When it comes to preserving the shape of your brushes, it's all about how you let it dry postwash. "Even if it gets bent or splayed during washing, you can wet it down again to reset the hair pattern," said Jenny. She recommends gently squeezing wet brushes in a paper towel to soak up extra moisture then reshaping the head with your hand. Above all, don't be rough with it. "If you spin, shake, or flick your brush, you’ll get the hairs out of place and they’ll dry frizzy, the same way your own hair would if you shook it out instead of combing or brushing it," Jenny warned. Additionally, being harsh on the it can loosen the glue in the ferrule (the metal between the handle and the bristles), damaging it irreparably.
You may have read that storing a brush on its side is the best way to let it air-dry, but Jenny disagrees. "You want to prevent water from dripping into the handle, which is what causes [the heads] to come loose," she said. She suggested setting the bristles over the edge of the counter so they get 360-degree air circulation. (Try taping your handles to the counter so they stay put!) "This way, you won't get a matted shape on one side like you would if you set it down on a flat surface," Jenny explained.
