It’s a huge amount of money for a make up brush set, even though it’s an ultimate one, you still have to be very motivated and really love brushes to get it.  The great news is that they give their customers the possibility to get the brushes individually.

I picked it up at the PO this morning, opened the parcel while my BF was driving, I was patting them during 40mn until I finally arrived at work, he kept giving the look “More brushes???” and I kept giving him my innocent happy look back. Every time he asked me “When will you have enough brushes?”  He always got the same reply in return “How could I know…?! ” but today he finally understood that this day is far, far away…

In order to be able to take the pictures with their after-wash shape, I washed them during my break at work, then let them dry in a corner… Today my close colleagues know what my secret passion is, they kept on asking me why I was going to Japan so at the end I confessed. However, they do not suspect the magnitude of my obsession so pssschhhhhht!!!!…

This set contains 8 brushes, they come with a pouch and in a wooden box. If you hop to this link, you will see the description of the contents and the details of the brushes, material, price and size. They are all made with grey squirrel hair except for the lip brush (Siberian weasel), and the eyebrow (water badger). I will show you what I received in the set but just remember they mention the pouch can change.

Sizes in cm :

I won’t go into much details, these are basically just first impressions since I just got them but I think you may currently be a little bit excited by this release and some pics may already help you decide if that could be something you may desire. You may need to wait to get them, they are hand made and they have a small production site.

The handles are exactly the same red as the Koyudo red squirrel brush, but when paired with a different ferrule, the color is misleading, it looks darker in this set but it’s just exactly the same. In my opinion the shiny black ferrules paired with the shiny red handles make them look more sexy and vampirish.  I have to say I really love this combination, right up my alley and beyond.

The handles seem solid and I cannot find any flaws. The face brushes shed 1 or 2 hairs depending on the brush but I just couldn’t stop patting them and abusing them  A great way to torture me would me to show me beautiful brushes and tight my arms in my back pure evil agony !!!

Some red handle brushes to compare :

The finishing brush

These Koyudo set face brushes are actually all extremely soft and often less dense than any other similar brush.

The Hakuhodo B501 (blue squirrel/goat) is extremely dense in comparison, less soft but still very very soft.
The Hakuhodo K002 is softer than the B501 but compared to the Koyudo from this set it just doesn’t feel as soft, the K002 has more precision (firmness) and a tiny little bit more density.
The Z-9 is my go-to bronzer brush, again more density than the Koyudo finishing but the shape is different too, it’s flatter at the top and that’s why I love it so much for bronzer, it’s quite dense and the application is natural and even.
Of these 4, the Koyudo finishing is the softest and more delicate, if that’s what you are looking for, you will be delighted. It feels like a breeze on the skin. Still picks a fair amount of product but you won’t be able to push it as much as with other denser options.

My thoughts

Even on it’s own it’s an investment, it’s an expensive brush. It’s floppy, not dense and not very directional. I will not use it for bronzer because for bronzer I need something a bit more dense and more firm with better blending capabilities but I use it with pressed powder to set my make up or with pressed highlighter powder. It works like a breeze on the skin. I pat the product and do very small sideways motions (a bit like applying a mascara if that has some more sense).

It has shed a few hairs this morning, nothing alarming so far, my brushes always shed a few hairs since I can stop abusing them. Now I need to wash it again and see how it endures the process.

Since I have very dry skin I have to apply a lot of moisturizer, depending on the days the brushes will absorb more or less moisture on the bristles. There is nothing I can do about that, if I don’t have that slightly greasy looking skin before and after I apply foundation, my skin will be suffering all day. Therefore I need to wash my squirrel brushes more often than any other person I believe,  after 2 or 3 days even nice squirrel brushes start to look “oily” that’s also why I love to use soft goat brushes (the will absorb less moisture). That problem happens with any squirrel brush, I have to wash them quite regularly at this moment. In summer I won’t need that much cream so I won’t experience the same issue.   The powder I need to set my makeup is minimum, that brush helps me achieve the result I want, remove the slightly greasy aspect without removing the glow that my skin loves to keep.

Powder brush

The one I use the most (so far) is the Tanseido YSC 17, for the application of blush. I wanted to get its big Tanseido sister but I decided to wait until I am in Japan. The Koyudo powder is the same idea as this Tanseido but much bigger. It’s difficult to confirm 100% but it feels softer than the MK-2 and the Tanseido. We will see how it evolves with washes. The MK-2 has a bit more density and is more directional. The Koyudo is more spread out and honestly you can barely feel it on the skin, it’s just fantastic. Just keep in mind it’s not a precise brush and it’s very flexible – 2 strokes and you covered half of your face !

My thoughts

All the face brushes in this set aren’t dense but this one picks the meteorites powder quite nicely, one dip -very little swirl- and it got enough product on, I don’t know, I thought that maybe since it’s not as dense as some other brushes, the balls go in between the bristles and the bristles can touch the top and the bottom ones (OMG is that sentence creepy or is it just me???)

My go-to is the Z-9 for bronzer, this will also be great with bronzer but delivers a softer wash of color. Recently I have been loving big flat brushes a lot, this and my Z-9 are my daily brushes for the Tom Ford  Terra bronzer, I just wish this one was slightly more dense for the application of bronzer.

It’s a shape I was ignoring for many years but after having tried the Tanseido in the pic for blush, now it’s one of my favorites shapes, at least at this moment  Probably because the sensation is heaven and provides some kind of calming therapy in the process …

Cheek brush

Below are brushes that I love, all of them are absolutely divine. I still think there is nothing like the Koyudo Red Squirrel, not only because it’s soft but the density is greater than the Koyudo cheek and it’s more directional, more firm.

If the Koyudo cheek is not as soft as the red squirrel, it can’t be far … I don’t feel a big difference. Where it differs the most it’s in the density. The density of the Koyudo Cheek is between the Tanseido YSQ 17 and the Koyudo Red Squirrel.

The Kyureido, the Suqqu and the Chikuhodo Z-4 are more dense and more directional too, the Koyudo cheek will be fantastic with very pigmented products and for those of us who have a very heavy hand.

My thoughts

It’s just a very soft brush to apply very pigmented blushes, I have tried it with Tom Ford Wicked and with RBR Florita thinking that I had to pack it on the bristles but you don’t need to, it picks enough product without having to insist. I prefer the Koyudo red squirrel because it combines density, precision and the most insane softness, this one is just a bit less dense. They are very similar in size and the handle is the same except for the black ferrule.

If I really have to say how they differ, I’d say that the Red Squirrel has more firmness and more blending capabilities but the layers of hair start at the same point in the two brushes, I have recently started to use my brushes at different angles, I think I was using these flat brushes without enough angle actually, now I use them more close to 45° than to a flat-ish and the application i’s easier and faster. I like to place the product at 45° on the high point of the cheek then very softly wiggle and bring upwards, if you have a technique that you love to use, please share !

It’s a very forgiving brush, unless you pack too much product because that is possible with bold colors  then, to blend the excess, better pick a different brush or the foundation brush to cover the mess

Eye shadow L

This brush is the most similar to the Chikuhodo Z-5 but it’s a bit thinner, it has many layers so it picks a nice quantity of product, no worries to apply a nice wash of color all over the eye area, base or blend the whole application. It feels as soft as the Z-5, but the Z-5 is shorter and thicker so the blending capabilities will be higher.

My thoughts

It’s just a very nice base brush, it applies a soft wash of color, no problems at all picking up any kind of powder product. It’s thinner and a bit longer than the Z-5 from Chikuhodo but the result is similar, I cannot see a difference. The Z-5 will do a better blending but for the price, this brush is a fantastic deal in my opinion, specially today with the low JPY.

