There are a multitude of brushes available on the market but I’ll tell you what works for me. 

 

For most paintwork I use a set of synthetic bristle brushes of varying sizes which are available at reasonable cost from most DIY stores.  Bristle brushes are less accurate for detailed and final finish work but are quite suitable for tasks that don’t require precision

 

For “cutting-in” (getting a sharp line at say a ceiling/wall intersection) I use either a 2” synthetic bristle brush or a 15mm sash (or oval) brush. For painting narrow surfaces such as the part of the door frame that meets the wall I use either a sash-brush or a ½ inch (12mm) no-loss synthetic brush. A sash brush is an oval brush which not only holds lots of paint but spreads out to form a consistent line of paint without stray bristles sticking out. Standard, non-synthetic, flat bristle brushes are not suitable for cutting-in since they do not hold enough paint and tend to have stray bristles which can put coloured paint onto a nice white ceiling!

 

The oval or sash brush

 

 

  

Standard bristle brushes are useful for painting cornice work as they tend to be less springy than the synthetic bristle type. I use a 3” or 4” for painting smooth cornices.

 

 

 

Artists Brush

 

For more detailed work or for painting a very narrow gap for instance use a good quality artists brush.