Makeup Brushes

[Anonymous]

Hey everyone can I ask what are good brushes to use for your face & lips ? Want to invest in a good brush set ?

[WinglessOne]

Hi @EverythingMKup4 ! 

I usually buy individual brushes instead of kits/sets. What’s your price range? Do you prefer a bristle type (natural vs. synthetic)? 

I don’t wear foundation anymore, but once in a while I’ll wear a skin tint/tinted moisturizer. If I don’t wanna get my fingers dirty, I reach for a SEPHORA COLLECTION - PRO Diffuser Brush #64 or SEPHORA COLLECTION - PRO Core Diffuser Angled #95.

Almost all of my cheek brushes (for blush, highlighter, and bronzer) are Japanese natural hair (squirrel or goat) brushes. My favorite is the Chikuhodo Z Series Z-4, but I don’t travel with it. (I leave my delicate squirrel hair brushes at home.) My travel blush brush is the Chikuhodo Passion Series PS-2; I also use this brush at home for cream blushes. Before I owned any Japanese brushes, I mostly used a SEPHORA COLLECTION - PRO Precision Powder Brush #59 for powder blush and bronzer. 

For concealer, I mostly use a Chikuhodo PS-4 eyeshadow brush. It’s the perfect shape and size for the way I use concealer (usually just in my tear troughs), and it’s very soft. I also still like to use the MAKE UP FOR EVER 234 Angled Shader Brush . It’s synthetic and not as soft as the Chikuhodo goat hair brush, but I love its shape—especially when I want to blend my concealer out from my tear troughs to cover more of my undereye area (to mask darkness caused by insomnia or allergies). This brush makes quick work of that. 

I LOVE lipstick but I kinda hate lip brushes, even though I sometimes ombré 2 or more shades on my lips. But this year I finally bought a MAC 316 lip brush, which I highly recommend over the 318 retractable one. I don’t use my lip brush unless I want to use a bullet shade as a liner (and even then, I usually just outline my lips with the bullet), or I want to ombré shades without getting my fingers dirty. I should start using it to apply gloss over matte lipsticks so I don’t color-contaminate clear/sheer glosses. 

You didn’t mention eye brushes, but I have several by different brands. I’m a MAC eyeshadow brush fan: I’ve had some of the old natural hair brushes for 20+ years (and they’ve held up just fine), but I also have some of the synthetic brushes. The 239 is a very good shader brush; the 217 is a great blender. I have a Sigma E25 blender that works well, but not as well as the MAC 217. (Those 2 brushes are often compared.) I also have some Wayne Goss brushes; those are generally good investments, along with individual MAC brushes. The only MUFE eyeshadow brushes I like for their intended purpose are the 234 and the 212 medium smudger brush. I love my Sonia G brushes, but you don’t really need to spend that much money per brush right off the bat. I’d start with less expensive brushes like MAC, then maybe add some more expensive brushes once in a while. 

[Brutalitops]

@EverythingMKup4 Sets are a great way to get a deal, but consider that you might be better off buying them individually. I have some brushes from sephora collection, Luxie, Urban Decay, Hourglass, and zoreva. I know my favorite youtubers highly suggest either Wayne Goss or Smith's brushes and while I am sure they are made from better materials than the majority of my brushes and I know that makes a difference I just don't think it's super necessary to always have the best of the best. The difference between a B+ and an A isn't much to worry about. The ones I have work perfectly for me and my needs and frequently I do not see analogues in any one brand. Another thing to consider: What kind/formula of makeup are you using the brushes on is important. Synthetic and natural hair brushes can vary in product pickup, care, and longevity depending on how you plan to use them. 

Back to the set issue: My most used brushes are a foundation brush (SEPHORA COLLECTION - PRO Foundation #47) and angled blush brush, a bug powder brush, a smaller/precision diffuser brush (bronzer) and then 2 shadow, one crease, one smudger, and one liner brush. After buying the set of sephora collection brushes i realized that I only used about 4-5 out of the 15 and I've yet to see the set that doesn't contain brushes that will ultimately sit on my vanity unused. The brushes I do use of that set (esp. the powder brush) are good, but not what I would probably choose if I had bought them separately. 

TLDR: Start slow, ask questions in store (ex. Why choose synthetic over natural?), brand loyalty isn't necessarily important, and get the brushes individually

[Georguti]

Sigma Brushes are the best, there are some kits that are a little expensive but I had them from over 4 years now and they still keep the same quality.

[RAWRitsRED]

Hey @EverythingMKup4!

I just purchase the Sephora Collection Ready to Roll Brush set for $70 (worth $195).  I love how soft they are and they work great!  It comes with all the basic essentials for face and eyes (unfortunately not for lips).  You can also get the individual brushes but I DONT recommend getting the cheap Sephora brand brush sets like the Sephora Collection Complexion Uncomplicated set or the Uncomplicated eyeshadow set.

I hope this helps!

SEPHORA COLLECTION - Ready To Roll Brush Set

[SportyGirly125]

@Anonymous For face are you looking for powder and foundation brushes?  I know if you watch Sephora’s YouTube David uses the Sephora Collection brushes. 

[Anonymous]

yes powder & brushes

[SportyGirly125]

@Anonymous I find sometimes the sets come with cheaper quality brushes. Maybe if you can buy ones that you need individually.  You can always go to Sephora and touch and feel the Sephora collection brushes and see if you like them. Some good powder brushes are MAC 182, Tom Ford bronzer and blush brushes, MAC 239, 217, 224, 252. 

[MCSSavvy]

@SportyGirly125  - I treasure my MAC 240 and 217 brushes.  Have you purchased any since they switched from goat hair to synthetic?  I'm wondering if the performance is the same.  

[SportyGirly125]

@MCSSavvy I haven't purchased any new MAC brushes since they changed.  I did buy a bunch of backups when they had them for 50% off.  I honestly do not need anymore makeup brushes since I used to freelance and went to makeup school.  

[WinglessOne]

@MCSSavvy  Last year I had to replace one of my 2 beloved 144 shaders (goat hair) with a synthetic 239. While I was at it, I replaced my old natural blender with a synthetic 217. The synthetic blender performs as well as the natural one did for me. But I prefer the natural shader over the 239. I still have one 144 (thank goodness) so I can see the 239’s bristles are a bit longer. I don’t know if that’s why the 144 packs on color better for me than the 239, or if it’s just personal bias because I’ve used the 144 for decades and just started with the 239 last fall. It’s not a bad brush at all. It works very well! Just not quite as well as my trusty 144. 

[MCSSavvy]

@WinglessOne  Thanks for the insight!  I love working with the brushes but I've been hesitant to buy any new MAC brushes since they switched to synthetic.  I'll have to look more closely at them.   

[WinglessOne]

@MCSSavvy  If you can see/touch them in person at a standalone MAC store, or at the MAC counter of a dept store, they’re worth checking out. I had my doubts too, mostly because I’d had too many bad experiences with synthetic brushes in the past. But synthetics have come a long way. 🙂