Since I am THE craziest person with the blending, I don’t have enough eye brushes in the set for my needs : missing a big strong blending brush and a precision pencil brush.

Eye Shadow M

My Koyudo BP033 is always in my handbag (hence the damage on the ferrule…) it’s the kind of brushes that allow you to place, blend and do general touch ups if necessary. If I need to grab some eyeshadow brushes in the morning I will grab one like this and a little pencil brush.

The Koyudo eye shadow M from this set is just amazing, I like how precise it is, but still not too pointy at the top in order to blend and apply a defined layer of color. Some, like the Hakuhodo G5523, are just a tiny bit too pointy for that purpose and the J5523, although it’s fantastic, it’s too large for precise layering of color.

My thoughts

As I suspected, this is a versatile option for the base application, the crease and some blending. A bit too large for just the mobile lid but I can still use it, definitely too large for the lower lash-line. If I have to grab “one-for-all”, this will be useful – providing I also pick a precision little pencil brush. It has just enough density at the top with enough firmness to push product at a 90° angle, it’s slightly softer than the Koyudo BP033.

Eye shadow S

That’s not an usual brush, a tiny crease/precision, I feel like this one is going to replace my Nars 12… same idea : precision crease application but this time SOFT, it’s firm enough to work with the Mac eyeshadows I tested (mattes) so I feel like this is going to be big love.

A bit too big for under eye lash line

My thoughts

It is tiny and directional, not firm enough to apply color on the bottom lash line, the application on the lash line will be too wide and for the most of us it will not deliver enough precision for that part. For small precision crease application it is nice, the small precision crease brush that I dream of is still not existing out there but I will definitely use this little thing in the meantime. Much softer than the Nars 12 but the Nars is a bit more easy to use for me.

For the inner tear duct again it may be too wide but if what you apply goes a bit further around the tear duct it will be fine. Honestly for the price -if you can- and if you are tempted, I will take it. For me it’s cute and useful, either to highlight under the eyebrows or to accentuate the crease. I just hope that one day I will find my perfect little crease brush  I certainly enjoy this one but it’s missing a bit of material at the top and it’s a bit too long  to be exactly the one I am looking for.

Eye brow

It’s softer than the Hakuhodo, other than that… nothing to add, approx the same size as well, fantastic.

Lip brush

Same as the other Koyudo lip brushes in other sets, I find them fluffy enough but work with precision, they grab a great amount of product. Again nothing else to add, for me it’s the kind of lip brushes I love because they work with any texture (from gloss to matte).

The pouch

The exterior feels cheap and I have a problem with some materials, I am not in love with the exterior of this pouch but I love every thing else. I love that it doesn’t have magnets! Safe to carry!

You can place your eight brushes and on the right you have some room for more.

Were they thinking of me ? I can’t live without the Rae Morris Radiance and, it started recently, but I can’t live without the Koyudo fan, for bronzer or blush or powder, I LOVE IT. It combines cuteness with efficiency, this will probably be an extension of my arm from now on

If you push the Radiance and the fan, you can fit them nicely inside and you can slide something at the back of the brushes.

I will report back to you once I have use them for a few days but in the meantime, if you have any questions and I can help you, don’t hesitate

The new Serge Lutens eyeshadow #2 is a lavender-purple-grey-cool-toned palette that offers 4 eyeshadows with similars tones but in a gradient intensity. They range from a very sheer, nearly white, lavender to a very dark grey with tiny micro lavender sparkles.

Although I find this palette a bit boring, unless you love lavender cool tones, the quality is once more outstanding.

There is something about Serge Lutens eyeshadow textures that make them stand out from the crowd, not only because of their price but the finish is truly different, they grab onto the skin with more precision and it feels like the pigmentation they leave on your eyelids comes from underneath the skin, you’ll get less transfer in your final look and when it fades, it fades in an even and sultry way.

Compared to the old SL palette that I highly prefer, this new palette contains shimmery colors, my only problem with it is that it’s a bit too flat and not very appropriate for me, but maybe I am missing something, since I have no other information, no example looks, no instructions, I don’t know if I should use it the way I use it. I have tried several looks and came to the conclusion that lavender is not that flattering for me. I will share my thoughts with you today.

The 1st shadow : the dark grey

The finish reminds me of the Mac satin finish, just with more pigmentation and tiny bit more shine. Here are some similar options -nearly blacks with sparkles- to help you compare the intensity and the color :

• Le Metier de Beaute shade on the very left in the swatches is the one from Antiquité Poupée (kaleidoscope is not pictured here), the LMdB is much more metallic than the SL.
• Mac Hocus Pocus is green based but I still wanted to share a swatch (I love this color…), I love to mix it with a golden cream shade.
• The Mac Black Tied applies a bit patchy and is much darker.
• RBR Trumpeter Koehl is maybe a shade that SL could use instead of having two very similar shades in the same palette!
• Chanel Black Star I don’t use it because of the lasting power and it tends to transfer while fading.
• RBR Volcano Fairy-Wren is similar to the SL but warmer and darker, the SL has also more tiny micro sparkles.
• SL #1 is blacker and matte.
• The Shiseido is a cream shadow with tiny sparkles, again much darker.

The second and third shades : the dark and medium lavender

The finish of these two shades is similar to Mac veluxe pearl, in between a satin finish and a veluxe pearl actually. It has been really difficult to find a dupe to these two shades, I have only two that come a bit close, Mac Parlor Smoke and RBR Lilac Reef Curassow. Of course the SL are better in terms of quality than the dupes I found so if you love cool lilac eyeshadows this SL will be heaven for you.

The forth shade : the lavender-white color

The finish is similar to a Mac frost in terms of shine but of course more appropriate for ageing eyelids. I believe the Suqqu individual shadow is no longer produced but it is the closest I found in my collection.

The SL is white but with a lavender bluish hue, not an irisdescent finish though but still a beautiful dimension. All the SL shades have sparkles but they are so tiny that this should not be a blocking point, that said, this one is the most shimmery, an elegant shimmery finish but still very obvious, it’s really good to highlight the inner corner, but placed in all the browbone area it delivers too much shimmer, it will be better to use the mauvy sheer shade in the browbone and this white in a very narrow line application just underneath the eyebrows.

Then when all my hopes to find dupes was gone and when I finished taking all the pics, I found two other similar shadows, the Nars Tokyo and the Makeupgeek Galaxy, and I took a pic with the flash for you to see the sparkles going on…

In terms of quality the SL is above any other shadow here but I have to say that even though I did not find exact dupes, I can totally reproduce the same look. From the distance you won’t see any difference.

However, the SL are really amazing for those of us who have older eyelids, they just don’t emphasize the creepiness at all. The finish is smooth and even and where they differ the most is in the way they fade along the day, they fade with “elegance” and don’t crease.

Here on the left I applied Serge Lutens eyeshadows and on the right I used the dupes (Makeupgeek Galaxy, Mac Parlor Smoke, RBR Lilac, Nars Tokyo), after 1 hour I saw the fading starting on the dupe shades and getting a bit patchy and the Makeupgeek eyeshadow started to transfer a bit further away (although it has great lasting power). The dark SL shadow stayed more precisely where I had put it. The finish was overall much more metallic on the dupe side, although here you don’t necessarily see it, I am afraid you’ll have to believe me

Bottom line

SL is more gentle with older skin, stays put, the finish is more elegant than other dupe options but the price and the lack of diversity in this palette -in my humble opinion- does not justify the high price tag. I much prefer the SL #1.

