Today I wanted to share a post that has been in the works for the LONGEST time! I originally wanted to make a youtube tutorial explaining makeup brushes…but then I realized it would probably be around 30 minutes long. Aint nobody got time for that.
Anyways, today I’m going to share with you the makeup brushes that you should have in your collection based on your skill level and general interest in makeup. I’m going to cover the basic brushes you should have, as well as the really helpful brushes that maybe you’d want to invest in as you go along. I’m going to name the three levels Beginner, Novice, and Expert for the sake of this post…but that doesn’t necessarily mean that if you are a beginner you can only have these brushes, and experts are required to have all of these tools. This is just based on my experience as I evolved in my makeup skills. So have fun with this list, and I hope it helps you find the brushes you need!
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Beginner
These are the perfect brushes for anyone that is just starting out with makeup, or aren’t really into full-faced makeup. These brushes will help you achieve a fresh, clean face, while keeping your makeup and tools to a minimum. These are also the brushes that I take with me when I travel, because these are the tools you need to achieve a basic face of makeup.
From left to right:
Real Techniques Powder Brush: This brush can be used for power foundation, or for setting powder. It’s giant, fluffy bristles make sure the powder settles evenly on your skin. I have also used this brush for bronzer when I want a light dusting all over my face for a nice, summery, bronzed look.
Real Techniques Multi-Task Brush: The name speaks for itself. I use this brush mainly for powder blush, but you can also use it for bronzer, foundation, or setting powder. The bristles are a little bit more dense which allows you to concentrate the product a little better.
Sigma E25 Blending Brush: This brush is my go-to eye-shadow brush for the crease. It blends out shadows perfectly! You can also use this for contouring your face!
Sigma E40 Tapered Blending Brush: This brush is also a great brush for blending out your crease. It allows for a little bit more intense of a crease. It can also be used to pack on shimmery color all over the lid and contouring your face.
Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Brush #12: This brow brush is all you will ever need for brows if you like to use shadows or creams to fill them in. The brush is very precise and it has a spooly on the end to help blend in the color. You can also use this brush to create a cut-crease eye shadow look, or for intense nose contouring.
Sigma F80 Flat Top Kabuki Brush: This is my all-time favorite liquid foundation brush. It blends out your foundation perfectly and picks up any extra foundation that you might have put on your face. Everyone needs this brush in their lives!
Beauty Blender (sorry this is a bit hard to see haha): I would chose either the Sigma brush or the Beauty Blender to start…but eventually invest in both. The beauty blender is the best tool for REALLY blending out everything on your face. When you get the sponge wet, it sheers out your foundation the perfect amount, and it makes it look flawless! And yes, there are drug store sponges that look like the beauty blender…and yes I’ve tried them…but I PROMISE you that the beauty blender works so much better than those.
Not pictured: Your fingers! Remember…your fingers are perfect for applying makeup and blending! Just remember to wash your hands before applying to avoid breakouts!
Novice
When I really started loving makeup, these were the brushes I invested in, on top of the beginner brushes. These take your makeup to the next level, but you still don’t have an overload of tools to choose from. These brushes allow you to create virtually all the makeup looks you’d ever want to create!
From left to right:
Sigma F35 Tapered Highligher: This brush is my favorite brush for setting my under-eye concealer. It fits perfectly with the contours of my face, and it holds onto the product well. You can also use this to set your whole face if you want.
MAC #187 Blending Brush: This is honestly the best blending brush I’ve ever used! Once I’m done with all of my face makeup, I run this brush all over my face to blend everything together for a seamless look. Because this is a MAC brush, it is pricey… but I like this the best out of all of the brushes I’ve tried. Make sure you look for one with natural hairs when you look for a blending brush. Those brushes work the best.
Nars Ita Brush: I love this brush when I want the perfect contour. It gets right into the hollow of my cheek and makes a great contour line. The plus is that when you sweep the brush up and down (instead of side to side when you contour) it blends out that bronzer perfectly!
