Look what I made!

If you'll remember, I told you guys last week about my obsession with using my hot knife to cut through high density foam. Well, this weekend I picked up this cute little clear paintcan from the craft store and some black paint for a project I'd been thinking about. I cut out a tubular chunk of foam, cut/burned some holes into the top (about 1-1/2" down I reckon )and spray painted the whole thing black. Once the paint dried and the odor dissipated, I smooshed it into the paint can and viola! I had myself a nifty little brush holder for when I'm painting. I figure that since I'm so bad at putting my brushes back where I an find them while I'm painting, the novelty of my paint bucket will keep it in the front of my mind long enough for me to train myself to put my brushes back into it! I'm going to see if these cans are water tight (or I might just put some caulk around the inner rim of the larger cans they have available and use it to keep my sponges wet. Thanks for lookin'!

cool!

I want to buy one of those, if it has a top to put on while transporting =)

The cans do come with lids, but I bought the short paint can because I only wanted something to stick my brushes in while I worked (and I'm not to fond of the Snaz Gecko). They have larger ones as well, but I think even they might be too short for your standard short brush.

The little one was a bit over $2 and I think the big one was $4, both come with lids though. Let me know if you need me to pick one or some up for you!

And really Lone, you need to do something about that avatar... I can feel it staring at me even when I type!! You're a master at what you do...but you are just a tad bit twisted I think.

I like to be able to set up in no time, so I don't want to have to take my brushes out of something and into something else. Now I have two brush tubes from facepaint-uk. They are good, since I just need to take the top of. And since my brushes have a bigger handle than brush, they don't go against each other. But I do have problems finding the right one. Especially the big one for brown for some reason!

Twisted is a good thing, right?

LoneWolf wrote:

Twisted is a good thing, right?

Yup...
In the interest of self preservation, I try to refrain from telling twisted people that they can't be twisted....

Those brushes... I bought a bunch on sale at Michael's - the Royals with the clear handles. Meant to use them on Jungle book as we had 5 people painting and I didn't want them touching MY sables.

Do you find they work for you?

My assistant Naomi tried one, exclaimed, "This brush sucks, where's the #6 sable" stole my sable, and kept it to herself. And she is what would be classed as a beginner...

I had to take in more "good" brushes!

Shannon Fennell wrote:Those brushes... I bought a bunch on sale at Michael's - the Royals with the clear handles. Meant to use them on Jungle book as we had 5 people painting and I didn't want them touching MY sables.

Do you find they work for you?

My assistant Naomi tried one, exclaimed, "This brush sucks, where's the #6 sable" stole my sable, and kept it to herself. And she is what would be classed as a beginner...

I had to take in more "good" brushes!

I have a few and actually prefer them to the sable brushes.. I find the sables kind of wimpy.

I actually have a few sables ($$$) and some better brushes that I am still staring at. I use those brushes for practice primarily now. They are okay, some of them are really good, but many of them get on my nerves. I got them in a bundle pack with a case for like $20 at Pat Catan's and they worked better when they were new. Now, they are just delegated to practice and spare brush duty for helpers. I have two kids and one of them is notorious for "borrowing" paint brushes to put lipstick on her doll head...therefore my good ones are under lock and key...and soon armed guard.

Why do you use the bad brushes for practice?

They're not "bad" per se...they just aren't as springy as they were when I first bought them. I practice A LOT and I don't want to wear my good brushes out on that. My main issue is speed, keeping my hand from shaking as I paint and refining my stokes. When I do my stroke practice, I use my good brushes so that I don't get beaten down with discouragement. But when I'm just practicing to familiarize myself with a design, I use the clear handled ones. When I'm going for speed trials, I either use them with the understanding that I have to work the brush a little differently to get the right line quality or say "s%$&* it" and except the less than perfect line quality knowing that it's the brush and not my stroke technique. It actually works out believe it or not. I got a boost this weekend when I did a butterfly with my good brushes and everything went so beautifully that I picked up speed. Unfortunately, that butterfly was all I got to paint as it was a quick and dirty for my neighbor's daughter who was going to a party.

Besides, I'm still in the early stages of my relationship with my good brushes... I'm mostly content to coo at them and make love eyes...
I hope that makes sense...

HAHAHAHA soon we shall all be training for the Face Paint Olympics! LOL

LW and LJ could you not devise something similar to your brush holder, but using a cardboard wine tube maybe? You know the cheap ones they sell at Micheals or something? You could cut it a little shorter if you needed to, but it would have a nice sized lid that you could use to cover the brushes. Like a smaller version of a poster or map tube.

LJ does your new stand get tippy sometimes? If the can is plastic with foam, does that make it top heavy from the brushes, therefore tippy. Would it be beneficial to weight it a little on the bottom? I don't know cuz I can't actually see it, but thats what came to my mind when i saw it. Other wise what a great idea.

LW, i think your in good twisted company, as I know I prefer my world off kilter.

Criss, I actually thought about weighing it down, but I haven't had an issue yet. The can has metal rims and a metal handle that contribute to the weight as well as the weight of the dense foam, plus my brushes are short handle brushes.

I like your idea for the wine tube idea! I think that it would most likely have to be weighed down though because the height and center of gravity issue it would create; tipping would be more of an issue. Tall people need big feet to keep them upright just as tall tubes need a big diameter to prevent tipping. I'll have to look into that that though...I wonder if that would be doable? You know what would also probably work? Those plastic cases that they use for collectable dolls, the ones that are top loading...only thing is they're square.

Maybe I should change the company name to "twisted creations". That sounds fun =)

Lady Jayde: good brushes should not wear out. I have had mine for years and the the bristles are still as new. But because they stand top up, when on job, water run down and loosen the top coat on the wooden handles. But that can be fixed =)

Clever girl!

About them Sables

Not all sables are made the same or use the same type of sable. Try out the different types, and note that like all the brushes, natural or man made or mixed, they will each have a different feel. Some are springy, or pointy or whatever, but all are different.

I love Windsor Newton pointed rounds.....And I love lowel Cornel (sp), one is sable and one is man made....both are wonderful. I think cleaning and conditioning the brushes is vital to keep them like new. I strongly recommend Masters Brush Cleaner to condition ALL of your brushes. It even helps reshape them. A big tub is 24 bucks (get a coupon and get half off at Micheals or AC Moore)

Good luck with selecting your perfect brushes.

Jenny

My kolinsky sables usually only last a season... they are washed and doused in alcohol after EVERY face so they get rather roughly treated. I keep using them until they start shedding in my paint -once I catch a brush dropping hairs I toss it.

I used to keep the "old" ones to be used for fur etc. but how many old frayed brushes can one person use?????

I find acrylics tend to start "splaying" on me rather quickly... again, probably how the are treated.

I am nice to them, they just have to be cleaned properly every 10 minutes or so...

Sweeeeeet!

LW, I wouldn't know a good brush if it walked up and said "hey, I'm a good brush!". I've just been playing hit and miss by buying brushes that I see other painters use. So far I have one that's fail proof and that's my #4 Kolinski Sable, but the store I got it from didn't have much of a selection outside of reaaally small and reeeeeaaallly big. Plus I'm just paranoid about somebody nicking one at the school...so I may not even bring the good ones. Call chicken, I call me smart...my kids need their mother and I'm no used to them behind bars...which is where I'd be if somebody touched my Kolinski.
Heck, I can hardly keep from hurting MYSELF everytime I use it, it's so dear to me.