There’s something that I think every beauty blogger will agree on, and that’s the fact that brushes are essential! In fact, I’d hope that most everyone who uses makeup would think that, but you never know.
And I’m not saying that your fingers aren’t useful. If you’ve read any of my other posts, you probably know that I use my fingers all the time. Sometimes, they can be your best friend in makeup.
Now here’s the opinionated part… Here are the 5 basic makeup brushes that I think are absolutely essential. If you’re going to get any brushes, get these:
# 1: The Flat Top Kabuki
I honestly believe that this is just about the best foundation brush you can find. I would almost ALWAYS stay away from a flat foundation brush. Most people who use that are going to get streaky results.
The flat top kabuki makes it easy to blend and buff in your foundation. Anyone can use it and achieve awesome results!
# 2: The Jumbo Fan
This is one many people might not agree with me on.. It’s mostly seen as one of those “extra” kind of brushes, and I don’t think I’ve seen too many beauty vloggers use one in their tutorials.
The reason why I think this brush is essential is because of how many uses it has. For the most part I use mine to set my foundation, which I find to be much better than using a big round powder brush since you get a more flat application – this can help with filling in those pores a little more. I’d compare the application of a setting power with this brush to that of the powder puff, which Wayne Goss highly recommends in this youtube video.
In addition to setting your foundation, the brush is also great for blending the entire face (so after you’ve applied bronzer and blush), and it’s also great for apply blush itself!
# 3: The Blush Brush
While you could use the jumbo fan for blush, I think it’s best to apply blush with a separate dedicated brush. I think the flat blush brush is best because it gives a much more controlled application than the fluffier versions. Controlling where your blush goes is important – you don’t want to look like a clown.
# 4: The Dome Contour Brush
I can’t express how important this brush is! DO NOT skip bronzer. EVER. One of the biggest complaints that people give about girls who they think wear “too much” makeup” is that they look fake or unnatural. Foundation by itself can make your face look unnatural because your face isn’t supposed to be just one color. Bronzer is the thing that will restore color to your face (along with blush, but I think bronzer is more important).
Having a dome contour brush will allow you to apply bronzer to the appropriate parts of face to bring back a more natural look.
# 5: The Blending Brush
This one is also extremely important. In fact, as you might have noticed, it’s the only eye shadow brush that I’ve included in this list. For most people a basic smokey eye is about as complicated as it gets. And if that’s you, then you can achieve that with just this eyeshadow brush! I say this, but if you can afford it or care to, I would still recommend investing in a few more eyeshadow brushes. This is the only one I really think you need though.
This is the brush that’s going to blend everything together as you apply darker colors onto the lighter bases. It’s amazing at what it does! And for your lid? Just use your finger (just not your pointer finger – don’t want to give yourself premature wrinkles by being too rough). Simple as that.
You don’t always need all those fancy brushes, especially if you’re using them for a daily makeup routine. With these brushes, you can create amazing every day looks!
You might have noticed that I didn’t include the beauty blender. While I think it’s a great tool to create a flawless foundation look, I don’t think its quite essential. For one its expensive, but more importantly, it’s not something you’d use everyday for your foundation. It soaks up and wastes some of the product. That’s why I think you’re better off with the flat top kabuki (at least if you have to choose one over the other).
So what do you think? Are there any that you believe should be included in this list? Let me know in the comments!
