A good make-up brush can create a flawless finish, and specific brushes are made for specific tasks. Invest in the best quality you can, because they will give you greater control, come with more hairs to grab more pigment, and you will be able to distribute colour more evenly.
My last make-up brush purchase has made me happier than I'm sure any girl has the right to be. I picked up the Bobbi Brown mini brush set in Brown Thomas and I am in love. It comes with four brushes, a mini angled eyeshadow brush, a mini eye sweep brush, a mini blush brush, and a mini ultra fine eyeliner brush. The carrying case is a little flat chocolate coloured box with a gold clasp. I wandered over to the counter to ooh and aaah over the new tortoiseshell collection and spotted these brushes and knew they would be mine. These clever little brushes live up to their bigger sisters’ legacy, I promise. What I love about them is that the shapes make application foolproof. You have full control because of the size, and the brushes are angled exactly the way your cheek or eye would be. And I have no resistance at all to a product that comes with a clean design and good packaging.
I brought the set home and decided to do a ruthless purging of all my old brushes that I no longer loved. When I finally finished separating the boys from the men, I remembered what one of the make-up artists had warned me — “If you look after your brushes they will look after you” — and swore I would use my newly purchased Mac brush cleanser on a more regular basis. The few brushes I did look after did stand the test of time. My beloved Crème de la Mer foundation brush is as good as new. It is still perfectly tapered and still distributes the foundation in a light and airy manner, allowing me to build up coverage and achieve a polished finish. Plus I’m just crazy about the way this brush feels. Other brushes that made the cut: My beloved Mac 168 large angled contour blush, which expertly puts colour exactly where it should be; the Mac 217 blending brush, simply because I hear every make-up artist every day say blend, blend, blend; and my Mac 263 small angled eye liner brush, which I had to perform a little minor surgery on. With a trusty hairdresser’s scissors (don't ask ) I cut into the brush, and with the skill of a surgeon, made it precise again (the tiny hairs on an eyeliner brushes can headwreckingly split sometimes ) and voila — it’s as good as new. I also felt quite thrifty, as even though I ended up buying a Bobbi Brown brush set, Mac brush cleanser, and two Mac brushes, I saved on a new angled brush.
Look at your make-up routine and see what gives you the most issues, or what application you most often get wrong. I bet it’s the brush. Come into Brown Thomas and ask an expert on the counter for guidance.
