Extending the life of a
paint Brush
Brushes are expensive, make them last, and help the environment
too. Keep them in that perfectly responsive state, you know so
well, a little longer.
Acrylic Painting
The same principals apply, but beware
the buildup near the feral problem applies doubly with acrylics. This period
between wet and dry, or open time, as we like to call it , is quite short with
acrylic paints. One of the luxuries of oil paint, is its' extended open time,
however, that is also one of its' drawbacks.
Watercolours
Watercolours are
rewetable, so the
problem of buildup, is much reduced, but not eliminated. The care of a fine
sable brush, will extend its' life considerably.
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Oil Painting
Keep your brushes horizontal when they're wet,
( when painting or cleaning ). If anything gets into the feral, some of it will
stay there, and gradually build up, making the brush get stiffer, and stiffer.
When you clean your brushes, first clean them
using whatever, solvent you use, ie. turpentine, etc. Then clean them again
using soap and water, turpentine also leaves a residue, which will build up,
making the brush less responsive. Rinse them thoroughly, and again, let them dry
in a horizontal position. Once they're dry you can stick them back in that old
jar you like to keep them in.
A good way to manage your cleaning
solvent, is to use two or three jars. One is kept empty, the other two can have
turps in them. If you let a jar of dirty turps sit for a couple of days, all the
pigment will settle to the bottom, now you can pour the clean turps into the
empty jar to clean your brushes, then pour it back in the settling jar. After a
while, ( depending on usage ) you'll have to put new solvent into the system,
but you have extended the life of the solvent, and the environment will thank
you. You can take the dead jars to the hazardous waste disposal site, and very
little nasty stuff will have gone down your drain.
When you wakeup one sunny morning, and
you find your brushes lying there stiff as a board, dead as it where,
unresponsive to your delicate artistic touch, and you get that, "gee I wish I
had......", thought in your head, well you'd better wait till you see the
replacement cost, before you start crying the Blues. We all learn eventually.
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