Drugstores aren’t always home to great makeup brushes, which is why Sonia Kashuk took so many of us by surprise.

But Sonia’s not the only one making superb yet affordable makeup brushes. Say a warm hello to Eco Tools and their fantabulous 5-Piece Brush Set ($10)!

They’re the softest drugstore brush heads I’ve ever used, even softer than Sonia Kashuk’s. That, coupled with the great price, makes this kit (which includes four travel brushes and a carrying case) a total steal.

From left to right: Eye Shading, Concealer, Powder/Blush and Baby Kabuki brushes

Made from the synthetic fiber, Taklon, Eco Tools brush heads feel both silky AND soft, LOL! — like my favorite fussy tabby’s fur (meow!).

The kit goes on sale next month and comes with the following:

• Baby kabuki brush: While not as dense as my MAC 182 Buffer Brush, this lil’ baby applies powder with aplomb. The small brush head really gets into the nooks and crannies around my nose.
• Powder/blush brush: You can use this brush to apply mineral foundation or face powder. I like to use it as a blush brush (both powder and cream), because the head fits precisely onto the apples of my cheeks.
• Concealer brush: I like the precision of very thin concealer brush heads. This head’s a little too big for my taste, but it still works like a charm, applying Benefit Creaseless Cream Shadows like a pro.
• Eye Shading Brush: A tapered brush great for simple washes of color over the entire lid, for crease work and for blending.
• Cosmetic Bag: Cute and tiny, this cotton and hemp bag carries all four of the kit’s brushes with room to spare.

Eco Tools wants to go green. Their brush heads aren’t made from animal furs, and their brush handles which fit nicely in the palm on my hand (I wish they were longer, though, sigh), are made from sustainable bamboo and recycled aluminum.

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Heya, ladies! Just another quickie video, this one on filling in eyebrows. I’m going to try and do a new video every few days. I think in this one I start off by saying “Having well defrined eyebrows…” Defrined… I invented a new word, LOL!

Do you have you any plans tonight? Right now I’m foolin’ around with some Eco Tools cruelty free brushes. My GAWD the brush heads are soft!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

I got all lusty lady today when I opened the Smashbox Rapture Travel Brush Collection ($49), with the world in slow motion, the air searing hot, and the beating of my heart pounding in my ears.

Gingerly, I unbowed the ribbon on the pink quilted purse (sooo Chanel-esque, LOVE!), teasing the soft fabric with my fingers…

Smashbox’s Travel Brush Kit is one of several gift sets now available as part of the Smashbox Rapture Holiday Collection and comes with five short-handled travel brushes for face and eyes.

Soft Brush Heads

I don’t always like holiday brush sets because I think a lot of them come with brushes of poorer construction (scratchy and/or flimsy) than usual for a line. Most of the time, their allure has to do with the fact that, bundled with gift sets, they’re a heck of a lot cheaper than $20-30 brushes from the big guns like MAC.

But the Rapture Travel Brush set is better than most. I wouldn’t use these brushes every day for months (they’re not quite as soft as my full-size Sonia Kashuk and MAC brushes), but they’re definitely a step up from the MAC travel brush sets I’ve used in the past. Throw in the gorgeous pink carrying case, and you’re looking at a pretty good deal.

• Travel Face Brush:

This medium-sized brush head is flexible enough to be used as a face or a blush brush, but out of the five brushes in the set, this one feels the coarsest to me.

• Travel Contour Brush and Liner Brush:

With heads on both ends, it’s like you’re getting a sixth brush in the set. One end is for liner, and it’s amazing! It feels incredibly soft on my lash line and creates very smooth, silky lines. The other end — the angled contour brush — has stumped me. I haven’t figured out how to use it yet, LOL! Any suggestions?

• Travel Angled Blending Brush:

This brush easily blends away harsh lines and feels cozy and soft against my skin.

• Travel Shadow Brush:

Fluffier than most shadow brushes I’ve used before, this brush can also apply color to the crease and the outer V. It applies dry shadow flawlessly, but I’m won’t use it with creams and wet products. When I did it applied kinda blotchy.

• Travel Smudger Brush:

This brush’s blunt shape makes smudging eyeliner a breeze, but I wish the bristles were softer (boo).

