For the highlighter junkies, the LY20 Fan Brush by Louise Young

Not just a fan, but a super fan! — like, if this brush was my favorite band, I’d wait in a scary back alley for it to come out after the show, in the pouring rain, hungry, just to get it to autograph my left boob with a black Sharpie.

OK, maybe not… I love it to pieces, though, and here’s why: the LY20 Fan Brush is by far the best highlighting brush I’ve ever used, because it is fast!

I’m talking crazy fast, and I think it’s because of how dense, big and fluffy the brush head is. It just picks up and deposits a lot of product — but never too much. Always just the right amount.

It perfectly applies and blends whatever highlighter I’m using at any given the moment. All I do is sweep it back and forth a few times on my upper cheekbones, down the bridge of my nose and on my Cupid’s bow, and bada-bing, bada-bang! — done in less than a minute.

Oh, but it’s not only a highlighting brush. I’ve also used it to
apply face powder (both loose and pressed), bronzer and blush. You can even use it to dust off excess powder, contour your cheekbones, or seamlessly blend together bronzer, blush and highlighter on your cheeks.

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I’m fairly sure this headband is for adults…

Not 100% sure, mind you, but maybe 75%.

LOL! It was like when I saw those Hello Kitty gardening gloves at Target last week. It was only when I looked closely that I realized, “Oh! These are for kids. Crap.”

So, yeah, it is distinctly possible that this terry cloth Hello Kitty Cosmetic Headband by Earth Therapeutics ($7) was made for kids, but you know what?

I don’t care…’CAUSE IT’S DOPE.

First, it’s only $7, which, hello! — isn’t bad at all for something this practical (I could easily use it every day).

It’s basically just a headband to keep your hair off your face while you’re removing your makeup, applying your makeup, giving yourself a facial or doing anything else where you want to keep your hair out of your face.

But it’s, like, the cutest headband ever. That red Hello Kitty bow is adorable! And there’s an embroidered Hello Kitty patch next to the Earth Therapeutics logo on the back — perfect for when someone is standing behind you wondering why you’re wearing an oversized headband with a red bow… You could just point to the patch and be like, “It’s Hello Kitty, b*tch.”

Besides the high cuteness factor, it’s also technically a very effective headband. I could spend hours rubbing the terry cloth against my face, ahh…

It’s incredibly soft and plush — like how I imagine the real Hello Kitty’s fur feels in real life.

Uh…not that I’m in my 30s or anything.

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The new NARS Artistry Eye and Lip brushes, coming April 1 to NARS boutiques and narscometics.com (you can also read about the the cheek and face brushes from the line here).

We’ve got a pooped princess over here…but she’s gonna do her best to persevere and proclaim pertinent particulars about the new NARS Artistry Eye and Lip Brushes.

Oh, boy, lots of “p” words up there… I can already tell it’s gonna be one of those reviews (read: wackadoo).

This is round two. We looked at the face and cheek brushes in round one.

So why am I tired? Well, I went out to dinner last night and partook (partook — is that a word?) of some wine, and now I’m having trouble stringing coherent sentences together.

Funny how that happens.

Anywho! These new brushes…

There are nine eye brushes and one lip brush in the new Artistry Brush line (we looked at the Face and Cheek brushes the other day). I’ve been using them to paint my mug for a few days, and so far I’m impressed.

Time to paint!

With the eye and lip brushes we’re looking at today, “versatility and soft bristles” are the figurative words. There are some exciting things here if you like makeup tools.

NARS Eye Shadow Brush 40, $32

NARS Eye Shadow Brush 40, $32

Like my favorite tubby tabby, the flat, paddle-shaped NARS Eye Shadow Brush 40 ($32) is on the thicker side.

Also like my husky tabby’s tum, the shape is…interesting. It’s flat like a paddle brush, but fluffy like a domed blending brush, and the shape makes it usable for a variety of tasks, like dusting a base color all over your lids, blending two different shades together, or sweeping color into your crease.

It also blends as well as it applies, so it’s a multitasking mofo. If you want an eye brush that does it all, I think the 40, with its super soft, sable hair bristles, is a good option.

NARS Diffusing Brush 41, $32

NARS Diffusing Brush 41, $32

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The new NARS Face and Cheek Artistry Brushes

I’ve painted several rooms over the years, but each and every time I swear to myself I’m never doing it again.

That’s because painting rooms frickin’ sucks, man, and every room subtracts at least a year off your life, you know, if you take those Real Age online tests, I swear…

Now, painting faces!? That’s totally different. Painting faces is awesome sauce to the Nth degree.

Enter the new 16-piece NARS Artistry Brush line, arriving at NARS boutiques and online April 1, with four face brushes, two cheek brushes, nine eye brushes and one lip brush, all specially crafted for precision makeup application.

These things are pumping me up to paint my mug.

First, the face and cheek brushes, which I’ve been using and enjoying very much. I’ll have more to say about the eye and lip brushes soon (target: tomorrow), but for now…

The NARS Face and Cheek Artistry Brushes in my paw for scale

The face brushes…

Powder Brush #10 ($52)

NARS Powder Brush #10 ($52)

Designed, according to NARS, to buff, blend and diffuse loose powder to a lustrous finish, it also works pretty dang well for pressed powders. I tried it with both and like the results equally. It lays down a fine, even veil of product.

The brush head is slightly narrower than typical powder/fluffy face brushes, but I kind of like that, too. Even though it doesn’t cover as much surface area as your run-of-the-mill fluffy powder brush, I think it’s easier to control and, when using it, difficult to over-apply, and I’m digging on that.

Only thing is…it’s a tad scratchy. Not terribly scratchy, but still.

I’m not sure about the bristles on this one, but based on the way they feel, I’m guessing the fibers are natural, and not synthetic.

Bronzing Powder Brush #11 ($52)

NARS Bronzing Powder Brush #11 ($52)

If you’re a bonafide bronzing buff, you may want to seriously consider Bronzing Powder Brush #11 and its dense, domed head (looks almost like a regular kabuki brush).

No matter where I place it on my face — under my cheekbones, at the edge of my hair line, or anywhere else I apply bronzer — it just fits. And it lays down a perfect amount of product.

I have also yet to see the soft natural-fiber brush head shed one hair in the few times I’ve used it.

Like the Powder Brush #10, the one’s head is a little smaller than usual for its ilk, making it quite precise. It lays down smooth, even color. Love.

Cream Blending Brush #12 ($28)

NARS Cream Blending Brush #12 ($28)

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These five are my workhorse faves, and I use them almost every. Single. Day.

Do you have any of the same faves I do? Which are your five?

Products mentioned in the video

• MAC 239 Eye Shader Brush ($25)
• MAC 217 Blending Brush ($24)
• MAC 224 Tapered Blending Brush ($32)
• Burberry No. 10 Definition Liner ($32)
• Too Faced Liner/Smudger Brush ($39; it’s one of three brushes in the Shadow Brushes Essential Set)

Reviews of the products on MBB

• Unsung Makeup Heroes: The Too Faced Shadow Brushes Essential 3-Piece Set
• MAC Unsung Heroes: The 239 Eye Shader Brush
• MAC Unsung Heroes: The Marvelous Multitasking MAC 217 Blending Brush
• MAC Unsung Heroes: The 224 Tapered Blending Brush

Thank you as always for watching, my friend.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. What’s for dinner, babe? I’m starved!

P.P.S. How was your day? Mine felt loooong.