Paper Towel Holder

All oil painters have a rag or towel to wipe brushes with to clean them.  Some will use old t-shirts or cloths, but I use paper towels on a roll.  I my opinion it is easier and only costs a few dollars for an 8 pack.  Of course whatever you choose is up to you, but if you go the paper towel route, buy a decent holder.  There is nothing more frustrating than grabbing a sheet and unrolling half the roll.  Look for the paper towel holders that provides resistance to the roll.  I know this sounds a bit nit-picky, but it will help you keep your sanity.  The holder I have was bought at Bed Bath and Beyond for $15 - a bit much for something so simple, but worth it.   I bolted it to the underside of my table where I can easily access them.

Another thing to watch for is the paper towels themselves.  Try to find some that have a papery feel rather than a soft fabric.  They lose less fuzz and tend to be cheaper.  Once I had to change the paper towel brand mid-painting just because of this.   On this one particular painting I was noticing more dust than usual.  My paintings are very smooth because I work on flat sanded gesso panels, so any speck of dust or fuzz becomes pretty obvious.  I eventually discovered it was because of the type of paper towel I was using.  Each time I wiped my brush clean with them, the bristles would pick up fuzz from the towel.  The fuzz was then transferred to the painting surface.  From then on, I became very conscious about the kind of paper towel I use.