Brush-a Brush-a Brush-a -- Part II

Well, here we are on the second part of our (and I’ve just decided this) three part brush tutorial. Now that we’ve got an idea of the sort of brushes you’d most commonly use, let’s talk price and quality.

Why Are Some Brushes More Expensive Than Others?

These days money is tight and when you’re standing there looking at a virtual wall of brushes you have to wonder: What makes this brush that looks about the same as this one more expensive? Is it better? If it is, why is it better? There are usually three major factors in the price and quality of a brush.

1.) The first thing that usually figures into the value and quality of the brush is the kind of hair the brush is made out of. If it’s a natural hair brush (the soft makeup brushes), the price can depend on the type of hair it’s made from. With natural hair brushes there are a number of different types: Pony, Camel, Goat, Kolinsky Sable, Squirrel… and a good many more.

Important Note: No animals are harmed in the making of these brushes! The brushes on these site are cruelty-free. The hair is cut from the animal, but they are not killed for it. So please trust me when I say they may have a new do, but they are still in good care.

Pony
Pony hair actually doesn’t come from baby horses, but from a horse that is at least two years old. It’s very strong but also soft. The highest quality comes from the belly of the animal and is often blended with other hairs for less expensive touch-up brushes.

Camel
Camel hair brushes are actually not from an actual camel. It’s a ‘trade name’ that was given from Mr. Camel who invented them. This means it’s a blended brush usually mixed with pony, goat, and squirrel hair. These are usually made into a wide range of different makeup brushes.

Goat
Goat hair (Capra) is the most commonly used hair type in making cosmetic brushes since they are the least costly to produce and the hair is the easiest to obtain. The softest goat hair is the first-cut with the tips still intact. Goat hair makeup brushes from the blunt cut are used in the manufacture of mass produced, lower quality brushes. The higher quality is hand-made like any other high quality cosmetic brush to preserve the delicate tips.

Kolinsky Sable
Kolinsky is not the name of the guy who invented this type of brush. Actually it's the Russian name for mink. It’s a species of mink found in cold regions of Russia and China. Brushes made from Kolinsky sable are the softest and the most expensive. Each Kolinsky hair has a naturally long fine point tip and a thick 'belly' and is known for it’s cone-like shape. No other sable can match the length of the Kolinsky sable. They have a have a tendency to snap back to its original shape when bent, but it’s still wonderfully soft.

Squirrel
Let’s start off with me telling it's a bad idea to think about catching squirrels to make yourself a home-made makeup brush then have an interesting pet to talk about in social situations. It’s not that kind of squirrel you saw eating an acorn this morning by the road, plus catching one could lead to a whole issue of bites and angry squirrels. Only the long-haired squirrel has the right kind of stuff for the softest brushes out there and it's not an eyeball sort of differentiation. With that said…

Squirrel hair brushes are the softest you’ll find. Squirrel is naturally very fine and relatively thin when compared to sable, but it has no springy-ness to it. Although soft squirrel hair is relatively thin, it still has a thick 'belly' hence has a cone-like shape with the tip coming to a fine point. This is why 100% all pure squirrel makeup brushes are extremely soft and my personal favorite PR brush to finish off any beauty makeup. They just feel so darn luxurious! They also work very well on sensitive or delicate skin with my clients that are cancer or burn survivors.

2.) How the hair is attached to the handle of the brush. The ferrule is the metal piece that the hair is crimped or glued into. Higher quality brushes are double crimped and seamless to keep the hair from shedding and the handle from wobbling later in the life of the brush. If better care is taken with this step the brush may be more expensive, but should have a longer life.

3.) The last major reason for price is often times the culprit of name branding. Just like cosmetics, it’s all in how the brush is marketed and if you’re paying for a fancy name or a super shiny handle. The more some companies spend on ads and show-y flash will usually affect the price of a brush.

As you can see there are a number of factors that will work into what quality and price point your makeup brushes can be. You don’t always have to go for the most expensive. It really depends on what you want out of your tools. Now that you’ve got a bit more knowledge under your belt you can feel more confident in your hunt for the right brush.

Brush-a Brush-a Brush-a… Part I

Makeup Brushes are everywhere, but there are so many different shapes, hair types, and designs... and they're not exactly the least expensive tool to pick up. How do you choose from the masses? Why are they so expensive? What brushes do I really need? Am I using the brush for right purpose? What makes a quality brush? Well then, let's hope I can help clear up some of those questions for you in the next few blogs.

Today we're going to focus on what type of brushes most people really need. A lot of makeup brushes are great, but most people may never use them on themselves. With a girl's standard makeup battalion we'll talk can't live without essentials.

What Brushes Do I Really Need?
This question really depends on what make up you actually wear, but for the purposes of this article we'll say you wear a standard beauty makeup for a night out. If that's the case most people would use a brush to wear: Foundation, Concealer, Blush, Eye Shadow, and Lip Color.

Foundation Brush
There are many different foundation brushes out there. This type of brush is really a personal preference choice. You can apply foundations with a sponge if you prefer. I like to use a foundation brush for more fluid foundations and a sponge for cream foundations.

Concealer Brush
This is a great type of brush to have. You can choose from a number of sizes and materials with concealer brushes. A brush for concealer lets you blend underneath the eyes without pulling at the fragile skin there. The skin beneath your eyes is the thinnest anywhere on your body. If you normally use your fingers you can A) contaminate your makeup with bacteria and B) you may pull too hard at the skin causing fine lines later down the road.

