Making Your Own Ebru Brushes

I recently did a pile of marbled papers, as well as a paper marbling workshop, and decided I wanted some ebru brushes to splatter the pigment into the marbling tray. I looked at purchasing them, but they were either a bit pricey, or would take too long to arrive (I am not a patient artist!). I did realize that while some are made out of horsehair, others were made of what looked like broom bristles!

So, I purchased an inexpensive broom (mine was $5) and chopped it up. It provided enough bristles to make many, many brushes, which is handy for teaching workshops.

I simply cut mine about 5 or 6 inches long and secured the bundle with a rubber band. I intended to also wrap with cute washi tape to make a handle, but never got around to that part of the project.