by Claudia Myers, Art Materials Retailer, Summer 2001

“Sable” – can mean a second of kolinsky, weasel, marten and other fillers
“Kolinsky”, “Kolinsky sable”, “Pure red sable” or “Red sable” = real sable hair

Kolinsky sable

• 2.25” long
• needle sharp tip
• very resilient and good belly (tapers at both ends and widens 1/3 way from animal)
• belly provides a reservoir for colour with an uninterrupted flow
• 250-300 tails = 1 lb of dressed hair
• controlled farm-raised animals = changes in hair quality
• brush will ‘snap back’ to its original shape at end of each stroke
• used for oil and acrylic for surface blending
• used for watercolour and ink applications b/c of loading and tip qualities

Sabeline

• designed to resemble red sable
• often dyed ox hair
• watercolour, stroke and lettering brushes
• good brush will carry a lot of fluid, be spring and soft but won’t be as resilient and springy as the natural hairs
• actual fibers can be synthetic or natural or blends

Squirrel

• highly absorbent and hold tremendous amount of liquid
• lacks spring associated with sable & synthetics
• excellent point for fine detail, soft fibers
• round watercolour brushes and mops
• Talahutky – gray, thicker, stronger, rarest and most expensive squirrel hair; preferred hair for sign lettering with enamel and spirit based paints.
• Kazan – brown, thinner and softer; general watercolour brush
• Saccamina – blue squirrel, blue-black, very long, soft hair; watercolour wash brushes

Camel, Ox, Pony & Goat

• “Camel” does not mean made from camel hair; generic term for soft-haired brushes made of pony, ox, goat or other inexpensive hair (or mixtures)
• Used as a filler

Pony

• Horse or pony – natural tips used in better brushes, rest of hair cut into lengths for cheaper brushes; doesn’t hold shape well or come to a point; inexpensive school grade brushes or cosmetic brushes
• Used as a filler

Ox

• Ox – medium stiffness or resiliency, retains large volume of fluid, won’t point well; used in mottlers, mops, cosmetic brushes and oriental brushes
• Used as a filler

Badger

• 4” long
• used primarily for blending
• commonly fan or bushy round shape with flat top = badger blender
• best quality = white tip, black band, then white

Mongoose

• superior, as valuable as fine sable
• unique structure = stiffness between sable and bristle
• excellent for heavy-bodied paint like acrylic, oil and alkyd

Pahmi

• inexpensive and when dyed can resemble badger or sable
• used as a filler

Bristle

• from pigs, hogs or wild boar
• 13” long hairs
• “flag” or split end at tip which makes it ideal for holding and moving heavy paint
• bristles curve in naturally, when brushes are made so that the natural curve turns inward in ferrule = interlocked (more expensive as they used highest quality & is complex method)
• curving can be done with heat, but will lose their curve over time

Chinese Bristle

• southern china – stuffer bristles, with long soft flags = “Finest”
• inexpensive bristle brushes = “China” or “White bristle”
• may be cut and without a flag, or very few flagged hairs
• boiling hairs can make them softer, but will lose natural curve
• best suited for oil or alkyd painting, natural oiliness repels water-based media
• used with acrylics because of strength and durability, eventually becomes saturated and ‘mushy’ (loses it’s resiliency)

Synthetics

• vary in thickness and resiliency
• filament comes to tapered point, some are grooved or roughened to hold paint
• can be used with all mediums
• short-handled, soft brushes with snap and spring = watercolour
• thick, tougher fiber won’t hold as much liquid, but can move thicker paint