The secret is out

WHAT? THIS WAS THE SECRET? THIS IS SO PAINTING 101.
I've received so many great tips from other bloggers that thought it was time to share one of my painting secrets. Okay fine, it's not a secret at all. Most of you have heard this before, but hopefully someone out there will still find this useful. So here it is. 


USE A HIGH QUALITY PAINTBRUSH.
That's it. So simple. And the best paintbrush out there? Purdy. And no, my blog is not popular enough to get an endorsement. This is just a post to share the brand of brush that gets the job done for me.

Many of you have heard other furniture bloggers recommend Purdy, but I've also been told by people who paint houses for a living that Purdy is the only way to go. When I first began the my furniture refurbishing venture, I purchased a run of the mill paintbrush for $3 at Wal-mart. I don't even know what brand it was, but I know it wasn't the cheapest but it also wasn't the most expensive. I had some issues getting the paint to evenly coat my tobacco cabinet and noticed after using it for only the second time, that the bristles were going in different directions (and it was impossible to correct it without cutting the bristles off entirely). I thought this was something that everyone dealt with so I continued to use the same brush for my next project. It wasn't until I happened to see and try my brother's Purdy brush that I realized that mine was complete utter crap.


For the tobacco cabinet, I had to paint 3-4 coats of paint before the wood stopped showing through. I thought it had to do with the quality of the paint, but I now firmly believe that the quality of paint doesn't make that big of a difference. I cut down 1-2 coats of paint by using the Purdy. Painting became much smoother and more even. The bristles get into the little nooks with ease. Honestly, I wouldn't have believed it made such a difference but now from personal experience I can say it does. The higher cost of the Purdy (about $9 for an average brush), is totally worth it. 


I'M NOT SURE I BELIEVE YOU, BUT I GUESS I'LL TAKE YOUR WORD FOR IT.
So again, although I sound like a sleazy paintbrush salesman, I'm really just trying to pass on some helpful advice for those who are sick of putting on coat after coat of paint. Get a Purdy brush and you'll save yourself hours of time!