Must-Have Makeup Brushes

I am now the new proud owner of the Bobbi Brown Winter special brush set, which comes in a lovely leather travel case. For years I've been using a mismatch of brushes I've picked along my makeup life - freebies with other purchases and the random buys from Boots. But now, my make-up life is complete.

The set comes with 7 brushes (two of which are double ended). Here’s a quick round-up of my top three brushes in the set:

1 - The foundation brush. I've never been a fan of foundation brushes, having the opinion that they waste the product and would leave the makeup looking streaky and thin. But this brushes applies my foundation perfectly. I know it has a lot to do with what product you are using (I'm using Clarins Skin Illusion at the moment), but I believe that this brush has helped the appearance finished look. The brush is sturdy yet soft, giving a clean, even finish.

2 - The 'blender' brush. This is a thick eye shadow brush that works excellently with blending into
your eye socket. My favourite eye-makeup look is to have a lighter shade on the inner corner of your eye, then using a darker shade in the outer corner of your eye. When I want more of a dramatic look I use this blender brush right in the eye socket, sweeping up to the brow line so the colour gets less intense. I have often found that you get less colour on your eyelid when you use a brush as opposed to using you finger, but I don't have a problem with creating a deep colour with this brush.

3 - The angled eye brush. This small brush is made of quite hard, wirey bristles which I wouldn't advise using too heavily on the eye area. However it is perfect for creating bold and perfectly shaped eyebrows to frame your face. Over the past year I have converted from using an eye-brow pencil, to using a brown matte eyeshadow (currently using Revlon’s Rich Sable) as it creates a powerful shape, but the soft texture still flatters the face.

I know I was only going to give you my top three, but these brushes are just too good not to get a mention. The eyeliner brush (with the metal cover), is brilliant when paired with the Bobbi Brown Gel eyeliner and it is just the right size for creating a small line in the inner corner then a powerful cat eye flick in the out edges. Also, the double-ended concealer brush is the perfect combination using liquid concealer and translucent powder - making those dark under eye circles and spots just disappear!!

And, believe it or not, this set has actually speeded up my makeup routine in the morning. Bonus!

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