Are art brushes suitable for makeup? Test Drive. From what and how can you make a brush for painting? What can be used instead of a paint brush

In modern conditions, making a brush with your own hands is usually carried out using bristles and animal hair. You can make such brushes with your own hands and get a quality tool for painting or painting. Brushes can be made round or flat depending on the area of ​​use. In addition, the pile can be shortened or elongated.

Making a brush with your own hands is not difficult

The most common and high-quality brushes from the tail hair of such animals are considered:

• badger;
• column;
• proteins;
• gerbils.

Given the high cost of the animal hair tools listed above, homemade brushes can replace this material with the hair and hair of other animals. In particular, instruments made of mink, arctic fox and fox wool have become more and more common lately. In addition, waste from the activities of fur factories can be used as a material. Also, the pile can be made from the wool of camels, sheep or long-haired dogs, as well as human hair.

Manufacturing technology

The first step in the manufacture is the preparation of bristles or animal hair. In addition, a stand for brushes and material for the handle must be prepared. However, first of all, you should start with the choice of material for the bristle tuft.

Material selection

When choosing a material, you need to focus on what kind of work you plan to use the brush for. So, for painting with watercolors or oils, some materials are suitable, and for fine painting works, others. At the same time, there are areas of use that require the use of a certain material. For example, for ink painting, most masters prefer to use products made from camel wool.

Trimming wool for the future pile of brushes

Consider the main characteristics of the most common homemade brushes, depending on the material used:

1. Sandstone brushes, as a rule, are made flat with a long or short hairy surface. They are distinguished by soft and elastic hair. Therefore, such tools are mainly used for fine painting work or drawing with oil paints or watercolors. In addition, brushes with sandstone bristles can be used to glaze the lacquer.
2. Badger products have a round or flat shape. They are somewhat stiffer than the previous version, and therefore they are mainly used for working with oil paints.
3. Brushes with kolinsky pile can be flat and round. They have high elasticity and resilience. They are mainly used for fine work, as well as for raw glazing.
4. Squirrel tassels can only be round. They are exceptionally soft and elastic, so they are mainly used for painting on porcelain or paper.

Hair preparation

It is advisable to start harvesting in early autumn, when the animals molt. Individual unsuitable hairs are removed from the collected bundle and trimmed. Next, the cut part is placed in a glass for alignment. The hair bundle obtained after this should be combed out with a comb with sharp teeth.

Carefully combed pile must be tied up and degreased in clean gasoline. To do this, the bundle is stored in a closed jar for several days, after which it is boiled in a tanning solution to make the hairs non-hygroscopic.

Carefully combed pile is bandaged and degreased

The next step is hardening, the conditions of which depend on the type of hair. Usually the hair is kept at a temperature of 150 degrees for about an hour. For hardening, the bundle is placed on a metal mesh or hung up so that the hairs are well warmed up by air of the required temperature.

Knitting brush

The pile, which has been hardened, is suitable for knitting a brush. To do this, a certain number of hairs is taken and lowered into a tin or plastic mold with a conical bottom. This form must be prepared in advance. After you have put the required amount of hairs into the mold, you can make a blank for the brush by tapping on this form. Next, the bundle of hair is removed and tied up, after which the non-working surface is varnished. It is inserted into a metal capsule or clip.

The capsule can be made either from thin metal strips, connecting their edges with an overlap with soldering. In addition, this work can also be seamless, which is considered a more acceptable option.

It is recommended to make the capsule from brass or tinplate, as these materials are durable and resistant to corrosion. Its size will depend on the desired brush number. Also at this stage, do not forget about such an important element as a stand for brushes.

The brush stand is an equally important element

Making a pen

After you managed to make a pile, you should start making a handle. It is best carved from such types of wood:

• pine;
• alder;
• birch.

After turning, the handle is covered with a colorless varnish or painted with a solid color paint. Next, the beam inserted into the capsule is filled with synthetic glue or other waterproof composition from the wide end. This must be done so that the glue reaches the end of the pile, which is in the capsule.

After everything is dry, the primer with a bunch of bristles should be connected to a wooden handle. For strength, it is recommended to additionally compress the capsule with a wooden handle. The finished handle should be varnished.

Choice of pile length

You need to choose the length of the bristles released from the primer. The length of the released hair should depend on its elasticity. This is of fundamental importance, because if you release the bristles too long, then the brush will look disheveled. Otherwise, insufficiently released pile will not pick up a sufficient amount of paint.

After you have decided on the length, the finished brush must be moistened with water and combed until the bristles are as even as possible.

Conclusion

Thus, making a brush with your own hands is a completely affordable procedure. It consists of several stages, one of which is the choice of material. Hair and bristles are selected in this case, taking into account the purpose of the brush and financial capabilities.

Yana Karimova is looking into whether makeup brushes can be replaced with brushes from an artist shop as part of the savings.
Among people who are fond of cosmetics, it is widely believed that brushes should be more expensive than the contents of a cosmetic bag. Of course, there is a rational grain in this, but the crisis does not spare anyone, the ruble is falling again, and if only the lazy did not write mass-market cosmetics guides (we are among them -)), then budget brushes are not so easy to find.

