#1.da Vinci Brushes Kolinsky Travel Set 2
The da Vinci Brushes are the best watercolor brushes because they are premium. Needless to say, these brushes have the best elasticity, softness, and smoothness, making them ideal instruments for professional artists. In addition, this brush set is perfect for artists who usually travel, since it’s very portable and durable.
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Why do you need the Best Watercolor Brushes?
For those who want to enter the world of artwork, reliable drawing instruments are necessary. In this article, we will focus on the best watercolor brushes, because they are the most frequently used instruments for both starters and professions. Unlike pens and pencils, brushes provide more forms of strokes, which transfer into a variety of art styles.
They may be more difficult to handle, but they surely can help you to express your artistic conceptions. A regular picture may require varied strokes, meaning it would be too difficult to finish a picture with a single brush. Basically, you need a full set of watercolor brushes with different sizes, shapes, and bristles. Watercolor brushes are roughly divided into two categories: flat-pointed and round-pointed.
For general creations, you need at least 3 round pointed brushes with sizes of small, medium, and big, 2 flat brushes, and an additional 3-4 cm wide scrubbing brush. These are enough for a beginner, but a professional painter may have different requirements. We suggest you find a balanced proportion of these two kinds of brushes, according to your experience and preference.
The other thing which is worth concern is the material of the bristles. The most premium brush definitely is the Kolinsky brush, which has the best elasticity and the most water content and is soft and smooth. The elasticity transfers to the ability to recover to the regular form after being forcedly pressed. Additionally, the increased water content means more pigments in the brush. It goes well out saying that the Kolinsky brush is very suitable for the portrayal of details. However, kolinsky brushes are expensive, making them not cost-effective for beginners.
Red sable brushes have a similar performance as the Kolinsky brushes, but a bit harder. The red sable brushes are still expensive; however, many artists love their hardness and admire them very much. It’s pretty hard to tell whether the Kolinsky or the red sable is better, but there is no doubt that no other brush can surpass these two. Other bristles have their own characteristics. For example, squirrel hair brushes are suitable for thin-coating large areas, because it can absorb the redundant pigment from the coating. The disadvantage is that they easily break if you squeeze the water out of the brush. Ox hair and goat hair are also commonly used in brushes.
The former is quite elastic but not as durable as the sable hair; the latter is very soft but is short of elasticity. Finally, cheap brushes usually use horse hair, raccoon hair, or nylon bristles. We recommend nylon bristles because they perform better than natural hair when being used in small brushes. For big brushes, horse hair can be a good choice, since it has higher water content. Raccoon hair is usually for scrubbing brushes since it is thick and is between soft and hard.
Best Watercolor Brushes
- #1.da Vinci Brushes Kolinsky Travel Set 2
- #2.Virtuoso 15-Piece Fine Paintbrushes
- #3.Crafts 4 ALL Paint Brushes 12 Pieces Set
- #4.Heartybay 10Pieces Brush Set
- #5.Benicci Artist Paint Brush Set
#1.da Vinci Brushes Kolinsky Travel Set 2
Da Vinci Brushes Kolinsky Travel Set 2 is the best watercolor brush set for artists who usually travel or paint outdoors. It contains three round pointed brushes of different sizes, and each uses top-grade Siberian Tobol sky kolinsky as its bristles. All brushes are in a soft leather case, which is lightweight but tough.
You can carry the set anywhere, and draw smooth lines whenever you like. The brushes of the da Vinci travel set are handmade by skilled brush makers in Germany. Each of them is factory-tested to make sure that it has good flow and shape. The bristles are soft, elastic, and smooth, and are perfect for fine detailed work.
These brushes are not only great for watercolor painting, but also superb for painting with acrylic paints. You can also use them to paint models and figures, and the final effect would be perfect. It is quite special that the da Vinci brushes use caps to protect the bristles. The caps perfectly prevent damage from impacts and extrusions which are quite common when traveling. Moreover, they add resistance to weather, allowing these brushes to have a longer shelf life.
On each cap, there is a number tagging the size of the brush; the arrangement of the set is effortless. The brushes are shorter than other brand-name brushes, reducing the risk of wreckage. This feature also adds more accuracy since the movement range of the bristles is decreased. However, the weight balance would be slightly different; you may need to take a few hours to get used to these brushes. When using these brushes, you still need to be aware not to dip too much water, or the bristles may not be able to hold a point. In other words, they may not be suitable for careless beginners.
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#2.Virtuoso 15-Piece Fine Paintbrushes
If you need the best watercolor brushes for fine detail work, we think the Virtuoso is a very good option. This is a 15-piece set and the brushes are mini brushes with different points. Rounds, liners, flats, and every point type you need is included. Although the Virtuoso brushes are much smaller than standard brushes, they are not difficult to hold.
The handles of the brushes are shorter and thicker than standard brushes, thus the only difference may be the balancing. To draw with a Virtuoso brush, you need to hold the lower part of the brush. Unfortunately, beginners may feel that their hands and wrists may accidentally rub the wet pigments. On the contrary, professionals may love these brushes because they have better accuracy.
The bristles of the brushes are durable faux hair in securely crimped ferrules. When painting detailed parts of artwork, these brushes perform even better than premium natural hair brushes. They are elastic and soft, and they have good water content. It goes without saying that you can effortlessly draw symmetrical lines and points with these brushes. Generally, you can use these brushes to finish any detailed painting work like miniatures, models, and figures. They are budget-friendly, making them perfect for those who paint every day. The only problem is that they are not suitable for large areas of the coating, which means you may need supplemental brushes.
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#3.Crafts 4 ALL Paint Brushes 12 Pieces Set
Craft 4 ALL paint brushes are the best watercolor brushes with the most diverse shapes for artwork. It is suitable for artists of any level, and painting with them would be a great deal of fun. These brushes are quite quality. The nylon brush hair is soft and flexible, and there is no wiggling when painting since it has been ensured by double-crimped Aluminium ferrules.
The ferrules are rust-free, and the wooden handles are durable, making the brushes very cost-effective for long-term usage. Each of the brushes has a unique brush head. With small, medium, and large thicknesses, as well as round, flat, filbert, angular, and angle shapes, these brushes are fit for regular watercolor painting.
For those who are very skilled in painting, this set may be a little childish and over-customized; but it’s still ideal as a gift for any painter because it’s practical and trustworthy.
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#4.Heartybay 10Pieces Brush Set
If you are looking for something cheap but dependable for watercolor painting, the Heartybay may be your best option. This 10 pieces brush set has no special design and uses common materials, but its craftsmanship is pretty good. The brush head is made of nylon, which is elastic and soft.
These brushes do not keep much water, but can evenly paint the pigment. This brush set is ideal for detailed work and is convenient that it is suitable for most kinds of pigments. It’s quite practical for beginners and can be a good gift for kids. You can also use these brushes for businesses like nail painting or craft art painting since they are durable and the bristles never fall out.
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#5.Benicci Artist Paint Brush Set
The Benicci Artist Paint Brush Set can be the best watercolor brush set because they are durable and convenient. The manufacturer has chosen affordable materials to produce this brush set and uses extra strong ferrules to make sure that no bristles that fall out.
The thoughtful service provided by the manufacturer is the reason that we highly recommend it. Together with the knife, this 15 pieces brush set can cover all professional usage. Although this brush set doesn’t seem special when compared with other brand-name products, we like that it comes with a free painting knife and a carry-case. The case is convenient for traveling.
These brushes are a bit heavier than standard because of the ferrules, but the weight balance is still good. If you don’t like this set, the manufacturer guarantees that it can be returned in 60 days.
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