HELP! PLEASE! Curling Brush Tips!

[moonbaby0123]

Hello ! I need some serious help! I'm having problems with my bushes and I don't know why . I'm new to painting and I'm not sure how to handle this. I paint with acrylics right now. Sometimes I use them in a watered down state, using watercolor techniques.

First let me start by explaining how I care for my brushes. My brushes are stored lying down in a box my husband made, separated from each other by notches cut in cardboard. When cleaning them I never leave them sitting in the cleaning well. I use 'EZ Air Environmentally Safe Acrylic Brush Cleaner'.

I am having problems with my synthetic (Golden Taklon) brushes curling at the tip. And the problem with my sable brushes is the hairs are splaying outward. Neither kind of brush is keeping their shape very well .

I would appreciate any help I can get!!!

Thank you !!!!
Terrie

[WFMartin]

Originally Posted by moonbaby0123

Hello ! I need some serious help! I'm having problems with my bushes and I don't know why . I'm new to painting and I'm not sure how to handle this. I paint with acrylics right now. Sometimes I use them in a watered down state, using watercolor techniques.

First let me start by explaining how I care for my brushes. My brushes are stored lying down in a box my husband made, separated from each other by notches cut in cardboard. When cleaning them I never leave them sitting in the cleaning well. I use 'EZ Air Environmentally Safe Acrylic Brush Cleaner'.

I am having problems with my synthetic (Golden Taklon) brushes curling at the tip. And the problem with my sable brushes is the hairs are splaying outward. Neither kind of brush is keeping their shape very well .

I would appreciate any help I can get!!!

Thank you !!!!
Terrie

Try plunging the offending brushes (bristles only) into water that is heated to a rolling boil.

Some synthetic bristle brushes have a plastic "memory", and the heat causes them to go back to their original shape. It may not make them like new, again, but it may help to straighten them out somewhat. Gotta' be boilin' though. Hot, tap water won't cut it.

[moonbaby0123]

Thank you very much for your help! I will definitely try this !

[WFMartin]

Try it with the synthetic bristles only. The hot water method would probably ruin natural bristles.

[VTPete]

My old professor taught me how to take care of my brushes.
After rinsing them, he taught me to put them in my mouth and with a bit of saliva on the brush form them into a nice point. Then, let them dry upright in a jar, their brushes pointing toward the sky.

Granted, this sounds a bit yucky and for all I know might have been a joke he was playing on me. But, it's always worked for me! I use both synthetic and sable brushes for my watercolors.

-Pete

[mburrell]

While the brush is wet palette it or form it with your figures. If your brush gets deformed you can work hair conditioner into them, form them with your figures or wrap them with a page out of an old phone book. let set overnite then rinse out conditioner and reform to dry or go ahead and paint. There are brush cleaners at your local paint store that you soak your brushes in then comb and rinse. This will pull out all left over debris which may let the brush recapture its shape. You will need to do a hair conditioner treatment to restore it. hope this helps.

[ACWaltz]

after cleaning off my brushes sometimes I'll dip them in a little hair gel and shape them into a point to get them back in shape. I also use the saliva technique.

[PixelKoi]

If my brushes give me trouble i wash them well and then roll them on a bar of regular hand soap (less chemicals and perfume the better), then just reshape them with my fingers and let them dry. It keeps them in good shape and washes off easily

[joqua]

Originally Posted by WFMartin

Try it with the synthetic bristles only. The hot water method would probably ruin natural bristles.

I haven't ever had a problem using this with natural bristles. It is less effective with the coarser bristles like hog and squirrel but it works great for the more delicate varieties like real sable. Just don't soak them long nor wet the ferrule part since the hot water MIGHT loosen the bristles inside the ferrule.

Sometimes new brushes, when first purchased, have gum arabic holding the bristles in shape. Hot water easily removes it, and I keep a small bottle of gum arabic on hand for dipping my brushes into when I know I won't be using them again for any length of time.