Watercolor Brushes and Paints with Nancy Couick - Part 1 of 2

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Most people think that watercolors are hard. I'm here to tell you that's not the truth. It does require practice and unlike a lot of mediums there's a little bit more of a learning curve than there is for oils or acrylics for example.

The reason people say it's the hardest medium is a lot of oil painters and acrylic painters try it and they think I'm just going to give this a shot. They buy inexpensive materials, cheap paper, cheap paint, cheap brushes and that's the problem.

It is difficult to paint if you don't have the right materials. I took classes for years and what I found out is that most teachers don't tell you what you need to know. So they don't explain to you the difference in papers, they don't explain paints, brushes, how to hold the brush, how to put your paint in the palette.

Most brushes in watercolors you will hear of are described as browns. They start from tiny little ones that would go from a triple zero, which is good for painting eyelashes on gnats, they go up from there in size. They vary quite a bit in size--you can have three size 6 rounds, which is about this size, three different manufacturers and they would all be different lengths.

They go up in size for the rounds, this is a 16, my birthday present. This is a Cheap Joe's Legend and it's a great brush.

When you go to buy brushes, don't just pick one out of the stack and say that looks good and take it home. You need to get it very wet. When they're new they come with sizing in them so you have to get that out. In the store you're in they should have a place for you to wet the brushes. Wet it then sling it. It should come to a fine point and if it doesn't then pick another brush. Even the best brushes that are made sometimes have defects.

It's the point that you need, that's what makes the difference in a good brush and a poor brush.

The next most common brush that artists use is called a flat. These are sized by width of the brush. This one is a Golden Fleece three inch.

Great for washes, doing really bold strokes, putting down a lot of paint, a lot of water, or trying to get it really smooth.

Chinese brush, called the Hake, I've used this before. There are a lot of them out there but there is a huge difference in what you buy. The cheaper ones you end up with more hair on your paper than you do on the brush so forewarned is forearmed.

Next size of brushes is a Filbert and this one is a flat brush that is curved on the edges. Good for petals and things like that.

A mop, this is really good for washes. Quite honestly you can paint an entire painting with just a round brush and it will do all sorts of techniques for you.

A great brush is this Fritch Scrub. It's really the magic brush that gets those drips and spills off the paper when you blob it on.

This is a fan which I would call this sort of a trick brush. A lot of people like it, I think more for acrylics and oils they use these, but this is good for grasses and that sort of thing.

This is another variety of a flat brush, it's called an angled shader which is also good for leaves and stems and that kind of thing.

Not many artists in watercolors use this one, this is Deerfoot Stippler.It's good for just kind of pouncing on your paper for different techniques.

There's a brush called a rigger, which is also called a script or a liner brush. Because the bristles are very long and narrow they will hold a lot of water and you can continue to paint forever and ever without having to reload.

Then there are lots of fun brushes. Here's one called Scroggy's Loose Goose. It's actually also a liner brush, they look very different wet than they do when they are dry.

Brushes are made out of a lot of materials, they start on the inexpensive end with white nylon.

And then they go up to sable to synthetics to Kolinsky sables which is the most expensive and actually the best quality watercolor brush you can buy.

If you take care of your brushes they will last you for the rest of your life. So take good care of them, don't wash them in hot water. It would be like taking a mink and throwing it in the dishwasher. You want to wash it in lukewarm water at the most, keep them clean but usually a good rinse in water is all you need to do.

There's some artist's brush soap that works well or some real mild dishwashing detergent. Even then just put a little bit in your hand and work it in. Clean them then rinse them again in some lukewarm water. Take care of them and they'll take care of you.

The names of paints may be the same from one manufacturer to the other but the colors may be different.

Inexpensive paints may be cheaper up front but in the long run they don't last as long, the quality of the pigment is not so good and some of them even have fillers in them.

Category:

Howto & Style

Tags:

• nancy couick
• watercolor brushes
• watercolor paints
• round brushes
• chinese hake brush
• winsor and newton paints
• choosing watercolor brushes
• watercolor materials
• cheap joes legend brush

[RainbowBrite87]

Thank you so much. This was VERY helpful. I don't have money to take classes but I love watercolor painting, to me its relaxing, but I was never getting the results as some others. I've watched a great many tutorials and read books and you're right. No one really gets into the differences brush size, type, and shape make. I learned more about paint brushes in this video than I have in the 24 years of my life. Thank you!

[yarmo28]

Thanks very much! Your videos are very very useful.

[garysquirrelreviews]

I just cant get the same effect with a 0 when doing knats eyelashes as i can with a 000

[spitharoo]

Thank you very informative. Love your humour.

[nkbeautyful]

I love all of your video's and have watched them all. They are very inspiring. I did try to paint a tulip but it was a disaster....I need more practice. I just have a question about your water refiller/container? What are they called and do you know where you can get one???? Many thanks,

Natalie

[RomineClan]

Excellent video! So informational. I'll be recommending this video! Now I know what I will need purchase the next time I go to the craft store. Thank you Nancy for sharing your knowledge.

[MyrtleBeachWebAngel]

Thank you. I just took my first watercolor paint class last night and this video explains a lot about the sea of paint brushes I was looking at in the craft store yesterday!

[shaququ]

lovely teacher :)

[skipperooney]

Very informative -- thank you.

[TheMistressOfMadness]

I love your videos.. I laughed at Taking a mink and throwing it in the dishwasher.. I Love this ladies humor I could watch her all day