Real Techniques Haul

Welcome to my stash, I've heard a lot of great things about you.

some months ago in april, i was restocking my oils on iherb as usual when i suddenly noticed there is an additional 20% discount off my order. I'M IN LUCK! so i quickly placed an order for the real techniques brushes which i've been eyeing for a while.

real techniques was recently made available in singapore, but the price is almost twice the price of that online.. with the 20% discount, i only paid USD$14.39 for the your eyes enhanced starter kit, a whopping 56% off the retail price in watsons. (it's retailing for SGD$40, while i paid SGD18.7 after conversion!) *fist pump*

i picked up the setting brush because i wanted a small brush that can fit under my eyes perfectly. the elf complexion brush is fine but a tad too big for times when i want to set the concealer under my eyes. as for the your eyes enhanced starter set, it seems the most comprehensive and value for money since a stand alone shading brush cost USD$5.99 each.

real techniques setting brush

the name of the brushes are printed on the metallic handle of the brush. the black part is a slightly rubbery material. the brush is pretty light weight in general.

top, side, and front view of the real techniques setting brush.

the brush has an oval shape when seen from the top. you can picture that in your mind with the help of the photo right? this shape utilizes more surface area of the brush, unlike a kabuki brush where only the top part is utilized.

the brush is fluffy  but not very soft, partly due to the shorter bristle length.

the gripping power of the brush is surprising, you'd think that the smooth bristles can't pick up too much products, but i've been proven to be wrong because the amount of powders that gets picked up is pretty decent.

size comparison of the real techniques setting brush with elf studio complexion brush and powder brush.

the length of the brushes are about the same, the only difference in the size and visible bristle length. also, the ferrule of the real techniques setting brush is also much longer as compared to the elf brushes. no more loose ferrule (which happened to my elf powder brush) situations!

real techniques your eyes enhanced starter set.

a set of 5 brushes, it comes in a black foldable case for you to bring it on the go. each brush is held tightly by a black elastic, which proves to be quite an ass when i tried to put the brushes back into it.

brush cover can be transformed into a brush stand.

if you fold along the crease in the previous photo, you'll get a stand that can be held in place by a string and stopper (in the background of the photo, being blocked by the 4th brush).

real techniques deluxe crease brush, base shadow brush, accent brush, fine liner brush, and brow brush.

this set can pretty much satisfies all your eye looks, since it takes care of eyeshadow, eye lining, and your eyebrows too!

i have tried using all but the fine liner brush as it looks too thick to be considered "fine" to me.

comparison of the deluxe crease brush and base shadow brush.

as you can see, both of them differ in size and shape. the deluxe crease brush is a round brush with a dome top, while the base shadow brush is oval in shape and has a more tapered end.

since the brush density of the deluxe crease brush is higher, it's a little stiffer than the base shadow brush, making it wonderful as blending out harsh edges or to buff small sections of the skin. i tried using it under my eyes and it fits perfectly, allowing me to buff powder on my under eye area.

the base shadow brush is a lot softer and works super well in sweeping colour over my lids. i also use it for blending out harsh edges. it's kind of multi functional and i really really like this brush.

side and front view of the base shadow brush

the tapered design of the base shadow brush allows me to pick up shadow easily with the sides of the brush, which may contribute to the beautiful diffusion of colours when i apply it to my eye lids, as opposed to a concentrated spot of colours. i've been looking for an eyeshadow brush that does this forever, ever since i lost my first eyeshadow brush a decade ago. none of the current eyeshadow brushes i own is able to deliver a gentle and even wash of colour across my lids because they're all too stiff.

i've used the accent brush in applying brown eye shadow on my lower lids, as well was to highlight the inner corner of my eyes. the small size allows it to fit onto those parts precisely. it also picks up powder very efficiently. another of my favourite brush from this set.

as for the brow brush, it's dense, thick, but a little too soft for my liking. the lines it creates is too feathered. while it may be perfect for filling in the brows, i still prefer using my stiffer angled brow brush (which i converted from an old eyeliner brush) to sketch on a more definitely brow tail. i've found another use for this brush though: contouring my nose. the soft lines it creates allows me to add shadow to my nose before blending it out with another brush. if the brush is too stiff, the lines will be too dark and compact, making it harder to blend out later on. i don't want to have harsh lines on my nose!

and those are just a first impression so far because i only got to use it once or twice! do expect a full review in time to come. hopefully i would have used the fine liner brush by then to note down my thoughts about it.

if you're new to iherb, you're in luck because you can get $10 off your first purchase (must be over $40). that's 25% off your first purchase! anything below $40 and you'll get $5 off! just use the code SUG844 to shave $10 off your order! or you can click on this link to shop these products right now!

