Saving your brushes

It happens. Your students are painting. There is water on the table for cleaning brushes. You've demonstrated proper brush care. You've lectured on it. You remind them at the end of the class. But, at the end of the period brushes are left covered in paint. And they are hidden around the room. You won't find some until it's far too late to care for them easily. Even the cheapest brushes aren't something I want to replace every year and it's not just the cheap ones that end up this way. So I've found a way to revive damaged brushes.

Materials

• small crockpot
• Murphy's Oil Soap
• water
• fine toothed comb or Plaid Brush Preserver
• sink
• inexpensive hair conditioner

Fill the crockpot half full of warm water. Plug it in and set on the lowest setting. Add a squirt of Murphy's Oil Soap. Put your ruined brushes in the crockpot bristles first. Let them soak for a few hours or overnight (depending on the amount of paint in the bristles). Remove the brushes from the crockpot and place them on a paper towel or newspaper. One at a time, hold the brushes under a stream of water in the sink. Rub the brushes firmly in your palm. Acrylic paint will soften and rubberize in hot, soapy water. Use the fine toothed comb or a Brush Preserver to carefully strip the paint from the bristles.

If the brush is still caked with paint, return it to the crockpot for a few more hours. Apply a small amount of hair conditioner to the bristles, shape them and allow to dry.