Real Techniques Expert Face Brush: This is the drug-store priced contour brush that I love! It is short and very precise when you want to contour. It blends out your bronzer great too!
MAC #187 Flat Brush: This brush is the best when it comes to packing on shadow to the lid. It is also amazing to use with pigments and concealer. It’s a small, dense brush that is very precise! Sigma also has a similar version that works great!
Sigma E15 Flat Definer Brush: This brush is amazing when it comes to packing on shadow to your lower lash line. It’s very precise and it doesn’t allow for shadow fall-out. It’s also great to use for eyeliner (both shadow liner and gel liner) and for contouring your nose.
Sigma E20 Short Shader Brush: I am obsessed with the brush ladies. I use this brush to place+blend out shadow on my lower lash line, and it is my favorite brush to use when I’m blending out liner on my upper lid. It is a dense brush, so it still allows the liner to remain in a straight line, but it’s not as intense as a liquid liner. My current upper-lid liner routine consists of using a black kohl pencil to line my lash line, and then I dip the E20 into black shadow to blend out the kohl pencil.
Expert
These are the brushes that I’ve picked up over the years as my “extra” brushes. I use each of these brushes for only one of two techniques, but they are perfect for those techniques! I recommend getting these brushes (and the brushes from the first two tiers) if you are obsessed with makeup like I am or if you are a professional makeup artist.
From Left to Right:
BH Cosmetics Large Fan Brush: This brush is perfect for dusting a little bit of highlighting powder on your high points. Because it’s so big, it doesn’t let the shimmery highlighter get to clumpy.
Real Techniques Stippling Brush: This is my go-to brush for cream blushes. It blends out the cream blushes perfectly on your cheeks, and doesn’t allow for any weird overly-colored spots.
Sigma F55 Small Duo Fiber Brush: This brush is such an amazing blending brush, whether you are doing your whole face, or just your cheeks. Fiber blending brushes are so important…so at least get one for your face!
Sigma F86 Tapered Kabuki Brush: This brush is perfect for blending out under-eye concealer. It gets into the crevices perfectly because of its shape and because it’s a synthetic brush, it soaks up any extra product. I use this interchangeable with my beauty blender and micro mini beauty blenders (see below).
Sigma F88 Flat Angled Kabuki Brush: This brush is awesome for cream contouring. If you want a bigger, more spread out contour under your cheeks, this brush is for you!
Sigma F25 Tapered Face Brush: This is my go-to brush for all-over face powder. Because of its tapered shape, it allows me to get powder where I need it to go. I find that it maneuvers a lot better than other powder brushes.
Sigma P86 Precision Tapered Brush: This brush is perfect for cream contouring your nose or other small areas of the face. It helps the bronzer blend out perfectly, and it’s a very easy-to-handle brush.
Sigma E55 Eye Shading Brush: This brush is very similar to the E20, only it’s a little bigger and a little fluffier. This brush is another great eye-shadow brush that is perfect for packing on shimmery shadows, or even creating harsher lines with matte shadows. You can’t blend as easily with this brush, but it is a great one to have for creating great lines on your eyes!
Sigma P84 Precision Angled Brush: This is a great brush for blending any cream products around your tear ducks, around your nose, or any small area. It’s a dense brush, but it blends so beautifully! You can also use this to contour your nose and face with!
Sigma E30 Pencil Brush: This brush, in my opinion, is a must-have no matter what level you are at. This brush is perfect for blending shadows underneath your eye. I use it when I want to smoke out a color, but keep it pretty close to my lashes. You can also use it for any makeup that needs to be placed in a specific area of the face that needs minimal blending. I use this brush for every smokey eye that I do on myself, so if you are a big fan of smokey eyes, get this brush!
Real Techniques Lip Brush: I am not a huge fan of lip brushes (I don’t think they blend very well), but if you are working on other clients or friends, you should have a lip brush. I find it kind of gross if someone is touching my lips with their fingers! Lip brushes do their job, and if you can’t get your client’s lips perfectly blended…have them touch their own lips, or smack their lips together to blend!