I love to use some lavender shadows but this is way too cool for me, and if I do a smokey look although it doesn’t shout metallic, it still is too shiny for my taste when I use the grey all over the mobile lid and up to the crease. I have been using it for 5 days in a row and I did not manage to be entirely satisfied with it, I think I will try again when my face managed to see some sun or when I will be able to give a more flawless finish to my skin, I suspect that with a more even skin, the final look will be much more beautiful. For now it’s still too cold to apply more coverage and my dry skin will not enjoy it at all. I also find that these lavender tones makes my eyes appear even more tired than what they are right now and it emphasizes the “grey” in my eyes which is not something I love at all!

I can’t wait to see the looks Serge Lutens will use on its promotional pictures in the press (if any…), I imagine he will share very theatrical images on very exceptional looking women but I guess it will give me a better idea of what was the idea behind these shades when he created this palette

The next Suqqu palette will also be lavender toned, not sure it will a good option for me but knowing Suqqu I probably have bigger chances

oh yes… ingredient list

Choosing to be yourself is not without its perils.

Thank you for taking the risk with us.

Is it a risk ?  Serge Lutens are statement products, often very bold therefore I admit that in a way, it’s a risk for me specially when I am wearing their “Mise à Mort” lipstick, feeling a bit out of my comfort zone with that one but enjoying every minute of it.

The Blusher #2 is a peach that has some pink in it, the finish is near matte but not quite, you can see tiny micro sparkles going on in the sunlight and a very very subtle glow, a bit velvety looking.

I am NW20-25, this blush shows well on my skintone, it is sheer so you may be tempted to build it a few times, just be very careful, although it’s sheer I often manage to apply too much of it, that is due to the bad lighting where I apply my makeup at the moment. I like to use a goat brush to buff it but don’t get me wrong, you can use a squirrel brush or the softest brush you own to apply it, the texture is powdery-velvety, very easily “pick-able” with any type of brush but with sheerer blushes I simply use goat brushes for a more blended and polished finish.

Blusher #1 – Blusher #2 – Teint si fin B40

These blushes come in compacts or refills. I buy the refills because they are cheaper and then I store them in a Unii palette.

You get 8 grams of product for 80$ just for the refill, with also the compact you would pay the insane price of 160$ ! It’s already very expensive getting only the refill so there is no way I will buy the compact!

The texture is very unique, I haven’t found another blush with the same texture although I have some similar colors in my collection :

The Nars Sex Appeal is so powdery and chalky in comparison, it’s very sheer and although it still shows on my skin it has absolutely no lasting power at all.

The By Terry feels also powdery in comparison, it’s a darker peach shade with less pink.

The Bobby Brown is a wonderful blush for a nude look, it has more brown in it I’d say but it’s not powdery and has a natural shiny finish. A no-brainer that I enjoy using on a regular basis with stronger eye looks.

The Armani #2 is the closest option to the SL #2, the Armani has slightly more pink in it and a more glowy finish, both have the tiny micro sparkles but again both very subtle. If I really want to be difficult, the SL is more gentle with my fine lines and doesn’t emphasize them as much but the Armani is still amazing, I use it and enjoy it a lot. The Armani costs approx 44$ and contains 6g, if you really want to compare quantity vs price, for the same quantity you’ll pay nearly 20$ more if you pick the SL.

This is quite a heavy application but otherwise it was not showing on the pictures, just to prove that although it’s sheer you can still “over apply” it
Sorry to show you my terrible facial hair it will be gone after my Japan trip but in the meantime I have to live with it

Serge Lutens #2 heavy application

Serge Lutens #2 heavy application

This is the Armani #2, you’ll see that the glow is more intense and the color slightly more pink but despite the tiny little sparkles, both are totally wearable for an office look :

Armani #2 normal application

I was waiting for a good day to take a pic but I am afraid every day is a tough day so I’ll have to deal with it. Very excited to go to Japan so I can barely sleep, when I sleep I do it like a baby but recently my brain is just all over the place

Bottom line

Paying 80$ is of course insanely expensive for a blush, way too much if you consider that this is the price just for the refill, but if you are into high quality luxury items this is a must-have. I could live without it though, having RMK blushes, the Armani #2 plus the Bobby Brown are a bit more fun if you prefer to have great quality items but with more choice for the price.

Ingredients :

***

I was hesitating since I don’t usually wear dark lipsticks but I just couldn’t resist and part of it due to its name… I also got the Mise à Mort lipstick.

You asked me recently in the comments how the texture compared between the Serge Lutens and similar options but it depends on the shades you chose, I found both Votre Sienne and Mise à Mort to be a bit different in terms of pigmentation and moisture they provide, the Mise à Mort being better.

Compared to the Guerlain Rouge Automatique here, the Mise à Mort is much more opaque, more pigmented, more moisturizing. This SL lipstick formula is just insane although in my opinion it doesn’t justify the high price tag. The Lancome Rouge in Love are very pigmented too, long-lasting but they are not as comfortable as the SL, I wouldn’t call the SL moisturizing lipsticks but in terms of comfort, they excel. Some dark and long-lasting lipstick formulas are just better than others even within the same line.

The SL Votre Sienne is very close to the Sue Devitt Phinda, the SD is a bit more brown and the SL a bit more brick but if you loved the SL shade and want to save a bit, you have at least a similar option. Of course the SL has more impact and shine and is more unique but this time the SD is more long-lasting. I think it’s more in the fading that they differ, the SD turns more into a rose-brown hue and the SL stays more true to its original color while fading.

With flash

Without flash

Will I repurchase the SL lipsticks ? Yes I would if they had less risky shades

Just a tiny post to share a wonderful article that appeared recently in the New York Times about Chikuhodo and Mr Takemori.

This link has been sent to me by Malin, she knows how much I love Chikuhodo and Kumano and since not many of us have access to this newspaper, I thought I will link it here for you.

I think many of you are interested to learn a bit more about the origins of the brand that makes so many wonderful brushes. Below is an example of some of the brushes they manufacture but they are also responsible for Kanebo, Etreindre, La Donna and possibly many more.

Needless to say that since I will be in Kumano very shortly, I will share many pictures with you during my trip.

Have a wonderful rest of the week !

I actually needed something cute and easy to wear and also some elegant shoes for work, we went shopping in Geneva then ate in an Asian all-you-can-eat buffet. At night we watched movies while eating marshmallows and cakes ! It’s not that extraordinary for some, it’s a simple birthday but that was a perfect day for me ! I enjoyed it so much ! By the way, thank you for your wishes ! It was amazing to receive so many little messages, I had a huge smile on my face the whole day !

The presents : he got me a few little tops, easy to wear and fun, I found them at Zara, got this in pink, this in green and that in green too ! We didn’t find the shoes that day, I was trying a few but some were not comfortable enough to wear for work (but I still wanted high heals…). Yesterday we finally found them, here they are, what do you think?

Also yesterday I found THE shoes I will take with me to Tokyo for the night out these are super comfortable and fun enough to look ready to rock at any moment ! I have to wait approx 1 week to receive my size but honestly it’s raining day and night, it’s even snowing again, so I am not in a rush… The leather is extremely soft and since they have “a platform” in the front it’s like walking in no heals at all, a dream !

Yesterday I also took the courage to go to the hairdresser, honestly I absolutely hate it, unfortunately it could not wait any longer. My roots were 6 cm long, very dark, I had the choice into going darker or lighter, I asked her to do the same color as the rest of the hair and guess what ? I am blond ! I wasn’t expecting such a light color… Usually my BF prefers me when I am darker so I was expecting some comments but it looks like he likes it…

I also told her just to cut just the ends, and she cut 12cm !!! I was a bit mad, she said “it’s only hair, it grows back” ok ok I know… but if I knew her true intentions, I would never had let her take the scissors in the first place !! She said : “You are young, you need a sexy haircut, something with movement!”  WTH ??