Makeup Brush Collection Part 2: Eyeshadow Brush Review

another 3 brushes! this time it's the eyeshadow brushes! technically speaking i have 4, but i'll save that last one for another post because it's not something you can buy on its own.

for a very long time, i work without eyeshadow brushes because japanese eyeshadows have a formula that is best picked up by finger, also, the sheerer colour makes them extremely easy to work with and blend out. even unblended eyeshadow can look really natural, so i never saw a need to use a brush.

of course, as i learnt more about makeup, i realize certain tools are required to achieve certain looks. i purchased my first eyeshadow brush not knowing much. i thought all brushes were made equal - how wrong was i!!!


placed next to iphone 5s for a size comparison.
from top to down: elf eyeshadow "C" brush | essence eyeshadow brush | essence smokey eyes brush

the online reviews for the elf eyeshadow C brush looked good, so i chose it. now i wonder if i'm using it wrongly or not, because i certainly did not experience the positive effect of this brush like the other users. there were only 2 eyeshadow brushes in the studio collection, i picked this over the angled contour brush. on hindsight, i think i should have picked the latter. this is a case of not knowing my needs and wants, which resulted in an unhappy purchase.

i purchased the two essence eyeshadow on a whim because they were really affordable. there're not much reviews online, but the price point is low enough for me to take the risk to test it out, and so i did. i quite like them, in fact, much more than the elf eyeshadow brush. i'll explain more in a moment.




the elf eyeshadow "C" brush has the shortest bristles compared to the other two. it is also the widest. the essence eyeshadow brush has slightly longer bristles and a narrower width, which suited my smaller features pretty well. the smokey eyes brush is a bullet brush with a round top, the bristle are as long as the eyeshadow brush.

i learnt how important it is to judge a brush not just based on what others say, but also on how they appear. i'm not talking about the superficial packaging or appearance. how the brush look directly affects its application.



comparing the side view of the elf studio eyeshadow "C" brush and the essence eyeshadow brush, you can tell that the former is much more denser (just look at the amount of hair it has! almost twice the width of the essence eyeshadow brush!).
// a denser brush tend to grab onto pigments, making them perfect for sheering out colours.

the roundness of the tip of the brush matters too. the elf studio eyeshadow "C" brush is much more rounded, whereas the essence eyeshadow brush is more tapered. this makes the latter more efficient at packing pigments instead of eating them all up into the brush (which was what the elf brush did to me... and i wondered why my eyeshadows appeared so sheer).
// a more tapered brush is better for packing colours onto the skin, while a rounder brush tend to hold onto pigments.

of course, the texture of the bristle matters too. i noticed the essence eyeshadow brush bristles are not as perfectly straight and smooth as the elf eyeshadow "C" brush, what this means is it has more surfaces to grip powder from the eyeshadow pan. the patting motion will deposit the pigments onto well primed lids.
// in effect, it appears that a brush with rougher bristles is able to apply colour much more efficiently.

lastly, the length of the bristle matters too. how so? the shorter the bristles, the harder the brush becomes. the bristles will maintain their position when you're brushing it back and forth, giving you a well defined boundary. whereas if you were you use a brush with longer bristles, chances are you'll end up with a more diffused boundary which blends in seamlessly into your natural skin tone.
// a stiffer brush (normally with shorter bristles) will result in more precise colour application, while a fluffy brush (normally has longer bristles) will give you a more diffused and well blended look.

using the above criteria, we can get a feel of what each brush work like.

ELF STUDIO EYESHADOW "C" BRUSH: eats up pigments like nobody's business, but it's awesome for blending out eyeshadow on top of eyeliner thanks to the stiffer bristles. i'd liken this to a chubby smudge brush. it's simply too huge for my eyes, not flexible to cover my eye hole, and doesn't do me much good. even though it sheers out the colour, the stiffer brush leaves behind a well defined boundary. may be useful if that's the look i'm going for, but more often than not, i prefer a slightly more blended look.

ESSENCE EYESHADOW BRUSH: soft enough to blend out colours pretty nicely, but it's strength is actually the ability to build and pack on colours on my lids. the tapered end is precise enough for me to use it on my lower lash line as well, which is always a good news for lazy bum like me because i don't fancy the idea of switching between 20 brushes to get one look done. the synthetic brush isn't as soft as they claimed - it's slightly scratchy, but it doesn't pose any problem to me. also, the bristles aren't all pointing in one single direction (honestly, i don't know if they are synthetic or not. they looked a little like natural hair because of that different direction thingy), resulting in some fall outs during application.

ESSENCE SMOKEY EYES BRUSH: even though the bristles have the same length as the eyeshadow brush, the increased density made it a little stiffer. this is perfect for blending out eyeliners with eyeshadow. the increased precision makes it more suited for my eyes as compared to the elf brush! also, this is wonderful for applying eyeshadow to my inner corners because it fit in just right! however, this isn't a blending brush, so don't expect this to blend out colours as flawless as an actual blending brush would.

i'm still trying to find better use for the elf eyeshadow "C" brush! i'm not the kind who'll discard of something just because it didn't work for me. instead, i try to work with it to see if i can discover new techniques or uses, sometimes they requires me to experiment and think out of the box. if i do chance upon something good, i'll share it again over here :D

after being exposed to so many different styles of makeup (god bless the internet!), i'm tempted to get a blending brush and experiment with more eye looks. if you have any affordable and good blending brushes, as well as shading brushes, do leave me a recommendation!