Beauty Blender Micro Mini Sponges: First off…these sponges are the cutest sponges I’ve ever seen! Second…they are just as amazing as the original beauty blenders! I use these for blending out concealer and highlighter around my eyes and nose. It’s perfect for getting that concealer blended around your tear duct! Now, you can definitely get by without this product, but I love it and I’m so glad I randomly picked them up!
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I hope you enjoyed this post! Let me know if you have any questions about these brushes or if you’d like me to film a video tutorial on how to use these! I love comments and questions!
xoxo
Shop The Brushes Below:
I'm definielty a novice when it comes to makeup brushes! I used rouse the same 3 brushes for everything (whoops!) That Nars Ita Brush IS perfect for contouring, it's one of my favorites <3
I want those baby beauty blenders! They are just the cutest
I love love love Real Techniques brushes, especially their blush brush. And NARS Ita has been on my wishlist forever, but it always seems to be sold out everywhere I look 🙂
I had a problem finding the ita brush for awhile too…but just keep looking! It will pop up!
they are seriously so cute! And they work!
yes, the Nars brush is so awesome! Definitely try out some of my picks, you'll like them!
I'm so glad I found your post because I really need new makeup brushes. I love the look of the Real Techniques range, I've heard such good things about them too. I really want a kabuki brush so I'm glad you recommended one here, I need to go and find it.
I don't wear makeup, so I never knew there was a difference. Thanks for the awesome info.
I feel both like a beginner and novice lol the only think I am missing is the beauty blender pretty much have the rest. Good post
Thank you for this! I did not start wearing makeup until recently and this is a huge help!
I've been looking for that daggonned NARS ITA contour brush for months. It's ALWAYS sold out :-/ Maybe they'll have some stock for the holidays.
My youngest daughter is a makeup artist and I'm constantly asking her which makeup brush I'm supposed to be using for contouring, etc. I don't have to ask anymore. Thanks for this makeup brush tutorial.
I should probably invest in that beauty blender. It would do a much better job than my fingers which is what I'm using now.
I love those Expert brushes! I have a ton of makeup brushes, but honestly, there are a few that I just look at all clueless and make up uses for (no pun intended). Thanks for the lesson!
I am absolutely clueless when it comes to make up brushes. This was very informative for me. Thanks for the post.
Wow! I had no idea what some of those brushes were for and I think I own a lot of them and never use them…correctly anyway! Thanks for the great info!
This is awesome and so helpful. I'm most definitely a beginner!
Such a helpful post!!! As an ex-model it use to drive me nuts when I would see girls using the wrong brushes lol….
I JUST picked up a new beauty blender the other day! This is an awesome awesome guide. Have you ever tried the foundation brushes with a concave center? They have a little inward pod in the bristles so you can literally pour your liquid foundation, BB or CC cream right into the brush for easy application. I've been dying to try one!
lovelovelove,
Erica
cominguprosestheblog.com
Thanks so much for this! I pretty much just dove into applying make up last year and used whatever brushes I wanted. This little guide really helps so I can finally figure out what I'm doing!
http://mylittlepeasprout.blogspot.com/
I agree that makeup brushes are so vital to making your makeup look flawless, the best brush helps 🙂
Def need a good brush. I looooove Sephora's Pro brushes and the Makeup Bullet. Have you tried them?
Wow what a definitive description for brushes. I really don't use make up so I'm amazed at how many make up brushes a woman can use especially the one on the expert level. I'd be confused on which to pick if it were me.
I will pass this onto my wife.. she is always looking for good makeup and tools.
I have a serious makeup brush addiction! My favorite brand is hands down Sigma.
It is so good to know what each one is for. I tend to just use 2 or 3 for everything.
I don't use a lot of makeup brushes, but I would like to start. This is a great post about makeup brushes. It's very informative. Thanks for the information! 🙂
Thank you for posting this. I do not wear makeup very often and am completely lost on things like this!
I love the Real Techniques brushes!
