Travel Brush opinions?

[Peggy Berk]

Charlie – I think you need to open a #BrushFetish forum here. I think Tonya and I could easily keep it going 😉

Seriously though I’ve always wondered why art supply stores never have brush events.  There are many paint events during the year (where you can go to a specific retailer to demo paints on a given day), but I’ve yet to see any of the major art stores host a brush event where you get to try out some brushes.  When I was younger I only worked in oils and just started working in watercolor about 18 months ago.  It was all new to me and I bought nearly 3 dozen brushes, trial and error one or two at a time,  before I “found” my brushes.

[Photo: My watercolor brush collection]

[Peggy Berk]

Charlie – I think you need to open a #BrushFetish forum here. I think Tonya and I could easily keep it going 😉

Seriously though I’ve always wondered why art supply stores never have brush events.  There are many paint events during the year (where you can go to a specific retailer to demo paints on a given day), but I’ve yet to see any of the major art stores host a brush event where you get to try out some brushes.  When I was younger I only worked in oils and just started working in watercolor about 18 months ago.  It was all new to me and I bought nearly 3 dozen brushes, trial and error one or two at a time,  before I “found” my brushes.

[Photo: My watercolor brush collection]

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[Debra “Kate” Powell]

LOVE the brush fetish idea!  If I had spending money I’d be trouble.  I wish the pis would make itself better!

[Charlie O’Shields]

LOL… brush fetish, eh?! Love it! What an incredible collection of brushes! And you’re so right… brush in-store demos would be amazing. You never really know until you try them if they’ll work. I have a bin of brushes that I no longer use.

[Tonya L]

I agree with you that places need to make it easier to test brushes. Cheap Joe’s HQ and outlet store (in Boone NC) allows customers to test brushes on a waterboard with water, but I really can’t tell much from that. Still, it’s better than nothing.

And there is NO way I need to be in a brush fetish group. This art supply group is dangerous enough! ha! 🙂

[Peggy Berk]

Tonya – Turns out Zecchi sent them DHL second day for that price!!! Just got a text from DHL that they will be delivered today…..

[EK O’Connor]

Hi everybody, sorry late in replying, puppy has been in the ER lately. She’s fine now. I get my orders from Zecchi via FedEx. I think it depends where you live in the States on how they ship it.  I spent a few months in Italy on two different occasions, and fell in love with their store. I have their Silverpoint materials,  a set of their watercolors,  and some of the rough charcoal of the type that Michelangelo used. I’m not a professional artist, just a hobbyist and collector of unusual and fine art materials. I ordered from Zecchi to be reminded of the times I spent in Italy and especially in Florence. Also, like one of Florence’s perfumeries (Santa Maria Novella), the store has been there for centuries and that gives me a smile. It’s like a connection, a camaraderie, if you will, through the ages, with artists 🙂

[EK O’Connor]

PS if you ever visit Cortona, there was a lovely little art supplies shop with a wonderful, kind elderly gentleman who will help you find whatever you need. It is a tiny little shop, and even though it was a couple of years in between my visits, he remembered me. It’s the kind of place that you remember all of your life.

[EK O’Connor]

Peggy – I spent a few months in Italy on two different occasions, and fell in love with their store when I ran into it while wandering around in Florence 🙂

[Peggy Berk]

Tonya – The Zecchi brushes are just beautiful. They load a lot of paint though I have found that the largest (*size 8) tends to release a bit too much of a bead immediately upon touching dry paper.  In general I’m finding them a bit softer than my other sables and there seems to be a much greater variance from one size to the next than I’m used to seeing in other lines. [I don’t know how well you can see this in the photo??]

Overall, they are pretty nice to paint with – especially the two smaller ones. The #4 will definitely become one of my favorites.

Craftsmanship is outstanding. The brushes are very well made – as is the beautiful wood case.  I especially like that the case incorporates a stand.  I often paint spontaneously on site and have a habit of just using a single brush – even when another would work better – because there’s no where to easily rest a second brush.  I think I will find the incorporated stand very helpful.

Tonya, I hate to do this to you knowing what a battle the  #brushfetish thing can be,  but you being a sable person and loving high quality supplies,  I should think you are going to have to get one of these sets 😉

[Tonya L]

Peggy, thank you so much for this information! I really appreciate your honest input. Those brushes look absolutely lovely in the photo! I do the same thing with brushes in the field… hesitate to get another out because I have to dig for them in my pack and then find somewhere to keep them all where they won’t roll away from me.

I love a large-sized round (I paint mostly with size 8-12 rounds) and wonder if I would be too frustrated by the release on the size 8. That’s what made me give up the Rosemary sables… the softness kept resulting in a pigment dump.

Hmmm, I will certainly give these some thought. Your comment was extremely helpful!

[Peggy Berk]

I was just getting a feel for them working wet into dry on some practice paper (a Strathmore watercolor journal) when I got that bead.  My tests were nowhere near as scientific or exacting as yours… and I rarely use a brush as large as the #8 (which is the same size as two of my other #10’s!!) so I’m not really sure how much was “operator” fault and how much was the brush.  I saw your great video on how to test a brush today…if you think it would be useful too you to see those tests on #8 I will do that and post the photo for you.

[Hey, if you haven’t seen it, check out Tonya’s instructive video on how to test a brush! https://www.scratchmadejournal.com/blog/watercolor-brushes-how-to-test-a-brush]

[John]

Wow what a brilliant thread! Loved reading through these (yep – another brush fetishist!) I’ve just been doing some more sketching whilst on holiday and had forgotten how much I love my Escoda travel brushes. I have the Optimo sable range in a 12, 10, 8, 6 and a Perla Synthetic sized 10. Really beautiful. I rarely use the 6, and usually find that the 12 and 10 are ideal for working A5 and A4. Had never heard of the Zechi brand before but shall definitely be checking them out! Oh, I keep my brushes tidy in an old leather cigar case (cheap on eBay) that has a lovely feel to it!

[Debra “Kate” Powell]

So how about great travel brushes that are not made from hair?

[Tonya L]

Hi, Kate. I really love Joe Miller’s Pseudo Sable travel brushes. I have the juicy size 12 that I paint with constantly. It has a razor point and a beautiful belly. www.cheapjoes.com/miller-s-pseudo-sable-travel-brushes.html