I love long hair and now it feels like I have nothing on my head, they look healthier and I had to do something but yeah, a bit too short in my opinion…

Now, you may be curious to see the haircut and the hair color.. so I took a pic for you :

Still asking myself if I should darken it a bit…

Some more news about my little sick dog for those of you who were sending me little encouraging messages, by the way, THANK YOU!!!. I am just back from a walk with her, she enjoyed it, she started eating normally only yesterday and since then she is playing like crazy and looks so happy !

About my future studio… well, it’s not really finished yet… not even close :

We have to move all the electric panels, the windows… I hope it will be ready soon so that I can install my camera there and take pics of looks and I can’t wait to decorate the room with my brushes I am also looking forward to have a place for me instead of camping in the living room with my pc and my camera.

By the way, my post on the Serge Lutens blush #2 is late because I was wearing it for a few days when I realized my skin was getting incredibly dry and drained… I did not know what it was, I thought it was the blush because it was the only thing that had changed but I finally found out : it was the air conditioning that they turned on at the office, this is a nightmare with my skin !

I hope I can soon upload this blush review, also the review of the new Serge Lutens palette that I should receive tomorrow and in parallel I am preparing a review on the rest of the Evgeny brushes.

I am so sorry that I don’t go into more details in the recent reviews, but I don’t have that much time at this moment. I am just trying to share pics as soon as I can hoping that it will help you a bit…  I am right now reading your recent comments and questions and doing some testing so that I can give you a reply shortly.

Last but not least…. today is :

D-29

Yes, my flight to Japan is booked ! It was tough to book because I was so nervous that I couldn’t even enter my credit card details properly  So funny, my mouth was dry and I was shaking with excitement ! I am a bit scared because this is so new for me ! Never been in a country where I didn’t speak the language !

I will be flying on the 26th of May and coming back on the 8th of June… I am now starting to plan the trip, I am super excited and a bit terrified, I wanted to thank you for all the recommendations you sent me, I will be looking into them and preparing my adventure in the upcoming days

I have created a page (in the menu), so whenever I can I will upload pics there if you are interested !

That’s it !  just wanted to tell you how life was going, I hope yours is going really well ! thank you for all your kind comments, it’s fantastic to have you here !

It costs around 60$ and AGAIN, it’s totally worth every penny ! Such a lovely surprise !! The quality is absolutely outstanding, I am in awe and so will you…

It is as soft as the Chikuhodo Z-series (I can’t feel much difference to be honest), it’s densely packed, absolutely no flaws, it’s flat(ish) -very slightly rounded as you can see in the pic-  and covers a wide surface at the top, approx 4cm of diameter.  The handle is short, black and the ferrule golden, the black part has little green sparkles inside, I can’t stop contemplating and patting this work of art…

I thought it would be very similar to the Chikuhodo Z-1, it is in terms of softness and hair quality but it’s more dense and short, the goat hair must be so little quantity that it just feels like there isn’t at all. The application of powder foundation with this brush is out of this world, it does the work so softly and evenly, so far I think there is no other better powder foundation application than with this Fu-Pa14, efficiency and enjoyment guaranteed !

When I apply powder foundation, I don’t apply a heavy coverage, the finish I like is sheer to medium. I have tried this brush with the Mac Mineralize Skinfinish, it picks the product really well, one swirl is enough, you have to tap off the excess just a bit, you apply and then reapply if you want more coverage. I will try it also with mineral loose powders, for now I didn’t had the chance yet but it does a better job at covering than the Z-1, because it’s flatter and denser so the process will be faster too.

I also tried it with bronzer (TF Terra), I tap off the excess on the back of my hand and I apply in the forehead, cheeks, I cannot see any lines around the application and it doesn’t look muddy but I apply it softly anyway.

Something that I love to do in summer is apply a nude blush but with a very dense brush in order to give a polished dimensional effect to the skin and cover the pores but without any exfoliation or irritation in the process. This is probably the best option I own today for that purpose. It is big but when I apply blush with it, I am not aiming for a precise application but instead for a more dimensional blush/contouring purpose application, not with contour, just with a nude natural blush. Tried it with this Fu-Pa14, loved it.

The hair is really fine in both brushes, but the Fu-Pa14 is much more densely bundled and firm, yet supple enough to allow a very soft natural non-streaky application.

Compared to the Fu-Pa01 (baby goat chest hair), the Fu-pa14 is of course softer and has more flexibility.

The surface of the Fu-Pa14 is wider but the shape is similar -not that you can see much in the next picture anyway

The Houkodou is also very very soft, it’s goat hair but goat that resembles squirrel hair, it’s also more packed and directional than the Fu-Pa14, I use the Houkodou for liquid foundation and the Fu-Pa14 for powder foundation or blush. Again the Fu-pa14 is bigger, more supple. Big enough to achieve a fast and easy result and small enough to go around the nose and be able to cover the whole face.

I remembered I had bought the new Chanel Les Beiges Kabuki brush and I thought I would show you a pic close to this Koyudo Fu-pa14, so here it is :

I cannot believe the sales assistant told me the Chanel Kabuki was natural hair while she was patting it, it is clearly made of synthetic bristles but since I could not touch it, I just trusted her and bought it. It’s not the end of the world but that was the reason why I bought it, because I heard it was soft and because she mentioned it was natural. Don’t get me wrong, I love synthetic brushes but the idea initially was to compare it to the Houkodou or the Fu-pa family.

You can have an idea of their size here in the pics but the feeling of the hair is completely different. The Chanel Les Beiges Kabuki is extremely soft but it’s like a mass of synthetic bristles which don’t give such an airbrushed natural effect on my skin, I admit I still have to play with it and I may change my mind… I just wanted to show you some pics since I have it and I think there aren’t that many pics online yet.

The Hakuhodo J210 is also a nice dense brush but it’s nothing similar to the Fu-Pa14, I am showing you a picture because you may want to know how they compare together. It’s a similar shape, but the J210 (goat) is very firm, tightly packed. The Fu-pa14 is much more supple and soft but it’s is not the same material either so no surprise the Fu-Pa14 feels softer !

The four together :

I love dense brushes, but dense ones that can still pack product without delivering a muddy application, I prefer to build with a more forgiving brush than directly use a super dense and firm brush. I can go from sheer to heavy coverage with the Fu-Pa14, with this brush I will target a sheer to medium coverage with powder foundation and a heavy polished application with a nude blush.

It will not get better than this for a powder brush in my humble opinion, I don’t think it is LE but it’s certainly a must-have for me. My colleague saw the brushes when they arrived this week (this fu-pa14 and the pink fan), she patted them and she looked at me with her eyes wide open and said  ”is this for real ???”  :) Yep, welcome to my magic world MUAHAHAHAHAHA

@Fran, I think I may have created another monster

Today my review will be brief and I am not going to talk for hours because the pictures speak for themselves, I just simply think that if you love beautiful make up brushes, you need this one.

This Koyudo Pink fan has been sitting in my shopping cart for ages, it was one of the first Koyudo brushes that captured my attention but for some silly reason I was always removing it from my cart before I placed my orders. This time I decided to order it together with the Fu-Pa14. This fan costs 4500 JPY, it is worth every penny, made with baby goat chest hair, yes it’s soft, not as soft as the Koyudo White Mushroom, but it comes very close to the Tom Ford brushes.

I can’t even believe that I was so excited to wake up this morning so that I could use it ! We need enthousiasm in our lives right ? Funny to believe that this brush helps me to get out of bed in the morning

That’s how crazy I am …

It is much wider than any other fan brush, which makes it a gorgeous multipurpose for bronzer, powder, blush, anything really, even contour when you are going for a more wider and seamless contour.

It will not get better than this, of course it depends what you are looking for, maybe you are not tempted at all by fan style brushes, but you will get something extremely beautiful and useful with this one, the whole package.

