Barber Towels

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Usage of Barber Towels

 

It has been quite some time since you had a hair cut or shaved your beard. A month or two, maybe. The next day you visit the local barbershop for a cut.

While prepping for the shave, you notice the barber pull out an orange-colored towel from a neatly stacked column of orange towels from the cupboard. It is not just orange; there is another stack of red-colored barber towels and another stack of green-colored towels. Why green or red or orange? Why so many of them?

Although you visit the barbershop once in a month, you might have failed to notice the number of barber towels that barbershops use. They are mostly stored in a cabinet below the counter or in the cupboards.

There is a very striking correlation between barbershops and towels. Without barber towels, it is quite impossible to run a barbershop. You know that it is used for shaving or trimming your hair,  and you might have also experienced the hot-towel experience before the shave. But there are other purposes as to why barbershops use a lot of towels. In this post, we will look into the details of how barbers use towels in their daily operations and its impact on running a barbershop

 

 

How do Barbers use their Towels?

In the late nineteenth century, most barbershops in the United States of America would keep a stock of barber towel wholesale that would last for a week. The barbers at that time would re-use the same towel on a different customer. Yes, you read that, right! One towel was used on an average of ten customers.

Suppose you find that in a barbershop today, you probably would have been grossed out by this practice and definitely would not visit that place again. Might even report it to the authorities and get the shop shut down. Well, in the present era, this is not the case anymore. Barbers know the potential hazards of using towels on different customers. It is unhygienic, and there might be a very severe risk of transferring infectious diseases from one customer to another. Below, we will dive deep into how a modern-day barber uses towels for regular cutting and trimming jobs.

Prepping for the cut

Wholesale barber towels are mostly used for shaving. It is rarely used for haircutting, as there are different types of wraps, which are easy to clean that can be used for this purpose. So the barber begins the shaving process (or haircutting) by tucking in the towel into the customer's collar.

The main aim is to protect the client's clothing from the falling hair, or else this turns into a very uncomfortable experience for the customer. It is also used for the hotel towel experience, which is done to prepare the face before shaving.

Post cut

After the shave, the barber uses a shaving towel to wipe off the excess shaving cream from the face. Shaving towel provide a soft and comfortable feeling as it is wiped on to the sensitive face. The last thing you wish to put on your face after a shave is a low-quality shaving towel, which will send you screaming from the chair because of the extreme pain caused by the fabric of poorly made towels.

Cleaning the tools

Before washing off the scissors and razors and then dipping them into a disinfectant, the cuttings tools need to be wiped clean. The cleaning should be done with a 100%  cotton towel or a microfiber towel to wipe off all the hair. The tools also need to be dried with a cotton towel after the disinfecting process.

House-keeping

Barbers keep a separate set of barber towels 15x25 to keep their workspace clean. Hair starts accumulating on the chair and the counter, or there might even be a spill. A stain and odor resistant towel, also known as bleach safe, is used for this purpose.

 

The Hot Towel Experience

You might not find this in the regular barbershops these days as the use of traditional razors has been fading away time. Most barbers prefer to use electric razors as it is less time-consuming. Although the hot towel experience involves many steps, you can still find the hot towel experience in old or high-end barbershops.

The hotel towel is used to damp the hair before shaving. The strength of the facial hair is reduced when the hot towel is applied to the face. Through research, it has been found out that hairs have the same strength as copper. There over 15000 pores on the face that have hairs of copper strength in it. The application of the towel makes it easier to shave and gives your face a fresh look.

The freshness on the skin comes from the fresh hot barber towel, which is pre-treated with oils. Oils are one of the key ingredients to achieve a hot towel experience. Different types of oil can be used on the towel. The most popular ones are eucalyptus, sandalwood, and lavender. All of these oils are readily available in the market. The most economical oil is the eucalyptus, and similar to that is the sandalwood. However, sandalwood does not come cheap.

After the application of oil, the towel is then heated. There are different techniques to warm up the towels. The most popular one is to drench the towel thoroughly in boiling water. After several minutes, the towel is removed from the container. The excess water is wrung off, and the towel is then applied to the face.

The hotel towel experience is one of those experiences that make your trip to the barbershop shop worth a while. It was once a symbol of social significance in the barbershop. You could socialize with others and get a quality hair cut and shave from the same place. It is sad to see that this tradition is dying as the new generation of barbers replaces old ones.

Qualities of Barber Towels (Hot Towel)

The thing that makes the hot towel experience so extraordinary is the effort it requires in creating this experience. The towels used for the hot towel experience should be made out of comfortable materials to give the face a warm and refreshing feeling. Over the years, men have paid more out of their pockets to achieve this level of comfort. White barber towels used for this purpose should have the desired softness and absorbency with the right type of texture.

Altogether, for a towel to bring a comforting experience to the face, it must be made of materials that feel soft against the skin. In this way, the most suitable and recommended kind of material for barber towels is cotton. The softness of cotton is best for giving a soothing and refreshing feeling when the towel is snuggled on to the face. The cotton towel trumps in providing a comfortable feel to the face when compared with microfiber towels. The latter is mainly used for cleaning the furniture at a barbershop.

