Flats hold a large amount of paint and are useful for blocking in large areas.
Mops have a large quantity of soft hair for moving a large quantity of paint in a loose manner and blending wet areas. Mops are best used for wetting paper and painting large, soft, fluid passages such as skies. Lacking a sharp point, Filbert shaped sables are great for foliage work due to their oblong blunt ends. Fans are flat pie-wedge shaped brushes used for blending in oil or acrylic painting. The bristle fan is good for scrubbing out linear strokes in watercolors.