Just for fun I made some twig toothbrushes. 😀 Since I’d read about how to make vegetable tooth brushes in 1841, I was interesting in twig toothbrushes. So I searched the internet for toothbrush history – pictures of antique toothbrushes – tooth cleaning sticks and chew sticks, such as miswak and neem sticks.

For my twig toothbrushes I used apple tree and mirabelle twigs from our trees because I’d just pruned those two; but other trees can also be used for teeth cleaning twigs, such as hazelnut, willow, birch, and pear tree – willow chew sticks might even have a painkilling effect!

I cut fresh twigs into toothbrush-length sticks, removed the bark and pounded one end with a hammer to make the brush. It was fun to make these twig toothbrushes. 😀 I like that they’re natural, plastic-free and compostable. The twig toothbrushes could be used in a survival situation or for camping.

Here you’ll find more about tooth care: Victorian and Edwardian tooth powder and toothpaste recipes, brushing the teeth with soap, basic tooth powder and natural homemade toothpaste.