There are many different shapes of paint brushes, and each is useful for different things. Here are a few of the most common shapes:

Flat Brush

This brush has a straight edge, like a rectangle. It's good for painting large areas and for making straight lines.

• Can produce thin and broad brushstrokes
• Great for wide strokes and high coverage
• Large flat brush is ideal for washes
• Excellent for long, smooth strokes

Round Brush

This brush has a pointed tip, like a cone. It's good for making thin lines and for painting details.

• The most traditional brush shape
• Available in both sharp and blunt points
• Pointed tips are useful for detail and varied line weights

Filbert Brush

This brush has a flat, oval-shaped tip. It's good for painting curved lines and for blending colors together.

• Midpoint of a flat and a round brush
• Long bristles, flat tip, and rounded edges
• Popular among figurative painters
• Minimal but expressive brush marks

Bright Brush

Otherwise known as a ‘short flat’. With shorter bristles, bright brushes provide more resistance against the surface, making them perfect for applying bold, short strokes of color.

• A flat brush with short bristles
• Higher surface resistance
• Ideal for short, strong strokes of colour
• Great for hard-edged textures

Fan Brush

This brush has bristles that are spread out like a fan. It's good for creating texture and for blending colors together.

• Originally created as an oil painters brush
• Useful for blending & softening hard edges
• Great to create a series of marks in one (such as grass blades or foliage)

Angled Brush

This brush has a slanted edge, like a triangle. It's good for painting corners and for making diagonal lines.

• One of the more versatile brush shapes
• Allows for quick transition of line weight
• Great for landscape and organic painting
• Allows for great control

Dagger Brush

A dagger paint brush is characterized by its long, tapered bristles that come to a sharp point, allowing for precise details and expressive lines in painting.

• Filbert shape, with half angled bristles
• Useful for teardrop, natural, expressive or botanical shapes
• Great for capturing a sense of motion

Mop Brush

This brush has a big, round tip. It's good for painting large areas and for making soft, blended edges.

• Soft-bristled with a rounded head
• Most common in watercolour painting
• Great for washes and glazing

 

Liner Brush

A liner paint brush features long, thin bristles that come to a fine point, perfect for creating delicate lines and intricate details in artwork.

• Resemble a fine, long round brush
• Longer hair allows for flowing strokes
• Great for adding detail and dynamics
• Commonly used in lettering

Mottler Brush

A large, wide brush with soft, flat bristles, ideal for creating broad strokes and smooth blends in painting.

• Large, wide flat brush
• Resembles a typical decorators brush
• Useful for surface preparation, laydown of colour, priming, and varnishing

 

So when you're painting, you can choose a brush shape based on what you want to paint. If you're painting a large area, a flat brush might be best. But if you're painting details, a round brush might be better. And if you want to create texture or blend colours, a fan brush or filbert brush might be just what you need!