Brush cleaning HELP

[%bam]

I intend to use Bob Ross brushes with W&N water miscible oils. I read somewhere NOT to clean these brushes with water. Can i use orderless thinners...Bernie

[DAK723]

Don't believe all you read. I see no reason that you can't clean the Bob Ross brushes with water.

Not sure if the Ross brushes are natural hog bristle. If they are, you might find that the brushes get bloated if you use water while painting. Natural bristles retain more water than synthetics. Because of this, synthetic bristles are often mentioned as being recommended when water is part of the painting process. But natural bristles are certainly usable in any case, and they can be cleaned with water.

If someone knows why the Ross brushes can't be cleaned with water, I hope they will respond.

Don

[karenlee]

Yes, hog bristles can be washed in water. I don't believe hogs ever bathed in odorless mineral spirits

[vhsummers]

I have a couple of Bob Ross brushes that I use and wash them with water. You can use dish washing liquid but I like the result I get with a paste brush cleaner that comes in a tan plastic container like shoe polish comes in. I think it leaves the brushes softer and cleaner. Valerie

[Artingoal]

I have tried to do the Bob Ross style with WMOs (W&N) and have had some success yet have had some major issues as well. I am tempted to buy a Bob Ross starter set, just to see what the difference is with his liquid white and other paints, to see how they flow, etc... But, haven't wanted to spend $60 or so on an experiment.

With that being said, I had some brush issues as well. Here is a link to one of my posts on here:

http://www.wetcanvas.com/forums/showthread.php?t=938240

I am very interested at learning how to do Bob Ross painting (and then morph into my own style) but...have been having some issues with how the paint goes down on the canvas.

Anyway, hopefully this will help! Let me know if you have any good tricks or tips you have figured out!

[DAK723]

If you are new to oil painting and the techniques of Bob Ross or Bill Alexander you will probably find that the paint doesn't go down on the canvas quite like it does for the TV artists. It is probably not the brushes or the paint or the fact that they are WMOs. The problem is that it is very difficult and takes a lot of practice. You don't need to use Bob Ross supplies to do his technique. That being said...

There is no exact substitute for the "Magic" or "Liquid white". I have done some paintings in this style with WMOs and have tried two techniques to try to replicate this initial white layer. Using water to slightly (and I mean slightly - not a wash!) thin white oil paint, I brush it on in a similar fashion to the TV artists. It can not be slippery and watery - it should be tacky. You can sweep back and forth with your brush and it should become tackier as you go. I have also tried starting with some medium mixed in with the white paint. Again, same technique.

The natural bristle brushes bloat up when used with water, but this doesn't make them un-usable. You can shake out the water when you clean the brush in water ala Bob Ross. Not sure that it really does any damage to the brushes. I find that the Alexander brushes lose a lot of hairs, so I'm guessing the Ross brushes do too. You can probably get similar synthetic bristle "painter style" brushes at a hardware store that are better quality.

When you paint in the Ross style, make sure you are not thinning your paints with medium in your first go through. The paint needs to be fairly solid and loaded on the brush. If painting on top of wet paint (not counting your initial white layer) then you may need to add a touch of medium to thin the paint slightly. If you are using a technique other than pushing the brush into the canvas - to make trees for example - then paint will come off your brush better if you hold the brush almost parallel to the canvas. You don't want the bristles to dig into the existing paint. In fact, you barely want to bristles to touch the canvas at all - just the paint should touch! When using the "tree technique" just "hit" the canvas once - don't go back over the same spot over and over.

Not sure if any of this is helpful! I did a post on my blog a while back about this very subject. Here is a link:

http://donketchek.blogspot.com/2010/...yle-of-tv.html

Don

[%bam]

Thanks Don for all the good advise you gave me it should help to correct some mistakes i have been making...Cheers ....Bernie

[mickeyw3340]

Don't mix water with your paints as thinner or medium. Either use them straight from the tube, or use the thinner and medium that is manufactured by the paint maker, you will be much happier. As far as Bob Ross and his brushes I will bet they thought that if you were told you couldn't use water to clean them, you would grab a container of his way too expensive brush cleaner.

