Saturday, August 22, 2009

Product Review: Purdy Brushes

I was recently contacted by Purdy brushes to a product review. I was beyond thrilled! I was so excited to receive my brush and roller.

You know why I was so excited about this? Here are our well used brushes ...

8 of the 10 brushes hanging there is a Purdy brush. I don't even use the other 2 brushes there. (And don't hate the basement laundry room. Its a dungeon and its on the list for a major overhaul possibly next year.)
Every wall, trim and door in my house was painted with a Purdy brush along with any other project I have used a brush for. When I was contacted, I was told that many DIYers are not familiar with their products. I think that's really so unfortunate. If I can say one thing about painting its that you should use a good brush!! Why is it that people will spend $30 on a can of paint, but then use a $1 brush?? It really makes no sense. I admit, I was one of those people once. When Mr. T and I started dating, I bought my little cottage and did a ton of painting. He was horrified by the brushes I had. I stubbornly insisted on sticking with my junky brushes. He brought his own Purdy brushes over and I gave them a try. I have never used another brush since!
So, I got a roller and a 2.5" brush from Purdy. See the yellow cover? That's not just packaging. Its a cover for the brush. We've lost a couple that went with the brushes we have, but when we wash our brushes, we put them right back in the cover. It helps the brush keep its shape. Also, do you see what it says? Handcrafted in the USA! How often do you see that these days?

This one was made by someone name Huong. Isn't that a nice personal touch? I decided to use the brush and roller to paint 2 doors that we never got around to painting on our first floor.
One of the biggest problems with those cheapo brushes is how they lose the bristles in the middle of your project. It makes me want to scream when you're trying to get a nice smooth finish and you have to pick out a bristle from your work. This just does not happen with a Purdy brush. I did not lose one single bristle when I painted my doors with this brush. Not one!

The roller is also as soft and smooth as a cloud and it has no lint. You can actually wash this roller and it won't be falling apart in your next project. That's impossible with cheap rollers. Lint everywhere!

Speaking of smooth finishes, the bristles are so fine and the paint goes on so smoothly. Perfecto!

Another great thing, look at how sharp the edge of the brush is with paint on it. Think of how much easier it is to cut in to a wall when you have an edge that sharp. I'm lazy. I hate taping off. If you've read my blog for a while, you know that I do most of my projects when my girls are napping. Taping would use up so much of the precious nap time. No need for tape if you use a good brush! I especially like the angled brushes for walls and the square brushes for furniture like tables.

So that's why I love my Purdy brushes.
My dad is as stubborn as I am. I guess that's where I get it from. ;-) When they were going to sell their house and were repainting, I visited to help. We went paint shopping and I argued with him about the brushes. He refused to buy a good one. I told him I'd buy it myself if he didn't so he finally agreed to get the Purdy. The first few strokes with the brush and he was convinced! He STILL has the brush and he's used it for numerous projects including their dining room set ...
... and the corner cabinet he painted for me. Just last week was telling me what a great brush it is.

That same brush is going to paint their house this fall and my mantle in the near future. They last a long time and you really get your money's worth.

As you can see, I really didn't need any convincing to sing the praises of Purdy brushes. I've been a loyal Purdy customer for a long time now. This is something I've really come to feel so strongly about and I cringe just like Mr. T used to when I see someone else using a terrible brush. If you've never used a good brush, give a Purdy brush a try. You'll be forever convinced.

11 comments:

  1. WOW, beautiful photos! love the dining room and toile curtains!

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  2. I also used to buy expensive paint and cheap brushes - now that I'm getting older and hopefully wiser - I buy better quality brushes.

    I gotta say I love the dining room and the curtains are beauiful!

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  3. oh yeah ... we ONLY use Purdy!

    Our house is very long and narrow, so we painted the majority of it one color. BIG JOB. So I hired someone to do it and he used Purdy brushes and he's been painting 25 years. I followed him all over the house while he explained his techniques. HE DID NOT EVEN USE PAINTERS TAPE and we have those curved walls.

    Anyway, since then, i went out and got myself 3 or 4 Purdy brushes and i keep them in good shape!

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  4. I just bought my first Purdy brushes a few weeks ago; wow, what a difference!

    I paint a lot of furniture and wouldn't use any other brush now!

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  5. I agree that better quality brushes make all the difference. I almost never use painter's tape and I am the one that paints ALL of our home and most of my sister's home. I will have to see if there are Purdy brushes near us here in Canada. I haven't noticed them but I will check it out.

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  6. I think the paint job looks great! White looks so fresh!

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  7. I need to get my hands on a Purdy! I hate those darn errant bristles.

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  8. My mom turned me on to Purdy brushes several years ago when we bought our first house. Sometimes it's hard to chose the more expensive brush when there are ones that are so much cheaper that look just as good, but I agree the Purdy brushes are worth it!

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  9. I couldn't agree with you more! When I painted my kitchen cabinets, I insisted on good brushes. (dh is a cheap brush man,lol) I used Purdy and found them to be fantastic and a HUGE difference from the cheap ones!

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  10. My hubby paints houses (exterior only) as a part of his side business and swears by Purdy's!!

    They really do make a huge difference- and I LOVE that they are made here in the US. : )

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