Spirit Cup
Practically any cup with a tight sealing lid can be used as a spirit cup to clean brushes while painting. Old glass jars work fine, but what I like are these $1.59 vapor lock pint (16oz) cups. They are made by the manufacturer Superfos, who make all different types of sealable containers. I found my pint cups at Utrecht. They also have a lip around the top on the outside which means if you cut a 3.5" hole in your painting table, the bottom of the cup will side through and it will be at a more convenient height on the table and it will not move or spill. l also prefer a screen inside the spirit cup. It gives you a surface in the cup to dab the paint out of your brush and once the pigment settles in the thinner at the bottom of the cup, you have a clear spirit again. The screen allows the pigment particles to pass through to bottom so they don't collect at the top where you are trying to clean your brush.
This page will show you how to construct a screen to fit inside a spirit cup. Its very simple to make and it makes getting a dirty brush clean easier and faster.
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List of Items16oz Vapor Lock Cup from Utrecht
12" to 14" Cooking Screen Metal snips or shears Stapler Ruler Marker 3.5" hole saw, jig saw, or coping saw |
The pictures in slide show below are pretty self explanatory but I have also added notes as well.
Since I used an old cooking screen I had lying around the house, the project only cost me the price of the cup - $1.59. It doesn't get any more cost efficient than this.
Every few months it's not a bad idea to drain the thinner in the cup, remove the screen, and scrap out the pigment that has settled at the bottom. Once you cleaned the cup, you can replace old thinner with fresh.
Every few months it's not a bad idea to drain the thinner in the cup, remove the screen, and scrap out the pigment that has settled at the bottom. Once you cleaned the cup, you can replace old thinner with fresh.