[%bam]

Thanks Mickey W for that advise, such a big learning curve, need all the info i can get.....cheers ...Bernie

[Reba1017]

I actually am exstreamly interested in the bob ross style painting. I am a disable women who has aggressive Lupus and RA, and want to stay away from using alote of smelly chemicles. I often have wondered if there was any other way to clean the brushes that is not harmful to me(inhaling fumes). I have prayed that there is another way so that I can use the bob ross method and paints. Any saggestions on how else to clean them is great!!!!!! I have tried the water soluble oils, but found that alote of the brands do not carry some of the traditional colors. Plus there is no liquid white.

[mlou_jhu]

A friend in my painting class recommended using Murphy's Oil Soap diluted with water to clean or rescue poorly cleaned brushes with. I was able to salvage my favorite brush following her advise :-). Also I think Murphy's oil soap smells better than Turpenoid Natural.

Walnut oil works well to remove excess paint from brushes.

[DAK723]

Originally Posted by Reba1017

I actually am exstreamly interested in the bob ross style painting. I am a disable women who has aggressive Lupus and RA, and want to stay away from using alote of smelly chemicles. I often have wondered if there was any other way to clean the brushes that is not harmful to me(inhaling fumes). I have prayed that there is another way so that I can use the bob ross method and paints. Any saggestions on how else to clean them is great!!!!!! I have tried the water soluble oils, but found that alote of the brands do not carry some of the traditional colors. Plus there is no liquid white.

If you don't let paint dry in your brushes, then you don't need solvents to clean your brushes - even with regular oils. You can clean them with just soap and water or rinse them first in linseed (or other painting) oil - then wash with soap and water.

If you do an internet search for "solvent free oil painting" I think you will get lots of answers.

Don

[Reba1017]

thanks everyone!! I do appreciate the advice.. very helpful.

[Aires]

I used liquid white and liquid clear when I first returned to painting and I certainly used some Ross brushes. His bristle brushes wash as well as any natural hair brush, just don't let them soak in water and dry them well before reusing.

As to the liquid white or clear - it isn't an absolute necessity though it is both easier and handier when getting started in the wet-on-wet method of painting. I find a light coating of oil on the canvas or board works as well - the trick is to get an even coat and then take a soft cloth and lightly wipe off exess oil. This method was used by the old baroque artists and still used by many artisits - known as a "couch." Leaving too much oil is as troublesome as using too thick a coat of liquid white. Think of it as just enough to let the paint slide rather than having the paint grab hold of the gesso. (This is more like using the liquid clear as it does not have white pigment in it). Your water soluable oil paint has oil that has been altered to have the same water and soap affinity as the paint. You could try it for the "couch" - costs little to try and a lot cheaper than buying the brand name liquid white mix, especially if you have to order it and pay postage!

There are "recipes" for mixing your own liquid white on WC - no reason you can't make your own, using the same altered oil in place of regular linseed oil. I'm not sure it is cheaper by the time you buy your materials - unless you are using large amounts on a regular basis. Just my experience after having started with Bill Alexander and Bob Ross.....

[artbyannalisa]

My method of brush care will probably raise some eyebrows but I'm gonna share anyway. I like natural brushes but don't like soaking them in water and soaking them in mineral spirits would defeat the purpose of using WMO's. So, I soak and rinse them in vegetable oil (yes, the kind you cook with). The paint easily wipes off between colors and when I'm done with the brush for while, I wash it in Masters brush soap or some other brush cleaner. I find that the paint comes out very easily when I do this compared to when I just use water. It almost seems like actually the oil conditions the bristles and hairs and if I thoroughly wipe off the brushes afer being in the oil, no sigificant amount of oil combines with the linseed or other binding paint oil to effect the paint film, etc...