Is anyone using ROSE ART Brushes?

Hello Everyone. I'm currently saving up for my starter kit. I have a pretty good idea of what I'm getting to start with as far as paints and supplies. I do plan on getting some professional brushes. However, I don't think I can afford to order to many. I came across this RoseArt Artist Brush set in Kmart for $3 dollars and was hoping that maybe I could use these in addition to the professional ones I'll be getting.


Has anyone used these before? How are they working for you?

Thank You.

They're too soft & the bristles spread. They make lousy linework & the hairs fall out easily. I bought a packet of these for when I have volunteer face painters at my church. I hated them so much I took some of my older brushes & used them for my face painting team at my church.

If you can, buy a few Soft Grip brushes from the Craft/art store.
Get a #2 & #4 round for linework
You can get by with these if you're doing mostly spongework for your backgrounds. If you are a brush person, then get a few larger filbert brushes & flat brushes ( 1/2" - 1"size).

Really?...ok. Thanks for that Psalmbook.

Also I'm on amazon right now and I see a 10 brush set for about $20 dollars and I was about to buy it from a certain face painting supply store for $25 they were only offering 3 brushes from the set.

Looks like I have some more research to do.

Loew Cornell is a great brush... 7000 series.

I actually started off with a $1.25 pack of brushes that look kinda like that from Dollarama, and they weren't half-bad.

I did end up buying a bunch of much nicer brushes though, and they are very nice. But actually, my favourite round brushes are still the ones I got from Wal-Mart. They're called "Simply Simmons", and they have a white pearl handle. I use the #4 and #6 rounds quite often. If you find those, I'd recommend grabbing them!

The brush makes all the difference in the world when it comes to face painting. Give someone a crappy brush and their work will not be as good as if they had a good brush. If anything, buy them from Michael's when you get a coupon. Slowly but them that way.

I'm really loving this brush set. I think I should get that and maybe a round brush set. Thinking that should hold me for a while until I make back the money I'll be investing in getting everything. Also I'll be saving money that I could put in to buying more rainbow cakes or even a starter glitter tattoo kit.

Be careful with the Donna Dewberry brushes. I started out with them - my wooden handles peeled like mad from the humidity and constant cleaning between children.

I second the simply simmons; I also love the Mark Reid, Royal Majestic, and the Paradise brushes. I've been slowly buying when I have the cash/opportunity.

Yeah, wooden handles peel pretty quickly. I don't think you will need that many flat brushes, either. Go for a few varying sizes of rounds and maybe a couple flats. Also, find a good 1/2 filbert. I use mine all. the. time.
I like my Loew Cornelles, but I also have a nice selection of Royal soft grips that I love. You will need brushes that are firm and keep a point a long time.

I tend to use artist brushes by Crimson and Black, since I'm at art college I get a good discount and they're readily available... From the college art store they cost about £1.75 per brush (I don't know what that is in dollars) But they're really good quality.

As for my essential brushes, I love my #6 round and #1 round, my 1/4" and 1" Flat Wash Brushes. They're the ones I reach for all the time!

I wouldn't choose the rose art ever due to exactly what linda said - They will fall apart.

Lowe Cornelle in any type seems to be good
as for the Donna Dewberry, you may like them you may not. each person will have there preferance. some like stiffer bristles some like softer. some sware by Lowe Cornelle some people by Mark Reid.

I havn't had handels peel, except on Wolfe ones. but I baby my brushes. and never leave them submerged in water. they are in then out at wash up time. and placed on a towel to soak up excess water as they dry.
I have tons of brushes about 80 of them are wooden handeled types. another 20 plastic type.

If it is a choice between Rose art and Donna Dewberry pick the donna dewberry.
But although buying a set is appealing and you may save money you may be wasting that money on brushes you will never use - thus loosing money in the long run.

rthling wrote:Yeah, wooden handles peel pretty quickly. I don't think you will need that many flat brushes, either. Go for a few varying sizes of rounds and maybe a couple flats. Also, find a good 1/2 filbert. I use mine all. the. time.

And see, I use my flats ALL. THE. TIME. I LOVE flats for laying certain basework (batman's mask, spidey, the white part of a tiger). My filbert brushes tend to just sit there at gigs. I keep telling myself that people on the forum swear by them, but when a kid sits in my chair and says 'Spiderman please!' I reach for the flats.

I also use angle/chisel brushes ALL THE time. I make the lines on my butterfly with an angled chiseled brush, I make one stroke roses with my angle, rosebuds, leaves....

And I don't leave my brushes submerged in water, but the humidity (and the fact that even though they aren't submerged, they are being cleaned constantly during gigs) caused my wooden brushes to peel. I'm now a firm believer in the power of a plastic brush handle.

If you have a Michael's store I would second the recommendation of using a 40% coupon. I just snatched up a set of Royal Majestic bruses that had a script, #8 and #5 round, a 1" flat, and a 1/2" angular priced at $19.99 BEFORE my discount. Nice acrylic handles and work great. Loving them. I had some plaid brushes when I started. Started to get "fluffy" despite using brush shaper and good brush soap. Wooden handles started flaking paint as well. Being much more "picky" with my brush buys now.

