Make Up For Ever – Large foundation brush N°108

Flat foundation brushes are not something I am crazy about but I do need them on a daily basis.

My foundation routine is not a heavy and painful process providing I have the right tools. Today I will show you my latest acquisition :

The right foundation tools for me

1. A flat synthetic foundation brush to place and distribute the foundation AND
2. A goat brush to finish the application and provide an even and airbrushed application

I am extremely picky with the result of foundation application, I learn new techniques on a regular basis from great youtube videos (thank you Lisa!)  and I continuously improve myself. I am not an expert but I have realized that when I have the foundation applied at the counters they always leave my foundation sitting at the surface of my skin, I look like I am clearly and obviously wearing foundation and when I look at the mirror I feel the urge to scrape my face. The only time they blended really well was at the Tom Ford counter but so far, at many other counters the finish was not done properly or let’s say…  as I would like it to be done.

How I apply my foundation on a daily basis (daily products : Ellis Faas, By Terry, Burberry, Tom Ford)

1. I apply some foundation on the back of my hand and dip a flat foundation brush in the product
2. I place an even quantity on the forehead, center of the face, chin
3. I distribute and lightly blend the foundation with the same flat brush
4. Once the foundation is evenly spread, I use a goat foundation brush to finish the blending and give it a polished result
   (Goat brushes :  Rae Morris Radiance, a Koyudo Fu-pa, the Houkodou, to mention a few examples)

Benefits with this technique

• A smooth first application with a flat synthetic brush will reduce the number of strokes I will use for the final blending with the goat brush, therefore less abrasion
• A flat foundation brush will often absorb less product during application, less waste
• You can use any flat foundation brush, not necessarily high quality since you will be blending with another one
• The goat brush will remain “usable” for longer without washes in between since it hasn’t been used to start the application but just to finish it

What if…

…I finished the foundation application just with the flat brush ?

– It may not deliver a streaky result (well depending on the brush) but the foundation will still be sitting on top of the skin in a more obvious way
– I have recently discovered that I had a funny “blind spot” on my cheeks : a place where the natural mouvements while blending with a flat brush is being automatically skipped. It’s a little triangle just between the ear, the mouth and the nose 🙂  something I could correct if I paid more attention you will say… but when I am in a hurry, if I just use a flat brush and it looks totally ok inside the room, when I am in daylight I can clearly see that “blind spot” …

This is just what I do on a daily basis in winter but there are many other ways to apply foundation and many of these different ways are just perfect, it will depend on the brush, the product, the skin and our own preferences.

Let’s talk a little bit about this Make Up For Ever 108… 

I have enough flat brushes to do my daily rotation for a week since I use a clean one every day but when I was at Sephora, there was something intriguing about this one.

The hair length is 3cm, the base of the ferrule is 2.8cm, the thickness of the hair 1.5cm. Unlike many other flat foundation brushes this one is more fluffy at the point.

Compared to the fun 412, the hair is more sleek and has better “gliding” capabilities. It feels like the 412 has more grip at the tip of the hair.

You can see that the 108 is thick and fluffy (for a flat brush!) but it still works like a flat brush, you can use it at 90° to apply the product but you’ll have to use paddling motions.

If you want to use it alone, without any other stippling or goat brush to finish the application, you could, it will perform better than similar flat brush options shown here but I still believe the final result will be more flawless and long lasting if you use a goat brush afterwards (or a synthetic stippling brush if you don’t want to use natural hair for example).

These are all synthetic brushes, the Billy B has the finer bristles with the most flexibility to them.
Some time ago I preferred the N°7 over the Chanel 6 because the hair felt thicker, had better finishing capabilities, but today since I use them only for the first step of the foundation application it doesn’t really matter anymore.

Chanel n6 – Billy B Two – Mufe 108 – N°7 foundation

The feeling of the 108 brush when it’s dirty it’s not better than any other flat brush, you will still feel the need to wash it after each application or the hair will stick together.

The only problem with this brush is that it’s heavy and sturdy, if you need to travel with it you may be upset, it weights the same as both the Chanel and the Billy B together (29g). It feels solid but it comes with a price.

If I had to apply make up throughout the day, I would not use such a heavy brush… I don’t feel the same about other heavy brushes but this one is very heavy at the point so the balance is compromised and I don’t find it very comfortable, maybe there is a reason why it has been designed this way.

Make Up For Ever have created fun and innovative brushes, unfortunately since I am not a makeup artist I won’t use the full potential of them but I do appreciate that there are nicer synthetic brushes out there, although I still prefer to work with natural ones…