What are the features of vair hair brushes and what uses are they suitable for?

The term “vair” refers to squirrel hair, a very soft and flexible fur, that is treated according to an age-old processing technique handed down by furriers.  

In the original version of Cinderella - whose French title is “Cendrillon ou la petite pantoufle de vair” - the glass slipper was actually made from vair.

The first translator seems to have mistaken the word vair for "verre" which means “glass". That is where the italian version of the glass slipper came from.

The distinctive flexibility and fineness of this type of hair make it specifically suitable for painting on ceramics and for watercolours use.

Borciani Bonazzi’s gilding flat brushes on cardboard made from vair hair are unique and appreciated by professional gilders.

A fine selection of this fur is used to produce a particular article in our Masterpiece series, dedicated to watercolour enthusiasts.