Tip of the Month: Taking Care of Your Brush

Paula Forslund of Blondies Ltd. in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., devised this brush care routine after ruining one too many brushes by returning them to the case while still moist. “I dispense a professional brush cleaning solution into a clean bottle. Then, I put the brush in the bottle, securing the handle with a clothespin and adjusting the brush so the tip does not hit the bottom of the bottle. The clothespin holds the brush in place and in a few minutes it is clean,” she says. Forslund stores the brush by putting it handle up into the spring of her table lamp so it is ready when she is. “That way I don’t crush the brush in the tube and the bristles don’t get stuck to the inside I keep the bristles pointed down so nothing works its way back into the ferrule,” she says.