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Sunday, December 12, 2010

Tete a Tete: Mason Pearson Knockoff?

I am at the end of grading, a painful process, in which I go head to head (though not in a tete a tete) with student work. (I hope my wonderful French teachers--Mlle. Moore, M. Giordano, M. Moore, and M. Danon--are not looking at this wielding their red pens, looking for any little mistake. I KNOW I need circumflexes and an accent. I am too burned out to find out how to do them. Thanks for understanding.)

Anyway, every time a holiday comes around I fantasize about buying myself a Mason Pearson brush.

I've actually owned a few. I first bought one when I was in high school WITH MY BABYSITTING MONEY. They were about $12 at the time, representing about 16 hours of labor. Within 10 minutes of ownership, I left it in a NYC phone booth, When I returned 2 minutes later, it was gone.

I went back to the store in tears and bought another, representing another 16 hours of labor. I had it for many years. Mine didn't last forever, even though people say they do.

Amazingly, I found one in New Orleans, at a yard sale in a fancy neighborhood. It was 75 cents. That didn't last forever either, though it did last a long time.

I don't really need one. Today--newsflash--I learned that Target carries a knock-off. This was news a few years ago, but not being a reader of Allure magazine or of beauty blogs, I missed it.



Has anyone used the knock-off? What do you think of the hairbrush tete a tete (Sorry again to French teachers)? Is it a crime to buy a copy of an iconic brand? Is it a crime for said iconic brand to charge so much for a hairbrush?

6 comments:

mette said...

Definitely no crime. I have not ever seen the original one, but usually the original, despite the price, is a better option. But, then again, you knew my answer.

Duchesse said...

Buy the real, you will enjoy it every time you pick it up. The knockoff stays just that.

adornedunicorn said...

I have the Target one- actually a couple, for my daughter's fine hair. It's great! Consumer Reports did a comparison and the Sonia Kaushak (Target 0 one won!

Gayle Ann Berg said...

I gifted myself with the real one for my 50th birthday. I truly enjoy using it...

Frugal Scholar said...

@metscan--Maybe I should get a Finnish brush instead.

@Duchesse-I am still conflicted on the subject (what else is new?). It just seems soooo much for a mere brush.

@adornedunicorn--Great to know. Will check out CR in the library.

@GayleAnn--Even though I remain conflicted, I must say that is a great birthday present!

Funny about Money said...

That's odd. The Kaushak one looks exactly like the one I used to use on my German shepherd. The original appears to combine both boar bristle and nylon; the knock-off apparently is just nylon, which was what the brush in question was made of.

How weird! Just went looking for it and can't find it...must have given it away after Anna passed on to her furry fathers.

I dunno. If you can afford the real one, you might like it better over the long run. I'm always a little dubious of Consumer Reports when it comes to beauty products, wine, and other matters of taste.