Navigating the world of make-up brushes can be tricky because of the hundreds of types to choose from, but a carefully chosen brush can pretty much change your life or, rather, the way you apply your make-up and the end result.
While decent make-up brushes used to be the exclusive property of luxury make-up brands, highstreet make-up brands are catching up and now, thankfully, a good quality make-up brush doesn't have to cost upwards of £20. Time to drop those free-with-eyeshadow sponge-ended applicators; they have no place here.
Here's a guide to the make-up brushes that'll give you a helping hand in applying your make-up so you can pick and choose the right one for your routine.
Foundation Brushes
A duo fibre brush like this one will give quite a light foundation coverage because of the soft bristles, which is great if you're using a thick foundation that has the potential to cake up.
If you're into a heavier coverage, a flat foundation brush is the one for you because you're essentially painting it on, but go easy.
This brush will give a medium coverage: it has dense bristles but you can buff (making small circles) foundation into the skin for a more natural finish.
Cheek brushes
(Left)
Use this with a powder to set the foundation and concealer.
This duo fibre brush will help blend bronzer out, eliminating the chances of stripes.
Perfect for blusher because of it's smaller size. Also: how pretty.
(Right)
Apply highlighter to the high points of the face with this fan brush which will help to evenly distribute the powder.
A softly angled brush like this will make contouring pretty much fool-proof – use it to apply bronzer to the hollows of the cheeks.
Eye Brushes
The slanted end is perfect for lining the eyes whilst the domed end can be used to smudge it out.
Use this to pack the eyeshadow on to the lid for some oomph.
This is ideal for blending out eyeshadow to avoid any harsh lines.
Sponges
Side note: make sure you wet your sponge! Run it under the tap and squeeze it a few times to get rid of the excess water – it should be damp, not soaking – then use it. The moisture will help blend the make-up seamlessly. I repeat: don't use it dry! Once that's done, use them to bounce/press the foundatio or concealer in – never rub; the make-up will just get moved around rather than blended in if you do that.
These mini versions help to get into smaller areas and blend your concealer perfectly.
Use this to apply your foundation – it presses it into the skin for a properly flawless finish.
This is really similar to the Beauty Blender but the straight edges help to get into nooks and crannies.
Photos by Marco Vitturo
Art Direction by Natalia Bagniewska
Beauty Direction by Chemmie Squier
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Follow Chemmie on Twitter @chemsquier
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.