If you love to paint as much as I do, I’m sure you already know there Is a wide range of brushes at your disposal. There are long and short handle brushes and there are synthetic and more organic brushes made of hair. I encourage you to experiment with seeing which kind you prefer. You absolutely don’t need to pay twenty bucks for one brush but brushes between five and ten will do the trick. You can also get a fancy brush that has grip padding that is super comfortable to use. I’m not going to plug any brand, but you get what you pay for, so I gravitate to a higher quality brush for the durability to withstand large group painting lessons. One of my favorite brushes started out as a large filbert brush but I quickly fell in love with the versatility of the fan, detail and liner brush. My new favorite acrylic brush is the mop brush that creates the look of bushes, grasses and foliage for all seasons. I don’t touch much on the care of brushes at my paint and sip parties, but I might start as it’s an important part of continuing to paint. Although I often use a dirty brush, I often tell painters to place their brush in the water to let it marinate but technically, we should be wiping off that excess paint off your brush before you submerge it in water and then getting that brush rinsed as well as you can in the cup. Next pick up your paper towel and gently wipe the water away from the brush and lay it flat beside your easel. I do like to show young artists in my beginner-friendly private lessons the importance of brush care.

When I first started painting, I tended to throw out a brush when it became too stiff to use. I came across an article that talked about storing brushes and deep conditioning your brushes. Much like we need occasional conditioning, so does your acrylic brush. I have found that three simple ingredients work just as well as the store-bought conditioner for brushes. So, save yourself money. All you need are a few items that you likely already have in your household. One cup of water, a tablespoon of baking soda and a few sprays from Dawn Power wash in a jar. I typically condition about ten brushes at a time, stirring them in the water, soap paste and washing with warm- not hot water.  Lay flat to dry. Next, store your brushes with the brush side up but only after they are dry.

I organize my brushes by style and type and store them in anything I can find. One of my favorite brush holders is the Pepperidge Farm Pirouette tin. It comes with a bonus that you can eat the sweet treat first! I also like to store brushes in Mason Jars. These are multi-purpose and can also be used to hold your brush water without tipping over.  I recently started using the ALL pod detergent container as it has a wider bottom for my larger brush handles. Weird, I know! I like to recycle and reuse! These containers all fit nicely in a bucket caddy that I can take to group acrylic paint parties.  If you only have a handful of brushes, a brush caddy for your desk or a zip and carry brush holder also works great for travel. Personally, I’m not a fan of the roll and store brushes in cloth or leather but if that’s what you like, by all means- use what works for you!