As Buly 1803 launches on MR PORTER, we round-up the best combs for every hair-type and style.

Mr Ramdane Touhami, the man behind superlative grooming brand Buly 1803, which arrives on MR PORTER today, is obsessed with combs. In Japan, where he now lives, he makes a regular pilgrimage to a Shinto shrine in Kiso, a few hours from Nagoya, where for the past 900 years a single family have been making ceremonial combs from wood that takes 100 years to dry. His eyes light up when he talks about this process – he sells the combs in his Buly store in Paris. But he’s equally enthusiastic about the range of 70 – yes, 70 – different kinds of acetate comb that he has developed for Buly 1803 – a brand that combines the aesthetic and potent fragrances of a historic perfumier with a contemporary, highly considered approach to sourcing ingredients and developing products.

Why did he feel the need to create quite so many combs? It all started with a trip to a Swiss factory, which had been making combs for various brands since the 1950s, and a conversation with its owner, an 86-year-old Italian woman. “I said, ‘I want to do combs’,” says Mr Touhami. “‘How many combs do you do?’ She said ‘We’ve been here since 1956 and we mainly do 10–12 combs, everyone is asking us for the same ones.’ I said ‘What is your dream?’ And she said ‘Well, in the 50s, we were making 50, 70, 80 combs.’ And she showed me all the archives. And because I must have lost my brain somewhere a few years ago, I said ‘Let’s do all of them’”.

At this point, we must disappoint slightly, and admit that, the powers that be at MR PORTER did not exhibit quite the same cavalier attitude when purchasing Mr Touhami’s stock – of which we are now the exclusive online distributor. So we are launching Buly 1803 with a smaller edit of these rather fantastic creations, made from a unique, and mesmerising tortoiseshell-effect acetate; as opposed to plastic, it is 70 per cent vegetable matter. Having said that, for a comb novice, even the next four examples provide plenty to think about. Scroll down for our guide on each comb and how to use it, and enter a brave new world of well-kempt hirsuteness.

Facial hair seems to be overwhelmingly popular at the current point in time. And regardless of a person’s general opinion of this fact, most people would agree that it’s much better to have a beard that’s sleek and lustrous rather than one that’s scraggy and full of knots (and potentially, bits of food – a horrible thought). To achieve the former effect (and avoid the latter eventuality), we therefore recommend the use of this curved beard comb, in which the teeth are positioned (not too close, not too far apart) to perfectly suit the texture and density of normal facial hair.

After applying a moisturising beard oil, such as the one offered by D R Harris. Avoid combing straight after a shower or when the beard is completely dry, as at both times the hair is prone to breakage.

Run the comb through your beard from top to bottom, and side to centre. Take it slow – again, this helps avoid breakages.

This slightly odd-looking comb is intended for those of us that like to wear our hair in a precise side-parting. The top part is for the regular comb stuff, separating and smoothing the strands of your hair. The metal spike at the end, however, is for ensuring the line of your parting is as crisp as possible. This will also come in handy for any more technical hairstyle you want to try out.

After blowdrying (to almost dry) and applying your favourite product. (How much and which product depends on how slick you want the look to be – for an all-rounder we would suggest Bumble and bumble’s Sumotech).

Use the tail end to create a clean parting in your hair, flicking any stray strands over with the point (be gentle, however, the end is rather sharp). Then use the fine-toothed comb to smooth the hair on either sides of the parting. Brushing upwards from the roots will help add texture and volume to your style.

You probably already have a comb of the fine-toothed variety – this is the kind most commonly available in high-street pharmacies, and the kind most found in Christmas crackers, and gift boxes from people who don’t know you that well. But the one comb you should actually have in your bathroom cupboard is a medium- or wide-toothed rake comb such as the one above, particularly if you have thicker, curlier hair. Why? Because it will easily help manage unruly locks and complex styles whatever your hair type, without leaving you with that sprayed-on 1950s android look that can sometimes be the result of using a finer-toothed comb.

Just after washing and/or part-drying your hair. You can use this one on wet hair, as the wider-set teeth are less likely to cause breakage.

Simply swoop it through your hair from root to tip. For a looser, more wavy style, you can leave it there, or if you want a sharper look you might consider following up with a finer-toothed comb once all the knots have been teased out.

You can’t spend all day in front of the bathroom mirror, nor would you want to. But hair has a way of coming undone as a person sails their way through a typical day, which means that a portable grooming device such as the above is the kind of thing that will always come in handy. Fold it away and slip it in your suit pocket, then whip it out at 4pm and dazzle your friends and colleagues with your 24-hour impeccable-ness.

On dry or damp (not wet) hair, after you’ve combed your it with the medium or wide-toothed comb (and then for touch-ups throughout the day; this will also work for facial hair, too). Going in straight away with a fine-toothed comb can break hair, so watch out.

As with the wide-toothed comb, pass it through your hair from root to tip. Then fold it away with a debonair flick of your wrist. The first part is easy, the second might require some practise.