New brushes : web discoveries – Part 2

If you have been reading the recent comments, you may know that yesterday I received a few new brushes, 6 bought on the Tanseido website and 3 on the Rakuten website.  In the afternoon I managed to also buy a funny brush but you’ll know more if you get to the end of the post…

My research at the moment is specially targeting  :

• Mac 239 dupes
• Small (tiny) and very soft laydown brushes
• Suqqu dupes
• Big eyeshadow brushes OR small cheek brushes
• Foundation brushes

With that in mind, I ordered the following brushes :

I have to say that my (and our) determination is transforming our research for exceptional brushes into a fun an scarily easy process…

Tanseido have many laydown brushes, I first ordered the YWQ 10 and YWQ12 but I found them too big for what I had in mind : application of eyeshadow on the mobile lid. They are extremely soft and of the best quality possible.

I FINALLY found my HG small brush : YWQ 7. I was using the small Hakuhudo G5513 or the small Rouge Bunny Rouge 005 or the Mac 228. I use these brushes to apply my pencil eyeliner in the bottom lash line so it has to be extremely soft but firm. I am happy to say that the YWQ 7 meets my needs by 100% , I will have a few of them in the future but in the meantime, in order to use it everyday and spot clean it I will use and abuse my Bobbi Brown cleaning spray.

I discovered that applying pencil liner on the tip of a tiny brush and then from the brush on the bottom lash line, the application was more appropriate for my ageing eyes. You will have a similar result than with an eyeshadow (soft and sultry) but with long lasting benefits. With the recently released Lancome Chocolate Affair pencil, it’s fantastic, the pencil is too creamy to apply it straight from the pencil but with this application method you get more control and the application lasts all day long !

The Mac 239 is another HG laydown, I could not live without it and because I am curious I am trying to find a dupe, for fun mostly because I don’t know how it cat get better than the Mac 239.

The YWQ 9 is softer but thinner, although it may become a bit fluffier with washes. Another HG, this YWQ 9 surprises me by how efficient it is, picks a lot of product applies evenly without fallouts. Again one brush that is going to be duplicated in my collection. I still don’t know if it will be better than the Mac 239 but yes, there is a chance.

I am not a fan of the Piccasso “239”, it’s a bit too rough for me. The Hakuhodo J242G is also a great brush but I even prefer the Tanseidos.

Since the Suqqu S seems to be discontinued, (WHY???), I am trying to find similar options. I ordered the Fine Kalla KK-004, as you can see in the pictures, it’s a mutant of the two Suqqus. It delivers nearly the same precision as the S but with M blending capabilities. Although it’s not as soft as the Suqqus, it’s a must-have. It picks more product than the Suqqu and does an incredibly great job at packing product, blending, smudging eyeshadow on the lashline and also with the outer V application. At the beginning I was a bit disappointed because it doesn’t have the “perfection” of the Suqqu, but it still is very soft and extremely efficient. Totally worth it. Loving the handles!

I will carry on searching for a Suqqu S dupe (just because it’s fun). I have ordered this Chomotto brush but I am not sure it could be similar to the Suqqu S anyway, I will post when I get it.

I really enjoy the Suqqu S, other similar brushes are either too thick or too pointy in comparison but I do enjoy all of them, there is not a “best” brush here, it will all depend on what you need. Some would prefer more precision, others may prefer a softer option, and many will look for a versatile pencil brush that is pointy, soft and has great blending capabilities, in that case you may love the Fine Kalla KK-004.

You are probably wondering how the Fine Kalla cheek brush KK-002 compares to the Suqqu and the Chikuhodo, so I took some pics :

Sorry about the blush residue on the brushes (I could only notice it on the pictures).

The Chikuhodo is the more dense of the 3, then the Fine Kalla then the Suqqu (but my Suqqu is a bit weird… although it’s authentic, it is totally different from any other Suqqu cheek brushes I saw).

The softest is the Suqqu, then it’s difficult to say, the Fine Kalla and the Chikuhodo are so similar that I could not tell. You will cover more surface with the Z-4 and you might get better blending capabilities but the three brushes are excellent with very  pigmented blushes and they will all feel incredibly soft. I guess it will be a matter of personal taste and preference (and budget).

Same as above, at first I was a bit disappointed with the KK-003, not as soft as the Suqqu L and not as pointy. But, I was wrong to be disappointed. The fact that it’s less soft than the Suqqu makes it better for picking up product and blending, actually it makes it amazing for that, of course it doesn’t hurt or feels scratchy at all, it’s just not as soft as the Suqqu. Since it’s flatter is better for blending and since the hair are layered starting in the middle of the head, it picks and applies base color beautifully. For me it’s another must-have.

I know that Suqqu have similar brow brushes but I don’t have them. Browsing the Rakuten site I found this one “ho-gentei 4” (?) not sure about the names though, it was 50% off so I decided to try it… and here we go, another must-have. I don’t need precision with the grooming of my eyebrows so this kind of brushes is absolutely perfect for me, I regret not having tried it before. HG for me. It delivers a very natural application of eyebrow powder and has excellent blending capabilities.

