Painting with a Brush

When you embark on a painting project for residential or commercial buildings, you’ll soon realize the importance of learning brush painting techniques. However, there are several techniques that can help delay fatigue and ensure a consistent finish when using a brush or roller. In this article, we delve into the art of brush painting.

 

Brush Painting Techniques

The type of brush handle you choose depends on the brush you’ve selected. Wall and trim brushes with pencil handles are held with a grip of the thumb and first two fingers. This technique aids in painting intricate and challenging surfaces.

For thicker-handled brushes used for larger brushes, you’ll need your entire hand. Grip the handle with your entire hand, allowing the handle to open up to the size of your palm, similar to gripping a tennis racket. This technique works best when painting large and smooth surfaces.

The goal of preparing the brush is to apply paint to the wall as smoothly as possible without streaking. It only takes a few minutes to gauge the amount of paint on your brush along the way.

Start by moistening the bristles of the brush (with water for acrylic and latex paints or appropriate thinner for other types of paint like oil) to condition them and make them more effective. Remove excess moisture by gently tapping the metal ferrule around the base of the handle against the edge of your palm and inside the paint tray or bucket.

With the first dip into the paint, move the brush slightly within it to loosen the bristles and fully load the brush. If you gently dab the brush with each dip into the paint, it will be easier to remove excess paint.

In most water-based paints, you can simply dip the brush into the paint and allow any excess drips to come off before applying it to the wall.

However, for thinner coverages, you may need to gently tap the brush into the paint can or drag it gently along the inner edge of the container to remove excess paint.

For consistent coverage up to the line where two edges or colors meet, use a chisel-tipped brush (the end of the brush resembles a chisel). Where the wall meets the ceiling, first use downward strokes on the wall and then smooth horizontal strokes.

On the ceiling itself, move the brush in strokes towards the center of the room, away from the main wall. Then draw a straight horizontal line on the ceiling following the direction of the wall.

Even if you’re using the same color on adjacent surfaces, follow this method for cutting in with 5-centimeter-wide margins. Avoid simply placing a brush directly into a corner. This prevents paint build-up.

Also, use a brush with long bristles. Hold the brush so that your palm rests against one side of the metal guard and your fingers against the other side. Apply gentle pressure to the brush on the surface.

Then, as you move the brush, apply enough pressure to bend the bristles in the direction of the brush movement. Keep the brush about 3 centimeters away from the adjacent painted surface. The bent bristles and pressure will release a fine bead of paint.

 

Benefits of Brush Painting

The most important advantages of brush painting include:

 

Easy painting of small and intricate areas.

Practical for small spaces.

Suitable for small metal, wood, and plastic items, portable, etc.

Creates a beautiful finish on your desired surface.

 

Disadvantages of Brush Painting

The main disadvantages of brush painting include:

 

Slow speed and time-consuming process of painting.

Not suitable for large areas.

Requires more paint compared to roller painting.

Requires physically strong individuals with high energy.

Requires sufficient skill in holding the brush and the necessary angle.

 

Teaching Brush Painting in Building Painting

One of the most important points in teaching brush painting is that you should dip about one-third of the brush bristles into the paint bucket. Then, pour any excess paint back into the bucket. For this, it’s necessary to let the brush hang over the paint bucket for a few minutes.

If you’re in a hurry to paint with a brush, empty the excess paint by tapping the brush against the side of an empty paint bucket. Never drag the brush against the edge of the bucket to remove excess paint. This will eventually damage the brush bristles.

While using the brush, try to angle it correctly. It’s best to hold it at an angle (45 degrees) against the surface you’re painting. Avoid pressing the brush onto the wall while painting. This will cause more paint to be applied at one point on the wall, resulting in a darker appearance compared to other areas.

Note that you should start with lighter colors using the brush, then proceed to darker colors. Also, after finishing painting with the brush, it’s important to store it properly.

 

Cleaning Brush Technique

When you finish painting with a brush, it’s time to clean it. We recommend getting hold of some old newspapers for cleaning the brush. First, stroke the leftover paint from the brush onto the surface of the newspaper to remove any liquid paint from the bristles.

After this, you can clean the brush according to the type of paint used, using an appropriate solvent. For example, if your paint is oil-based, you should clean the brush with paint thinner. If your paint is water-based like acrylic and latex, you can use water and soap to clean the brush.

Essential Tips for Brush Painting

If brush marks remain on your surface, the reason might be the quality of the brush and the high concentration of the paint you’re using.

The ideal temperature for brush painting is between 25 to 30 degrees Celsius.

Try to use high-quality brushes so you can use them for multiple painting projects.

Between the first and second coats of plastic and acrylic paint, place the brush in a plastic bag or wrap it in cling film, then put it in the freezer.

Take the brush out of the freezer half an hour before starting painting.

For oil-based paints, it’s best to place the brush in a container of paint thinner between the first and second coats so the paint doesn’t dry out.

 

Tips for Buying Brushes

Regardless of the price, you can distinguish between a good brush and a bad one by carefully examining it in the store. Open the bristles of each brush and inspect its tip. The more bristles or forked ends it has, the better the brush and its paint dispersion capabilities.

Give the brush a shake on the edge of the store display. A good brush may lose some of its bristles, but a bad one will lose many more.

Look for brushes with long and tapered bristles, especially fine brushes. As a general rule, the length of the bristles should be about one and a half times the width of the brush (with exceptions for wider brushes, often referred to as flat brushes or shaders).

For example, a brush with a width of 5 centimeters should have bristles about 10 centimeters long. The length of the bristles gives you the flexibility needed for painting corners and edges. Finally, choose brushes with smooth and well-shaped wooden or plastic handles that fit comfortably in your hand.

 

Summary

In this article, we covered the topic of brush painting. A brush is a painting tool that you can use for small surfaces such as wall corners, doors and windows, frames, cornices, and more. Before using a brush for water-based paints, it needs to be slightly moistened. For oil-based paints, the brush should be dry before painting. We suggest you to read this article “rollers or brushes” to know if brush painting is suitable for your residential or commercial painting projects? For more information on the suitable brush for your project, consult with top painters experts. Contact us now.