How To Choose a Watercolor Brush

Buying watercolor brushes can be a confusing (and expensive) process.  What size and shape? Natural hair or synthetic?  Which brands of brush are better?  I have been painting for many years and have strong preferences for my use but each artist is different and you may end up using a very different selection of brushes.

The easiest way to approach brushes is by focusing on their function.  What is the brush going to be used for?  There are three main functions of brushes in watercolor. 

            Broad washes (Skies, large areas of color)

Details (Rigging in boats, eyes, patterns)

            Textures (Grass, hair, bark)

           

While by no means an exhaustive list of uses I fine that most brushes fall into one of these categories.

Natural or Synthetic

Watercolor brushes are made from three main materials, Sable,  Squirrel, or synthetic fibers mimicking natural hair.  Natural hairs hold more liquid, are capable of more subtle and expressive brush strokes and generally will last longer if taken care of properly.  They are however far more expensive.

Synthetic brushes do not perform as well as natural hair brushes although with improvements in technology the gap is very small now.  In the past I would recommend only natural hair brushes, but now a good synthetic brush will perform so well that I don’t think the increased cost is justified especially if you are just starting out.

Wash Brushes

I believe that a good wash brush is the most important brush you can have.  I have completed whole paintings with my wash brush, from the stormy clouds to the finely textured grass.  The most important feature of a wash brush is how much liquid (water or paint) it can hold.  The more liquid the more fluid and broader the strokes you can make with a wash brush.

1” Flat, #14 Synthetic, #12 Kolinsky Sable, #4 synthetic Quill Mop, #6 Squirrel Quill Mop

I prefer rounds and quill mops because their points make them more versatile but many artists create great works with large flats.

Detail Brushes

#3 Sable Round, #4 Synthetic Round, #8 Synthetic Round, #6 Synthetic Squirrel Round

Detail brushes are usually round brushes.  A good detail brush should have a good belly (the area at the base of the ferule that holds the water) a fine point and reasonably good snap (if you flick the brush does it return to its original form. 

Texture Brushes

½” Synthetic Flat, ½” Synthetic Squirrel Cats Tongue, #18 Squirrel Cats Tongue

There is a lot of variation in this category.  So much depends on personal preference and artistic temperament.  I tend to not put a lot of texture in my paintings ad prefer the cat’s tongue shape, but many artists will fill their paintings with fine textures and prefer a wide variety of shapes, sizes and hairs.  These are my preferred brushes for texture.

There are many other brushes and materials that can be used for textures, such as toothbrushes, sponges, pater towels and plastic wrap.

Bristle Fan Brush, #4 Detaill Brush, #6 Squirrel Dagger, ½” Fan Brush

Some artists use rigger brushes (these brushes, with really long hairs were used to paint the rigging on ship paintings, hence the name) but I find that I never do and don’t recommend them for starting out.  I don’t even own one!

Starter Brush Selection

Having read all of this you may still be asking: What Brush should I get?  Over the course of your painting career you will probably try many brushes and develop your own personal preferences but here is my recommendation for starting out.  With these three brushes you should be able to tackle most subjects.  Over time you will add more brushes as you develop your own preferences and ideas.

#14 Synthetic Round, ½” Synthetic Flat  #4 Synthetic Round

I don’t recommend any specific brand as there are many good ones.  Your brush should come to a good point, have snap and hold a lot of water.   Keep in mind that sizes may vary from maker to maker.

#12 or #14 Synthetic Sable Round

½” Synthetic Flat

#4 or #6 Synthetic sable Round. 

Brush Care

Taking good care of your brushes will extend their life and keep them performing like new.

Never leave your brush point down in your water container.  This will destroy the point and shape. Lay them flat or bristle up in a cup or jar.

After each painting session rinse out your brushes in warm water and reform their shape carefully with your fingers (or your mouth if you want to be risqué)