MAC Brush Review, Plus How To Store Make-up Brushes.
I've heard it said that 'once you have a set of matching crockery...you are indeed a grown up woman!'.
Well in Wag Doll's world I'll stick to my 'eclectic' range of plates and aim for a full set of MAC make-up brushes instead, that's when I know I'm all woman!
I love make-up ...you'd never guess! I think of it as an artistic expression of the mood I'm feeling that day, and it's such a confidence builder.
The 15 minutes spent applying it in the morning is my quiet time before I 'face' the world...almost like meditation. It's essential when filming my youtube fitness videos, the director uses studio lighting which bleaches out skin and features, I'd disappear if I didn't wear make-up.
As any good artist (or painter and decorator!) will tell you, good quality brushes will greatly improve the finished result and the same applies to make-up brushes.
I've recently added 3 new MAC brushes to my collection and here's a quick review, plus how I store them.
MAC 213 Brush
The MAC 213 is a fluffy brush, with a thick bundle of natural fibres in a dense rounded shape for applying eye shadow colour. I use it mainly for applying light colours to the lid and for blending mid range colours over the outer third of the eye lid.
It hasn't shed a single hair and has retained it's shape well after washing. I'm not a fan of huge fluffy eye shadow brushes, yes they can apply colour all over the eye area very quickly, but they're too messy for my liking. The 213 is a great mid sized eye shadow brush, to apply colour quickly but with some precision too. I love it!
MAC 219 Brush
The 219 is a precision shading eye shadow brush, with natural fibres tapered into a fairly firm point. Initially I planned to use it to blend eyeliner into eyeshadow for a smokey eye look, and it's great for that. But this brush has hidden talents and is actually a versatile addition to your collection.
I've been using it to apply light shadow at the inner corner of the eye, and also to apply highlighter at the brow bone. It's brilliant at creating a cut crease look on the eye too. The 219 can also be used to contour down the sides of the nose. This brush washes well, and despite using very dark shadow with it, the light fibres haven't become stained.
MAC 212 Brush
Mac's 212 flat definer brush is made of stiff synthetic fibres, and can be used with powder, liquid or cream products. The brush is primarily an eyeliner brush with firm but flexible bristles. I find it's too wide to line the curve of the upper eyelid for my liking, I prefer a precision liner brush for that. But the 212 works really well to line the bottom lash line with powder, you can wiggle the brush back and forth and also push the shadow into the lash line. You can use it to extend liner shadow past the outer corner of the lower lid for a wide eyed winged look.
I'm also loving the 212 brush to shape and fill in my eyebrows using a dark brown eyeshadow. It's a bit more time consuming than the eyebrow pencil I normally use, but creates a much neater yet natural look.
I'm really pleased with all 3 of my new brushes and you can definitely tell the difference in quality against my other brushes. The MAC's retain their shape and haven't shed any hairs, the handles are long yet lightweight and they all wash really well.
I'm going to do a blog post in the future on how I wash and dry my make-up brushes, as it's important to look after the tools of your trade well!
I'd seem numerous patterns and tutorials online to make a crayon/pencil roll for children, so I just adapted one of those for my brush collection and made my own.
Can you spot my new MAC brushes in their home? They make me happy :-)
A roll is the best way to store your brushes, it's much easier to see them and select one, they roll up neatly for storage and the bristles are protected.
I used to store my brushes loose in a make-up bag but spent a ridiculous amount of time scrabbling around trying to locate a specific brush, and the bristles were always squashed out of shape.
I know some people store brushes upright in a glass, but I don't like the thought of them being exposed all day long to dust, flies and germs. *urgh*! It's important to keep your brushes clean, you don't want them introducing bacteria to your face.
The brush roll is washable and has stood the test of time since I made it a year ago. Here's the link to my tutorial if you want to make one for yourself, it would make a great Christmas present for someone too!
Well in Wag Doll's world I'll stick to my 'eclectic' range of plates and aim for a full set of MAC make-up brushes instead, that's when I know I'm all woman!
I love make-up ...you'd never guess! I think of it as an artistic expression of the mood I'm feeling that day, and it's such a confidence builder.
The 15 minutes spent applying it in the morning is my quiet time before I 'face' the world...almost like meditation. It's essential when filming my youtube fitness videos, the director uses studio lighting which bleaches out skin and features, I'd disappear if I didn't wear make-up.
As any good artist (or painter and decorator!) will tell you, good quality brushes will greatly improve the finished result and the same applies to make-up brushes.
I've recently added 3 new MAC brushes to my collection and here's a quick review, plus how I store them.
MAC 213 Brush
The MAC 213 is a fluffy brush, with a thick bundle of natural fibres in a dense rounded shape for applying eye shadow colour. I use it mainly for applying light colours to the lid and for blending mid range colours over the outer third of the eye lid.
It hasn't shed a single hair and has retained it's shape well after washing. I'm not a fan of huge fluffy eye shadow brushes, yes they can apply colour all over the eye area very quickly, but they're too messy for my liking. The 213 is a great mid sized eye shadow brush, to apply colour quickly but with some precision too. I love it!
MAC 219 Brush
The 219 is a precision shading eye shadow brush, with natural fibres tapered into a fairly firm point. Initially I planned to use it to blend eyeliner into eyeshadow for a smokey eye look, and it's great for that. But this brush has hidden talents and is actually a versatile addition to your collection.
I've been using it to apply light shadow at the inner corner of the eye, and also to apply highlighter at the brow bone. It's brilliant at creating a cut crease look on the eye too. The 219 can also be used to contour down the sides of the nose. This brush washes well, and despite using very dark shadow with it, the light fibres haven't become stained.
MAC 212 Brush
Mac's 212 flat definer brush is made of stiff synthetic fibres, and can be used with powder, liquid or cream products. The brush is primarily an eyeliner brush with firm but flexible bristles. I find it's too wide to line the curve of the upper eyelid for my liking, I prefer a precision liner brush for that. But the 212 works really well to line the bottom lash line with powder, you can wiggle the brush back and forth and also push the shadow into the lash line. You can use it to extend liner shadow past the outer corner of the lower lid for a wide eyed winged look.
I'm also loving the 212 brush to shape and fill in my eyebrows using a dark brown eyeshadow. It's a bit more time consuming than the eyebrow pencil I normally use, but creates a much neater yet natural look.
I'm really pleased with all 3 of my new brushes and you can definitely tell the difference in quality against my other brushes. The MAC's retain their shape and haven't shed any hairs, the handles are long yet lightweight and they all wash really well.
I'm going to do a blog post in the future on how I wash and dry my make-up brushes, as it's important to look after the tools of your trade well!
How I Store My Make-up Brushes.
So how do I store my brushes? Well I always wanted a professional make-up brush roll but they're very expensive.I'd seem numerous patterns and tutorials online to make a crayon/pencil roll for children, so I just adapted one of those for my brush collection and made my own.
Can you spot my new MAC brushes in their home? They make me happy :-)
A roll is the best way to store your brushes, it's much easier to see them and select one, they roll up neatly for storage and the bristles are protected.
I used to store my brushes loose in a make-up bag but spent a ridiculous amount of time scrabbling around trying to locate a specific brush, and the bristles were always squashed out of shape.
I know some people store brushes upright in a glass, but I don't like the thought of them being exposed all day long to dust, flies and germs. *urgh*! It's important to keep your brushes clean, you don't want them introducing bacteria to your face.
The brush roll is washable and has stood the test of time since I made it a year ago. Here's the link to my tutorial if you want to make one for yourself, it would make a great Christmas present for someone too!
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