• TIP-- For concealer it is a great idea to get a filbert brush. All filbert means is that the brush has an oval rounded edge rather than a flat square edge. Since we're working on more rounded areas of the face like the orbital lobe (around the eyes) a round shaped brush just makes the job easier.

Another great use for this brush is to gently set your concealer with loose powder to keep it from moving or creasing. Who wants the fine lines we might already have let along any false ones? Plus two uses for the price of one? What's not to love?

Blush Brush
Most people use blush and if you use a powder blush, this is a definite tool you’ll want in your arsenal. There are blush brushes in a number of different sizes and two basic shapes.

The size depends on how exact you want to be with your application. Smaller brushes lend themselves to more precise application, while the larger spreads the product a bit more liberally.

The shape of your blush brush can be a basic round brush or it could be cut to form an angle. Personally I like the angle blush brush when I want to do some contouring and the round blush brush when giving just a soft glow to the cheeks and skin.

Eye Shadow
Oh this is where I could go crazy with brushes! Brushes for eyes are a must in the kit, even if you have only one or two basics. I suggest two brushes to make things easy. That way if you use a dark and a light color you have one brush for each.

Fluff Brushes are great for applying or just sweeping shadow onto the lid and brow bone. This is what I like to call the "light color" brush. There are a number of sizes available and I find that it’s a comfort level as well as the eye area I have to work with: More eye area a bigger brush, less eye area smaller brush, but over all it’s up to the user.

Crease Blender Brushes are fantastic for applying color to the crease area. It’s got a fully rounded tip and lends itself to precision placement, but it’s still soft enough to blend with to get just the right look. This is what I like to call the "dark color" brush.

Lip Color Brush
If you’re a lip gloss girl, then you shouldn’t really have to worry about a lip brush, but if you like lipstick this may be something to definitely look into. Lip brushes tend to come in two shapes the filbert (rounded) and flat (square). Personally, I like the flat brush for applying lip color. The flat edge cuts a really sharp look along the lip line, making it look classically neat and straight.

• Tip – Using a lip brush when initially applying your lipstick will make any lipstick wear longer. You will actually push the product onto the lips staining it better than when used directly from the stick. Touching up from the stick is great for the convenience, but when applying the whole face try out a lip brush.

That really covers the basics of what most people use on themselves. So you don't need six bajillion brushes, unless you're a self-proclaimed brush whore like me. I just love brushes and can never have enough-- probably why I'll continue more brush questions in the next few posts.

Game On: Powder Puffs VS Powder Brush

"Makeup!" You can almost hear the loud call of the director's voice and see the explosion of powder as this giant pillow of a powder puff smashes a performer in the face. That's the image most people have in their heads of the old skool powder puff, but is that how it really works? Why would you want to use a puff and not the ever popular powder brush?

Almost every girl out there has a powder brush, but do we really know what it's meant for? The easy answer would be "to apply powder", but there's a lot more detailed look at that brush sitting in your makeup drawer.

So let's take a look at what each product is really designed for and how in the world we're supposed to use these tools.

Powder Puffs
Webster's dictionary defines a powder puff as: a small fluffy device (as a pad) for applying cosmetic powder. Now that's a pretty broad generalized definition. Puffs are designed to hold powder inside of them and when you tap them, the powder is released where you need it. They are generally used best with either pressed or loose powder, when setting a cream foundation or as a quick way to cut shine. The plus side of using a puff to set your makeup is that you're setting the makeup so it doesn't crease or move. It'll secure your makeup for a much longer wearability time.

Pressed Powder
This is probably the most common type of puff people have used. It's that tiny little puff that comes with a pressed powder/cake powder compacts. You just swipe it across the powder and swipe it across the face for quick touch ups. Simple and easy, no instruction really needed.
The one thing to keep in mind is to change that little puff out every few weeks. Bacteria can build up and cause break outs or other skin irritations. The replacement puffs are really inexpensive (unsually a dollar to three) but we tend to hold onto those little buggars like they're gold. It's funny how we may be willing to spend a good portion of our hard-earned money on a powder but we don't replace a very inexpensive little puff.

Loose Powder
The first time I ever attempted trying to use one of these I tapped my loose powder onto it and tried to get it to my face. Needless to say, I got powder all over my face, my new black dress, and my new black heels.
Yeah, no. I thought to myself, This is totally not cool . It wasn't until I started training to be a makeup artist that I learned how to properly use a puff. Of course I had been doing it all wrong.
With loose powder the key is that after you tap the powder onto the puff, you fold it in half (like a taco) and rub the powder into the puff (almost like rubbing out a stain). This way all the powder is inside the puff and you can easily transfer the puff to your face. Then tap the puff on your face and press the powder into the makeup. Tah-dah! Now it works like it's supposed to and you're not surrounded by a halo of powder dust!

Powder Brush
This is probably one of the most requested brushes people ask for in a makeup store, but most people aren't using for the purpose it was originally created for. Yes, powder brushes are great for applying very light amounts of powder, usually from a pressed cake.
I like to use small powder brushes to set makeup under the eyes with loose powder so it doesn't cake up on the delicate skin. I press the brush against the makeup and give a precision powder without applying too much.
If you're touching up for a little shine here and there, that's great! I use it on set all the time just for that purpose.
Did you know though, that powder brushes are actually meant to remove powder? That's right, it's meant to sweep away any access powder left over from a powder puff that may be laying on the skin. If you're trying to set a foundation with a powder brush by sweeping it around, you're just dusting the powder on the surface of the skin and not settling it into the makeup so the makeup may still smear.

If you look at both tools, they're used in combination for a flawless makeup finish! It's not really a versus story at all but a fanatastic team-up!