Need Help With Brushes

[Steve838]

I haven't seen much discussion here about brushes to use when painting with acrylics. I have discovered that cheap brushes really don't do a very good job and leave hairs. I also need to know what style brushes other carvers use. By style I mean round, filbert, etc. A trip to the art supply store can be very confusing. Also, what sizes and type of bristles are best for painting small caricatures. I need brushes to paint fine lines. Any help would be appreciated.

[mpounders]

I primarily just use two brushes, a filbert and a liner, that I believe are Golden Ektalon (?). I looked in different carving catalogs and saw this brand mentioned, then found them at the local art store. They have held up very well. The filbert holds a lot of paint and does great for most stuff but I use the liner for details. It also holds a lot of paint when necessary, or just what is needed.

[LMiller]

There was a great thread by a fellow carver on 'How to Kill Your Paint Brushes' by Dileon.

I sort of recall that she was an artist before she started carving. I'd recommend that you seek her recommendations on brushes, their care and maintenance, and possibly their sources.

Hopefully, we can get a public response and we can all learn!

Good Luck!

LMiller

PS: I don't even know the name of the type of brush I use. I bought a set from the craft store that said they were good for Acrylics. I use the flat brush in the smallest and then the medium size from the kit. I get a better control going into a hard edge than with the round brushes.

[mpounders]

I found some more info. I like the Loew-Cornell Golden Taklon brushes, found at the woodcraft shop and art stores.
I primarily use the second from the left for most painting either one of the two on the right end for details. Look for these at a hobby store and pick what seems to meet your needs!

[Robson Valley]

Ditto Mike P. for brush choices. To some degree you have to scale your brushes to the size of the carving or area to be painted.
1. Always, always, soak your brushes in plain water for 20-30 minutes first. This gets water up inside the ferrule so paint can't get in there and dry/set up. My best watercolor brush was $70.00 and I am not about to screw that up.
2. Acrylics wash out of brushes very nicely with hot water and hand soap. Rinse out what paint you can then gently scrub on the soap bar and rinse, repeat several times.
3. Figure out how to let your brushes dry, pointed down. Even less chance for crud to dry up in the ferrule. I drilled little holes and use bent paperclips on a small line over the sink.

[Steve838]

Thanks for the great help, folks. Never in my wildest dreams would I ever deserve a $70 paint brush. Take good care of it, RV. I'll try to soak my brushes first. Good idea.

LMiller, thanks for the link to Dileon's thread about brushes. It answered my all questions and then some.

[Robson Valley]

My Dad was a painter & professor. He gave me the Grumbacher #8 brush. Took me 3 months to screw up the courage to use it. I'll stick with $50 or less.

[Dileon]

Hi, got my nose in a carving...smile. Just stop by and it is bed time. The thread on how to kill your brushes has ideas for new painters. Yes I have about 40 years experience in this field.... here is part of thread that, I was going to post about painting it will help you also. Sorry about not edit the work......I am about to drop...

Common mistakes are. . .
Use the wrong tools. Cheap brushes could leave bristles on the carving, and they won’t load and distribute paint properly. A synthetic designer brush is best for acrylic paints. (You’d use a natural-bristle brush for an oil-based, or alkyd, paint.) Beginners small and flat brushes are best. Lynn uses a China brush like a master painter. I would not recommend this for people who are just begin to paint unless you have been practicing Chinese typography.
Not observing your subjects. Do you spend time finding pictures of your subject. This is my bad, and I ended up having to start over…. When, I do not do the research. For those who aren't spending sufficient time observing the topics that you simply want to paint, then you definitely won't know have knowledge to paint them.
Over apply paint. If you paint to thick, let it dry ….sand it off and reapply.
Too much thinking. Do not overly criticize or even judge your personal work when you are painting. This particular only produces discouragement, as well as forces numerous beginners into being frustrated as well as quit. Simply relax as well as let go. Believe in yourself as well as your abilities.
Do not ask for help in your painting. Ask people on the board for suggestions, and trying each suggestion out. See what works for you. Note: on the board, people will not give advice unless you ask for it.
When painting people you paint the whole iris on the eye ball ….if you look at photographs, the whole circle is shown on animals, not people. The iris is partially behind the eye lids.
Leave the painting mistake on the carving. The best part about using acrylics is that if I make a mistake. I can just work on a different section of the painting and let the previous one dry. Then I can come back and paint over what I didn't like. You can paint over mistakes as many times as you need to with acrylics. Just do not put a blob on it.
Painting over the fuzzies. There are many ways to get rid of fuzzies.
Paint a few carvings and tell everyone you cannot paint and then quit. Painting is about mistakes, and learning from those mistakes. Everyone paints a different way, try out the methods of people that you like. And also remember to experiment….yesterdays failure could be todays success.
Sticking the whole brush into the paint. The brush bristles need only half of the bristles coated with paint. Otherwise you will like me….paint on my hands, go to my carving then continue on my face and clothes, before I know it. Wash that brush often and do not let paint dry on it, as you paint….this can happen to a brush in a matter of a few minutes.
Use bottled mix colors and never….Learn how to mix your colors. Yes it takes time….but you mix up your bottle paints to the color you want. Learn how to make purple, green, and orange….then add white to each color and then black. Learn how to make brown . After that get a book about mixing cool and warm colors.
Feel bad when someone makes a remark. Do not take criticism from people who do not know anything about painting or carving, remember the source counts….and then it is up to you to do whatever you want. If you are happy with your work…then, it is no one business to give out advice.

[Sean R]

Boy Di, I do not know if that answered his questions. but it sure helped me out. Thank you! That was a excellent write up. I have always used most paint from the tube and then mix water to it and put it in it's own bottle. But never tried to mix my own colors. It actually sounds fun
Again, Thank you.

[Steve838]

Thank you so much Di. You answered all my questions plus many I didn't even know I didn't know. I have read your entire Sticky thread and learned so much I don't know how to begin to thank you. I also thank everyone else who contributed to increasing my knowledge of brushes. Now I have to run out and check out Hobby Lobby.