Sephora Brush Set!

For Christmas, my mom got me this travel brush kit from Sephora...

Merry Christmas Lizzie!

 It contains 5 brushes.

1,2,3,4,5, everybody in the car so come on let's ride!

 Closeups!

Powder Brush

Powder Brush handle

The powder brush is about the same size as the average blush brush. The reason I really like this size for a powder brush rather than the usual jumbo brush is because I can easily apply any kind of powder to crevices of my face; particularly around my nose. The fact that it is flat enables me to gently pat the powder on then blend, rather than brush it all over my face and potentially smear my foundation at the same time... The bristles are very soft.

Eyeshadow Brush

Eyeshadow Brush handle

I have a similar brush like this from Sephora, but with a red handle. The bristles are very soft, and I LOVE it for packing on colour. I specifically use it for pigments because it helps disperse the product smoothly onto the skin, and for super bright colours. It also helps blend out the edges so nicely. I honestly wish I had 10 of these.

My mom says "Waddya need so many brushes for! You only have two eyes!"

Smudge brush

Handle

 This smudgie brush works very well for smudging out creamy eyeliners on the upper and lower lashes. It is also useful for applying darker or coloured eyeshadows to those areas. This one is not itchy like many smudge brushes are.

AWESOME FLUFFY CREASE BRUSH

... and handle

 This might be my favorite brush of the set. It is fluffy, soft, yet firm. This is the best brush I have for blending out eyeshadow in my crease. I can also apply medium-dark colours to my outer corners. Blending is an extremely important part of eyeshadow application, and a good brush is just as important. I actually LOVE it.

Angled liner brush

handle

 This brush is pretty versatile in terms of detailed application product. It is great for lining the eyes with gel or liquid eyeliner, eyeshadow, and for filling in the brows. I also like it for creating a cut-crease or double-winged eyeliner. The bristles are smooth and firm.

 This retails for 42$, though my mom says she paid much more than that. Sephora says it is an 88$ value. Overall, I think around 50-ish is reasonable for 5 brushes. The handles are fairly long for travel-size. It is a really nice kit for beginners.

Please send any requests to lizziehanley94@yahoo.ca

Sephora Classic Mineral Powder Brush Review

Bonjour.

I went to Sephora the other day, even though I am not really allowed to because I always end up spending money there.

I was just browsing around, I swear.

A really nice guy named Daniel was working there, and he had on the most AWESOME holiday makeup I have ever seen!! His brows were covered with small paper snowflakes, his eyelids were covered in the prettiest sparkly white glitter (zero fallout), his cheeks were perfectly contoured and his lips were PURPLE!!! :D

Gorgeous. Honestly.

We talked about makeup for a while, which was awesome because he is so enthusiastic about it. I asked him a ton of questions about his makeup. He asked me about my eyeshadow, and said my blending was flawless! I told him about Sugarpill and where to get it :) I shall re-create the look I wore that day and link it HERE.

Anyways...

I enjoyed his service so much, I felt bad about leaving the store without buying anything.

Enter the Sephora Classic Mineral Powder brush.

Here it is!

 I had been looking around for a while for a nice buffing brush to apply liquid foundation. I tested another one at Sephora a few weeks ago (I think it was this one) but it was a bit out of my price range. So I tested the Mineral Powder brush and fell in love!

Close-up with plastic on

PROS:

• The bristles are synthetic and a kind of dark brown/taupe with white at the ends. Purty!
• Because they are so densely packed, I  noticed my foundation does not leak so deep into the brush, wasting product.
• Synthetic hairs no not absorb (think microscopic) as much liquid as natural hair brushes.
• The ferrule is shiny black, and the handle is matte black. I tried not to use lighting that was too bright when photographing it so you can see where the white bristles end and the white background begins.

Close-up without plastic on

• This brush is suuuper soft and smooth, but still firm. I hate when brushed bend and fold all over the place when I apply my foundation. I am not particularly rough with brushes. 
• It isn't too big so you can use it to get into little crevices of the face (like the nose), but still covers a pretty large surface at once. I like!

Next to a Sally Hansen polish to see its size

• I find this easier to wash than natural brush hairs because the bristles are smoother, if that makes sense. I use olive oil and dish soap to wash my brushes. 

I don't really care that it is for mineral makeup. I like it for liquid foundation. As long as you do not over-blend, the foundation is ridiculously gorgeous on the skin!! Otherwise, the makeup gathers around the area you blended and the skin where you were rubbing so hard with the brush is now bare. I'm sure it works great with minerals too, but I haven't tried it. I know it works well for contouring the face too.

• Multipurpose?

Also, I like this because it is black, shiny and sexy!!!

CON (singular): 

• The handle is a bit fat, so it takes up a lot of room in my brush-holder. 

Which is really a plastic cup.

Here is what Sephora has to say about this brush: 

Classic Mineral Powder Brush: A brush designed for applying both loose and compact mineral powders.

You can get this at Sephora for 26$, depending on where you live. I payed 34$ plus tax. :(

Please send any requests to lizziehanley94@yahoo.ca