Princeton Neptune Paintbrush, Size 6, Dark Wood

I love this brush!!! I purchased the size 8 and I was not disappointed with its size! Keep in mind that this brush is not the same size as an 8 round and it is much larger than the round since this is a mop/quill brush.I have been having a hard time with my water drying up before I can get all my paint down because I have been using cheaper brushes that don’t hold enough water. The other reviews on this brush we’re joking when they said this is like a mop because it holds SOooo much water! I was worried that the metal wire would be uncomfortable to hold... the photos don’t show that they are exposed and twisted on the opposite side of the brush, but considering it’s not really comfortable to hold the brush in that area while painting anyways, it doesn’t seem to be an issue. I still would have liked to see these wires covered so they don’t scratch you if you’re not paying attention anyways. There is definitely a learning curve to try and figure out hand control to get the kind of strokes you want if you’re not used to these types of brushes. This particular brush looks like it would be more for washes rather than trying to get more pigmented strokes because it does hold so much water. This is also good for trying to make leaves and flower petals all in one or two stokes once you get a hold on the hand control. If you’re trying to use this for smaller paintings and finer details, this is not a good brush for that as that is not it’s intended use. It does makes some fine lines as well as very nice think lines, but you can only get them so thin. The bristles are very soft once wet and really flows in the water and on the paper.The quality is great and I will definitely be investing in some more of these in other sizes! This is worth the cost and if you’re on the fence about purchasing one of these brushes for this intended use, you will not be disappointed!

Background:- intermediate beginner in watercolor, been playing around with the medium for several months nowPros:- Princeton Neptune doesn't lie when it says this is its thirstiest brush. The brush holds A LOT of water. Maybe too much in fact (will get to that later).- The brush is super super soft. Usually synthetic brushes tend to be on the stiffer side but not this one. Painting with it has a great hand feel. Moving the brush back and forth gives a very soft and velvety feedback. Because it's soft be warned though - this brush has practically no spring and will be in the shape that you use the brush. I am fine with this though.- Brush has a great pointy tip. You can really do a whole painting with this brush. I attached a photo of the painting I did with this and hopefully you can see what kind of detail you are able to get. The painting is postcard sized, so it's very small.Cons:- This brush holds so much water that it's really difficult to get a dark opaque pigment with it. I think the fact that it's so soft also hinders it's ability to pick up pigment. It simply has so much water in it that no matter how much pigment I slap on the water will dilute it. Also because it holds so much water, you have to be extremely careful to control the water amount on you brush and paper and keep them the same in order to avoid blooms.Summary:A very nice feeling brush that holds a ton of water - but be warned, because this brush is very thirsty it is very difficult to control and i would say not suitable for a complete beginner. It's good for nice soft washes and even can do a whole painting with details if you wish. But probably not very good at all for glazing because it holds so much water.

I love this brush. It holds a lot of water, but still holds a great point. It's a fine enough point that I can use it all the way down to a #8 brush so it means less brush switching, which is always good.

If you are trying to get a graded wash… and you can’t get it to look as perfect as you see everyone doing on the Internet. Then this is the brush you need to add to your collection.I’ve been intimidated to use a mop brush. But after taking a class and learning how to get a graded wash by using a mop brush, my life has been changed forever.A lot of people have suggested getting a size 6. But I use smaller sketchbooks around the size of 8 x 8. I figured size 6 was a little overkill for me. So I got a size 4 and wow the amount of water this size 4 brush holds is incredible.I love Princeton brushes. The last forever, the great quality they’re totally worth the money. I typically use heritage series, but recently I have been using more of the Neptune. Because the brush is so soft and it is extremely similar to silver’s black velvet brushes. Just not as expensive.Had a few hairs fall off the brush. But sometimes that can be normal in the beginning if you haven’t washed it really good to get all of the soap stuff off. They put that stuff on the brush hairs to keep the shape during shipping. You have to run some warm water over the brush and it will all come out. I haven’t had any other issues and I absolutely am in love with this brush.

Okay, I love this brush. It holds so much water and pigment. My one gripe is that it sheds. I have washed it about 20 times now to get loose hairs out, but lo and behold I will be painting and here comes 3-4 bristles per 5x7 painting. That's a high bristle to canvas ratio. I am STILL going to use it though. That's how good it is. I just use tweezers to grab the bristles out and hope it eventually stops.

This is my first quill and I've found this one to be a wonderful tool in my bag. The synthetic squirrels fur performs extremely well, holding vast amounts of wash. I bought this small one just to see if I like the quill way of painting watercolor. I do. I will likely buy some larger ones.