Whether you are a professional artist or a hobbyist, your paintbrush is the most crucial part of your art supplies. It’s like a sword that will help you win your battles. Your paintbrush is responsible for bringing your imagination and creativity to life. Hence, choosing a paintbrush set is a decision you must make with the utmost care and precaution. 

Before you randomly pick up a paintbrush from a stationery store, you must first have some basic understanding of the different kinds of paintbrushes and the various distinguishing features they offer.

Types of Paint Brushes

There are eight major types of paint brushes based on the size, style, and purpose of their tips. These types are mentioned below:

• Round
• Pointed Round
• Detail Round
• Flat
• Angular Flat
• Bright
• Filbert
• Fan

Round

A round paintbrush is named after the shape of its tip. This type of paintbrush is round and pointed and is generally used in the sketching and outlining phases of detailed artworks. They should be used with thinner paints instead of thicker ones.

They can create both thin and thick lines depending on how much you press its nib down. Lighter strokes with just the tip lightly touching the surface create thinner lines while heavier strokes with the pressing down on the surface would create a thicker line.

Pointed Round

This paintbrush has a sharp and pointed tip that is narrower than a round paintbrush which makes it more suitable for extremely detailed work and spotting as well as retouching.

Detail Round

A detail round paintbrush is comparatively shorter in length to other brushes but is capable of holding more color than the rest. It’s used for making short and detailed strokes.

Flat Brush

The tip of a flat paintbrush has a square shape and is specifically designed for making bolder strokes. This type of paintbrush can be used for coloring or filling up uncolored spaces in the sketch. Its edges can be used for drawing straight lines.

Angular Flat

This paintbrush has an angled tip which makes it perfect for creating curved lines and coloring spaces just like flat brushes.

Bright

This paintbrush is quite similar to the flat one except for the part where its edges shift inwards, i.e., the bristles on its edges are slightly shorter than the ones in the middle. This makes them perfect for working in close contact with the canvases. They are amazing at making short and controlled strokes while using heavy and thicker shades.

Filbert

Filbert brushes have a flat and oval-shaped tip which is suitable for making soft and round edges as well as blending. It’s a lot like a product of a round paintbrush that’s used for detailed work and a flat paintbrush that is wider enough to cover more space than a round brush ever could. 

Fan

A fan paintbrush is a kind that has a flat tip with its bristles spreading in every direction. The shape of the tip is identical to a hand fan, hence the name. These paintbrushes are mainly used for giving a textured effect to the art.

No matter what your level of expertise is in the world of art, a paintbrush is your best friend for life. If you’re interested in pursuing art for a longer period, remember to choose the perfect partner in crime and the best friend in your artistic endeavors wisely. A paintbrush full of wonders can do wonders with a wonderful hand holding the paintbrush.