You have so many of my faves in this post! I LIVE for my Real techniques brushes!
Oh I love makeup brushes. Thanks for this great post!
I have a lot to learn about makeup brushes. My fingers are my tools when it comes to applying eye shadow and even lip blusher sometimes. Thanks to this post, I know have a beginner's start on which beginner and expert makeup brushes. They're too many to remember though.
So many brushes, kind of makes applying makeup overwhelming. I don't think I'll remember all of the uses for each so I'll probably have to bookmark this page. LOL
I have those Real Techniques brushes. I love them so much!!
Thank you for this post! I am terribly ungifted with anything to do with makeup, so this is rather helpful, haha. Pinning so that if I have to do makeup in the future, I'll have something to reference! 😛
Finally I can do makeup brush shopping! I need to learn more.
This is very helpful information for those of us who have no idea about this stuff! I'm definitely in the beginner category.
I didn't realize there were so many brush options! I'm definitely put some of these on my Christmas list.
I own brushes from all of these groups! Now I've found some more that I'd like to get. Thanks!
I want! I didn't know the difference of brushed until now. I do like to play with make-up here and there. This actually thought me more than I know. As you can tell. I am a beginner.
Thanks for all the great tips! I have always wondered what my an brush is for, lol, now it can stop collecting dust 🙂
Wow, so many make up brushes; thanks for the great tips!
Nice brushes make a difference. My daughter only likes the high quality brushes too.
So I am a beauty blogger, but still definitely learning the world of beauty. Because I am not a makeup beauty blogger I still don't know which brushes needed to be used for each makeup application. thanks for the breakdown and I pinned this for future reference!
Thank you so much for sharing, I didn't realize there were so many makeup brushes. I'm going to have to work on my collection.
Thank you so much! There are so many cool brushes out there, you should try some out!
Thanks girl!! Let me know which brushes you try and which ones you like! Also, if you go to MAC or Sephora, they can give you a break down on all the brushes!
I have noticed that my makeup goes on so much better with high quality brushes! The sigma and real technique brushes are actually pretty cheap, so they are my top choices!
thank you so much xoxo
yes! I'm happy to help!
hey girl, we all start somewhere right! I hope this guide helps!
No problem Jennifer! I'm glad to help! Let me know if you find some more awesome brushes! I'm always expanding my collection!
There are so many great ones out there! I'm glad to help out!
No problem April! I'm glad to share my knowledge!
I'm glad to help Elizabeth! Let me know if you have any other questions! I'd be happy to help with whatever you need!
Awesome! I'm so glad to give you the info Farrah! xoxo
I love Real Techniques! They are amazing brushes!
You definitely don't need all of these at once…that's why I split them up into categories! But if you ever want a brush for a specific technique, definitely check out this page!
There are so many to remember haha! I'm still learning about brushes, and I'm an expert! And fingers are great makeup tools 🙂
Thanks Krystal! xoxo
Thanks girl! Real Techniques are seriously amazing! If you like the RT, you should definitely try Sigma out! They are just as amazing!
no problem girl! I'm glad to help!! Let me know if you find any other good ones!
Me too! Thank you for reading my post!
Thank you for reading! I hope this helps you out!
Thank you so much! I defintely recommend getting them slowly (that's what I did). This allows you to practice with the ones you have!
I totally used to do that too! I have slowly just accumulated more and more (I'm kind of a makeup hoarder haha)
Sigma is seriously amazing!!! Thanks for reading!
Perfect! I'm sure she'll find this useful!
Thank you so much! xoxo
there are a lot of brushes out there, so it can be confusing. Hopefully by me breaking the brushes down into categories, it helps everyone find the ones they need! Thanks for reading! xoxo
I haven't!! I really want to try sephora's makeup brushes, they are really nice to the feel. And what's the makeup bullet? It sounds awesome!
Most definitely! Hopefully you got some good ideas of brushes you'd like from my post!