Makeup Brush Collection Part 1: Face Brush Review

Makeup Brush Collection Part 1: Face Brush

it's taken me a while to come up with this post because initially, i had something big planned for such an entry.. but i realize something: since i'm constantly learning about new things, it's just not practical for me to come up with an entry AFTER i've done figuring out everything. so i'll just share what i currently know, and what i have.

you may be surprised to find out that i only have 3 face brushes. well, it's 4 including the small blush brush that came along with my media blushes. 3 is more than enough for me because they meet my every needs so far.


placed next to an iphone 5s for better size comparison.
from left to right: elf powder brush | elf complexion brush | generic flat foundation brush

the first 2 face brushes belong to the elf studio line. i picked them for a variety of reasons.

1. they are made of synthetic taklon fibre, making them more resistant to washing while still maintaining a certain softness to them despite being synthetic. also, i have absolutely no idea on how to take care of makeup brushes then, so it's best for me to avoid animal hair brushes because i may just destroy them. these brushes are actually very very soft!

2. secondly, the price point is perfect for beginners. these were the first powder brushes i own, i bought them a few years ago when i just started to experiment with makeup. at USD$3 a pop, i won't waste too much money even if they don't work out for me.

3. they garnered a lot of good reviews on their website and the youtube community, so it's definitely worth checking out given the price point.

4. lastly, the aesthetic appeal to these screamed out to me - black everything!? THAT'S SO ME!

as for the generic foundation brush, i purchased it at a time when i know absolutely nothing about makeup. when i was 16, there wasn't anything like youtube around to teach me how to do makeup, let alone what i need to do my own makeup. i bought the first thing i saw that resembled a paint brush to apply my powder blush.

this must be the thought i had in my little mind back then: hey, a fluffy brush is the same as a dense brush since they are all brushes!

it took me several years before i realize this is actually a liquid foundation brush. thankfully, the powder blush i used last time wasn't too pigmented, otherwise i may be easily mistaken as having a severe rash on my face since this brush tend to deposit pigments in a very concentrated dose.



GENERIC FLAT FOUNDATION BRUSH: it is flat as the name suggest, slightly tapered at the ends to reduce streakiness during application of liquid foundation. the hair is pretty dense, effectively soaking up quite a lot of my foundation when i do use it to blend things out. what i end up with is a very natural finish because well, most of the foundation isn't on my face! as the bristles are synthetic, i can wash this with any soap i have on hand - no need for a special brush cleaner! i've used this with my liquid foundations and it served me well.

personally, i do not have large pores, so this worked fine for me as i needed was something to spread the foundation evenly. thanks to its flatness, it poses some difficultly filling out a pore if you have larger pores.

ELF STUDIO COMPLEXION BRUSH: i feel like elf is trying to be creative with their naming of brushes, honestly i feel like it has backfired. what on earth do they mean by "complexion brush"? it's not like the brush can buff my face to give me a polished look. this should just be called a "fluffy powder brush". i use it for overall powdering and blusher, although i'm secretly hoping to get a smaller blush brush to reach the smaller crevices on my face. this brush is a multitasker, which is part of the reason why i can survive on only 3 brushes.

the fluffy nature means it deposits powder in a diffused manner. it's really perfect for setting my makeup with, or to add a touch of colour onto my cheeks ever so slightly.

ELF STUDIO POWDER BRUSH: again, don't be fooled by the name. this should be called a "flat top brush", and you can feel free to use it with powder or with liquid. the only downside to using it with liquid will be the difficult washing process later on. i foresee that happening, so i never used it with a liquid product! using this with any powder is a match made in heaven, especially if a polished and buffed face is what you're going for. the flat top ensures that all the powders are pushed into your pores, giving you the even complexion you wished for. i love love love using this to apply my powder foundation because it's quick and flawless - i just buff the powder in and i get a more even skin tone almost immediately! what's more, this is also another multi tasking product - i use it to buff my blush and highlighter on too. you may wanna check out my glowy skin tutorial where i showcased this brush.

i was actually bummed out when i first got this brush because i had no idea how to use it. thankfully after some experimenting, i quickly learnt that this is a really powerful brush that can change my life. this brush is awesome for foundation and other stuff. i won't recommend using this to set your makeup though, since you can't dust powder as lightly as a fluffy brush can.

END NOTE

thankfully for me, both the ELF brushes only shed a few hair in the beginning. after a few washes, i don't get anymore stray hair. the ferrule of the powder brush did become loose and i had to clamp it tight on my own though. nothing a pair of pliers won't solve!

with all that said, i'm still looking forward to acquiring a few more makeup brushes to experiment. i've mentioned a few brushes from sonia kashuk here, you can check them out to see if it interests you too! currently i'm most interested in a smaller domed brush so that i can do some precise powdering of my under eye area (as the elf complexion brush is just too huge).

are there any affordable and good makeup brushes to recommend me? let me know!