonitrile is a question about your formula and your container size, and the percentages here are the test rather than the answer. Nothing on these pages certifies a package as child-resistant.