da Vinci Casaneo, 5898 - size 8

Casaneo is one of those brush lines that a lot of watercolor painters end up owning, whether they planned to or not.

It’s synthetic, but it’s designed to imitate squirrel hair, meaning: soft, flexible, and really good at holding water and color. So you get that smooth, effortless flow people love in squirrel brushes, without needing an actual squirrel to be involved in your art practice.

This is the flat version, made from extra smooth “wavy” synthetic fibers, which basically means the hairs are shaped in a way that helps them hold more water and paint than you’d expect from synthetic.

It’s especially good for:
• washes and big, even areas
• soft transitions and gradients
• loose strokes and leafy shapes
• pulling color across the paper without streaks
• that satisfying “one stroke and it just works” feeling

If you love wash techniques, backgrounds, skies, loose botanicals, or anything where you want the paint to move cleanly, this brush does a lot of heavy lifting while still feeling soft and controlled.