I absolutely love contouring. I find it makes the makeup go from ehhhh… to WOW with the extra dimension it adds! I have tried many different brushes and some of them are definitely better than others. I use fan brushes for times when I want a softer contoured look. I have used blush brushes, pinched the bristles tightly together to help create a more defining line, but that didn’t give off the result that I wanted. So, what’s the best contouring brush I have encountered?
Sephora’s Buffing Foundation brush! Yes, believe it or not, the brush of the hour is a foundation brush!
Why It’s Perfect
This is a flat topped shaped brush that is meant to buff out foundation after you’ve applied it. The shape actually is perfect for me to get right into the hallow under my cheekbone, finding the perfect spot to contour on my face.
I also love the density of this brush. It’s not too hard where it will create a super harsh line when I contour with bronzer, and not too soft where the bristles will just splay apart and place product in a blob.
How I Use It
My preferred method of contouring is to contour with bronzer. I define my face AND add a sunkissed glow to my face, all in one step!
I pick up the powder bronzer using the EDGE of the brush. This makes a defined enough line without being too thick and blob like, and the it also makes perfect lines for the sides of my nose when I’m trying to slim it down!
Since it’s flat, after I’ve placed the initial powder product where I want it on my face, I use the entire flat surface of the bristles to buff and blend out the lines a bit. Not too much, you don’t want to spread the contour color everywhere!
The Quality
Though this brush is made out of synthetic bristles, I still find it picked up powder products well, due to its density. The brush is very well made, it did have some initial brand-spanking-new brush shed (which is to be expected) and I haven’t noticed any shedding afterwards. And the bristles are silky smooth!
The brush has also kept up its shape very well. The bristles are still in place and haven’t splayed and lost the shape after cleaning.
Due to its density, it does take awhile to dry when you shampoo it, though.
Roundup!
I have tried and used other flat topped brushes, and most of the bristles were packed too far apart, making the brush’s density too soft to pick up enough product and to achieve the results I wanted.
This brush did come in a limited edition brush set from Sephora, called SEPHORA COLLECTION Luxe Face Brush Set, and has since been discontinued!
I did find an alternative right here which looks identical!
So, tell me, what’s your favourite way to contour and what’s the best contouring brush you’ve ever used?