I have a few of them, the Louise Young is just for decoration purposes because it sheds too much and today it’s too rough for my delicate skin, it’s probably goat hair actually. I don’t use it anymore but I wish I could find a very similar one so I keep it for future investigation and research…

The Rae Morris is squirrel, it’s very thin so it’s ok for contour or highlighter or finishing but you are not getting the fluffyness that the Koyudo has, they are two completely different brushes. The Hakuhodo is made with blue squirrel hair and Sokoho goat (60$), it’s softer than the Koyudo but again, it’s a total different brush.

Since the Koyudo H013 is so wide, it applies powder very seamlessly, unlike many other fan brushes this one is flatter at the surface.

Similar size than the Hakuhodo :

Both brushes are very soft, the Hakuhodo feels softer and is more directional, firmer but I get more use with the Koyudo.

A big difference in the surface it covers :

You may already have the Rae Morris Radiance so I will show you a few pictures to compare the size of both together :

The Koyudo fan’s surface is rounded in the sides and in the corners, so the surface that will touch your skin is in fact not bigger than the Rae Morris but since it’s more spread out and flexible, once you put enough pressure on the skin to apply your product it will cover more surface than the Rae Morris and there will be no lines to the application. It’s too fluffly to use cream with it in my opinion but I will use any kind of powder with it.

It comes in a little cardboard box, with a little velvet pouch, it’s cute but I have problems taking it out so I won’t necessarily use it, I have other little pouches that close completely and that allow a more easy access.

I washed it, it did shed a few hairs but it stopped, absolutely no dye transfer.

I do recommend you this little gem, I am simply in love !!

Tempted anyone ?

I did rave about these products in the past but there is also a dark side to them that I sometimes only notice afterwards, when facing a more intense daily usage.  If I didn’t care about the product itself, I would simply not repurchase it. However, the items I will show you below are items that I will repurchase no matter what -providing I can still find them and I can afford it- because the product is so good that I am ok to compromise and I will find a way to live with the inconvenience incurred. But, love doesn’t always need to come with pain !!! so if there is any way for the Companies to neutralize this pain, I certainly encourage it !

The purpose of this post is to :

• share some tips and tricks in case you are experiencing the same situation with similar products, if you do and you have some advice please also share back with us!
• marketing teams are sometimes scanning for reviews or for feedback from customers, if you have an opinion on these items, either agree or disagree, please also kindly share !

Below some incriminated products that make me question their design, you may recognize some of them  :

Ellis Faas

If you have already tried their products there is a big chance you loved them too. I really deeply love the texture, blendability, staying power, colors, everything about the content is so spot on. The only problem for me it’s the packaging, it is an amazing idea but…. You are meant to twist the back of the pen and that action will push the product out through the middle of the pen’s brush. It works fine the first few times but then with time it starts to get more difficult. There is no way to adequately twist the pen and smoothly control the amount of product you need so you may waste a lot in the process.

I don’t want to soak it and leave it soaking in anything because if I do, the liquid could eventually enter the pen and alter the product, but I have tried washing the brush and it didn’t help a lot, so I snipped the brush with scissors. It hasn’t really solved the problem and it made the pen look… horrible. Even without the brush, the product is not released properly.

There is no way I can manage to not waste product with these pens. The packaging is sexy, unique and a brilliant idea but that does not work really well for me. I have to try to find a way to either depot the product or do something that allows me to use it more economically.

Even though they come with a brush, you still need to use a separate one to blend IMO, you can use your fingers but I don’t like that. Maybe some kind of built-in tube dispenser inside the pen (without the brush tip) would be more appropriate.

If you found a way to use them easily and clean them efficiently, I would really be happy to know how you do it.

I don’t experience problems with the pen for the blushes and the lipsticks but the eyeshadows are a total mess ! I am relieved that they have the foundation also available in bottles because today this is my HG.

If I find a way to solve this problem, I will be really happy and I will probably use these on a daily basis, today the practical aspect of it is the only reason why I don’t use them even more often but I already use them several times a week and I have gone through quite a lot of them already, I still repurchase… but I hope someday they will become easier to use.

I have done a little post about them some time ago if you want to see more.

Serge Lutens

The packaging is simple and sleek, I don’t use the sponge applicators so all that space for 3 sponge applicators… well… I’d rather preferred if the rest of the space could be used to store their blush or foundation refill, I tried, it wouldn’t fit anyway. But that’s not what drives me insane with this palette. What I really have issues with is the width of the eyeshadow pans. You won’t really be bothered until *mess* day, when you have finished your application, are ready to leave then you decide you “just-want-to-add-a-tiny-bit-more-of-highlight”, you dip your eyeshadow brush, you apply your highlighter … and instead you get a racoon eye !!!  I screamed like a beast ! I was so upset because Lutens eyeshadows once they are applied, they have to be removed with strong make up remover so I had to start the whole eye make up all over again and I was already late…

The pans are so narrow that any base or highlight brush you want to use will have problems fitting in. For the darkest colors it doesn’t matter much but for the lightest one, placed so close to such a dark one, it’s just not very handy at all to say the least.

What I did after this episode is move the white shadow further down in the palette where the risk to touch it at the same time as a dark one is minimized !

I wasn’t so concerned at the beginning but when I started to use the palette more often, it turned into a recurring problem.

You can buy refills but just for the white one, so I thought there was a way to move it… It’s very easy, with a knife you lift the 4 eyeshadow pans (you can see the hole at the front and in the middle of the palette), then you can simply pop the white eyeshadow out (little hole to push the pan out). The palette is not that sexy looking now but the stress level is now under control.

Rouge Bunny Rouge

They have a nice formula, just 3 colors I think, I wish they had a few more. They are long lasting and that’s something I tend to go for in priority.

These are expensive pencils, I can’t believe it’s not possible to retract them once you have twisted them out, I don’t know … maybe you want to take a picture of the color to show in your blog or maybe you want to check how much product is left… well, no, don’t do it because you’ll regret it.

For now I will probably not repurchase because I can find other similar colors with Addiction or Chanel, but if they had colors that Addiction didn’t had, yes, I would certainly repurchase. I am just disappointed that for the price they haven’t included that basic function !

RBR make amazing highlighters, they come in huge bottles and they will last you a life time. Well… sort of. If you feel bad about wasting product, you will feel pretty horrible with this. When you press the pump, the amount of product that will be released corresponds to at least 5 applications… If you try to gently press the pump and dose the quantity of product you want, good luck with that !

In the little plastic pot, the contents of just one pump (for me it’s probably enough for 5 to 10 applications) :

You can try to depot some and keep it in a little sample pot, you probably will end wasting less product.

By Terry Ligne Blackstar

I love this eyeliner, it’s not that easy to apply unless you are used to this type of applicators, very directional and sharp. But once on, it’s like a tattoo.

The problem I have with it is that it dries. Not because it dries on its own, but because when you think it’s closed, IT’S NOT. You have to push it really hard to hear a second “click”.

The one at the top is not closed, of course you can see that, but if you don’t pay attention and don’t look, it may remain half-closed.

Mine is dry, doesn’t work anymore. When I bought the purple one, I already had experienced the problem with the black one so I paid more attention and the purple is still working fine.

At the beginning, what I did is remove the tip, turn it over and use the other end…  It won’t solve the problem at all but it will allow you to use it for a little longer.

Again, they are not cheap, so I was really sad that it dried so fast, specially when I noticed it was also my fault. Just be careful if you buy them and make sure they are fully closed when you finished with them.

I have to go buy a second black one because this thing is a laser !

Armani or other similar compacts

The new Eyes to kill compacts have two layers, one with the eyeshadows and one with just the applicators. Since I don’t use the applicators, I removed the plastic insert at the bottom of the compact and I store some setting powder instead, or a bronzer or a blush. I do that for many other compacts too, I have just a little beauty bag with me and this allows me to optimize any space available.

