How to Straighten Hairs on an Art Paint Brush

Helpful tips to add to your painting knowledge.

Artist's brushes
Frank Cezus / Getty Images
By
Marion Boddy-Evans
Marion Boddy-Evans
Marion Boddy-Evans is an artist living on the Isle of Skye, Scotland. She has written for art magazines blogs, edited how-to art titles, and co-authored travel books.
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Updated on 05/17/17

If a brush seems totally ruined and the hairs out of shape, wash the brush again, then dip the bristles in some linseed oil and reshape it. Now dip the oiled and shaped brush into water-soluble glue (I use Elmers glue) and let it dry for a couple of weeks (bristles facing up!). As the the glue is water soluble you can wash it off in warm water, no soap needed. Et voila... much useful life restored to the brush. I've found it works on all but the worst victims of brush abuse.
Tip from: Jim.

If the bristles of a hog hair brush are a little 'wild,' a way to shape them is to leave them damp (with a little soap) and wrap the bristles in toilet tissue, shaping the hairs. Leave them dry overnight and remove the tissue. The bristles tend to hold together.
Tip from: Rene Ghirardi.

To straighten out the bristles on brushes, use a tiny amount of Vaseline. It works like a dream (but better on small brushes than larger ones where it's hard to wash out the Vaseline when you want to use the brush).
Tip from: Julie.

Tissue paper works very well for unbending your benders.Wash your brushes out well with soap and warmish water. Leave them wet and lay them onto some tissue paper. Roll the paper around the end. Wrap the end as tightly as possible (on completing the wrapping make sure the paper is wet, without being dripping wet or 'baggy') Stand them upright and leave them to dry for a day or so. Takes a bit of trial and error to get the technique right - works every time when you get the hang of it.
Tip from: JJake.

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