Brushes

[Motard]

Has anyone got any tips on stopping the brisltes on my brushes from spreading out after being used a few times.
I have got some nice thin point brushes but they seem to fan out over time, or is this normal?

[jswillmon]

mine came with a little plastic tube that barely fits over the top, i just clean and replace it asap after use. have had my brushes for about 7 months now and still work perfectly.
don't store bristles down and always try to get them as dry as possible before storing.
hope this helps

[ProSStreet]

i have plastic tubes also, works great

[pflau]

what do you mean by "fan out"?? when dry ALL brushes tend to fan out a little bit.. only when wet do the bristles come to a point..

if what you are saying is that the bristles do not come to a point when wet.. well you got crooked bristles and you need to straighten them out..

well that is what I usually do.. clean the brush.. wet the brush.. and get this:

drag the bristles gently over the sole plate of a hot iron

that's right.. you know how women curl their hair with heat??? you want to straighten your brush bristles using the same technqiue!!!

now thats assuming that you use natural hair brushes (you ARE using natural hair brushes right?? as you shouldnt use synthetic because they're for water color only)

[Motard]

Thanks for the advice guys

[simdel1]

your cleaning method might cause them to fan out too. i know a lot of people will 'stab' the end of the brushes onto a hard surface while cleaning them...this can cause the brush to fan out even when wet.

[primera man]

Soak in boiling hot water for a few minutes then take out and press them together.
Works for me.

[blueboost]

after you clean them dab a lil saliva on the tips of your finger then mold the bristles into a point, put the cap back on the brush, they will stay just like that. this is for undamaged brushes, it won't really fix damaged brushes.

[Motard]

Cheers P-Man, I need to boil some water to straighten this body, so I can do my brushes at the same time.

[willimo]

Also, as part of upkeep, keep a little bowl of clean water at your desk, even if you are using enamels. After the brush is clean, dip the tip in water and then shake it vigerously (think: shaking a thermometer when you're sick) so that the water flicks off the tip of the brush. The movement of the water from the bristles will naturally draw them to a point, and they will stay that way until you use it again. Alternatively, you can just use brush cleaner for that, too. That way you don't have to wait for the brush to dry. But you didn't hear it from me.