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5 Awesomely Affordable Makeup Brushes for the Face

June 10th, 2016 by Anna Oh 15 Comments

powder and face brushes

I love having LOTS of brushes at my disposal, so for me, affordable makeup brushes are the way to go! But all makeup brushes are not created — or priced — equally.

For face makeup brushes, here are a few that have earned my gold star sticker of approval.

5 affordable face brushes
Some of the affordable — and still awesome — makeup brushes in my collection

1. Sonia Kashuk Star Struck Large Powder Brush (Disc.)

sonia kashuk brush

The Sonia Kashuk Star Struck Large Powder Brush is one of the softest natural hair brushes I own. In fact, none of my higher-end brushes can apply bronzer as well as this one.

I like this full rounded brush because I can really work powder into my skin with it. Unfortunately, the set I got it with has been discontinued…and I also didn’t love any of the other brushes in the set. Still, I would re-buy the set just for this one brush.

2. Sonia Kashuk No. 29 Domed Blusher Brush ($17.99)

sonia kashuk no.29 brush

Another Sonia Kashuk brush, except that this one IS still available (it’s permanent). My nickname for the No. 29 brush is “the bunny butt” brush because it’s so round and soft! It’s the perfect medium size to fit into the cheek contour or right on top of the cheek as well.

This one is a little bit pricier than my other brush recommendations, but I think the plastic handles hold up very well over time.

3. Morphe M438 Pointed Contour Brush ($9.99)

morphe m438

This brush fell into my life after a recommendation by Jaclyn Hill on Youtube. I think she uses it for a targeted highlighter application, but I love it for setting the under-eye area, although the tapered tip is handy for a lot of other uses as well. It’s probably one of the most unique brushes in my collection.

4. MUA Pro Multi Purpose Brush ($12)

mua multi purpose 018 brush

A synthetic rounded kabuki-style brush, the MUA Pro Multipurpose brush is my current favorite foundation brush. For comparison, it’s a little denser than the Real Techniques Buffing Brush.

I’ve had brushes that were too dense, but this one sits right in the middle, which makes it great!

5. EcoTools Bamboo Powder Brush ($9.99)

ecotools powder brush

This is THE brush for setting powder. With long, tapered hairs that apply the perfect amount of powder, it’s also great for blending away excess product without disturbing your makeup. I lay it on its flat side and set my liquids with a patting motion.

If you have any affordable (or expensive) brushes that you love more than words, I’d love to hear about them!

Anna Oh


Anna is an illustrator and designer from Atlanta, GA. Her work focuses on fashion, beauty, and awesome women. A former tomboy, Anna now happily embraces all things pink, glittery, and floral scented. You can see her illustration work at www.helloannaoh.com and on Instagram.

5 Awesomely Affordable Makeup Brushes for the Face / Originally published June 10th, 2016

Categories: Guest Post, Makeup Tools

The products in this entry were provided by the manufacturer for consideration. For information about my posting policy, please see my Disclaimer.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Chris25 says

    June 10th, 2016 at 1:08 pm

    The Morphe Pointed Contour seems to be useful for a lot of things. I love multi-use brushes. 😀
    Chris25 recently posted … Etude House I Need You Lemon Mask

    Reply
    • Anna Oh says

      June 10th, 2016 at 1:26 pm

      Me too! I bought a back up of the Morphe brush so I don’t have to mix my colors 🙂

      Reply
  2. Rachel says

    June 10th, 2016 at 3:08 pm

    I started buying cheaper brushes after one of my (sorta) expensive Clinique ones literally fell apart. ELF makes a pretty good powder brush and all of MUAs are really soft but I only own the blush brush.

    Reply
    • Anna Oh says

      June 20th, 2016 at 2:38 pm

      The ELF powder brush is another one of my main stays 🙂 Recently I got into Morphe brushes and haven’t looked back 🙂

      Reply
  3. Aliya says

    June 10th, 2016 at 3:38 pm

    These look great! I love the look of the MUA one, it looks dense and would be perfect for anything. Glad there is budget alternatives available

    Aliya x | thecatandthegirl.blogspot.co.uk | https://www.bloglovin.com/people/thegirl09-10150959

    Reply
  4. Kiss & Make-up says

    June 11th, 2016 at 1:44 am

    I think I might get the Sonia Kashuk brush! Thanks for the tip.
    Kiss & Make-up recently posted … Review | MAC Quite Yummy Soft Serve Shadow

    Reply
  5. Nivedita says

    June 11th, 2016 at 2:01 am

    Call me cheap, but I buy the brushes from Chiense websites all the time. I have actually found good dupes of Sigma and others which work equally well. Since I am extremely finicky about clean brushes, I need quite a few in each category so that I can clean them after every use and use the back ups while the other one is drying.
    Nivedita recently posted … L’Oreal Paris Star Pink Collection le vernis pour les ongles Aishwarya’s Pink

    Reply
    • Anna Oh says

      June 20th, 2016 at 2:42 pm

      Would those include the ebay brushes? Because I’ve seen great synthetic brushes on ebay and amazon that look REALLY similar to some Sigma brushes!

      Reply
  6. Erin says

    June 11th, 2016 at 2:34 pm

    I love Sonia Kashuk brushes. Have you tried Crown Brushes. I found they are similar to Morphe Brushes.

    Reply
    • Anna Oh says

      June 20th, 2016 at 2:43 pm

      I haven’t! I see the brand on Hautelook a lot though.

      Reply
  7. Sakura says

    June 12th, 2016 at 7:00 pm

    Cool, thanks for your post! I have a lot to learn about brushes! It’s always good to see what the more experienced use. I have the eco tools brush. I like it for applying bronzer. One of my favorites is the Too Faced Teddy Bear kabuki brush. It is so very soft and dispenses my facial powder very well.

    Reply
    • Anna Oh says

      June 20th, 2016 at 2:44 pm

      The Too Faced brushes look adorable!!!

      Reply
  8. Fancie says

    June 13th, 2016 at 3:46 pm

    Such great suggestions! I love Sonia Kashuk brushes. I never tried MUA or Morphe though. They’re definitely on my list now! The Morphe contour brush looks like a must have for me. I may need to order a couple lol
    Fancie recently posted … MAC Haul!

    Reply
    • Anna Oh says

      June 20th, 2016 at 2:45 pm

      I love them! Every time I have a Morphe haul I get SO excited 🙂

      Reply
  9. Erin says

    June 16th, 2016 at 9:10 am

    I really like RT and SK brushes. I have a few EcoTools too. That Morphe brush looks perfect for setting the under eye, highlighting, and color washing.
    Erin recently posted … Ponzi Vineyards 2014 Pinot Gris

    Reply

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Hi there! I’m Karen, your friendly neighborhood beauty addict, and I’m a Bay Area girl who hoards brown eyeshadow and covets coral lipstick. Every morning, I wake up and say, “I’m going to do something other than a smoky eye today.” Then…I end up doing a smoky eye anyway (most days). When I’m not putting on makeup, taking pictures of makeup or writing about makeup, you’ll find me hanging out with my hubby (“El Hub”), my two-year-old daughter (Connor Claire) and my cat (Tabs).

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