I am something of a vintage ebony hairbrush collector. I don’t know why – we only use one of them, because it was a gift from a dear friend, but I enjoy seeing the differences between them, testing them out to see how they feel compared to my “primary” one, etc. They’re also lovely vintage pieces. What’s not to like?! They can vary in size and color because wood is a natural thing, but they are all typically heavy and dense and oh-so-perfect for a very punishing sort of spanking. My meager collection currently only stands at 4.
The problem is, vintage ebony hairbrushes are hard to find in the US and most of the UK listings that are willing to ship to the US, use eBay’s Global Shipping program. This means, there’s a central hub in the UK processing the packages and “ebony” is on a banned list. Finished ebony, especially vintage pieces, are not supposed to be caught in that, but they are. Both myself and a friend have had ebony hairbrushes caught by this and they are NOT returned to sender, but destroyed, and the buyer is refunded. This is now 4 hairbrushes (three coming to me and one for her) that have met that fate. Truly tragic and sad! I’ve had one sent to a UK friend and he’ll bring it over to me in April, but that’s not always practical and I don’t want him to feel used!
I now no longer buy from UK sellers unless they’re shipping directly, or if they’re on Etsy and mark the item as a vanity set, instead of as ebony. Unfortunately, recently, I was a bit impulsive with some US sellers and ordered four hairbrushes that should have been ebony. Only two were listed as such but only one of the four was actual ebony. Ugh. Two were real gambles, but cheap. The third had the right look and was listed as ebony but is very light and not stamped ebony, so is a dud. I am going to try and dispute that one.
The fourth, is below. It’s narrow and not terribly heavy because of the slats. It also appears unused despite its vintage state. Jeris is a known vintage hairbrush brand but I’ve primarily seen silver ones, not wood and I couldn’t find anything else about it on google, sadly. It’s stamped genuine ebony and marked “Jeris n.12” which I assume refers to the name of the brush in the company’s inventory.
Anyway, I haven’t felt it yet but I doubt I’ll like it very much because I suspect it’s more stingy than it’s wider, heavier, and denser counter parts. Will it stop me from gambling on eBay? Ehh maybe? These weren’t so expensive and I haven’t got many hobbies, so, you know. It could be worse? If you’re in the UK and you want to spoil me, you can send me all the ebony hairbrushes you can get your hands on *wink*
Another item I ordered recently was more impulsive than a gamble, because in the two years I’ve been keeping an eye out, I’ve never seen or snagged one: a true vintage grey wool gymslip. I didn’t fully realize it but the buttons are actually on the back of this one. It has a loop for a belt and a single pocket, like my Albert Prendergast recreation, which has the buttons at the top of the shoulder. It’s lovely and I just had to get my hands on it. Sadly, it’ll never fit (it’s marked 38 which I suspect is the bust measurement – being an adult and having breastfed a child, my bust will never be that small without serious surgical intervention!) but it’s lovely to have.
Since there is a good chance I’ll never wear my own gymslip again, I’ll probably hang this upstairs in my closet with it and re-sell them both at a later date when I’m ready. It’s the kind of permanent decision I’m not ready to make yet but am preparing myself for the reality of. The idea of it being real uniform though? Heady. I would have loved to have found one in my size so I could have tried it on (I did try, of course, which was laughable!).
eBay seems an odd place to look for kink stuff, but I’ve also bought a vintage tawse as well. It’s a good place if you’re looking for true vintage items, that’s for sure! Have you ever scored a kink item on eBay or another resale site?
-M
I just love your fascination with ebony hairbrushes, Marie. I had no idea that it was so difficult to have that shipped to the US. This post was particularly timely for me as I was at Ulta earlier, browsing hairbrushes. While they didn’t have anything vintage (obviously) I did enjoy seeing the wide paddle brushes and simply seeing the word “paddle” written on the label. I am such a spanko. Like many, I remember looking up the words spanking and paddle in the dictionary…and I still thrill to this day when I see those words out in public! I came home with a more practical brush for my long wavy hair, but how I wish it were one of your beautiful ebony ones. Fun post! XOXO
A kink is nothing if not specific, after all 😅 I read one mentioned in a spanking story once when I was *cough* very young *cough* and it stuck. Same with the Mason Pearson (tho I was surprised as an adult to learn those are plastic). I actually don’t use any of these ebony brushes on my hair. The bristles are very old and my hair is very VERY fine and thin, and needs something with more space. I currently use a Mason Pearson Junior mixed actually but have been looking at the Bur Bur hairbrushes. I know Ulta carries Denman Paddle brushes and I’ve always gotten a giggle out of seeing how they’re described 🤭 us spankos are a predictable lot!
Yes, we sure are <3