I read several times in interviews and blogs of makeup artists that for some makeup brushes there are analogues among artistic ones, and, by the way, they cost an order of magnitude cheaper. After spending forty minutes at the brush stand, carefully perusing and feeling the assortment, I left the artist's store with five brushes - and the persistent feeling that I had discovered a new source of savings and a kind of shopaholism at the same time.

Round brush №1 (synthetics), Roubloff

The first thought when looking at this brush: “Yes, this is an eyeliner brush!”. But in comparison with the usual thin eyeliner brushes, you come to disappointing conclusions. The Roubloff brush is thinner and its hair is several millimeters longer, which is why it is inelastic and bends when pressed. With such a lack of control, arrows are completely impossible to draw. It's a pity, the price is very nice-)) However, I managed to adapt it for eyebrows. You can draw very thin hairs, the effect is like when using a felt-tip pen for eyebrows.

Price - 77 rubles.

Inclined brush №6 (synthetics), Roubloff

The bristles of this brush are narrower and shorter than the beveled brushes I have had. Because of this, the same arrows are a little more difficult to draw with it. But they can be made very thin-) And, without reservations, it is very good for eyebrows, and with its help you can apply both shadows and cream products. If I suddenly find myself without a single eyebrow brush - I know which one I will buy first-) The price here is a nice bonus. Very pleasant, to be honest.

Price - 157 rubles.

Oval brush №7 (synthetics), Roubloff

If I chose the previous two brushes at my own peril and risk, this one was easier - synthetic oval brushes are definitely used by makeup artists to apply concealer. What can I say, these makeup artists are not fools-)) The brush is great for spot camouflage when you need to apply a dense pigmented corrector (like my favorite Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage).

In the process of using the brush, another use was found. She can accurately and tightly apply lipstick. Just a few movements - and the lips are made up. It is clear that this can be done with almost any lip brush - but not every lip brush costs 176 rubles-)) I will definitely buy a double.

Price - 176 rubles.

Scenic brush round No. 5 (squirrel)

With a brush, at first glance, everything is clear. Soft, fluffy, squirrel - just right for shading shadows. In fact, not everything is so simple-)) The brush is so soft that it is absolutely impossible to blend relatively pigmented shadows. Which, however, does not make it completely useless-) With its help, you can apply a base light color on the entire eyelid or a shadow-highlighter under the eyebrow.

Price - 142 rubles.

Scenic brush round No. 10 (squirrel)

The most expensive and largest brush of the five. I love that it's softer and more skin friendly than most regular face brushes. I apply highlighter to her (everywhere where highlighter is usually applied) and sometimes I powder the T-zone and the area under the eyes. When the swatches were taken, there was no powder highlighter at hand - but as it turned out, it applies cream perfectly too-)

Price - 580 rubles.

As a result, out of five brushes, three firmly settled in my cosmetic bag - and two of them are cheaper than two hundred rubles. I think it's a good savings

How to make a paint brush in five minutes, let's try to figure it out with you.

Everything is in the shops now! Buying any brush and pretty cheap is not a problem, but imagine this situation. You need to paint something. Literally two brush strokes. The brush after such a short-term use will have to be thrown away. It's a pity, but there's nothing to be done, it's somehow not handy to wash it.

And in this situation, this article will come to your rescue.

How to do it yourself, it is very simple and cheap to make a paint brush that does not need to be thrown away and does not need to be washed, with detailed photographs and will be described in it.

What can you make a brush out of?

This does not require a lot of time and materials. An old dried brush or any other pen that is comfortable to hold in your hand during painting and a few more details will be enough.

We disassemble the old brush so that the handle remains intact, and discard the rest.

Next, we select an ordinary clerical clip of the same width as the width of the brush you need, and adjust the width of the handle to the width of the clip. It is better not to cut the handle with a knife, but to saw it off, so it will be more accurate, and there is no risk that the tree will break off in the wrong place.

To secure the clip to the handle, you need to pick up two small and not thick screws. Depending on the diameter of the screws, you need to take two drills. The larger one is for drilling the clamp, and the smaller one is for drilling a hole for the screw in the handle (so that it does not split when tightening the screws).

We drill holes.

Attach the clamp to the handle.

We cut the foam rubber of the desired size and insert it into the clamp.

The brush is ready.

This do-it-yourself brush for painting is made, you can use it indefinitely and not worry that the paint will dry out and the brush will have to be thrown away. After painting, you simply throw away the used foam rubber, and it is enough to wipe the handle lightly from traces of paint. You can not even throw away the foam rubber, but leave the brush as it is.

In order for the brush to be ready for further use, it is enough to simply change the dried foam rubber for a piece of new one and the brush is again ready for use. You can take any foam rubber, such as you have.

If there is no foam rubber, then you can use a piece of old fabric folded in several layers, a piece of felt or something similar.

