Review: The best budget makeup brushes

 

It is not usual for me to dabble in budget makeup brushes – after having bad experiences in the past with the cheaper end of the makeup brush market, I’ve always truly believed that you do indeed get what you pay for. Pay peanuts and you’ll get rubbish, pay a little more and reap the rewards of high quality and prolonged life of your kit.

However, last week I was looking for a cheaper option of brush to stock with my SFX kit for the series of zombie makeovers that I’m currently undertaking in Leeds and came across some real belters. I wanted a few cheaper brushes that I could use along with my Third Degree and Liquid Latex which wouldn’t make me recoil in horror and devastation if they got ruined. I ended up coming across a fabulous deal over on an eBay store which offered 24 brushes complete in a lovely little brush roll for the grand total of £12.99.

Now, I haven’t just stepped off the banana boat so I wasn’t expecting anything too special when the brushes and roll arrived but I’m happy to say I was very pleasantly surprised! The brushes are all made with bamboo handles with synthetic Taklon bristles – the same type of bristles used for most gel nail brushes which lasts for a long time and it great with creams and gel products. The ferrule is made from recycled aluminium and the whole brush just has a lovely, natural yet stylish feel. The brushes comprise of blush brushes, eyeshadow brushes, blender brushes, angle brushes, a fine liner brush and even a double sided brow and lash comb. I particularly like the sponge topped rounded brush which is lovely for blending out pencil eyeliner for that gorgeous smoked effect.

I first used the brushes on Tuesday for my SFX makeovers in Leeds and found the brushes absolutely fabulous. The bristles were beautifully soft and transition of the products from the cosmetic pans to the face were flawless. The brushes fared well with both creams and powders – I really put them through their paces using them for greasepaints, thick powders and even liquid latex and silicone makeup. I’m happy to say the brushes washed and dried well after use with my usual baby shampoo deep clean routine and are now as clean and fresh as new again.

 

I’m seriously impressed with the brushes and I can’t quite believe that they were so cheap for such good quality. This is definitely a set I’d repurchase in the future and which I hope will last me a long while.

If you do decide to invest in brushes like this, it’s so important that you clean and care for them properly as often, wooden brushes can split on the handles which looks unsightly and can also cause a nasty splinter or cut.

© This post is copyright of Rachael Divers 2014.