How To Clean A Paint Brush

Meet my best friend:

O.K., a paint brush is not my best friend, but I have seen more of it lately than any of my friends... maybe more than all my friends combined!  I've been busy... painting.

 And painting.

 

And painting.

Eventually almost everything in the new kitchen will be painted... white.  And most of the painting has fallen onto my shoulders, which in my opinion is waaaaay better than drywalling, installing the floor, or building countertops.  I think I'm getting the easy jobs.  Easy but tedious.

Anyway, back to the brush!  I've been using that paint brush for multiple hours almost every day for the last few weeks.  (I told you we were close!)  And I recently learned a great trick for keeping my brush in "like new" condition.  Seriously, I used to just run water on it and squish it against the side of the sink and think it was clean enough.  It would look like that picture at the top and I would think it was good. 

I bought cheap brushes because they wouldn't last long anyway.  Then I bought my new BFF-brush.  I spent a lot of money on it ($14!!!) because I want everything to look pretty on this project.  There's a huge difference between those value pack brushes and this one.  Huge!  

But after I'd primed with it, painted with it, primed with it, and then went back and painted with it again, it was not in good condition.  Bristles were sticking out sideways.  Globs of paint were balled up all down the middle of it.  It looked destined for the landfill.  As I was trying to get over my green guilt about having to throw it away and work up my courage to buy another "expensive" one, a friend told me that I'd be crazy to throw away that brush.  (Picture it in much, much worse condition than in that the picture above when he said that.)  Then he showed me the aforementioned trick to save my paint brush.

Here what I do now.
  
First I rinse my paint brush with warm water to remove most of the paint. This is the step where I squish it up against the side of the sink or my paint container, too.

Then I squirt a small amount of (biodegradable) soap directly onto the bristles. I usually use hand soap because I've been in my basement bathroom but dish soap works well too.

Next I rub in the soap.  I focus on the places were the paint is the thickest.  (For me this is usually that line where I wipe the brush against the side of my paint container to get off the excess paint.)

Here's the most important step. Rub the bristles between the palms of the hands.  Vigorously!

Even if you don't like to get your hands messy, it's worth it.  Believe me.  I don't either. Apparently, if you have hands that feel like sandpaper, this step goes faster.  Otherwise just rub a little longer. Rinse the paintbrush until clear water runs out of it and no more bubbles form when you rub your hands together on it.
And there it is:

A like new paint brush every time.  (I probably don't need to mention this but this trick is only for cleaning water-based paint/polyurethane.)

My friend said he's been using the same paint brush for almost 14 years. When he finishes a project and knows it will be months before he uses it again, he even puts hair conditioner on it to keep the bristles pliable.  (I hope to get to this step next month!  Right now I consider myself lucky if the bristles are dry before I use it again.)

What an easy way to extend the life of a paint brush so it can be reused and reused and reused and, well, you get the picture.

Do you have any easy clean up tips?  What about great painting tips?  I'm open to either!

Peace,

Stacey