Thanks Danielle!! I hope this guide helps you a lot! xoxo
I haven't tried one yet…but I'd like to! The new bare minerals one got mixed reviews…but I'd like to try it for myself! Thanks for reading Erica! xoxo
haha this is true! Hopefully this helps a lot!
Thank you Jeanine!! xoxo
Thanks Leah! xoxo
Thank you Pam!! xoxo
You will love Real Techniques! They are so nice, and they are very inexpensive! Definitely get the Sigma flat top kabuki…it's the best one I've ever tried!
Thank you Robin!
Hey that's totally normal too! I do that a lot, so don't feel bad! And you will love the beauty blender! It does wonders!
No problem Tessa!! I'm glad to help! xoxo
yes! Keep looking…it will pop up, promise!
no problem Alli! I hope I gave you some good info!
I was very skeptical about the beauty blender…but it is seriously amazing! You should definitely get one!
I have a couple of youtube tutorials on my channel, so definitely check those out!! xoxo
No problem Kathy! I'm so glad to help!
No problem Nicole!! I'm glad to help!
Thanks so much for the breakdown on all of these brushes! I'm pretty much clueless when it comes to make up and what brushes to use lol
These are great tips! I have ZERO experience with makeup brushes and this really made it simple for me! Pinning for later 🙂
My daughter was just saying she wanted new make up brushes. I will have to order some of these for her for Christmas
I am a beginner with anything to do with makeup, I recently bought a bunch of brushes for makeup just to add to my makeup bin for the girls but I want to learn more on how to use makeup items and products!
This is so interesting!! I really really love beauty blog, I think I'm in level novice hahah LOL.
I am a longtime freelance makeup artist on the side. I was a counter manager for Clinique many moons ago. I LOVE Sigma brushes! They are high quality and can compete with more popular brands like MAC all day! The best thing about them is they are affordable! I highly recommend anyone looking to invest in brushes to buy Sigma brushes! I enjoyed your post! Makes me want to start a beauty blog! 🙂
Wow! That's a lot of brushes. I don't wear make-up and learning all about these brushes is really overwhelming but definitely interesting. 🙂
These look like fantastic makeup brushes. It is important to use a good quality brush. I will have to order some for my daughter for Christmas.
It's so amazing how many brushes you have, I don't even have nearly that much; it's great to learn about them though!
This is very informative! I had a big collection of makeup brushes that I lost on a flight. It's such a big investment I'm still recovering.
As someone who uses hardly any makeup because I feel like I have no clue what I'm doing – THANK YOU for laying it all out there like that!
I'm in the market for some new brushes right now and love all of them. This is perfect for someone who needs the information.
Thank you!! I slowly have accumulated them over the years…but in college, I only had 3!
Definitely look into Real Techniques and Sigma brushes! They are great gifts!
thank you Lynn!
Girl you totally should start one! We could always use more beauty bloggers in the world! Also, I LOVE your name! I want to name my future daughters Virginia and Margaux!
Thank you Nicole! xoxo
Thanks Brandy! I totally used to be a beginner too…but I've just kind of gotten obsessed with makeup over the past few years! We all start somewhere!! xoxo
Definitely look into sigma brushes!! they are awesome gifts!
Thank you Madison!! xoxo
No problem Jessica!! I love to help out!
no problem Michele!
When it comes to makeup brushes, I'm a total novice lol I need to up my makeup brushes game 😉
I have a set of brushes, and I know I don't know what they all do. Thanks for letting me know how to use the ones I have. I think I have basically the beginner set!
This is an awesome post indeed. There are woman out there, like myself that have never really used the brushes til they were older. Thanks for sharing the levels of brushes.
Thank you so much for this I am always wondering what to do with each brush.
Not even close to a beginner.. hahaha but I have quite a few brushes on my pouch, never been used.. 🙂
Thank you for your comments! xoxo
You are so welcome!
No problem! I'm so glad to help!
No problem! xoxo
I'd say just start out with a few and get used to them! Then build your collection!
This is great — very informative. I received a set of brushes as a gift and had no idea if I was using them right! Now I know!