it's been a full day of responding to asks and talking about traditional brush mediums, so I figured now would be as good a time as any to share some of the brush sets I've collected over the years! (though I definitely don't use all of them, finding and collecting and testing out new brush sets is something I love to do, esp when it means I can pass on the knowledge to others!)
Sooo here's a big list of links to various brush sets and software that I either love to use, love to mess around with when I'm bored, or simply love knowing about :>
For all my LO and LR fans (and haters) in the chat, the coveted Kyle Webster brushes that were used in LO (and are actively being used in LR) are now available ENTIRELY FOR FREE, no subscription or piracy required! (long story short, Kyle quit Adobe and works for Procreate now, so ig Adobe decided to just remove the sub/paywall from them).
There are LOADS of brushes to explore in these packs, but if you want to know which ones were specifically used for what in LO, consult the angel anon guide here and here! And of course, it bears mentioning these brushes work best in Photoshop, but they can be used in Clip Studio and Procreate (though they work far better in the former than the latter IMO).
Bring your ideas to life with best-selling brushes and tutorials by Jingsketch.
I use Jingsketch's brushes a lot when I'm drawing on the go in Procreate! (usually at conventions or in other settings when I can't be at home on my work computer). They've got some great textures, especially the Edge Control brush which is my big favorite. Just note there are engine differences between Procreate and Photoshop so make sure if you ever buy one of these packs you buy the right version for the software you're using!
DAUB tools want to deliver a seamless painting experience across the best creative software for professionals
I admittedly haven't used these brushes as much as I ought to, but it's simply on account of the fact that there are SO MANY OF THEM. I bought the complete Clip Studio Super Bundle pack a year or so ago, which contains EVERY brush and texture from all the other packs, plus free updates for new brushes when they drop, which is pretty cool of them! But it's also extremely easy to get overwhelmed by all the choices because there are over 500 brushes in that particular pack. I personally like to just pick a medium - pastel, ink, etc. - and pick my tools from their respective medium-specific brush packs, rather than trying to parse through every single pack looking for the 'right one'. That said, if you want to try some of them but not all of them, you can sort through their categories on their site and pick the one that best applies to your medium of choice :)
Just like with the JingSketch packs, make sure you get the right version for your preferred software! The creator of the DAUB brushes makes them for Photoshop, Clip Studio, Procreate, and Affinity :) And while the Photoshop brushes will work in Clip Studio and Procreate, they won't translate 1:1 as Photoshop's brush engine is a lot more complex and specific. So if you predominantly work in Clip Studio, go for the Clip Studio versions, same thing with Procreate and Affinity. You def wanna get the most out of these ones by pairing them with the right software :)
High-quality digital painting brushes for Photoshop and Procreate!
Maddy Bellwoar's brushes for Photoshop and Procreate are GORGEOUS, some of which have been used by Rachel Smythe in Lore Olympus (as mentioned by our angel anon a couple years ago!) but honestly, the Gouache pack has gotta be one of my favorites as it contains some BEAUTIFUL textured brushes and plant stamps that are extremely fun to work with.
Tools and Brushes for Clip Studio Paint!
Pharan Brush makes and sells some amazing pen and pencil brushes for Clip Studio Paint, especially if you want to recreate that "scribbler notes" feel through their School Supply Brushes pack! (I have both that one - which is free! - and the Drawing Brushes for CSP one which come with some great pencil brushes!!) Just note these are .sut brush files, so do NOT purchase them unless you use Clip Studio Paint as they will not work in other programs!!! These ones are for the CSP homies only 💅
10 charcoal like brushes (.abr) and a news print paper fill tool (.tpl).
These are hands down some of my most used brushes for sketching, these are actually the brushes I've been using in many of my sketch studies of Rachel Smythe's newer works. I don't even remember how I found them, but I adore them. The Medium Chunk and Crayon brushes especially are my go-tos for pretty much all of my sketches now :'3
Don't mind the sketchiness of MediaFire, I promise these are legit, as they were exported by yours truly to share with you all after the original versions were wiped from the Clip Studio Assets store :'3 Unfortunately I don't know who made these brushes originally or where to find them now, but I was fortunate enough to get my hands on them before they were nuked, and I'm glad I did, because they're pretty fire watercolor markers that I love using both for black and grey toning, and coloring! (thank you to whoever it was who made these, if they are available elsewhere now please let me know so I can link to them properly <3)
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I hope these are of some use to anyone out there who's looking for new brushes to mess around with! Obviously some of these do cost money but they're all relatively affordable, and it never hurts to wait for sales if you really don't want to pay full price.
And as generous as it would be for me to just give these brushes out for free, this post is just as much about supporting the artists who make them as it is supporting the artists who could learn and create with them. Take it from someone who's spent WAY too much money on brushes, these are worth every penny.
Enjoy! <3