Here's the set I was talking about at a big discount if you need to buy online but of course you'd have to pay S&H
http://www.widgetsupply.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=BCY53&Store_Code=WS&search=royal+Majestic&searchoffset=&filter_cat=&PowerSearch_Begin_Only=&sort=&range_low=&range_high=

Tamariel not having a go at you as you, have been face painting for 5 years (i think) it is just more of a care tip.
and I expect my brushes to eventually fall apart. but my art teacher in primary school used to go off his nut about a few things that was one on them. and I thought anyone starting out should know that if you say throw them all in a sink in water as sort of a prosess line it cleaning method it will kill them - very quickly.

In the past with other mediums - mainly sables etc I have had the glue go first i.e bristles come out from water exposure before the paint split. but always get a a fair use out of them first.
I still have two sables that I got when I was 11 still going strong- for cake decorating they survive some intense cleaning. others have fallen apart. they did cost about $6.50 at an art shop - 20 years ago so probebly very expensive now name wore of long ago.

So not just lowe Cornelle/Mark Ried/Royal Majestic/Paradise/Kolinsky etc
some people like plastics, some wood, some like both. Some like taklon, some sable - but i think all would agree that a few good brushes to start are better than a pile of cheap ones- as the linework will suffer.

elantaura wrote:Tamariel not having a go at you as you, have been face painting for 5 years (i think) it is just more of a care tip.
and I expect my brushes to eventually fall apart. but my art teacher in primary school used to go off his nut about a few things that was one on them. and I thought anyone starting out should know that if you say throw them all in a sink in water as sort of a prosess line it cleaning method it will kill them - very quickly.

I'm not quite sure what you are going off here. I've also been facepainting for 5?6? years, working with acrylics for 12, and I also took art classes before that.

Brushes are not eternal. They wear and tear. With regards to my brushes I don't 'throw them all in a sink of water' at all! That's the fastest way to waste a TON of money and supplies. What gave you the impression that I line process my brushes?

With regards to my comment, after going through gads of wooden brushes, I personally find myself loving the plastic and acrylic handles. The temps in the summer in Chicago (high humidity), combined with the fact that my hands are often damp (painting outside in the heat versus painting indoors in my studio) combined with the fact that unlike with acrylics or oils which aren't rinsed between children, brushes used on the face are cleaned and dried between kids, causes wooden handles to splinter.

I use my flats all the time and have some sable and some Taklon. I had a handle chip for the first time last night, it was a Ben Nye that I've never used so I guess it happened during transport. I followed Shannon's tip and just coated it with nail polish though I wonder if I'll ever use that particular brush much. I haven't quite figured out how to use my angled ones yet. I use a number 4 round and number 12 flats the most.

Attempt to clear up ....hope it works..

you mentioned after you don't leave brushes to soak. I thought oh know she thought my comment was at her and tried to make sure you knew it wasn't (apparently I made it worse)

The don't soak was a care tip expressed at people who havn't been painting and cleaning brushes before!!! there are people who haven't ever had too.

not directed at any specific person not you, not anyone.

and I said you have been face painting for 5 years (I think) not me

I have been using brushes for a long time though in cakes and watercolours. that was fair use referance I throw them away when they disintagrate. and don't feel bad about it if I have had good use from them.

end note..

I also buy wooden brushes based on the coating on the handle as well as the bristles e.g the wolfe coating is cheaper than Lowe Cornelle - just an example - it will split way before the other dose.

I have had problems with a plastic handeled filberts looseing hairs/ glue at the furele in sise 6 and 8 (Tag plastic ones) within 2 weeks of getting them and oddly enough another sise 6 that is OK - why I don't know. and my royal majestics are fine too but so are the Lowe Cornelle.

(Trying hard here to not give wrong tone)

clowngirl wrote: I haven't quite figured out how to use my angled ones yet. I use a number 4 round and number 12 flats the most.

I personally find that angled brushes make one stroke roses THAT MUCH EASIER.

Also, I find that an angle brush makes better lines than a round example (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=17vrBni9td8)

Elantura -
I get it now. Sorry it's late here and my blood pressure is up from my day job (I've been grading my students term papers and whilst some of my students are destined for an A+, others are making me want to bang my copy of the MLA handbook against the wall while sobbing). I'm debating purchasing more face paints in order to make my mood better...

rthling wrote:Yeah, wooden handles peel pretty quickly. I don't think you will need that many flat brushes, either. Go for a few varying sizes of rounds and maybe a couple flats. Also, find a good 1/2 filbert. I use mine all. the. time.
I like my Loew Cornelles, but I also have a nice selection of Royal soft grips that I love. You will need brushes that are firm and keep a point a long time.

Where did you get your Loew Cornelles? I'm seeing some pretty good sets on Amazon.