It’s not that it drives me crazy, but I highly prefer smaller compacts and if possible without sponge applicators, so this doesn’t only applies to Armani but to any other compacts.

I don’t use the brushes that come with them, sometimes they are good but I often find that the brush they pack with the product is not appropriate for the product it’s meant for. For example La Prairie bronzer, it’s a thick dense (not that soft) brush which to me is good for blush or contour, but not the best option for the finish I want to achieve with this bronzer so I don’t really understand it, but it’s probably just a personal preference. The only applicators I find really good are the ones included in Suqqu or RMK, all the others are discarded, well, not really discarded but kept in a plastic bag for whatever silly reason…

Some compacts are easy to depot, RMK, Suqqu, are meant to be depotted so if you see a little hole, you usually can insert a paperclip and push the pan out. Others like Illamasqua, Dior, use very light glues and can just be lifted from the compact with a knife. My recommendation is : don’t force it ! if it’s not easy, don’t risk it !

My recommendation if you do that : Keep the modified compacts separated from other items otherwise it’s the best way to lose track of where you placed your blushes or eyeshadows !

The Duwop gave me the idea to mix some products like bronzers and blushes, I can show you some that I like to mix together :

Sorry that the pics are sometimes showing the items twice…

You get the idea, I save space mixing the pans and using very soft double sided tape to keep them in place, if the tape is too strong you won’t be able to easily remove them, avoid casualties !

Nars Longer than Life

A fantastic and long-lasting formula, love love love it.

The problem with these… you have to twist the back of the pencil to get the product out, but you don’t know how much product is left. I use them on a daily basis and I like to see the remaining product as I use it…

I have used a sharpener thinking that this will solve my problem, I thought I would be able to sharpen it as any other pencil since I didn’t care about the twisting… NO. It does not work. Spot the one that has been sharpened :

You see that the beige is not “safe” anymore, I still use it but I have to be careful not to stab my eyes with it. I may try to repair it with something sometime in the future but I’ll probably finish it before anyway.

The idea of the “non-necessary sharpener” is nice but there should be some kind of sign to show where the spring pushing the content is located, or anything similar… Hope you understand what I mean

By the way, you can remove the end and use it to sharpen the point in case you hadn’t noticed.

Rae Morris

There are several reasons why I am a bit upset about this #23 brush, if I didn’t care about it, I wouldn’t be so sad but honestly I love this brush to pieces… well, not really because not the handle  but just the head. It’s soft, gentle with my dry skin, no exfoliation whatsoever and it’s just the right size. When I ordered the Rae Morris set, this was the brush I was most excited about when I saw it in Jodi’s video 10:53. Imagine my surprise when I received the set and it was a different #23 instead.  The #23 they sent me was a mess, shed like crazy and it’s really not worth it at all.

At the top the one I hate, at the bottom the one I love :

I also hate the magnets in the ferrules, they drive me insane and make me not want to use the brushes at all but again, that’s personal. Another thing that I dislike : some of the brushes rattle (the magnet is unglued). It’s irritating. Despite all that, I still want a backup of this particular one… but it doesn’t exist anymore.

Since this exact #23 was not in the first set, they sent me another set, that’s why I could still get my hands on it… after having paid 250 euros in custom taxes yes, they were kind to send me another set, but honestly if I knew I had to pay that much at the customs I wouldn’t have asked for a new set…  In conclusion, that was quite an expensive brush to get !

Ordering something and getting something else it’s just wrong, specially when you find something that is so great and then it’s replaced with something not even close.

Le Metier de Beaute kaleidoscopes

The first time I saw this kaleidoscope packaging, I was amazed ! such an innovative idea ! but it comes with some drawbacks …

The first drawback is maybe not that relevant, the design is cool but you have to slide your pans so not the fastest way to use a palette. But the design is fun so I can live with it.

Second drawback, is that they are very fragile, so even though there is a hole to depot them, the glue is often too strong and there is a high risk of breaking them, just be aware, if they resist, I wouldn’t push it…

I have received a few kaleidoscopes with eyeshadows broken so since there is no way for me to return them back to sender, every time I order one I pray

Bottom line

Despite the pain and the difficulties encountered with these items, I still love them -a lot- and I will repurchase them but I honestly think there is room for improvement. I think I could enjoy working as a product design tester -A LOT- !! Would you ?

Do you have this kind of experiences with beauty products ? How do you deal with the issues ?

You may remember my recent  post about Serge Lutens, when I was researching for Serge Lutens style looks I found this article about Evgeny, it was the first time I read about him but if he has Serge Lutens as an icon, he can only be good, right ? Right.

Evgeny is a Russian makeup artist internationally recognized, please hop to the About page on his website to see his career path. Below a picture of him during one event. I love his style and wish it was me sitting there with him  :)

My mission is to hunt and test new treasures for you to splurge on with confidence whenever you feel like. I have contacted Evgeny Cosmetics to ask a few questions about the brushes to get a bit more info about the hair -I hadn’t realized that when you mouse over the brushes the details are dynamically displayed on the left ! Never mind… I am really glad I contacted them !

During my first emails I did not know it was Evgeny himself replying to me, so I told them I was pleased to see that they knew their products so well and then he said :

This is Evgeny writing to you. I guess I need to know everything about
my product, right? (but I don’t remember the nicknames of every goat I
sheered:)

We have exchanged quite a few emails already, always promptly replying to me, this man has a great sense of humor, is talented, respectful and created a wonderful make up brush collection.

You know my private brush collection is quite big, well, more “diverse” than big actually, but sometimes I can still be amazed, how great is that ? when you think you have seen it all… you find little wonders like these.

I often discuss new discoveries with my friends and followers behind the scenes  ”have you tried this, do you have that, what do you think? etc…” My friend Nikoleta sent me an email on Nov.7th, 2012, “have you heard/tried Evgeny brushes ?“  Nikoleta is the reason why I found Koyudo in the first place, then of course I had to go totally crazy about Koyudo and their insane gorgeous creations. This time Nikoleta was asking for my opinion but I hadn’t tried the Evgeny brushes at that time and I had totally forgotten about her email until this week when I was searching for “Evgeny” in my emails and found her email hiding in the past… 

It’s not that I don’t want to try all the brushes in the world, but my budget has limits. Today I focus more on making small orders to try a brand than ordering the full set without having properly seen the product before, mistakes that I made in the past !

I ordered the 3 blue squirrel brushes from Evgeny, the Polina, the Blending and the Crease. Since I ordered with the cheapest shipping option and no insurance he sent me an email with the info of the parcel, they were shipped from Canada on the 5th of April and they reached me on the 11th of April.

When I read this interview, I see at least 3 points we have in common : 1) our love for Serge Lutens, 2) the importance of mascara, and 3) we don’t want to work for companies and have to promote something we don’t really believe in.

I don’t know him personally, I never met him yet I feel extremely close to him. The reason is probably because the design of his brushes feels like we have the same vision and needs, I only got 3 brushes in my first order so I can only talk about these 3 today but I have already ordered the rest of the available collection online.

The handles are made of ebony wood, they are short and easy to carry, they feel solid, they remind me of the Hakuhodo Kokutan range, compared to the Kokutan it’s the same quality, the Polina blush brush is longer and thinner than the Kokutan e/s L. The Blending and the Crease do not have similar options in the Hakuhodo line.

Here two Kokutan and two Evgeny :

The Polina brush

I am in love with the Hakuhodo Kokutan e/s L but it has even been perfected with this Polina, if you liked the Kokutan e/s L but you wanted a softer and less dense version of it, this is the one to go for.

