Watercolor Sets and Brushes

[darksteel_ninja]

If this is in the Wrong Forum, please tell me, or move it, or both.

Anyway, I am looking to buy another set of Watercolors ( an Opaic set) and was wondering if anyone has any good preferences

As for Brushes...SABLE. NOTHING ELSE COMES CLOSE.

I can get the same line with a 7 WITHOUT touching it that i get with a 00 that the school gave me ( HINT- prison grade brushes), and they will give you excellent control, the're just superior.

[Black Spot]

A whole set? Don’t you mean replace the odd block that you’ve used to destruction? Why a whole set?

Forget sable, finger tips and nail gouging is where it’s really at.

[dark eagle]

Sable is kinda wobbly I'd buy the "white synthetic" ones instead of those if your looking for fine details, they have much more control then there "thread mimicking" counterparts, sable, is a bit lazy when it comes to loading a brush with paint that will last a little longer then a few strokes.

edit:thats comletly the wrong way round. typing error...

[J Wilson]

Natural hair has a certain springyness and memory that synthetics don't have. They also have a natural taper to each hair, that most synthetics don't have (there are a few brands that try to mimic it). As for paint load, they are usually considered much better there too. Because of that natural taper, you can hold a lot of paint in the belly of the brush, and then it comes out in the tight control of those fine tips. Since synthetics don't have those nice full bellys, they don't have as much holding power. Combine that with the way they grow tired and unshapely faster, good sables are an excellent tool.

That isn't to say synthetics are bad, they just are better for other things. Acrylic is one of those things. Acrylic tends to get stuck in the natural inconsistancies of real hair, where as synthetic brushes give them far fewer points to grab on. Synthetics are also great if your painting approach is abusive to brushes, since they are cheaper and more disposable. Synthetics are also very durable against certain surfaces that destroy real hair faster.

For watercolors though, I'd personally stick with natural hair brushes, sables being great for a variety of uses.

Opaque water colors are usually gouache. They are great for being very opaque, and coming in a wide range of fairly pigment intense colors. Most of the companies that make quality waatercolors also make gouache, so stick with the brands you already like in my opinion. Winsor and Newton is pretty widely available, and the quality is at least standard (I'm sure some true water media artists will have brands they like better though).