Recently in Brushes Category

UPDATE!!! CONGRATULATION'S TO OUR WINNER BONNIE!! The correct answer was Plum or Purple.

Remember those fabulous makeup brushes I was raving about last month? ...Yeah, they're baaack!! We are giving away 4 ultra soft eye and face brushes and a mascara to one lucky lady (over a $100 value)!! All you have to do is tell me what color is predicted to be the "In" color for fall by fashion and beauty experts and leave it in the comment section. (Hint: Last week, Couture Snob did a full spread on it!).

Your makeup tools can be the biggest pain in your ass or your greatest asset. If the bristles of your brushes don't feel soft and supple... then it's time to get some new ones! I LOVE {me}zhgan brushes (I use them myself), since they are the perfect size to toss in your makeup bag and they are double sided (2 for 1!). While you're on the site purchasing some happy, check out their duel foundation and primer -luminous {me} - it comes in Light, Medium, Tan and Dark. I especially love this since (as you all know) I am a fan of anything that saves me a few extra seconds in the morning...or ever.=)

*Contest ends this Friday!! (8/15/08). Special thanks to Me by {Me}zhgan for sponsoring our giveaway!

I am a serious serious snob when it comes to brushes. I only use Shu Uemura natural hair, nothing else compares and nothing else will do. So this is huge for me to recommend another kind of brush and not only that, synthetic ones! Yikes!!! But that's how good these are. I tried these because I have an open mind but I will admit, I was very skeptical. But they just wouldn't allow me to hate them, the brushes felt like real animal hair and the application was as if they were real. They are so soft and felt so good on my skin. I got the 3 which are the essentials, Cheek ($42), Eye Shadow ($25) and the most important of any brushes, the Eye Blender ($28). This comes to $95 which make me getting the Kolinsky big eye blender for $270 hard to justify. Of course these Paula Dorf brushes will not last a lifetime the way Shu Uemura's will, but at $28 you can buy them as needed. These are a great alternative for those who want luxurious brushes but not ready to make a hefty investment to have them. Or for those that do not use animal products, you can still all the benefits without the guilt. At Paula Dorf online store.

I love the new Heirloom brush sets from MAC. Fabulous starter kits for Beauty Snobs in training to treasure for years or a spare set in case you lose/damage your set (as Kelly did with her Shu Uemura set that she has collected since college!) this is a great gift! It has all the brushes you need to blush, shade, line and blend - all in a gorgeous metallic tweed clutch. I gave sets to my niece and goddaughter and they use the bag as a make up bag. The short handle also makes it easy to travel with. Each set is only $48 at Mac Cosmetics or department stores.

Can anything be more fabulous for a Beauty Snob AND a Bag Snob than this leather beauty bureau from the luxury line Smythson of Bond Street? It comes with all the sable brushes shown but you provide all your own favorite beauty products for the ultimate in vanity decadence. Keep this on your dresser and carry it to wherever has the best lighting in your house at the moment for your daily ritual of primping. It is a wood frame covered with gorgeous aqua Adamo calf leather, the color is so divine!! It makes me want to do my entire bedroom in that color. It is not a giant chest, the measurements are 5.5" x 9.75" x 7.5" so it is easy to fit on your vanity, counter or dresser. Of course you can only put your very favorite products in there but how fun would it be to switch out the colors each week, like you do a bag? Even if this isn't all that functional for your needs, it is so beautiful you can just look at it! At Smythson for $2410.

Holy beauty heaven!! Looks like Santa has done his market research and created the most awesome beauty set the world has ever seen! I mean, who wouldn't want a luxurious pink leather trunk filled with everything you could possibly want from Bobbi Brown? It's like going to the Bobbi Brown counter and taking home their entire display (but brand new and unused of course). If someone bought this for me for Christmas, I would be a very very happy wife (hint hint). I feel like a little kid in a toy store looking at this, it makes me all anxious with giddiness and desire. I would go home and play with it for hours and get really mad if someone even remotely look at it much less touch it. There is a total of 60 items, including foundation, brushes, eyeshadows, blushes, bronzers, lip glosses, lash curler, mascara, make up remover, moisturizer, eye cream, the list goes on. Exclusively for Neiman Marcus, you can get this whole thing for $2000.

The entire list of contents in this make up trunk is after the jump.

Prescriptives make up was a favorite when I was in college but through the years had faded to the back of my mind as a fond memory. I still remember the gray compacts I used to carry around with me in the early '90s, it was so modern and chic, the young and cool sibling to Estee Lauder line of products. But I lost track of my favorite items from Prescriptives as new brands lured me away with fancy colors and gimmicky shades. Last year I returned to the Prescriptives counter after almost a decade away and had a lip gloss from another company recreated as it was discontinued, the make up artist did such an amazing job mixing the exact shade of my gloss that I started paying attention to Prescriptives again. I discovered many women obsessed with Prescriptives custom blend foundation and who swear it is the only way to look natural and dewy. Honestly, I didn't really believe any of them, I was a Chanel foundation addict and didn't think any brand could match the dewiness my Teint Innocence provided me. Well, I was proven wrong last week at the Prescriptives counter at Bergdorf Goodman's infamous beauty basement!

It’s really important to keep your makeup brushes clean. Dirty makeup brushes lead to germs and bacteria and makeup that just doesn’t look right because it has little bits of last weeks makeup stuck in it. I know that good, old soap and water will work fine to clean your brushes, but in my mind, they get cleaner if I’m using a specific brush cleaner. (Don’t ask, I’m weird.) I usually use Smashbox’s brush cleaner. It’s light and comes in a really convenient spray on bottle. I spray it on a tissue or paper towel and it wipes the makeup right off my brush without leaving any gross residue. Most importantly, it doesn’t break down the fine bristles of my good brushes. Ever since I’ve started using it, there have been no broken or stray bristles. $15 at Sephora.com. Smashbox Brush Cleaner 4 oz