I miss old-school style toothbrushes, the ones with the flat heads and straight handles. Have you noticed that they have become difficult to find? This led me on a quest to Plain Toothbrush brand toothbrushes, an exceptionally well made, durable brush that gives my teeth and mouth a full, even cleaning without irritating sensitive gums.

While teeth have always been important to one’s appearance, celebrity white teeth seem practically mandatory to the current aesthetic. So when the sonic toothbrushes came to market, I jumped on the bandwagon because I loved how smooth it made my teeth feel and they looked shiny and whiter as if they just had a professional cleaning. But my sonic toothbrush wasn’t getting my teeth as clean as I thought…

MY GRIPE WITH SONIC TOOTHBRUSHES
My teeth do look good when I use a sonic or electric toothbrush, but they don’t seem as clean, and I noticed I got more tartar build-up on the backsides of some of my teeth. This surprised me since I thought if my teeth looked and felt clean they must BE clean. When I forgot to charge my sonic toothbrush and used it manually, I saw what a poor job the actual brush did in being able to access and clean my teeth.

The other issue with both Sonic and drugstore manual toothbrushes is the multi-tier shape of the toothbrush head doesn’t conform well to my teeth as well as expected, it fits well on some sections of my teeth, but other areas are harder to reach, such as the back of my teeth. I also noticed a multi-tier head toothbrush doesn’t clean my tongue, gums or the rest of my mouth as well as I would like.

ADVANTAGES OF THE WELL MADE TRADITIONAL HEAD TOOTHBRUSH

Traditionally shaped toothbrushes can better access both the front and back of the teeth (inside and outside), the gums, as well as access the top and bottom of teeth. The equal, uniform bristle length is not an irritant to gums.

If your teeth are weak, your enamel is worn, or you have dental work such as caps or veneers, the vibrations of a sonic toothbrush or a stiff bristle unevenness multi-tier toothbrush may be too hard on your teeth. It also can be too much pressure on gums. Studies show most people brush their teeth too vigorously, and unless you have dexterity issues that make tooth brushing difficult, most people will benefit from a softer toothbrush.

ABOUT PLAIN OLD-FASHIONED TOOTHBRUSH BRAND TOOTHBRUSHES

Sturdy construction: these brushes are designed with a type of plastic made from wood pulp cellulose which is strong, non-brittle, shiny and translucent. It is the same material as many eyeglass frames. These Plain Old-Fashioned Toothbrush toothbrushes are a much higher quality than the disposable type of toothbrushes that might be available at a hotel or come in an emergency overnight bag or dopp travel kit, they have a dollar store feel to them, and the bristles fall out quickly. Those brushes are shaped like a traditional toothbrush but are typically made of a cheap plastic and harsh bristles. I like the feel and heft of these Plain Toothbrushes in my hand. They do not have the very “disposable” feel of the plastic used for many toothbrushes. They are also not too lightweight but easy to use and maneuver. The bristles do not come loose or bend excessively after a few weeks of use, and they last much longer than many of the toothbrushes I see at the drugstore.

As seen in the photos below, the child size toothbrush has a smaller handle and bristle heads. The kid’s brush has 8 x 3 sets of bristle rows, and an adults brush has 11 rows of 4 and one row of three. The disposable traditional-style toothbrushes I checked were only three rows.

Plain Toothbrush bristle strength ranges from kids x-soft, adult x-soft, soft and hard. X-soft is best for children and those with damaged or very sensitive teeth. Soft is suitable for most adults with normal teeth and gums as well as those who have some enamel wear, sensitive gums, or dental work such as caps and veneers. Hard is often best suited for those with limited dexterity.

THE MULTI-TIER TOOTHBRUSH VS. PLAIN TOOTHBRUSH EXPERIMENT

The premise of the Plain Old-Fashioned Toothbrush brand is that the multi-tier brushes reach some sections of teeth very well, namely the crevices on your back teeth, but to the sacrifice of the rest of the areas of your teeth such as the tops, bottoms, backs and the gums.

So I brushed my teeth as usual with my multi-tiered toothbrush and assessed how clean they looked and felt, and then I brushed my teeth right after with the Plain Old-Fashioned Toothbrush in ‘soft.” I was surprised how much cleaner they felt after using the Plain Old-Fashioned Toothbrush and how much easier it was to assess areas such as the back of the of my lower front teeth. My teeth felt much smoother.

I also found it simpler to hold the flat brush handle. While the molded grip on the multi-tier seems like a good idea, it doesn’t help one angle the toothbrush correctly; it gives too hard a grip and in my opinion, makes it all too easy to brush too aggressively. While the round molded grip may help those with dexterity problems, it is likely a hindrance for those who can wield a flat handle normally as it is easier to maneuver.

The bristles hold their shape well. This may be in part because I am holding the brush at a better angle and not brushing too hard.

Overall, I’m pleased to find these Plain Old-Fashioned Toothbrush brand toothbrushes for several reasons. They are easier to use than multi-tier brushes, I can evenly access all of my teeth and gums, my teeth feel cleaner on both “sides” of my tooth, the brushes last longer, and the bristles do not irritate my gums. And they are very pretty jewel tone colors. The actual brush handles fit into the toothbrush holder mounted on the wall. I thought of myself as someone who needed toothpaste for sensitive teeth and gums, but I think I just had too hard of a toothbrush.

Non-Traditional Beauty Hacks using Traditional Toothbrushes.

While teeth care is a vital part of overall beauty, we always do like products that multi-task (just use a different one than the one you use on your teeth!). Here are some additional beauty uses for traditional toothbrushes:

EYEBROW STYLING AND MAKEUP APPLICATION
And, traditional head toothbrushes are a favorite in my beauty arsenal for styling the perfect eyebrow. I use a Plain Old-Fashioned Toothbrush in the hard bristle head style to style, groom, and shape my brows. I also use the Plain Old-Fashioned Toothbrush x-soft in the child size to I apply my brow creme or powder and lightly brush on my brows to fill them in. It makes for a much more natural brow look. Finally, I also liked using the adult hard Plain Old-Fashioned Toothbrush for gently applying a brow setting gel or even using a tiny bit of hairspray sprayed directly onto the toothbrush to set brows in place. Same concept for dabbing a bit of Vaseline, Jojoba or Olive Oil on the eyebrows to condition them.

REMOVE MASCARA CLUMPS WHILE RETAINING A LUSH LASHLINE
I also like a dry, soft bristle child size brush to comb excess mascara off my upper eyelashes when I use a real thick, black full mascara, as it can quickly remove all the mascara clumps while still retaining excellent eyelash separation that is far superior to the lash separation capacity of a standard eyelash comb. Take THAT, sonic toothbrushes!

Find them at http://www.plain-toothbrush.com

I received this product in exchange for my unbiased review and received compensation for my time and effort. However, my experience with the product and the opinions expressed in this review are 100% mine.