Barber towels work by absorbing moisture. This phenomenon gives the texture of the cotton a warm and damped look. This, in turn, provides a soothing experience to the face by stimulating the microscopic pores to the degree that prepares the skin for an ultimate fine shave. Without the absorbent property of the towel, water will generally slide off the outside of the towel. Given the state of such towels, the surface would be hard to soak in any condition. It would be impossible for the towel to absorb water even when lowered in a bowl with boiling water. For towels that have superior absorbent properties, shop for towels that are made of 100% cotton.

Bleach-Safe Towels

Another type of towels commonly found at barbershops are bleach-safe towels. The primary purpose of using bleach-safe towels is to ease the process of cleaning and disinfecting towels. Many stains can stick to the towel in a barbershop.

As mentioned before, it is used for housekeeping purposes. Bleach-safe towels are used to clean any liquid that spills onto the counter. Another purpose for which they are used is to clean off the blood. Yes, Blood! Barbers keep them in case any accident happens. With the use of scissors and razors, there is a high probability of any cutting related incident. The victim can either be the barber or the client. So to wipe off the stains like blood, bleach-safe towels are used.

 If we talk about just bleach, it is used to treat the towels for cleaning purposes. Bleach cleans of the dirtiest stains from the towels. However, it is also the number one enemy of towels, especially the colored ones. When a cotton barber towels is treated with bleach, it attacks the surface of the towel, which causes potential harm to its fabric. This damage can also cause the towel to wear off. In the case of colored towels, it decolorizes the towel and leaves white spots on the towel. Now that we know why it is essential to use bleach-resistant barber towels, we will now look into its benefits.

Using bleach-safe barber towels helps the barbers in the long run. These towels last longer than your average towels. Bleach-resistant barber towels retain their original appearance after treated with bleach.

The white remains white, and the colored towels do not lose their color. The barbers do not have to discard their irremovable stained towels and buy another set of towels. This entire would have been too expensive for them. If taken care of properly, these towels can be very economical for barbers. They can re-use bleach-safe towels over more extended periods, without worrying about the stains or the effect of bleach on towels.

 

 

A Guide to buying barber towels.

When buying towels, it is necessary to select the right type of towel. Choosing the wrong could towels have adverse consequences. It can lead to customer dissatisfaction, which could taint the reputation of your barbershop. Furthermore, you would want to avoid towels that need to be frequently discarded because of rapid wear and tear. Towels for use at barbershop should be strong and durable so that they can last for extended periods.

The first thing you need to look for when buying a barber towel is the size. You do not want to purchase oversized towels as that would not be very easy for you to handle and would also be an unpleasant experience for the customer.

The recommended size you should be looking out for is the 15x25 hand towel size. It is the ideal size, especially for using it in the hot towel experience. Hand towels are easy to use, plus they can be stored easily without consuming a lot of space.

The next thing on your list should be the material of the towels. As mentioned earlier, towels need to be made out of 100%  cotton. The cotton textured surface not only provides a soft and comfy feel when applied on the face, but it also has excellent damping properties, which give a softer feel to the face and also makes the towels very strong.

Also, when selecting a towel, be sure to choose bleach-resistant towels. They are made out of 100% cotton and have extreme resistance to bleach. This additional property allows bleach to remove die-hard stains without damaging or decolorizing the towel, plus you do not have to buy a new set of towels again and again. So do not fear bleach! Invest in bleach-safe towels as they are easy to maintain and very economical for the business.

A pro-tip to buying barber towels is to buy them in bulk. If you purchase in smaller quantities or buy only when required, you end up spending more money than your budget. It is better to buy the towels in bulk from a wholesale store as they offer discounts on bulk purchases.

At, Towel Depot we offer wholesale barber towels that suit your business aesthetics. You can select from a wide range of colors instead of just keeping the regular white barber hot towel.

 

Tips for Barber Towels

You have made a strategic investment in your barber towels by buying them in bulk and ensuring customer satisfaction. To make sure that it does not go to waste, you need to take care of your towels. Below are some tips to make your towel last longer:

• Wash the barber towels before using them for the first time. New towels come along with a special fabric softener that does not allow the proper absorption of water. It is imperative to wash the towel before the first use, to open up its pores, and to remove the fabric softener.
  
  
• Use bleach as a cleaning agent. Bleach helps to remove the toughest stains, which allows you to re-use the towels. Make sure that you bleach-safe towels to avoid any damages to the towel.
  
  
• Use white vinegar to wash the barber shop towels. After a wash, barber facial towels usually smell unpleasant. White vinegar helps in eliminating that odor. With this technique, the towels smell fresh and would give a pleasant experience to the customer.
  
  
• Wash and dry the barber facial towels separately. If washed and dried with another fabric, pills form on the towel. This leads to the shedding of the towel fibers and decreases its life-cycle.
  
  
• Keep the towels smelling fresh. Use scented wool dryer balls with a few drops of oil, instead of using a dryer sheet. Before folding it, spray the towel with herbal water to keep them smelling fresh.

 

 

Conclusion

To sum it up, towels play an essential role in the daily operations of a barbershop. From housekeeping to customer satisfaction, the towels are more than just a fabric made out of cotton. They reflect the true identity of the barbershop.

It makes the trip to the barbershop worth everyone's time. People are bound to revisit a place that provides quality services along with quality products. Using a good quality cotton leave is a gateway to customer satisfaction. Not only that, but it also eases the burden on your pockets. Investing in quality towels goes a long way, so be sure to select the right type of towels for your business.