How To Care For Your LorDac Arts Brushes
Your LorDac Arts Detail Paint Brush Set can last for many years. Attention to care and cleanliness will extend the life of these fine brushes.
Quality natural hair brushes can easily be maintained in their original state, exclusive of normal wear. If you follow the same general instructions for synthetic bristle brushes and read the information provided carefully, you should be able to enjoy these brushes for a very long period of time - typically exceeding the life of natural hair brushes in most cases, at a fraction of the cost.
Today there are many different types of synthetic filament that brush makers use in producing quality brushes. Taklon, Risslon, and Interlon, from the polyester family of resins, are all excellent alternatives to traditional animal hair brushes, each with its own attributes, pro and con. Our research has shown that Taklon provides the best performance at affordable prices, and this is the material chosen for use in constructing our brushes. Below is a short video demonstrating how to quickly clean acrylic paint from your brushes using water.
Quality natural hair brushes can easily be maintained in their original state, exclusive of normal wear. If you follow the same general instructions for synthetic bristle brushes and read the information provided carefully, you should be able to enjoy these brushes for a very long period of time - typically exceeding the life of natural hair brushes in most cases, at a fraction of the cost.
Today there are many different types of synthetic filament that brush makers use in producing quality brushes. Taklon, Risslon, and Interlon, from the polyester family of resins, are all excellent alternatives to traditional animal hair brushes, each with its own attributes, pro and con. Our research has shown that Taklon provides the best performance at affordable prices, and this is the material chosen for use in constructing our brushes. Below is a short video demonstrating how to quickly clean acrylic paint from your brushes using water.
CLEANING
Always wipe off the excess paint from each brush before beginning the cleaning process (this is judicious advice to follow while painting as well). Use paper towels or rags and squeeze the brush hairs, starting from the base of the bristles at the ferrule. Gently pull upward and remove as much paint as possible. For thick paint or powerful colors, baby wipes or similar chemical-free soft cloths may prove handy to pull out any excess pigment. Be careful not to apply too much pressure, as this can damage the bristles.
- NOTE — No brush should be allowed to rest on its tip for any length of time.
- Know your medium — Different paints require the use of different cleaning solvents (as opposed to any solvents used by the paint manufacturer in producing the paint). Always check the product information for the paint you are using, and follow the manufacturer's directions carefully. Warning: if the medium contains the words "Linseed Oil" or "Varnish" DO NOT CLEAN WITH WATER. This means it is a solvent-based product and should be cleaned with a solvent-based cleaning solution.
- Rinse the brush — If you are using oil paint, rinse it in turpentine or odorless mineral spirits. Do Not Use hardware store turpentine or solvents to clean these brushes. Many very strong solvents such as these will damage your brush; in addition, hardware store turpentine often leaves gummy residues behind. Use high quality artists’ pure gum spirits of turpentine or a quality artists’ odorless turpentine substitute. For acrylic, watercolor, or other water based mediums, rinse the brush in lukewarm water (Never allow the water to be too hot, as this will degrade the adhesive used in bonding the bristles inside the ferrule). Fine-pointed brushes, such as liners and rounds, should be rinsed in cool water. Then wipe the paint brush once more with a clean rag, and ensure all paint is removed.
- Wash the brush — Using a soft soap, a gentle dish detergent (NOT laundry detergent) or shampoo, or a commercial artist brush cleaner, wash the brush in cool or lukewarm water as indicated in Step #3. Thoroughly and gently lather the brush with your fingers or with a soft-bristled toothbrush, working the lather into the brush from the joint of the ferrule and bristles to the tip of the brush to remove all paint.
- Repeat Rinse — Rinse the brush in cool or lukewarm water and repeat the process gently and as often as necessary to remove any residual color or resin.