The Polina’s hair is approx 4mm longer than the Kokutan therefore it has a bit more flexibility and makes it more fool-proof and easy to use with different products.

In terms of softness and quality, the hair is similar to the Fine Kalla, but a bit softer than the Kokutan.

I love tiny little brushes, just like the Hakuhodo, the Tanseido is meant to be an eyeshadow brush but I use them on the cheeks, for sculpting, blush, highlight, setting powder. If you are in the hunt for little cheek brushes, I totally recommend you the Polina brush, with the Fine Kalla they are the most multi-purpose of the group, but the Polina being more flat at the surface and less flexible than the KK-002 it can provide better blending and better control.

I add the RMK cheek (full squirrel) close to them, this one is also a winner in terms of multi-tasker but as you can see it’s much bigger than the other 4.

The Blending brush

The hair of the blending brush is not as soft as the Polina but is more similar to the Kokutan brushes. This makes it more efficient for blending yet soft enough to use on my eyelids.  What I love about it is the size and shape, just pointy enough to deliver more precise blending than the ones I currently use and big enough to be able to work fast on larger areas.

That’s the type of brush I was looking for since 2008 ! I have no words to explain how much I love it, a brush that has enough density without sharp edges during application, finally someone got it right !  It’s a big day for me, you don’t even imagine how much I have been looking for this one. Finally a brush that you truly can use as multi-purpose, with which you can highlight or contour without the sharp edges and the heavy blending required or the careful building of product, this one is so easy to use and you will do so many things with it, totally worth every penny.

I have similar options but this brush is unique. It’s something in between the Hakuhodo 212 and the Hakuhodo G5524, less densely packed, more suitable for efficient soft blending without the drawback of removing too much product in the process. The Kokutan T is like its little baby, they do not offer the same functionality though, the Kokutan is more adequate for precise outer V.

The other goat blending brushes I use (Edward Bess, Chomotto) are efficient but too scratchy for my eyelids, I use them but not on a daily basis, it’s depends on the sensitivity of my skin. The Edward Bess is the most similar in terms of size and efficiency but it doesn’t have the softness of the Evgeny.

The Hakuhodo J214R is in this picture for comparison purposes, it’s about the same hair length and width but the Evgeny blending brush is more dense, the J214R starts to be thinner at the middle of its hair length unlike the Evgeny which remains full till the point.

The Crease brush

The hair quality is very good, not as soft as the Chikuhodo Z-series or Suqqu brushes but I often receive emails from women looking for soft brushes but “not too soft”, mentioning that too soft brushes do not deliver enough blending or heavy application, that is true, it’s better to find the right balance between softness and efficiency, which is right where this brush belongs.

My HG are the Tom Ford 13 and the Nars 12, I can’t stop talking about these two can I… well this crease brush is located right in between the two in terms of precision and softness.

This Evgeny crease brush is softer than : the Nars brushes, the Trish 29, the Paula Dorf, the Mac 226, the Rae Morris 8, the Louise Young but it’s not as soft as the Hakuhodo S 142 or the G5522.

Some crease brushes are not tapered enough for me, others are too pointy and therefore not dense enough at the point, but this shape is very clever, the density is sufficient, it’s not too floppy, not too pointy. I wouldn’t mind if it was a bit softer since my eyelids are a pain but I can use it even better and more softly than the two Nars brushes and the application is much more pleasant than with the Nars. The softer options I own are the Hakuhodo S 142 and the G5522 but the S 142 is too floppy and the G5522 too big for the crease.  Again this brush is easy to use, just like the Blending one and the Polina, so they are fantastic also for beginners.

I have only these 3 brushes to show you for now, but I did order the rest of the brushes made of goat and sable. I’ll be able to show you comparisons with the Shu Uemura brushes and since recently I have been loving and enjoying the efficiency of “soft” goat brushes I’ll be able to tell you if Kashmir goat hair is soft enough for delicate skin.

More about Evgeny

Since I had the chance to get a direct contact with the “creator” himself, I just couldn’t stop there
I have asked him a few questions for our pleasure and knowledge, below an exclusive little precious interview with Evgeny :

Me: Where are your brushes assembled ? do you have a team helping you ?

Evgeny : I am receiving brushes in parts and assemble them personally as I have orders from clients and stores (same with KISSETTES).
Everything you see on Facebook page is more creative, “feathery” and fancy (as everybody likes different things). I was making few sets to match interior of the “private jet”,boudoirs or shoes, whatever client likes:)
I have basics BLACK/BROWN sets and most custom made orders I create is more colorful or just when I have new ideas and feel like make one right away (just like in life:)

****

That’s it for the questions, I hope this was helpful for you, it was such fun getting to know him a bit better.

In regards to the order, I placed it on his website, paid with paypal. Once this is done, he contacts you to ask you what shipping you would like and sends you the invoice for the selected shipping accordingly (starts from 10 cad, I have chosen the cheapest shipping option of approx 10cad and the envelop arrived in a week).

They were wrapped in silk paper with a sticker that he signed :

They come with a few leaflets and instructions :

You know that I am fighting with the renovation works at home, trying to prepare a studio for me and my brushes, I found the furniture I want to install but since the room is in pieces at the moment there is no way I can start moving in there. When it’s ready, I want to put a thin and long white dresser (or vanity?) not sure how you call these in English, it’s shiny and lackered, very sleek but simple and I have the intention of getting one of these feathery Kissettes for the decoration :

A colorful one, red or white feathers depending on the “final look” of the room

And just for pleasure, you can have a final look at the gorgeous Evgeny in action

I’ll keep you informed about the other brushes that I ordered. If you have any questions related to any of the brushes mentioned in these pictures, please just let me know, as always, I’ll be happy to help.

I sincerely want to thank Evgeny for his time and for authorizing me to use his pictures, I wish him all the very best and I am eagerly awaiting his cosmetic line.

“What do you do on your free time?“
..this, that and I have a beauty/makeup blog“
“oh…. really ? you don’t look like that kind of woman…“
“hmmm and what would that particular kind be ?”

There is a sudden embarrassing silence, then I stop their agony and change subject before they have a stroke…   Maybe I don’t match the “beauty model magazine” standards, or can you not enjoy makeup after you reached a certain age ?? Ok,  I don’t wear a killer smokey eye on a daily basis but make up is not only intended for runways or movies and it’s not only meant to make you look fake and superficial, I just want to have fun and use it to make me look healthier, glamorous, yet natural.

I receive many emails from women in their 40+ who would like to start using make up but who just don’t know where to start. Unfortunately I am no professional, all I know I got it from talking to make up artists or to sales assistants at the beauty counters, getting advice from Youtube gurus and watching nice and useful videos so if I can manage a nice make up look, you definitely can.

My needs were different some years ago, now I focus more on anti-ageing tutorials and products more adapted to mature skin. It depends what you are expecting from makeup, just make you feel better ? more confident ? younger ? fresher ? desirable ? or just conceal a few flaws ?  Lisa Eldridge gives great advice on her channel so just try Youtube and search for what you want to do and try it for yourself.  Tammy is a sweetheart, I just recently discovered her channel, I can’t believe I didn’t see it before,  a great resource for anti-ageing advice and she is so fun to watch. If you know of any other gurus that give anti-ageing tips, please share !

I will be 42 in 2 weeks therefore today I am simply trying to achieve an enhanced version of me, a fresher and healthier one, exactly like Wayne says here. I cannot pull off strong and heavy makeup looks at my age but I can still look sexy with a smokey eye, there is a beautiful and hot smokey eye for everyone, it’s just a matter of getting to know your features, choosing the appropriate products for you and using efficient make up tools also helps a lot, it takes time but it’s so worth it.

