Tips to Keep Paint Brushes in Good Condition

As a responsible artist, you should take good care of your tools. You need to clean your palette after every use and keep your stock canvas in a clean, dry place. After all, the quality of your painting would depend so much on these materials. In this regard, here are some tips to help you keep your brushes in good condition.

One of the most important things to do is to use one set of brushes for oil painting and another set for water-based medium. Always remember that oil repels water and if you make the mistake of using a brush on oil. You will not be able to use it for water based medium again until you thoroughly clean the oil out of it, which is very difficult. Likewise, separate brushes for varnish, gesso, and masking fluid.

If you use acrylic paint on your painting, do not let it dry on a brush. Since it is water-resistant when it is dry, it will be very difficult to clean afterwards with water. Also, remember that you should never ever leave a brush standing in water because it will damage the bristles.

Using a lot of pressure to force the paint out of a brush is a big no-no because you might uproot some of the bristles, or you may break some of them. You have to be patient and rinse it a few more times until all the paint are expelled.

A brush made from natural bristle, can be softened by immersing it in clean oil (the same one you use as a medium) after cleaning it. If one of your synthetic brushes are misshapen you can sometimes reshape it by soaking it in hot water (not boiling).