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Figuring out which brush you need should not be stressful! Let's start with a little brush anatomy.
Handle length usually determines which brush will be used for a specific method: short-handle brushes are usually preferred by watercolorists and decorative painters as they provide greater control for closer work, whereas long-handle brushes are typically used by artists using an easel, to give them distance from their work. Which brush will I need for my style of art?
The metal band between the handle and the brush is the ferrule. Brush hairs are glued and crimped into the ferrule. The best quality brushes have no seam in the ferrule and are usually aluminum, although some brushes may use copper or brass.
Brush size refers to the measurement of the ferrule opening. Natural bristle brush measurements are based on a unit of 12. A size 12 brush would be 1", a size 6 would be 1/2", etc.
Natural soft hair brushes and synthetic brushes use the metric system - 1 mm is a size 1.
You may also see a brush with a size 2/0, 3/0, etc ... these are more difficult to assign an absolute value as this numbering convention can vary between manufacturers. A general rule is that a 2/0 brush is two units less than 1mm - but there is no definition of what a 'unit' is.
Brush materials vary widely - from very fine sable to Taklon (a synthetic material). So which brush do you need?
Kolinsky brushes have the finest sable hairs and are THE brush of choice for watercolorists. These quality brushes have great strength and absorbency.
Red sable comes from the weasel family and have many different grades. These red hairs have good absorbency and spring. Red sable brushes can be used in both acrylic and watercolor paintings.
Ox is a strong hair used in middle-priced brushes.
Goat is fairly inexpensive and has good qualities such as absorbency.
Camel is a misnomer as there is no camel hair in brushes, but rather contain a variety of hairs combined into one brush.
Squirrel has good absorbency but does not have the 'spring' of the red sable.
Taklon is a synthetic material (usually polyester or nylon) and are very durable and easy to clean.
So, once you know what paints you will be using, and how close you will be to your work, this brief outline of "which brush will I need" might just help you in your selection.
For more information, click here for:Basic Brush Shapes | 
