Julian“Mr.J” Braet, has been in the sign/auto graphics industry for more than twenty five years. Born in Paterson, NJ, he constantly drew cars and monsters that he copied out of car & movie magazines. At the age of eleven, he created his first “weirdo” shirt,using black magic markers & fluorescent spray paint after seeing an article by Ed “Big Daddy” Roth in a car magazine. (These were small books, that cost only 25cents, and you could hide them in your school books.)

That same summer after seeing an article on “Pinstriping” by “Von Dutch”, Julian, bought his first pinstriping brush, some paint, and as they say “the rest is history”.

After painting his way through high school,”Mr.J” landed an apprenticeship with one of the best “show card/sign” artists in the East Coast, “Tony Anthony”. Fast forward to the present and we find “Mr.J” writing articles for the top sign and auto graphics magazines, working for companies such as “Media-Iwata” airbrush, “One-Shot” paint, “Roland Digital Corp.”, “Rapid Tac”, “Createx Paint”, “Art tools”, “Sign Gold” and others, serving as both a consultant and a spokesperson at National and International sign conventions and Letterhead/ Pinhead events. He is also one of the original “Pinheads” (#5) and has been inducted into the “Pinstriper’s Hall of Fame”.

“Mr.J’s” extensive experience in both pinstriping and lettering has led him into developing his own signature pinstriping brush. He began by cutting and trimming pinstriping brushes, experimenting with different lengths and thicknesses.

After many disappointments , he finally hit on a revolutionary design. “I knew that if I wanted to offer a brush that would be more user friendly, that it would have to be shorter and have only the best Blue Squirrel hair.” The now famous “Xcaliber” pinstriping brushes are the result of much research and hard work. To quote the “Pinheads”, “The Xcaliber striping brushes are the best thing since “1-Shot” paint. The “Xcaliber corp. is constantly creating and developing new products for you… the hardcore artist.