Comments on: Painting Matters #1: Selecting a brush

By: Veritas

Veritas — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 07:52:29 +0000

I’d like to add my two cents that I’d like to see an article on brush care. I’ve had a Windsor Newton Series 7 00 that I’ve been using for about three months. I clean it regularly with a gentle shampoo to get the paint out, but it still seems to be tending towards splaying a bit. I hear about people using these brushes for a year at a time and I want to know what I’m doing wrong.

By: wraeththu

wraeththu — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 17:34:28 +0000

Great article Judith. I would love to see more stuff like this.

I have been using Winsor Netwon series 7 for a while now. My core brush is a size 0 or 1 series 7. I forget which as the text on the handle has worn off. That brush is still working nicely after 2.5+ years of use and the bristles still go to a sharp point. The extra money invested in some nice brushes is well worth it.

By: Zac

Zac — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 13:57:05 +0000

Brush care is probably a good idea for an article on its own.

By: battlemind

battlemind — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 13:42:23 +0000

This is art-college level stuff, and probably more than a painter needs to know. But I like the thoroughness. There really should be more in there about brush care - remember, even the best most expensive sable brush can be screwed up with bad care or handling technique.

I’ve been painting for over 20 yrs now, and I’m still trying to find the best brush for the dollar. My advice - try different brands, but pay more than 99 cents for them. I’ve got every brush mentioned in the article, and they all have a purpose somewhere - many aren’t appropriate for miniature men, but may be for vehicles, buildings, etc.

Half the fun is finding a brush that does well and lasts long for the money you spent. W&N are good, but a good brush isn’t a guarantee it won’t cludge up.

By: gavroche

gavroche — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 07:44:11 +0000

Excellent article! I love all the technical detail, it’s what sets it apart & shows Judith knows what she’s writing about. I hope she’ll write again for TGN :-)

By: briguy

briguy — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 19:04:27 +0000

Nicely written! More technical than I thought I wanted but then I learned quite a lot so it was a worthwhile read.

Exactly my thoughts. I actually wouldn’t mind a quick primer on the different “styles” of painting (the “Dallimore” vs. the PP “wet-blending” along with every other thing I probably haven’t even heard of) I know these kinds of things get mentioned on message boards, but I find a venue like this with a “permanent record” to be more useful for the feeble-minded such as myself.

By: Stu

Stu — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 18:57:15 +0000

Very interesting and I agree with the comments about synthetic brushes as I’ve found them to be generally worthless when it comes to figure painting.

I also like the focus on fine art brushes, as you’re generally getting a better brush for the same $$$ than you would buying any brush that GW sell for example.

As mentioned hog bristle is no good for figure painting, but these types of brushes are superb for dry brushing large areas of terrain…

By: 1voice2many

1voice2many — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 18:42:15 +0000

Wow, that’s a great little article. I would love to see more things like that show up here in the furture.

By: Lucifer

Lucifer — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 18:42:11 +0000

Very nice and useful. Just bought some new brushes, so i did found out that kollinsky sable works far more better than synthetic brushes (and last loger). Some questions i have at the moment is how thin/thick the paint should be when painting a miniature. I know it should be something like milk or yoghurt (as thickness - my apologies if i don’t use the right words, english is not my native language..), but i never seem to get it just right. There should be a difference too, for basecoating and highlighting.
Colours as red and brown gives me the most trouble, never get the highlighting right.
Anyway great idea, this painting matters column !

By: Bob

Bob — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 18:17:59 +0000

Nicely written! More technical than I thought I wanted but then I learned quite a lot so it was a worthwhile read.

I’d be interested in any tips on painting colours where the pigment tends to be weak (red and yellow), particularly over a black primer coat. Actually a discussion of colour and how to lighten colours without sending them pastelly, would be useful too.