I have tried my best to show you an example of a natural look, how it can be enhancing without shouting makeup. In these 4 pictures this is how it evolves from the 1st picture to the 4th :

1. Starting with a bare face (just moisturizer)
2. Foundation has been applied (Suqqu), I was very pale due to working so many hours, I needed some color to make me look a bit healthier so I applied a slightly darker foundation but if you do that, careful with neck delimitation. My eyes were very red and tired so I applied some whitening drops and then curled my lashes.  I gave my brows a bit of definition with the Tom Ford brow sculptor.
3. In that picture I have added :
   Chantecaille Contour fill on the lips, very efficient against fine lines, provides a soft plump effect and works nicely as a base.
   Addiction Sugar Blond pencil to draw the outer of the lips, just a thin line very blended, this will help define the lips a bit better and make them appear more full and this pencil lasts forever.
   Chanel Rose platine on the bottom lash line to open the eyes, as a luminous long-lasting base for the eyeshadow that I will apply on top
   Nars Rue Bonaparte in the waterline, to remove the redness
   Nars eyeshadow base, but if I needed a color correcting base, there are some from Laura Mercier or Too Faced that I would use instead.
   RMK contour powder in MT-08, just because it’s easy to apply and fits my skintone shadow perfectly, it’s a no-brainer.
   Concealer used : Burberry pen, it’s my favorite highlighter concealer, doesn’t deliver a lot of coverage but it’s very comfortable to wear, doesn’t dry my under eye area.
4. In the last picture I added :
   Chanel Prelude eyeshadow palette on the eyes, a basic look with the very light shade on all the eyelid area, a medium shade in the crease and the darkest to define the eyes and in the outer v.
   RMK extra deep W mascara
   RMK mix for cheeks 04 as blush
   Rouge Bunny Rouge Sweet to touch as highlighter/powder (just in the temples, cheekbones and nose bridge)
   By Terry Lip Definer in 1 Rosy Nude
   Rouge D’Armani in 509
   By Terry gloss in Honeymoon

My main rules : no harsh lines, no glitter, no creasing allowed. Keeping the skin healthy and glowy is also very important for me since I have extremely dry skin so if I use setting powder it has to be the thinnest powder, like the Suqqu or this Rouge Bunny Rouge Sweet to touch for example.

Taking some time in the morning to get ready can have a lot of benefits and it does make a difference for me, well it can’t do miracles but it does wonders    Although we all agree skills and qualifications are the main key to our success we certainly can’t deny that part of it comes from our self-confidence and that’s where makeup can play a useful role, be somehow empowering by giving us that little extra boost of confidence to go through the day.   Women who take care of their appearance are seen to be more competent, amiable and trustworthy (taken from psychological studies), feeling good also affects how we interact with people around us, we will be more pleasant, we will sit taller, we will speak with conviction and that doesn’t only apply to our workplace but also at home with our family.

For me makeup is essentially pure fun, I have fun trying new products and shopping, specially makeup brushes as you may know alerady… We all love shopping and beauty but when these two are combined for me it’s simply just heaven ! Aldona got it so right : It’s fun AND exciting !

If you are just starting, start with safe products, easy to apply and fool-proof. Every one is different and the products that work for me may not work the same way for you but I can show you some of my safe products just to give you little ideas. I have some rare or LE items shown here but I need to mention them because I just love them way too much and who knows, maybe the same or similar products will be available on their permanent range in the future.

Some of my safe fool-proof products for the face

1. Shiseido S6 Champagne Flush (I think it’s being discontinued but I would love it to remain in their permanent range)
2. Chantecaille Les Petales de Rose (LE but I will find a dupe, this is great with pores and very appropriate for day time)
3. Guerlain Radiant Butterfly (LE, I will try to find a dupe), I don’t really love the Meteorite balls but the pressed version in compacts are amazing.
4. Mac Shell Pearl (I just heard it’s being brought back… I love this powder from the first day, in summer I abuse it)
5. Clarins Cotton Flower palette (my everyday hg highlighter, it just brightens in a very subtle way, it’s LE but I wish I could find a dupe without having to spend $$$, honestly this one makes me think of Suqqu quality)
6. Ellis Faas foundation 
7. Guerlain Terracotta Sunny Pink blush
8. Rouge Bunny Rouge Gracilis
9. Rouge Bunny Rouge Sweet to touch
10. Becca Nymph
11. Kevyn Aucoin Candlelight
12. RMK MT-08 (contouring)
13. Chantecaille Emotion blush, some blushes are more fine and more adapted to ageing skin, this is an example but I love Burberry, Tom Ford and many more…
14. RMK Mix for Cheeks in shade 4, RMK blushes have the great benefit to be long-lasting and very finelly milled so it’s a 100% win
15. RMK MT-04 blush

Something extra for the eyes

If you want to have a look at my favorite eyeshadows for more mature eyelids please have a look at this post, most of them are already mentioned in there.

The other eye products I find extremely easy, helpful and safe to use are :

1. Mascara RMK extra Deep W
2. Nars eyeshadow base
3. Urban Decay eyeshadow base
4. Benefit eyebright, I put this in the inner corner of the eyes, faster and easier than using powder
5. Chanel Rose Platine
6. Nars Rue Bonaparte, I have to say the Nars Larger than Life are fantastic, creamy and long-lasting which is quite rare, sometimes they are too thick and I need to apply them with a brush if it’s on the lash line
7. Nars Via Appia
8. Addiction Rabbit Hole, great color if you don’t want black but “nearly black”, I will last all day and can be precisely applied straight from the pencil
9. Tom Ford brow sculptor, there are cheaper options, no need to go for TF
10. Benefit Fake up, I just bought it and it feels nice and moisturizing as a concealer for wider areas
11. Urban Decay 24/7 Concealer FBI, impressed with the texture of this, I prefer the Burberry but this delivers a bit more coverage
12. Burberry Sheer concealer Soft beige N°02
13. Trish McEvoy Line Refiner (please see comment further down about this product)
14. Mac Blacktrack (use a brown gel eyeliner if black is too harsh for you)

Some of my safe and HG products for lips

1. Chantecaille contour fill
2. By Terry gloss in Honeymoon
3. Edward Bess Night Orchid lipstick
4. Rouge d’Armani in 509
5. Cle de Peau T5
6. Shiseido RD203 (replacing my beloved discontinued Chanel 77 Santal, it’s nearly exactly the same color and texture, mentioned here)
7. Rouge Bunny Rouge Marco
8. Chanel Bois de Rose
9. Make up for ever 1C
10. By Terry 1 Rosy Nude
11. Addiction Sugar Blond, multipurpose

My little favorite “anti-ageing/anti-tiredness” tricks

I work way too many hours, all in front of a computer screen, sometimes my eyes are red and tired, if I have an important meeting I really don’t want to look like a tired rabbit, so I apply some whitening drops. If you have an interview and you couldn’t sleep at night maybe that would help you look fresher.

For the lips I love to apply a beige liner around the lips, without looking harsh it gives a nice definition to the lips and helps lipstick or gloss to look more neat.

The Chantecaille Lip Contour is also a winner for me, I cannot live without it anymore.

The Trish McEvoy Line Refiner won’t do a miracle but it helps to give a smoother aspect to the skin. There are actually many products like this one, they can give a temporary help whenever necessary.

Bottom line

Be creative and think outside the box, if one  product doesn’t work one way, it can work another, mixed or blended, or applied differently but don’t take it too seriously, make up is supposed to be fun, therapeutic, so enjoy its benefits and stop feeling guilty about taking some time for yourself  !

And for even more fun, please hop to Aldona’s website and have a look at her website and funny t-shirts

I couldn’t help getting one

If you have questions… don’t hesitate and thanks for reading !!

HAVE FUN !!!

My very big thanks to Aldona for creating these fantastic and funny drawings <3