I also wanted to try darker laydown brushes like the Tanseido YCQ 12s, it’s actually a weird shape, very thin and VERY soft. It delivers a stronger application than the Hakuhodo S 127, probably because the hairs are shorter and you can press the powder with more strength on the eyelid, actually it is insanely soft and while I was using it, my eyes went from  (o_o)  to  (O_O)   !!! it’s SOFT and it WORKS ???

When I saw it for the first time yesterday I didn’t think I would use it at all but when I tried it I entered a whole new world… I think of all of you who have very very delicate eyelids, this will be a Godsend.

I got the Piccasso here recently but it feels too rough for my eyelids, it’s goat so it’s normal that is isn’t as soft as the other squirrel brushes in the picture but with my delicate eyelids I have to stay away if I can.

I am looking for big eyeshadow brushes but to use as cheek or contour brushes. I ordered this AQ14 eyeshadow brush with the idea of using it as a contour brush. Spot on !

Soft as red squirrel (although it’s not written red squirrel on the description), a dream to use. Not as dense as the Hakuhodo so it will work better with very pigmented products.

I am looking for a less dense and slightly bigger brush than the Shu 18, I thought the Tanseido YGQ 17 would be the one. It is less dense but I was expecting thicker hair bristles, although they are a bit thicker than the Koyudo or the TF (so more similar to the Shu), they are still quite thin and very soft. I’ll try it with liquid foundation and mineral foundation and I will let you know how it performs. For blush it’s actually really good and to me it’s the perfect size.  Either way, a great purchase.

UPDATE :

I have just used the YGQ 17 for the application of Ellis Faas foundation. Here are my thoughts :

It is very pleasant to use, requires more time than with a denser brush but the feeling is actually interesting. It looks like this one only comes with a long handle (you’ll notice that most of the Tanseido brushes come with both short or long handles and in different colors), I started the application by picking some product that I had transferred onto the back of my hand, then swirling it into my skin, I wasn’t very confident with the application but after a while it started to feel better, the application takes a while but it’s relaxing, maybe the fact that you are applying the foundation with a very long handled brush adds some kind of artistic feeling to it. It delivered a sheer but natural coverage, with very very little exfoliation (almost invisible) compared to other denser goat brushes. This brush will be great for people with dry skin that still want to use goat brushes for a soft application of foundation.

Then suddenly I had an idea 😛 I took a cream blush and I applied it with this brush. Can you guess the result ? Flawless, beautiful, perfect and more. I don’t know what I prefer, how it makes me feel good and glamorous when I use it 😀 or the flawless result it delivers. H-G.

Since I found the perfect size brush for my cheeks (YAQ 17 red squirrel), I wanted to try the YSQ 17 (grey squirrel), you will have great difficulties to find out which one is the softer one. I asked my boyfriend for help (he likes to be involved from time to time 😛 ), he confirmed it was the YAQ 17 but honestly you won’t feel that much difference. Both are the same density, same shape, nearly same softness.

The Tanseido YSQ 17 reminds me of the Miyao shape-wise which is also very soft but the Tanseido quality is above it in my opinion.

In comparison the Koyudo is much more dense and versatile.

Tanseido are a great discovery, I don’t think I could ever be disappointed with this brand.

I am preparing a post with my favorite “makeup sets options” (the softest, the most efficient, etc etc) with brushes from any brand. I am so glad that these brushes arrived before I posted it !!! I’ll have to redo some pics but I totally recommend you Tanseido if you love soft and efficient brushes, just like Hakuhodo or Koyudo (or many others that are being discovered at this moment). Japan IS the source of the best makeup brushes.

I have two big posts being prepared at the moment but I have little time, doing my best to publish them asap !

I just want to thank you all for your support and for your help, either for getting me products that I can’t get from where I live or to share your wonderful discoveries with me, you know how much I enjoy it !

Loving you all 😀

– the end – or is it ???

Since I am showing you the brushes that I got yesterday, well yesterday I also got my hands on another fun brush, absolutely by accident. I had to go out to help my boyfriend with a few things, while I was waiting for him in a shopping center I tried to get inside a professional beauty shop (ONLY for professionals). I am not a professional but I asked them if I could have a look, they asked me if I was in the beauty field and I showed them the website hoping for them to say “OK”.

They said ok ! and I had a look inside… there were mostly items for beauty institutes so not really for me… but I still managed to get another brush for my collection 😀

It’s not a makeup brush, it’s meant to clean and brush away cut hair or residue on the hands after buffing the nails I guess. It’s synthetic and soft, not really a necessary brush but I will use it.

I cut my boyfriends’ hair regularly and it will be useful for brushing away the tiny hairs on his neck 😀

I also got this cute spray bottle for water and a personal care box where I will be storing my tools.

… because I just had to 🙂