Behind the Scenes – Same challenge, different outcome

If you enjoy reading about Fude manufacturing and behind the scenes stories, today’s post is about the Oval Hybrid, the Crease 2 and the upcoming restock of the Japanese Gardens brush from the Maki-e face series.
I wanted to share a little more insight into these three brushes in the same post because while they are completely different brushes, they share a common challenge with a very distinct outcome.

Diving into this specific challenge today can be helpful to understand some of the reasons why some brushes take longer to restock, why certain releases remain Limited Editions, why some Limited Editions may later become permanent, and why a returning brush may sometimes differ from its previous version.

THE OVAL HYBRID

The Oval Hybrid brush was released one year ago as a Limited Edition in the Mini Essentials series.
This is a wonderful brush, and it was a big success, thank you!!
I love stippling brushes that are highly versatile, and functional, so I put a lot of energy into their design. This often means exploring new techniques with the artisans to bring a very specific shape and performance to life.

So why was this brush released only as a Limited Edition? The reason is not that the bristles are rare, although the brush does use a bespoke mix of natural and synthetic fibres that is unique to this design. The real challenge is that the Oval Hybrid is a very complex brush to manufacture.

This is not an industrial process, each brush is individually handmade. The artisans need to find a way to reproduce its shape and function consistently brush after brush, without spending an unreasonable amount of time on each individual brush. They also need to be confident that the same quality, shape, and performance can be achieved batch after batch.

Because artisan time is a significant part of the manufacturing costs, techniques need to be optimized so that it does not exponentially affect its costs. If it’s for a Limited Edition release, some complex processes can still be feasible, but for a permanent brush, they need to be taken more carefully into consideration for the brush to be able to come back and remain as close as the initial release, and this was the biggest challenge. We are hopeful that it will be possible, and thanks to your interest, we are planning on bringing this Oval Hybrid back in stock.

It’s not done yet, we are at the stage where the manufacturing process is validated for a restock but all the admin processes are still ongoing.

THE SUPERSTARS – CREASE 2

You may remember the Superstars Crease 2, it was released in November 2025, together with the Crease 1.
In my previous update, I mentioned that the Crease 1 was planned to restock in the future, however, the Crease 2 was not.

The reason why the Superstars Crease 2 is not planned to be restocked is because with this particular brush and these rare natural bristles, it’s more difficult to guarantee “the same” shape consistently, or a similar enough shape, as the previous Crease 2.

This is one of the reasons why all the Superstars are Limited Edition, not only is it difficult to guarantee the availability of the bristles, but it’s also difficult to guarantee the consistency of their shape. The natural structure of these bristles is going to influence the final shape, and some shapes are more impacted than others.

Some of our customers don’t think it’s that crucial that a brush has always the exact same tapper or feel, they don’t necessarily expect an exact copy, but others do, and sometimes this is the reason why we prefer not to bring a new batch back in stock. If we did, it would still be an amazing version of the Crease 2, but it’s likely to be quite different and not what you may expect.

I love crease brushes and thinking about this topic takes me back to 2014, and to the Paula Dorf Crease brush, just to mention one. It was fun times! A difference in softness, taper, feel, didn’t only happen to that particular brush, it happened to so many, made in Japan and not made in Japan.
For Suqqu, it was also interesting because we were all crazy about the Suqqu Cheek or the Suqqu S yet we all had a slightly different version of it.

It’s a little bit like doing our own hair, we may always do the same haircut, or the same color with the same artist, but it’s rarily always the same exact results.

Nevertheless, I hope you’ll be happy to hear that several other Superstars are coming back. We are currently working on a new batch of the Detail 2, Builder 2, Crease 1, Smudger 1, Compact Crease, and Soft Worker.

I know many of you have been waiting for these brushes, and the artisans are pouring so much care and attention into these new batches, we are doing everything we can to make them absolutely beautiful. I’ll make sure to share photos with you before the restock.

THE JAPANESE GARDENS MAKI-E FACE BRUSH

The Japanese Gardens brush is part of the Maki-e Face series that launched last February 2026.

Two of these brushes alongside a modified version of the Sunset Cranes will restock today, September 29th, 2026, at 10am PT on Beautylish.

It was not possible to restock the Sunset Cranes brush with bristles of the same length, so we created a smaller version with shorter bristles and a smaller arched ferrule.

The Summer Koi brush will come back with the same specifications. The kakishibu dyed bristles are from a new batch, the dye process and the natural bristles may show a little variation, but the stability of saikoho goat bristles is easier to control in comparison to WCS bristles.

The Japanese Gardens brush has a mix of WCS (white Canadian squirrel) bristles and Saikoho (goat) bristles. Thanks to your interest in February, we were fortunate to secure a new batch. Our goal was to recreate the original brush as faithfully as possible, using the same specifications and the same saikoho-to-WCS ratio as before.
However, because this brush relies very heavily on WCS bristles, and because these particular bristles are both extremely rare and naturally very variable, this new batch may feel slightly softer, airier, or show a more tapered shape than previous versions (or may even feel the same as before). Any difference is not due to a reduction in the quantity of bristles, but when bristles are silkier, in fact the artisans often need to use more bristles to achieve the desired shape and performance. This new brush reflects the unique characteristics of the available hair, which can vary in thickness and structure from batch to batch.
There is a more detailed post about this here if you would like to read more, or see some pictures.

These brushes are made in small batches and being able to restock this brush is exceptionally rare. For this reason, I kindly ask you to keep in mind that the shape and feel of this batch may differ slightly from the previous release in spite of being made with the same technical specifications and by the same artisans.

This is not an industrial process, every handmade brush carries its own small nuances and this is a big challenge. Sometimes it means accepting that a brush cannot return as it once was. Other times it requires developing new tools, adapting techniques, or finding entirely new ways to approach the manufacturing process. For the artisans, these challenges are part of what makes their craft so rewarding. They are also part of what makes each brush unique.

If you were hoping to see these three brushes return, or if you simply enjoy learning more about the stories or craftsmanship behind them, I hope you found this little post interesting.

Thank you, as always, for your kindness, support, and enthusiasm! One of the greatest joys for me is getting to meet so many passionate Fude lovers from around the world. I’ve loved connecting with more of you on Instagram recently, and I am so grateful to be part of such a thoughtful and supportive community.

I wish you a wonderful week ahead. Please take care of yourselves, stay safe, and thank you for being part of this journey.