Smashbox Rapture Travel Brush Collection

Price: $49
Use: A sexy carrying case and five above average brushes make this a nice gift
Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: B

Made for Travel

The lightweight brushes fit well in their pink quilted bag, yet aren’t so snug that they’re apt to get squished or deformed while they’re in storage.

A Few Things to Consider

As good as they are, these brushes don’t include equivalents to the MAC 266 or 217, and those go with me everywhere, so I’d want to bring along a couple extra brushes to supplement the set.

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Happy Friday! Guess what? Last night I found my new favorite way to clean my makeup brushes.

Normally, I use MAC Brush Cleanser ($11) because it works fast, thoroughly removing all the gunk from the brush head and rinsing out quickly. But last night my bottle ran out when I was halfway through cleaning my brushes. I really wanted to finish before 30 Rock came on the telly (lovin’ ya, Tina Fey!), so I reached into the tub and randomly grabbed a bottle of Aussie Opposites Attract Protect + Soften Shampoo ($3) to complete the job.

Oh, Tina Fey, I’m totally not worthy.

I wasn’t sure what to expect. Although I love this stuff for my hair, I’ve used shampoos like Johnson’s Baby Shampoo to clean brushes in the past but never liked the results. Even after a thorough brush cleaning, they would leave bits of foundation or concealer. Plus, the suds took forever to rinse out.

But Aussie Opposites Attract Shampoo worked great! Caked on concealer, dried gel liner, crusty cream shadow (eww) — it removed even the most stubborn makeup, breaking up the product within seconds. And the suds rinsed out quickly, too.

To clean brushes with Aussie Opposites Attract Shampoo, I squeeze a pea sized amount in a cupped palm, add some warm water and swirl the brush head around in the shampoo-and-water mix. If the brush head has a lot of caked makeup on it then I’ll gently work the shampoo directly into the fibers with my fingers. I then rinse out the brush head in running water to remove the makeup and suds. Tada! Less than a minute later, I’ve got a clean brush.

The best part? It costs a WHOPPING THREE BUCKS for a big 13.5-oz bottle, woo hoo! It’s my new favorite fast and cheap way to give brushes a heavy duty cleaning.

How do you clean your makeup brushes? Do you have a favorite product or a special technique?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Bargain brush goddess Sonia Kashuk’s gone and done it again. Her Synthetic Flat Top Blusher Brush won me over a few weeks ago, and now I can’t live without several of the brushes from her Kashuk Tools line. I’ve been reaching for the Powder Brush ($19.99), Large Eye Shadow Brush ($12.99) and Angeled Eye Shadow Brush ($9.99) so often that I might as well have all three surgically attached to my hand.

Here’s why I love ‘em, and why you might, too.

Kashuk Tools Powder Brush

Use: To apply loose or pressed powder to the entire face
Price: $19.99
Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: A

Confession time! I keep this brush on my work desk and periodically rub it all over my face for no reason other than to feel its softness against my skin. It sends me into a state of minor ecstasy. I’ll make ooh, ahh sounds, like when I’m eating dulce de leche ice cream. In general, I try to do this when nobody’s looking, but the other day El Hub caught me and said the act looked “kinda pervy.”

But Sonia’s powder brush has even more going for it than its amazing softness. It applies powder evenly on my skin, powder that doesn’t look caked-on, and leaves a lovely, natural finish I just adore.

If you’re tempted to save a few dollars by purchasing the $11.99 white-handled Powder Brush 01 from Sonia’s other Brush Collection line, resist the urge. I’ve used the white-handled brush, too, and it’s not nearly as soft.

Large Eye Shadow Brush

Use: To apply eyeshadow to the entire eyelid area
Price: $12.99
Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: A+

Sonia’s Large Eye Shadow Brush multi-tasks like a mo-fo. The Kashuk brush brigade designed the thick, soft brush (with a slightly rounded edge) to apply eyeshadow over the entire lid — much like the MAC 252 Large Eye Shader Brush ($29). While I absolutely love the MAC 252 for fast, single washes of color over the entire eye, it doesn’t multi-task quite like Sonia’s Large Eye Shadow Brush does.

Not only do I use Sonia’s Large Eye Shadow Brush for color washes but also to apply color to specific parts of the eye, which I can’t really do with the 252. The rounded shape of Sonia’s brush fits nicely into nooks and crannies — ideal for the crease, under the brow bone or in the outer V.

In a pinch, it even works as a blending brush, too.

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