As I mentioned a week or so ago, we are painting in my classroom. I think I mentioned my love/hate for painting. I love the outcome and the artistic activity, but hate the clean up...or in my classroom, sometimes the lack of clean up.
Case in point:
DIRTY DRIED PAINT BRUSHES
They really are my nemesis during painting lesson plans. As you can guess, art teachers only have so much in the budget to replace paint brushes...and they are not cheap. And when acrylic paint dries on brush bristles, it's ruined.
Or so I thought!
Last week, when we started painting, I remembered a Pin that was a tip for getting acrylic paint out of clothing (a tip I've needed every.single.year. without fail). So I refreshed my brain, and was ready. And then I noticed a few paint brushes in the sink with paint dried in them and thought,
"I wonder if that same pin would work for ruined paint brushes...?"
And that brings me to my art tip on this Tuesday.
You will need
- 1 old cup/or dish that you don't mind throwing away,
- a bottle of Isopropyl Alcohol (rubbing alcohol),
- paper towels.
step one: locate "ruined" brushes. Hint: they are usually in the dry rack "pretending" to have been washed..wink, wink.
step two: put a small amount (about a 1/4 cup) of the rubbing alcohol in an old cup or dish.
step three: swish the paint brush around in the alcohol to loosen up the dried paint, rubbing it along the sides of the cup as you swish and swirl it around.
step four: Take the brush out of the cup and set the cup aside. Use a paper towel to wipe off some of the paint that has been loosened up.
Continue repeating steps three and four until you are satisfied with the cleanliness of the bristles.
Step five: if you really would like to clean the handle of the brush (though not necessary), soak a cotton ball with alcohol, and use it to wipe the handle clean. Then polish it with a paper towel.
Step six: wash your brush with regular dish soap and water to remove any alcohol from the bristles.
In a few minutes you will have saved your "ruined" brushes and your budget.
And that's Art Tip Tuesday!
Thanks for dropping by :)
