🎨 Start Simple: The 3 Brushes Every Beginner Needs

Welcome to Acrylic Adventures — a weekly splash of tips, tricks, and creative inspiration for beginner and hobbyist painters! Whether you’ve just opened your first tube of paint or you’re rediscovering your inner artist, these bite-sized posts will help you paint with confidence, curiosity, and joy (and maybe a little mess too).

So, you’ve got your paints, your canvas, and maybe a cup of water that’s suspiciously close to your coffee mug (we’ve all been there). But before you dive in, let’s talk about something every acrylic artist needs — brushes!

If you’ve ever walked down the art supply aisle and felt overwhelmed by the wall of bristles, you’re not alone. The good news? You don’t need a hundred brushes to make great art. In fact, you can do a lot with just three.

🖌️ 1. The Flat Brush (Your Workhorse)

Think of this as your all-purpose brush. Great for laying down big areas of color, creating backgrounds, and making bold, confident strokes. The flat edge is also perfect for crisp lines or blocking in shapes. Try this: Use the wide side for sky washes and flip it on its edge for tree trunks or sharp edges.

🌀 2. The Round Brush (Your Detail Hero)

This one’s your go-to for almost everything else — outlining, adding highlights, or painting small details. Because it comes to a point, it can handle both fine lines and thicker strokes with just a little pressure change. Tip: Experiment with how much pressure you use — light for thin lines, firm for bold marks.

🌿 3. The Filbert Brush (The Smooth Operator)

A filbert has a rounded tip that blends the strengths of both a flat and a round brush. It’s amazing for soft edges, petals, clouds, and anything organic. If your painting feels too “blocky,” a filbert smooths things out beautifully. Bonus: It’s also forgiving — perfect if you’re still finding your brush control.

✨ Why Keep It Simple?

When you limit your tools, you learn faster. You start noticing how the brush behaves, how much paint you really need, and how to make every stroke count. Plus, your setup stays tidy — and that means more time painting and less time cleaning up!

🎯 Your Challenge This Week:

Grab one of each of these brushes and paint a simple still life or abstract piece. Notice how each brush feels — how it handles edges, blends, and lines. You’ll be surprised how much you can do with just three!