Hey girly girls! I thought it would be cool to show you what nail art brushes I use! Before I got really big into nail art, I was befuddled by brushes. I honestly did not know what kind to get, where to get them, which ones to use for what, etc. Anytime a blogger wrote about brushes my ears perked up because I felt like they all knew this stuff and I was in the dark! I think at first I started using a little Sephora nail art brush that my sister got me for xmas. But then, as I tried more detailed work I realized I needed some more specialized brushes. That’s when I decided to buy a daVinci nail art brush set from amazon.
Da Vinci is a German brand and they’ve been around forever. Since they have a reputation for making high quality brushes, I figured I couldn’t go wrong with them. Although they specialize in artists brushes, they also carry an array of nail art brushes that are specifically designed to withstand acetone. Here’s their pdf catalog of nail brushes. I got my 4-pack set from amazon for around $25. I thought that was pricey… but I previously purchased some cheapo striper brushes from China and they sucked because the bristles got all splayed after one use, so I threw them away. These daVinci’s work much better. I was a little turned off from stripers though so I didn’t start using the striper in the da Vinci pack until just recently, but it works great. When I’m done with it I dip it in acetone to remove the polish, then I rinse it with water and the bristles stay together, not like the cheapo ones I used before where the bristles all stuck out like a wild hairdo. But, my most-used brushes in the set are the detail brush (for little detailed things) and the big brush is nice and stiff so I use it for cleanup around my cuticles. There is one brush in the set that I don’t really use much since it’s a little bigger than the detail brush. But, it’s handy to have lying around.
One technique I’ve been thinking about lately is one-stroke. Do I need a special one-stroke brush? I dunno! My mom is awesome at one-stroke, but she does big flowers, so none of her brushes would work for me. I figure a brush that is flat with a straight edge would work? I stopped by Michaels craft store and looked through the brush section. I found some that MIGHT work, not sure really. But they were $5 a piece. My mom noticed a sale sign that all the michael’s brand brushes were on sale for half off. So I found a multipack with 5 brushes that came to only $2.99. If the flat brushes in the pack don’t work, then I’m only out a few bucks! Some of the other brushes in the set looked useful for nail art too, so why not? Here’s what they look like….
Notice how the striper/liner brush has a few bristles that are bent back? That always happens to me. Always. How freakin annoying! They don’t usually bend back, and I have to cut them off. Even the high-quality da Vinci’s had a messed up brush like that- I contacted amazon and they sent me a new set. Does this always happen to you too? Is this common and I shouldn’t worry about it (it’s just somethin that happens), or is it grounds for returning/exchanging the product?
Craftynail 
I got a set of nail art brushes from amazon and I’m still trying to figure out how to use all of them. Right now, I’ve been liking the fan brush for nail art recently.
duh, why didn’t I buy a fan brush at michaels? i want one of them
I always love to read your articles!
Great to see all your nail art brushes 🙂
Xx julia
thanks!
They look like lovely brushes, I know what you mean I have been doing nails for a while but I never really got into nail art so some times I feel a little lost… Steph xx
I understand! i think a good place to start is a dotting tool and a skinny little brush 🙂
Yes I mastered marble art with the dotting so far 🙂 and now I think I want to jump to stamping (easy way out I know) thanks for the advice. X
In answer to your question, almost all brushes I’ve ever received have had a striper brush that has a few bristles bent back. (and it’s not always JUST the striper brush, either.) I either just trim them or get them wet (which will usually set the bristle straight; if not, I cut it off) I think it’s pretty normal. 🙂
good to know !
Very cool post! I have a set I bought off eBay from China that’s not great, but I use the tiny detail brush from it occasionally. For cleanup I like Essence’s angled eyeliner brush. It stands up beautifully (even to pure acetone). I also have one for doing my eyeliner. I just really like that brush…
where do you find essence products? i hear target has them, but none of the targets near me.
I find mine at HEB, a Texas based grocery chain. Not sure if HEBs exist in other states but I’ve also seen some Essence products at Ulta (though they don’t seem to have as big of a selection). My Target doesn’t have Essence so maybe it’s a store-by-store basis?
Hey Jacqui, with regards to one stroke brush did you notice that on the packet of the Da Vinci brushes it said “No.0 for one stroke”, I think this is the one you use for clean up? So you had one already! I pretty much only use cheap brushes with polish, but recently I found out that taklon (synthetic) work well with acetone. With no bad effects….yet! Also I use a pot of nail polish remover pads with a layer of cling film/saran wrap between the pads, to constantly be wiping the polish off the brush. I find this is less aggressive on the brush (?) than to dip it in acetone. Thank you for your great post on brushes, the Da Vinci ones look awesome, out of interest what are the bristles made out of? Might have to get me some! xx 🙂
that’s hilarious, that I potentially have a one-stroke brush already! LOL!!!! I took that pic of the package back in October- so I forgot what they were each for! hehe
After you mentioned this, I took a look, and the 12700 brush listed as ‘decorations in one-stroke’ is what I’d call the striper brush. And my cleanup brush which looks like a one-stroke brush is listed as ‘to remove fine dust and powder’. Isn’t that weird?
I might have to check out those davinci brushes. I feel like I have a bunch of random ones from different places and none that I would say I’m in love with! Lol
i know what you mean!
Brushes is a true jungle, most often I think they are to wide and the ones that make great one stroke flowers on paper just ends up as a mess on my nails O.o
That’s awesome, this post came just as I was thinking about buying some nail brushes XD
As for the bent brush hairs, there are commercial products you can buy at art stores to help reshape the brushes. One thing that I do with my paintbrushes that works most of the time is to soak the brush hairs and shape them while wet and then wrap them in some tissue paper. Once it’s all dry, the rogue bristles are usually fine. I’ve heard of people dipping their brushes in elmer’s glue to re-shape too, but I’ve never tried it before.