Derwent Push Button Water Brush Assorted Set Review
Derwent Push Button Water Brush Assorted Set Review.
I hope this review does not appear to mundane to some of you, or you are of the opinion, as I was before long, that a water brush is a water brush and there is not much difference to them. As I say, I was once of the same opinion, however this set of push button water brushes from Derwent really changed my outlook.
For those of you who perhaps have not delved into the amazing world of watercolor or water-soluble products, let me briefly explain what a water brush is and why one may be used. As you know, watercolors come in pan or tube format as well as water soluble pencils or markers, but all need water to be used on the paper of your choice, so watercolor brushes are used and there are so many different brands and types of brushes that you can buy.
Once you activate the watercolor pigment with water, this is when the magic happens and it is that blend of pigment and water that draws so many people to the medium. However, using watercolors is a medium that many artists love to use outside, be it specifically finding a beautiful landscape location to paint, or simply out on a walk and stumbling upon a scene you just have to capture. Using watercolors in this way however doesn’t mean you have to carry your studio on your back every time you go for a walk and this is where the water brush comes in.
As I mentioned there are so many water brushes on the market, most of them are quite simplistic and very much the same, there are a few that offer slightly more to the artist, however, in my opinion, Derwent have taken the best of them all and rolled all the features into one product. Until recently, my own personal favourite water brushes were the Pentel Aqua Brush, because of its simplicity and the Caran d’Ache Water Brushes because of there plunger type mechanism that allowed the user to draw up the water using the plunger. That has all now changed thanks to the Derwent Push Button Water Brush set and I will explain why in this review.
Derwent Push Button Water Brush Characteristics
In the set that I have, you can see that the Derwent Push Button Water Brushes come in a set of four, however, as you will see a little further into the review, you can purchase the brushes individually. As with most Water Brush sets, there is a large flat brush, in the case of the Derwent set, they have included a 10mm Large Chisel Tip brush. I have to say, the Derwent brush is the largest square or flat brush that I have seen in a water brush set thus far.
The three remaining brushes in the set are all round brushes starting with a detailed 2mm brush, a medium size 3mm brush and the large 4mm brush. The actual brushes are Nylon as is the case with most of the water brushes you will buy and here is where the biggest difference between a watercolor artists studio brushes and a water brush you would take out and about with you. With brushes you might find in an artists studio, you might find synthetic brushes, Sable, Squirrel, Goat and many more. Each type provides the artists with various quality when painting and they will also coming with a large price tag for some of them.
However, given a water brush is really only for quick sketching, getting down the scene fast so that you can return to your studio and have a fantastic reference image to work from. Having said all of that, there is nothing at all to say that you can’t use your water brushes in the studio if this is something you want to do, we are simply talking about what they were designed for.
As I mentioned, I love the shape of the Derwent Push Button Water Brushes, the thin neck sits perfectly in-between your fingers like a pen or pencil with a larger belly area which resting in the crevice between the index finger and thumb. This larger belly area of the brush is also where the water is contained and once filled, provides an excellence weight and overall balance
The Derwent Push Button Water Brush, as the name suggests, has a soft rubber button on the side of the barrel, with the Derwent brushes, the push buttons are on both sides of the brush. Overall, the push button provides excellent control to the water flow from handle to brush, you can go from a slow drip to a fast flow when pressing the buttons and this is ideal when washing the brush in-between pigments or when applying water coverage for wet in wet techniques.
Mid way along the water brush handle, just before the push button, you simply twist the brush to split it in half. This then provides the artist with the method on which to fill the brush with water, or odourless mineral spirits if you wish to do so. There are so many water brushes, including the old Derwent Water Brushes and the Caran d’Ache Water Brushes, that have really thin necks making filling a frustrating process.
The thinner the opening, when water is poured into the brush, if you do so fast, this will cause air bubbles and slow the process down, so you have to be very careful to avoid this, which is time consuming itself. With the Derwent Push Button Water Brush, the neck is wide and allows for a very fast filling of water.
Each of the water brushes have lids that protect the brushes, are very easy to remove and replace and they can be placed on the end of the water brush handle, but they don’t sit very well and with slight movement, they will fall off, so it is best to set the lid to the side when using.
On the belly of the water brush, each brush sports the Derwent name and logo, the bright red imagery from the Derwent logo, against the blue trim for the button and lid, all provides an aesthetic contrast. I know water brushes only need to work, they don’t need to look pretty, but it is not. bad thing either if they can pull this off at the same time and Derwent have.
I have provided a short video demonstration over on The Art Gear Guide YouTube Channel where you will be able to see the flow of water control that the Derwent Push Button Water Brushes provide, but I have also provided some samples of the line variation you can get from basic use of the bushes.
Cost Of Derwent Push Button Water Brushes
The pricing of the Derwent Push Button Water Brush Set is something that I would always advise you to check about before you purchase, the reason I say this is because the prices change depending on the place you are looking.
As is always the case, buying the full set of 4 Derwent Push Button Water Brushes here in the UK will cost approximately £18.99. However, as I write this to purchase the Large Chisel Brush individually will cost you £18.99, The 2mm Fine Tp Brush will cost £10.99, the 3mm Medium brush will cost £14.99 and finally the 4mm Large Brush will cost £10.99. As you can see there is no rhyme or reason to the pricing on occasions hence my warning to always check about. I always provided the cheapest links on Amazon, but there may be cheaper still from other stores.
Derwent Push Button Water Brush Conclusion
As I mentioned, I know that Water Brushes in general are not really super important to you as an artist if you are not a watercolor artist or watercolor pencil artist, but here is a reason one may be really handy to you if you are just a colored pencil artist. I have an old water brush that I filled with Odourless Mineral Spirits and so when I needed to blend colored pencil layers together, having a water brush filled with Odourless Mineral Spirits makes the process quick and easy.
However, in general there are a lot of water brushes on the market and as with so many art supplies, they are all personal to the artist. The reason I love the Derwent Push Button Water Brushes is their shape and how well balanced they are when filled. However, other artists may prefer the water brushes that are shapeless due to personal comfort and this is completely fine.
The Derwent Water Brushes also hold a substantial amount of water which means you are not constantly filling them up. As I mentioned above, so many water brushes I have used, including the old Derwent Water Brushes, have a really thin neck and so when filling them up, they always cause air bubbles making it frustrating to completely fill. This is not the case with the Derwent Push Button brushes, the neck of the brush where it is filled up is wide and allows the artist to fill them up fast.
All in all, I think the Derwent Push Button Water Brush is a combination of all the good water brushes on the market. I love using mine and it feels like they help provide me with control and detail as well as incredibly comfortable when using. If you are an artist who enjoys using water soluble pencils or watercolors out and about, I really recommend taking a look at the Derwent Push Button brushes, and in my opinion, as a full set, they are excellent value for money. Don’t forget you can check out my video demonstration over on The Art Gear Guide YouTube Channel and as always, thank you all so much for reading this review in this issue of Ann Kullberg’s Color Magazine
