Never heard of pre-conditioning your brushes before painting? Neither had I through my first 5 years of being in business and $1500 or so in paint brushes that lasted about 50% as long as they could have. I am sharing this brush care tip because I believe it is one of quickest, most effective ways I know of to make cutting straight lines easier, make your brushes last longer, and help your clean up process be less time consuming.
I’m not sure if this is something most pros don’t know about, or if it is something they keep secret to give them a competitive edge. Either way it will take you nearly as much time to read this short brush care article as it will to put preconditioning paint brushes to the test and start reaping the benefits.
To start with, take a look at these photos I took of the bristles on my go-to brush, which is a Wooster Pro Extra Firm (We typically think of this brush as being one of the smoothest around). As you can see, when zoomed in the bristles are actually quite porous. These pores will clog quickly, and become harder to fully clean and begin to deteriorate long before their time. The result will be less control over your brush and a difficult time keeping your lines straight.
The SOLUTION for Preconditioning Your Paint Brushes:
-For best results, start with a new, unopened paint brush.
-Dip brush in fabric softener (I stick to Downy), all the way up to the point where the brush meets the ferrule (the spot where your bristles disappear underneath the metal housing).
-Wrap your paint brush in plastic wrap and allow fabric softener to soak in overnight.
-Rinse bristles clean using only warm water, and enjoy a longer lasting paint brush that that will give you the control to cut straight lines for much longer than you are used to!
Repeat process as necessary after tough projects that take a toll on your paint brushes.
