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50 Must-Have Photoshop Brushes

Quick Summary

Below you’ll find a collection of quality Photoshop brushes that every designer should find handy. These 50 Photoshop brush sets are ones I find myself using over and over in a variety of projects. This list is the result of years’ worth of downloads, trials and experiments. I hope this list helps you find some new Photoshop brushes that improve your collection.

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Having a good collection of Photoshop brushes is essential for any designer. There is certainly no shortage on the Web these days. The problem isn’t in finding brushes, but in finding quality. Below you’ll find a collection of quality brushes that every designer should find handy.

These 50 sets are ones I find myself using over and over in a variety of projects. This collection is the result of years’ worth of downloads, trials and experiments. I hope this list helps you find some new Photoshop brushes that improve your collection. [Content completely changed Oct/30/2016]

Further Reading on SmashingMag:

Paint Splatters

Paint splatters are an essential set of Photoshop brushes to have. Lord knows there are plenty of them out there, but they are not all created equal. I have a good number of splatter brushes in my arsenal, but these are the ones I find myself calling upon the most for a variety of effects. See also: Splatter and Watercolour Brushes For Photoshop

Watercolor Brushes (30) (affiliate link)

Watercolor brushes

Watercolor Kit (92) (affiliate link)

Watercolor Kit

WaterCool Kit (39) (affiliate link)

WaterCool Kit

Kaos Brush Set (15)

photoshop brushes

Free Spray Splatter Photoshop brushes (12)

photoshop brushes

Watercolor and Ink Photoshop Brushes (25)

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Free Spray Paint Photoshop Brushes (20)

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Brush Strokes

These types of brushes are great to have on hand because they can achieve a variety of effects. They can do anything from helping you finish off an edge to grunging of a photo, and endless amount of other tasks. Brush stroke brushes are a commodity in Photoshop. These are some of my favorites.

Photoshopper Brushes (56)

photoshop-brushes10 (40)

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Free Hi-Res Watercolor Photoshop Brushes (18)

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Watercolor Texture Brushes (45)

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Canvas Textured Photoshop Brushes (5)

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Watercolor Photoshop Brushes (25)

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Professional High-Res Photoshop Brush Collections (15)

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Pencil Box (4)

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Photoshop brushes for painting skin and hair (10)

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Hand-Drawn Elements Photoshop Brushes

Ok, so these are only really essential if you are trying to create that hand-drawn effect in your design. That said, these are some essential collections  that will help you create a design with a hand-drawn look. Most, if not all, of these sets were made from real drawings. You can’t get much more “hand-drawn” than that.

Floral Watercolor Stamp Brushes (358) (affiliate link)

Watercolor Stamp brushes

Tropical Watercolor Brushes (15) (affiliate link)

Watercolor Kit

Vintage Handwriting Photoshop Brushes (26)

photoshop-brushes2

Plant Brushes (130)

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Free Suvtle Grunge Brushes (10)

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Feathers and birds Brushes (12)

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Doodle Monsters Photoshop Brushes (10)

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Cute Arrows (16)

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Brushes Text (6)

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Emoji Brushes (6)

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Brush Set Flower (5)

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Beautiful brushes (19)

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Tentacles (4)

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Extreme Lashes (16)

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Heart Brushes (4)

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Textures & More

While actual texture photos come in handy for adding textures to your work, sometimes a Photoshop brush comes in more handy. For those times, you may want to look into some of the texture brushes I have picked out below. They are great for adding a touch of texture to your latest grunge design.

Free Hi-res Smoke Brushes (4)

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A Vintage Stamp & Seal Brush Set (56)

photoshop-brushes5

Radiate Brush Set

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Large Bokeh Brushes (12)

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Water Splash Photoshop Brushes (11)

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Photoshop Cloud Brushes (8)

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Moon Brushes (21)

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Brushpack - Lighting (12)

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Brushes De Palmeras (5)

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High-Resolution Shattered Glass Photoshop Brushes (12)

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Vintage Grunge brushes (12)

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Doodle Swirls (6)

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High Quality Cloud Photoshop Brushes (15)

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Brush Set #2 - Abstract (10)

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Flower Brush (5)

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Floral Brush (1)

photoshop-brushes35

Artistic Ink Brush Strokes (8)

photoshop-brushes39

Heart Bokeh Photoshop and GIMP Brushes

Plant Brushes (130)

photoshop-brushes1

Free Suvtle Grunge Brushes (10)

photoshop-brushes3

Feathers and birds Brushes (12)

photoshop-brushes8

Doodle Monsters Photoshop Brushes (10)

photoshop-brushes13

Cute Arrows (16)

photoshop-brushes24

Brushes Text (6)

photoshop-brushes26

Emoji Brushes (6)

photoshop-brushes27

Brush Set Flower (5)

photoshop-brushes29

Beautiful brushes (19)

photoshop-brushes30

Tentacles (4)

photoshop-brushes31

Extreme Lashes (16)

photoshop-brushes32

Heart Brushes (4)

photoshop-brushes33

Textures & More

While actual texture photos come in handy for adding textures to your work, sometimes a Photoshop brush comes in more handy. For those times, you may want to look into some of the texture brushes I have picked out below. They are great for adding a touch of texture to your latest grunge design.

Free Hi-res Smoke Brushes (4)

photoshop-brushes4

A Vintage Stamp & Seal Brush Set (56)

photoshop-brushes5

Radiate Brush Set

photoshop-brushes7

Large Bokeh Brushes (12)

photoshop-brushes9

Water Splash Photoshop Brushes (11)

photoshop-brushes12

Photoshop Cloud Brushes (8)

photoshop-brushes14

Moon Brushes (21)

photoshop-brushes15

Brushpack - Lighting (12)

photoshop-brushes17

Brushes De Palmeras (5)

photoshop-brushes18

High-Resolution Shattered Glass Photoshop Brushes (12)

photoshop-brushes19

Vintage Grunge brushes (12)

photoshop-brushes20

Doodle Swirls (6)

photoshop-brushes22

High Quality Cloud Photoshop Brushes (15)

photoshop-brushes25

Brush Set #2 - Abstract (10)

photoshop-brushes28

Flower Brush (5)

photoshop-brushes34

Floral Brush (1)

photoshop-brushes35

Artistic Ink Brush Strokes (8)

photoshop-brushes39

Heart Bokeh Photoshop and GIMP Brushes

photoshop-brushes40

Tech Photoshop and GIMP Brushes (23)

photoshop-brushes42

Free Photoshop Fire Brushes (12)

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Night Sky Free Brushes (12)

photoshop-brushes47

My Heart Brushes (18)

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3D Halftone (16)

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Embroidery a cross-stitch (8)

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Smashing Editorial (al, dm, sl)