How many brushes do I need?!

[Andacabo]

Spoiler

Hi everyone! 👋🏻 I'm wondering if someone could give me some advice about brushes. I'm new to this and learning, so I have a lot of questions 😁. I'm a bit confused about how many brushes I need and what each one is for. I use bronzer (cream), blush (cream & powder), foundation, concealer, translucent powder, and an eyeshadow palette. If someone could please share any tips, I would really appreciate it 🙏🏻. Thanks!!!

[SportyGirly125]

@Andacabo you really don’t need that many. 

bronzer (cream) Sigma F84

blush (cream & powder) Tom Ford blush brush and Sigma F80 PATRICK TA Blush Brush #1 

foundation Beauty blender or a wedge sponge or Sigma F80

concealer I use my fingers

translucent powder MAC 182

eyeshadow palette MAC 242 or 239, 224, 217

[danielledanielle]

As many as your heart desires 😂 @Andacabo  There's a lot to consider, you can start out with a brush set, which can contain 4-8 brushes typically.  Real Techniques, not sold here, has a really nice 4-pc face brush set for starters.

It really depends on your product preferences and what look you're aiming to achieve (glam vs soft glam vs glowy etc etc).  Face shape and skin sensitivity can also be a factor.  Eye shape definitely matters for liner and shadow application as well, for example, hooded eyes and small lids usually warrant smaller shaped bristles.

This is long, but I tried to include examples.  There's a summary if you aren't interested in that!

Going by what you listed -

Powders for face (translucent, foundation, blush, bronzer) - Usually fluffy, meaning brush bristles are not as tightly packed, feels airy on the face.  SEPHORA COLLECTION PRO Bronzer Brush #80 is a good example.  It's large and fluffy.

• Powder can also be applied with a puff.  There's a nice aesthetic to a puff, and depending on how the puff is made, can really change the look.  For "baking", the puff is usually sponge or compact.  (You can also use a beautyblender or spoonge for baking.)  Laura mercier's one always come to mind when I think powder puff, but Anna Sui and Wayne Goss also make an interesting ones and beautyblender has a cool double-sided one. Laura Mercier Velour Puff , Beautyblender POWER POCKET PUFF™ Dual-Sided Powder Puff for Setting and Baking  

Brush for cream bronzer and contour - usually short and compacted, deposits more pigment or product and allows for more control. Example: SEPHORA COLLECTION PRO Bronzer Brush #88 , Fenty Beauty by Rihanna Face Shaping Brush 125 and Fenty Beauty by Rihanna Cheek Hugging Bronzer Brush 190  

Cheek brushes - these are usually smaller, and can be used for blush and bronzer, depending again on preference + product.  SEPHORA COLLECTION PRO Blush Brush #99 is a great blush brush IMO for creams, but I don't use it for powders because it'll lay it down more intensely.  I actually prefer fan brushes, angled brushes ( PATRICK TA Dual-Ended Contour Brush ,Sigma's Angled F40, SEPHORA COLLECTION PRO Blush Brush #93 ) and large powder brushes for blush, such as Rephr's 30 or the Sephora 80.  I have an oval face shape and I prefer to place blush at an angle with a large blown-out effect.

Foundation - depending on your preference and foundation, you can use fingers - lighter coverage.  A blender or sponge - blends as you go, light or medium coverage, usually you avoid really thin foundations with sponges because they can soak up too much product.  Brush - depending on the brush, can go light to full coverage based on bristles.  SEPHORA COLLECTION PRO Foundation Brush #64 is a great brush, it's kind of like a stippling brush, so some bristles are longer, but it's still compact enough to lay down product without going cakey.  SEPHORA COLLECTION Makeup Match Foundation Brush is also good.  The bristles are very compact, so it's good with thicker foundations and it can blend and lay down product.  Fenty Beauty by Rihanna Kabuki-Buff Foundation Brush 115 is similar, but even denser I'd say.

Concealer - IMO, this can vary the most with area being concealed, skin type, the product itself....For myself, I use fingers and a foundation brush ( Fenty Beauty by Rihanna Full-Bodied Foundation Brush 110 )  most often because I have mylar bags with a dry under eye.  If I wanted to conceal a blemish, I'd use a tiny, compact brush like SEPHORA COLLECTION PRO Concealer Brush #71 or PAT McGRATH LABS Skin Fetish: Sublime Perfection Concealer Brush .  For hyperpigmentation or acne scars, SEPHORA COLLECTION PRO Concealer Brush #57 is great because it's compact, but loosely packed.

Eyeshadow - You can really achieve a look with your fingers, again depends on all of the above.  For my eye shape (almond shape), I usually need a crease brush and a compact brush or a "worker"\laydown brush.  Anything else, like a smudge, liner or pencil is great, but that's all I need for a simple, quick eye look.  SEPHORA COLLECTION PRO Crease Brush #19 or SEPHORA COLLECTION PRO Crease Brush #27 and SEPHORA COLLECTION PRO Shadow Brush #14 .  Elf's beautifully precise eyeshadow brush is my favorite dense packed one, but it's discontinued.  Sonia G makes excellent crease brushes, but they are an investment.  Her Fusion eye set it great because it's made to work with creams and powders!

There's also natural hair and synthetic hair to consider.  Synthetic can be used with any product, as it doesn't absorb it typically. Natural hair is typically used with powders only, so that brushes aren't damaged over time by absorbing liquid.  But, there are some exceptions, such as the Fusion series and different types of animal hair but that's a whole other post...

Summary, TLDR -

Dense, compact bristles - more precision and more product

Fluffy, loose - airy and disperse products

Sponge - helps blend with application and adds moisture

Powder puff - compact, pressed precision

Fingers - less precise, but more natural, warmth can help with blending

Brush Brands -

E.l.f.

Real Techniques

Sonia Kashuk

Sephora Collection

Morphe

Sigma Beauty

BK Beauty

Rephr

Sonia G and Wayne Goss (At beautylish)

Also a lot of brands make their own.  Fenty, Patrick Ta and Pat MgGrath are given as examples, but Mac is probably the most well known.  Hourglass, Saie and Make Up Forever are other brands that make nice brushes.

[greeneyedgirl107]

@danielledanielle I'm bookmarking this!

[danielledanielle]

Yay @greeneyedgirl107 .  Glad to know it's helpful (hopefully OP agrees) and not just a giant self-aggrandizing post because I have poor self control with brushes 😂🤣

[HappyLonghorn]

hi! usually i use a brush for foundation, or you could use a beauty blender, but i use a brush because its a much more efficient in my opinion. i use a thin brush for under my eyes, and i also use a brush for my eye shadow. really you only need like 3 or 4 brushes, and youll be good to go!