Annie Sloan Pure Bristle Brushes

Which size brush is best for the job?
There are three sizes available in the Annie Sloan Pure bristle range:

1. Large Paint brush (n.16): Ideal for painting walls, long flat surfaces, doors, floors.Basically think of anything with a lot of surface area.

2. Medium Paint Brush (n.12): All the in-between sized jobs. Basically anything that has a lot of changing levels or carved in interiors. Anything average sized, kitchen cabinets, interiors, etc.

3. Small Paint Brush (n. 8): Ideal for painting chair spindles, ladder-back designs, petite furniture, trim, drawer fronts, carved or ornate wood, stencils.

The smaller you go, the less weighted the brush, and the more control you often have.

Buy Annie Sloan Pure Bristle Brushes here

How to hold the brush.
The easiest way is to hold the brush by the ferrule ( this is the large silver coloured collar on the brush). BY holding it this way you get a lot more control over the brush and it doesn’t make your hands as tired from holding the brush.

Wax Brushes:

There are two sizes of wax brushes available.

1. Large Wax Brush (n.26 – Long, solid, tapered handle): If you used a Large Paint Brush, you may want to consider waxing with something with an equivalent coverage. The larger waxing brush works well on surfaces that have a lot of area because it covers a bigger diameter.

2. Small Wax Brush (n.22 – Short, ergonomic handle): I personally find this to be the easier of the two brushes as the design is more ergonomic. This is our go-to size for typical projects & is more cost effective if budget is a factor.

Buy Annie Sloan Wax Brushes here

How to Care for Your Brush
When buying any new paintbrush (regardless of the type of painting you are going to do) giving your brush a first time conditioning session will help you have a happier painting experience.

What is conditioning?
When you condition your brush, you’re essentially releasing any stray bristles that were never submerged into the ferrule when the adhesive set. Take your brush in hand and give the bristles a couple of firm taps on a hard surface. Think of it as giving the stray bristles a nudge upwards; not a lot of force is required though. Then take the brush and fan through the brush a few times to surface those loose bristles. Take them out and give your brush a rinse through with water.
Always let your brushes dry on a flat surface on a paper towel or clean rag so they retain their bristle shape and so that water doesn’t continuously drip down to the handle. You may also drip dry them by hanging them upside down from a hook. Avoid blow drying them, they’ll air dry on their own overnight. If you want to start a project right away, just take a cloth and squeeze out the excess water!
Stray bristles are not indicative of the quality of a brush. How a brush holds paint and the overall finish it can achieve are the only true testaments to brushes.

Cleaning Your Brush (after projects)
All of the Annie Sloan natural brushes are made from entirely natural boar bristle and are made in Italy. Just think of how well you treat the hair on your head. The use of harsh cleaners is not necessary to clean your brush. For cleaning, mild grease-cutting dish soap works effectively with a coarse sponge. If you rinse your brush immediately after painting, just warm water is often enough. But if you wouldn’t use harsh solvents on your hair, don’t use them on a natural hair brush! (You’ll get more breakage and shedding over time.) The brushes are made with split-ends intentionally – they continue to split and fan out for the best paint coverage. It softens your strokes and allows the paint to move freely through the bristles. Let it do the work for you! Avoid bleach. You really don’t need anything that harsh!

Look after your tools and they will paint beautifully for many projects to come.

Annie Sloan brushes – are they worth it ?

Short answer: Yes. A lot of thought went into the Annie Sloan brushes and it becomes instantly evident when using them with Chalk Paint™. The brushes (from the bristles to the adhesives used) have been designed to the highest standard and made to hold the unique consistency of Annie’s paint and her waxes. They also have an oversized ferrule and a rounded form that hold thicker paints with more versatility. You have the option of painting rustically or painting in a modern style with just one brush. In the long term you will save on the amount of product you use and of course the amount of time spent on your projects. This is also true of annie’s wax brush since waxing is the final aesthetic touch to your furniture. A fine artist always uses high-quality paint brushes and a make-up artist always uses high quality facial brushes – investing in your brush will provide you with the most successful and rewarding Chalk Paint™ experience.