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The scripter-liner,
Pointed, narrow brush with very long hair. Liners are shorter and narrower.
Short
handles, round ferrules. Large color carrying capacity. Useful
for delicate lettering, highlighting, outlining, and long continuous strokes.
The most common brush in a mini painters collection. |
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The highliner-
Also known as an outliner. Round ferrule, square-ended brush, with
extra-long hairs and a short handle. Large color carrying capacity. Useful
for delicate lettering, outlining, and long continuous strokes. |
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Pointed round-
Narrower than a standard round. Round ferrule, sharply pointed tip.
Natural hair holds a sharper point. Used for fine detailing,
fine lines, spotting, and retouching. |
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Bright-
Flat ferrule, short-length hairs, usually set in a long handle. Width
and length of brush head is about equal. Useful for short, controlled strokes,
and with thick or heavy color. |
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Fan-
Flat ferrule, spread hairs. Natural hair is more suitable for soft
blending, and synthetic works
well for textural effects. Useful for smoothing and blending, special effects
and textures. |
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Filbert-
Thick, flat ferrule and oval-shaped medium to long hairs. Long handles.
Natural hair is more suitable for blending because the hairs hold together
when wet. With its soft rounded edges, the filbert is suitable for blending
and figurative work. |
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Oval wash-
Wash brushes come in varied shapes. The oval wash has rounded hairs,
flat ferrules, and produces a soft edge, with no point. A wash brush is
useful for laying in large areas of water or color, for wetting the surface,
and for absorbing excess media. |
Now the you know some of |
the types of brushes, lets look at the various types of brush hair
types. |
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Badger Hair-
For blending oil paint on canvas, Badger Hair is an age-old tradition.
It comes from various parts of the world and is more readily available
than most animal hair, although the quality varies greatly. Badger
hair is thickest at the point, and relatively thin at the root, so it has
a distinctive "bushy" appearance. |
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Camel Hair-
Unlike the name suggests it does not come from camels at all. It is
found in watercolor and lettering brushes
and usually is made of squirrel, goat, ox, pony or a blend of several hairs,
depending on the desired softness and intended cost of the brush. |
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Hog hair-
Bristles are obtained from hogs in several parts of the world, the
most sought after coming from China. Bristle is unlike any other
natural filler in that it forms a V-shaped split or "flag" at the tip and
tends to have a natural curve. A brush with "interlocked" bristles,
with the curves formed inward to the ferrule, has a natural resistance
to fraying and spreads medium to thick paints smoothly and evenly. A selection
of pure hog bristle brushes is recommended for oil and acrylic painting,
and is a far less expensive alternative to good-quality softer hairs. |
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Kevrin/Mongoose Hair
These brushes are strong, resilient, and makes a good long wearing,
medium to professional quality brush for oil and acrylic painting. |
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Ox Hair-
The best quality comes from the ears of cattle or oxen. The Ox Hair
has a very strong body with silken texture, is very resilient, has good
"snap", but lacks a fine tip. Therefore, it is most useful in medium
grade wash brushes, or flat shaped brushes. Frequently, ox hair is blended
with other natural hair to increase the resiliency of a brush. |
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Red Sable
The most popular brush hair is obtained from any member of the weasel
family with "red" hair, not at all from the animal known as the sable.
It is found in a variety of brush styles for many varied mediums,
with quality and characteristics varying greatly. A good quality pure Red
Sable is a good alternative to the more expensive Kolinsky, with similar
performance and durability. Often, weasel hair is blended with ox hair
to make a more economical brush, but the fine point is sacrificed. |
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Gray Squirrel (Talayoutky)-The most highly in demand for lettering
brushes and quills, is native to Russia and nearly always fell in short
supply. Brown squirrel (Kazan) is more readily available, and is used mainly
for medium quality and scholastic watercolor brushes.
A very fine, thin hair, taken from squirrel tails, it points as well
as Kolinsky, but has very little "snap" because the hair is not very
resilient. It works best with liquid paints and inks. |
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Synthetics-
These are man-made of either nylon or polyester filaments. They
can be tapered, tipped, flagged, abraded or etched to increase color carrying
ability. Often, synthetic filaments are dyed and baked to make them
softer and more absorbent. The common name for this filament is "Taklon"
Advantages of synthetic brushes are:
1) They are less prone to damage from solvents, insects or paints.
2) They are easier to keep clean than animal hair brushes because the
filaments don't have animal scale structures to trap paint.
3) They are less prone to breakage and are durable on many different
surfaces. 4) They are better suited for painting with acrylics because
a synthetic filament will withstand the caustic nature of acrylic paints
with less damage. |
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Sabeline-
It is actually select, light-colored ox hair dyed to resembled
red sable. Lettering and watercolor brushes often use Sabeline mixed
with Sable to lower the cost of a brush. |
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Kolinsky Sable
This is not really from a sable at all, but comes from the tail of
a species of mink that is a member of the weasel family found in Siberia
and northeastern China. It is generally conceded to be the best material
for oil and watercolor brushes due to its strength, spring and ability
to retain its shape ("snap"). It holds a very fine point or edge.
This is considered a professional grade of hair, and if properly cared
for, Kolinsky will last for many years. My personal favorite brush. |
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Using the Chart-
This chart demonstrates how to use a common ruler to determine what
size brush you need to purchase:
Lay the brush on a ruler so that zero is at the ferrule's end. Measure
the length to the tip of the brush's hairs. Lay the brush so
that the outermost edge of its bristles is at zero. Measure the width or
diameter to the opposite end of the brush. Do not apply pressure
or tilt to the brush. The brush hair should not be spread.
What Measurements Mean?
To provide you with the most accurate measurements
possible, we measure all of our brushes as follows:
Length
Length refers to the distance from the edge of the
ferrule out to the tip of the hair in the brush's center.
Diameter
Diameter refers to the distance across a round ferrule
at the exact point where the ferrule ends and the hair
begins.
Width
Width refers to the distance across a flat ferrule at
the exact point where the ferrule ends and the hair begins.
Tips for Measuring Brushes
Measure brushes while they are dry. A brush's
width is not the width of the paint stroke that the brush makes. The actual
width of the stroke varies according to the amount of pressure used, the
angle at which the brush is held, the media used, and the flexibility of
the brush hair. |