As you can see, there are no dead ends.

The old masters made their own paints and brushes. The technology of making brushes is not complicated, but responsible and requires delicacy. This is an unusual case, so few people know the secrets of this craft. However, you can make brushes even at home. So, what is the technology for making art brushes?

1. Preparation of hair or bristles.

In the hairline of animals there is down and straight hair, which is thicker than downy and tougher. I wrote about what kind of hair and what animals make classic brushes for painting. Harvesting hair, you need to sort it by length. The hair bundle should consist of hair of approximately the same length. The ends of the hair should never be trimmed. Why is this important I wrote.

2. Formation of the basis of the future brush.

Further, the hairs in the hair bundle are aligned in some small cylindrical vessel. The bottom of such a vessel should be flat. The hair falls with its trimmed part to the bottom of the cylinder. Now, it must be trimmed by gently tapping the bottom of the cylinder on the table. The hair will settle down and straighten out. After that, they are tied into a bun and combed with a fine-toothed comb to remove unwanted hairs.

3. Degreasing and tanning.

Degreasing is done by soaking the hair bundle in gasoline for 3 days. After that, it is washed with clean gasoline and dried. After that, the workpiece should be boiled in a 10% solution of potassium alum. This is called tanning. Tanning is necessary in order to make the hair non-hygroscopic, plastic and durable.

4. Hardening.

This procedure is necessary to give the hair elasticity. The hair of a brush for painting should be moderately resilient and hard, moderately elastic. For hardening, the hair of the future brush is wrapped in thin paper, for example, in newsprint and tied with a thread. Next, the hair is hardened in an oven, with hot air at a temperature of 150 degrees. This is done for about an hour. Time and temperature are not the same for different types of hair and depend on their variety. The temperature can be determined by the color of the paper: if it becomes slightly yellowish, then the temperature is insufficient. If it turns brown, then the temperature is over 150 degrees. In this case, the hair will become brittle, so you should not exceed the temperature. After the initial hardening, the hair is combed to remove unwanted hairs and the hardening is repeated. The quality of hardening is checked by wetting the future brush in water. If the hairs on the surface of the bundle curl, then the hardening is insufficient.

5. Knit brush.

After all the procedures, the hair bundle is untied and placed in a cone of the appropriate size with the ends of the hair down. Next, tapping the cone on the table, you need to straighten the hair. The hair bundle should take on a conical shape (if the brush is to be round or elliptical). After giving the desired shape, short and unnecessary hairs are combed out of the hair. Then the hair bundle is finally tied with a thread. The bandaged area is impregnated with glue.

6. Fixing the hair in the capsule.

The capsule is the metal part of the hand that looks like a conical tube. The hair bundle is placed in the capsule from its wide side, after which the hair inside the capsule is filled with glue. (By the way, capsules can be used from old and damaged brushes, having previously cleaned it of glue and hair.) The length of the hair of the future brush must be adjusted depending on its purpose. Hair that is too long makes the brush soft and unable to hold its shape well, but flexible and holds a lot of paint. Short hair, on the contrary, will make your brush stiff and unyielding.

7. Fixing the capsule on the handle.

Finally, the capsule is put on a wooden handle. Previously, glue is instilled into the capsule. After that, the capsule is pressed on a wooden handle. The brush handle can be tinted, painted and varnished.

If everything is done correctly, then the brush will turn out no worse than the factory one. Therefore, I wish you success in this rare craft!

Even the smallest nail brushes I can find are often too big for me. I know you can order quite small brushes online, but I don't like ordering online and waiting for everything to arrive, it literally pisses me off. I once ordered a sable brush from Sally Hansen's online store, drew one stripe with it and dipped it in acetone to clean it, as I usually do with all brushes, and when I took the brush out of acetone, I found that all the pile was gone - I'm not kidding . Needless to say, I was extremely disappointed. I think another reason why I don't like to order online is that the mail is not delivered directly to the house, but you have to pick up packages from the post office .. but that's another story.

In any case, I'm more inclined to look into the art departments of large stores or specialty art stores that come my way for brushes available. Usually there come across brushes for one or two dollars. So, if you can't find a brush that's small enough for nail art, you can pretty easily make your own. All you need is nail scissors or, which I prefer, cuticle nippers.

Having bought a cheap brush, I simply take my tongs and go around the base of the handle, cutting off small sections of the pile, gradually moving towards the middle of it. I try to keep the cut edge more or less the same width so that when I get to the desired thinness of the brush, the remaining hair will be in the middle of it, and not shifted to the side.

Continue trimming small sections of hair evenly around the entire circumference of the brush until you feel it is thin enough for you.

Below is a photo of some of my brushes, you can see how thin some of them are. You will also notice that among the five photographed brushes, I have two similar brushes with black handles. The only difference is that I cut the pile more thinly on one of the brushes.

In general, when I find a good cheap brush, I usually buy a few of them to make several nail art brushes of different sizes and have spare brushes in case one gets worn out, or I end up ruining it or losing it. .