Lowdown on make up brushes

I have decided to put together a easy guide on how to choose brushes, brush care and the type of brushes. Hoping this blog post will be of help to all my confused souls out there :)

Lowdown on caring for brushes and the types of brushes...

Caring for brushes is pretty simple, what i do is i wash my brushes every time i use them (to eliminate cross contamination and to increase the life of the brushes) i use shampoo and conditioner and it works just as good as a brush cleaner (but it smells better :p) you can use baby wipes too as a quick fix but it is best that the brushes are washed out thoroughly. Another useful tip is to wash brushes in lukewarm water as hot water will melt the bond in which the bristles are held together inside the brush. Quality is also another factor, you can get natural haired brushes and synthetic haired brushes. Here's the difference between the two types. 

Natural haired brushes

• a 'rougher' touch 
• made from animal hairs.. the type of animal determines how soft the brush is... e.g. if the brush was made out of a squirrel then the bristles would be very soft than using pony hair which would be not as soft.
• slightly more difficult to care for than synthetic brushes.
• It is used only for powder applications. for example face powder, powder blushes and powder eye-shadow.

Synthetic haired brushes

• animal friendly! :) because the bristles are man made from nylon or polyester filaments.
• less prone to damage from make up and solvents.
• easier to clean compared to natural haired brushes because it doesn't trap or absorb any pigment.
• since the bristles are smooth they don't hold powders. Thus, they are better suited for the application of creams such as liquid/cream foundation, cream brusher and cream eye-shadow.

Important things that you should know...

Make up artists always clean their brushes straight away after use, either by using brush cleaner or for a quick fix they use these special brush cleaner wipes in which you rub the brush onto the wipe and all the colour 'escapes' from the bristles, but i would definitely recommend cleaning and sanitising your brushes within a week (maximum) because obviously you wouldn't want to transfer for germs, hygiene purposes it is safe to use and because you switch from colour to another colour or from one product formula to another.

What is a Kabuki brush?

To be honest i don't own one but it is a useful tool... why? because this brush is used mostly for powder make up and because of the specific design of the brush it holds a concentrated amount of powder and this actually allows you from over doing powder applications, this brush is also useful for beginners who do not want to use regular brushes incase they use too much product and achieve the 'clown' look and also they are very portable and easy to store. Cleaning it is also very simple too, clean a kabuki brush by simply tapping it on the back of your hand to remove any leftover pigment. You can also cleanse it with a mild makeup cleaner. Dry it thoroughly with a paper towel. Dab it dry, rather than wringing, to ensure the integrity of the brush.
Hopefully this will help you in distinguishing the differences between the brushes and it will help you be wiser in choosing your brushes.






Peace and love
Zara