7-Size Artist Wide Flat Paint Brushes Set Review: The UK Artist's Essential Toolkit

Whether you're a watercolour enthusiast, an acrylic painter, or a mixed-media artist, the quality of your brushes makes an enormous difference to your work. The 7-Size Artist Wide Flat Paint Brushes Set offers a comprehensive range of flat brush sizes that covers virtually every painting need — from broad background washes to precise edge work. Here's everything you need to know about this versatile set and why flat brushes deserve a central place in every UK artist's toolkit.

Why Flat Brushes?

Flat brushes are one of the most versatile brush shapes in an artist's arsenal. Unlike round brushes (which taper to a point) or fan brushes (which spread into a wide arc), flat brushes have a straight, wide edge that makes them ideal for a unique range of techniques:

• Broad, even washes — perfect for backgrounds, skies, and large areas of colour
• Sharp, straight edges — the flat edge creates crisp lines that round brushes can't match
• Blending — the wide surface area makes blending colours smooth and efficient
• Dry brushing — drag a lightly loaded flat brush across textured paper for a beautiful broken-colour effect
• Architectural and geometric shapes — ideal for painting buildings, furniture, and geometric compositions

What's in the 7-Size Set?

The 7-Size Artist Wide Flat Paint Brushes Set includes seven different brush widths, giving you a complete range from fine detail work to broad coverage. Having multiple sizes means you can work at different scales without constantly cleaning and reloading a single brush — a significant time-saver during painting sessions.

Compatible Mediums

Flat brushes are compatible with a wide range of painting mediums:

• Watercolour — ideal for wet-on-wet washes, graded backgrounds, and architectural subjects
• Acrylic — excellent for bold, graphic work and covering large areas quickly
• Gouache — the flat edge creates the clean, graphic quality that gouache is known for
• Ink —riate for calligraphy-inspired brushwork and bold graphic illustration
• Tempera — popular in school and educational settings across the UK

Techniques to Try with Your Flat Brushes

Graduated Wash

Load your largest flat brush with a diluted watercolour wash and apply it across the top of your paper. As you work downward, gradually add more water to create a smooth gradient from dark to light. This technique is essential for painting skies and atmospheric backgrounds.

Wet-on-Wet

Wet your paper first with clean water using a large flat brush, then drop in colour while the paper is still wet. The colour will bloom and spread in beautiful, unpredictable ways — a technique beloved by watercolour artists worldwide.

Dry Brush Texture

Load a flat brush with paint and remove most of it on a paper towel. Drag the brush lightly across textured watercolour paper for a broken, textured effect that's perfect for depicting rough surfaces like stone, bark, and water.

Edge Work

Use the thin edge of a flat brush (held perpendicular to the paper) to paint fine, straight lines — ideal for architectural details, fence posts, and geometric patterns.

Caring for Your Brushes

Quality brushes last for years with proper care:

• Clean immediately after use — don't let paint dry in the bristles
• Use lukewarm water — hot water can loosen the ferrule (the metal band)
• Reshape when wet — gently reshape the bristles to their original flat form after washing
• Store horizontally or bristles-up — never store brushes bristles-down in a jar, as this bends and damages the bristles
• Use brush soap — a dedicated brush soap removes paint more thoroughly than water alone

For Students and Beginners

If you're new to painting, a set of flat brushes is an excellent starting point. The wide, forgiving surface area makes it easier to apply paint evenly, and the variety of sizes means you can experiment with different scales and techniques without needing to invest in a large brush collection immediately.

Pairing Your Brushes with Quality Paints

Great brushes deserve great paints. At TTPEN UK, we stock a range of watercolour sets, acrylic paints, and art supplies to complement your new brush set. Browse our full art supplies range for everything you need to create.

Elevate your painting practice today. Shop the 7-Size Artist Wide Flat Paint Brushes Set and discover the difference quality brushes make.

Free UK delivery on qualifying orders at www.ttpen.co.uk.