Brush Guide

What’s the best brush for painting miniatures and how do you take care of them? 
Paint brushes are an essential tool for miniature painting. The most popular and useful brushes for miniature painters are a pointed round kolinsky sable size #1 or #2 brushes or smaller if needed. 
A pointed round brush shape and size allows you to paint miniatures efficiently, helping you to apply paint and blend colors on a mini’s surface. 
With a high quality sable or synthetic brush, you can paint details with precision. (And some practice offcourse)
Now a favorite brush brand is different for each painter, but I'll give you a small list of the overall best brands.

1. 
   Winsor & Newton Series 7 size 1
   Most popular and recommended and their miniature series is pretty good as well  
   Price range 20,00€
2. Rapheal 8404 series
   Best alternative to the Winsor & Newton Series 7 brush
   Price range 10,00€
3. The Army Painter
   An all-purpose workhorse brush series
4. Citadel brush series 
   Again an all-purpose workhorse brush series but slightly more expensive then The Army Painter.

On the side I would like to recommend to buy packs of brushes at a discount store for a few euros that you can use on things without being worried of breaking an expensive brush. These are the brushes you can use to apply texture paint, blend colors or do some rough handling with.
And while you are at it buy some cheap make up brushes for dry brushing. Yes Citadel and other brands have dry brushing brushes but I seem to have beter results with make up brushes and they seem to last longer.
So what tips can I share with you to make you brushes last longer?
(Especially the more expensive ones.)

1. No paint in the ferrule (the metal part between the handle and bristles): when paint hardens inside the ferrule, it causes bristles to flare and break. Try and keep the paint on the tip of your brush and not let it crawl up the bristles.
2. Never let acrylic dry up on your brush. Rinse your brush every few minutes while painting.
3. Wash with clean water after each paint session and use 2 different cups to rinse your brushes in. Use 1 for general paints and another for metallic and texture paints. This way your good brushes will not get contaminated by metal flakes or grid from texture paints. 
4. Always use new water when starting a new paint session.
5. Always use the same brush for metallic paints. Yes this brush will die faster then the brush used for other paints. But you don't want to mix the metallic flakes in your normal paints.
6. Use cheap brushes for texture paints.
7. Wash you brushes with natural soap or brush cleaner with warm water (not hot)
8. Gently shake off your brushes and wipe it off on some tissue paper 
9. Gently roll the tip of the brush in your handpalm to reform the tip. If the brush came with a plastic tube, slide it over the tip gently and store it away safely.
10. If you stand a brush with it's tip up when wet, any water that remains in the bristles and ferrule will be absorbed by the wooden handle and will ultimately damage your brush. So always store your brushes flat or upside down in their protective tube so any water can slide out.
11. Store you brushes in a dry area.

For soap it is always worth investing in The Master Brush Cleaner and Preserver. A small pot costs around 4,00€ and will last you a long time. If you use metallic paints get 1 for normal and 2 for metallic paint so you avoid getting metal flakes in your non-metalic paint brush.