How to Choose the Right Makeup Brush

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WOOHOO!! Happy Thursday, my lovely friends!! 🙂

Tomorrow is FRIDAYYYYY, and after a long week of work (after a 2-day week last week with the 4th of July holiday time off), I am REALLY looking forward to a relaxing weekend of lazing around the house, ordering take-out and catching up on all of my Netflix shows I never seem to have time to watch during the week.

I was cleaning out my closet this past weekend, which led to cleaning out my drawers in my bedroom, and then my bathroom, and finally cleaning out my makeup bag. It was then that I realized something…

My makeup brushes were GROSS. Maybe it was because I was in the cleaning mood or maybe it was because I usually do my makeup at 5:30 in the morning for work and I’m never fully conscious until I have at least 2 cups of coffee pumping through my body, but after looking at my makeup brushes that night, I realized they needed to be discarded IMMEDIATELY.

It was AFTER I threw them away in the trash that I realized I was now left with no way to put my makeup on the following morning for work… So anyways 20 minutes later, and I found myself in Ulta, staring at a wall of makeup brushes and suddenly realizing I had NO idea how to choose the right ones. I knew I needed a few different brushes:

a) Foundation Brush

b) Powder Brush

c) Eyeshadow Brush

d) Contouring Brush

So as I looked at the huge wall of makeup brushes in front of me, I found myself choosing a brush by the one aspect I AM familiar with… PRICE.

Okay so guys, there were some makeup brushes that were EXPENSIVE. Seriously, some were just OUTRAGEOUSLY priced, just for a single brush! Obviously, there was NO way I was about to empty my wallet just for ONE brush when I needed 4… But I also didn’t want the cheapest brush I could find since I wanted the ones I bought to last and hold up through washes without the bristles falling out.

So after spending about an hour (yes an hour… I am very selective, don’t judge) in Ulta trying to choose the right brushes that were of good quality, but also wouldn’t drain my wallet, I finally found some that I loved! Here are the selling points I looked at when trying to make my decision (and some makeup brushes I saw that met these requirements) and also the makeup brushes I ended up getting at the end of it all!

Quality of Bristles

One thing I wanted to be sure of was that I was getting a makeup brush that was going to last. I am all about using the products I purchase until they are completely done; that being said, I definitely don’t want to have to go out and buy new makeup brushes once a month because the ones I use are falling apart. (Ever arrived at a function with a makeup brush bristle trapped in your foundation? Embarassinggggggg.)

So when I was looking at all the different makeup brush options, the quality of the bristles was definitely on my mind! The way I made my decision was by talking with the Ulta Beauty Consultants there (they are super nice and helpful!) and by feeling the bristles, and brushing them on my hand to see how they felt and held up at the base where they are attached. Make sure that the bristles don’t come out or shed when you are brushing it on your hand and make sure it isn’t irritating your skin. You want to use high-quality, soft bristles that won’t shed or come out when you are applying your makeup.

When I was looking, I found that the IT Cosmetics and the EcoTools brands were my favorite as far as quality and softness was concerned. The main difference I noted between these two brands was price, which I will cover more in the coming aspect sections below.

Function of the Makeup Brush

When choosing a makeup brush, you have to make sure you know what kind of brush you need for the type of makeup you will be applying. (You can’t use a foundation brush to apply eye shadow… You just can’t.) So when shopping for a makeup brush, make sure to read the labels or ask one of the lovely Ulta Beauty Consultants what function the makeup brush provides. I generally use a variety of different brushes when I’m doing my makeup so I wanted to make sure I bought the right brush I needed for each part of my makeup. If you’re like me, you’re probably going to want a variety of brushes as well including options for your face and complexion and also for your eyes! In total, I usually use 6-7 brushes when doing my makeup (it’s a lot, I know) so if you’re going to start buying your brushes completely from scratch, I would say the smartest option would probably be to get a kit of makeup brushes, that way you get a few different brushes for a good price.

Here are a few kits I would recommend that are of good quality and have a variety of different brushes to get you started and at a price that won’t break the bank.

Softness of Bristles

So when I first started looking around at the brushes, I didn’t know how to choose the right one. Then I started feeling the brushes and immediately noticed the difference between the various brushes. No one wants to feel stiff, scratchy bristles when they apply their makeup to their face, so it’s important to note how the brushes feel and make sure you are buying one that will be soft enough for your skin. As far as softness goes, I liked the IT Cosmetics brushes the best. I thought they were super soft and the Ulta Beauty Consultant said their makeup application is very smooth. The only reason I decided not to go with these was because of the price. The IT Cosmetic brushes were more than I was looking to pay when I went in to replace my makeup brushes. If I were only looking to buy one or two brushes, I think I probably would have splurged and bought the IT Cosmetic brushes, but since I needed 4, I decided to search for a cheaper option of similar quality. I think in the future, I might try to purchase some of these, but it will be after the ones I purchase need to be replaced and definitely not before since they are just as good and can be purchased at a lower price. Here are a few of the different brushes I was looking at from IT Cosmetics that I would have purchased if I had not found the ones I bought from EcoTools:

That brings me to the final reveal… *drum roll*

After looking through brush after brush after brush and feeling them, inspecting them, brushing them up and down my hand, I FINALLY settled on brushes from EcoTools. I loved the feel and the quality of the brushes, but the price was just unbeatable for the quality! I also loved how the brushes are PETA certified (always look out for the furry friends) and made out of renewable bamboo!

*Side note about me: I LOVE bamboo products, they hold up super well and have always been fantastic quality for me so I buy bamboo products whenever I can!*

So far, I am really loving these brushes and they have been great for making my makeup go on smoothly! I purchased the following brushes to use for my face and eyes (since I literally needed to replace ALL of my makeup brushes).

I use the brushes for the following:

Wonder Cover Complexion Brush – Applying liquid foundation to my face and neck

Full Powder Brush – Applying pressed powder all over my face and neck to set my foundation

Wonder Color Finish Brush – Contouring my face with my powder bronzer and contouring kit, and applying blush (if using)

Eye Enhancing Duo Set – I use the bottom right brush (see above in pic) to apply highlighter to the bridge of my nose, and cheek and brow bones; the bottom left brush to apply eyebrow tint/shadow; and the top two brushes for apply eye shadow

 

Normally, these brushes would have come out to $31.96, but Ulta has a sale going on for the EcoTools products where it is buy 1, get 1 50% off, so I actually ended up only paying $24.97!! FOR 7 BRUSHES!!!

I was so happy, and I’m even happier now that I have new makeup brushes that I love and that make my makeup go on smoothly and evenly.

Thanks for reading and I hope you guys get the chance to try some of the EcoTools products! Let me know if you guys try these and how you like them! 🙂

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