Sigma Make-up Brushes: Are they worth it?

I took my sweet time reviewing the Complete Sigma Professional Brush set. The hype around these brushes on youtube has been unreal. It's been the same on beauty blogs. So many people love them. Certain youtube guru's touted these brushes as the next best thing since sliced bread aka just as good as if not better than MAC brushes.

Hmmm.

I disagree. A lot.  On so many points. These brushes are no where near as good as or even better than MAC brushes. I have a decent brush collection and there is no way you are going to convince me that these brushes are on par with MAC. Bull poop. Yes you read right. Bull Poop.

With that being said they aren't completely useless. However I wanna talk about the ones that didn't make it into my personal stash or freelance kit.

Forgot to add the SS252

• The natural hair brushes shed. EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM SHED!
• The smell like dead goat. I know what dead goat smells like cause we used to slaughter them for parties back home. The smell is the same and it does not leave
• The brushes are rather scratchy
• The black haired ones bleed like a shot alien
• They are useless at holding their shape ie. very flimsy

As I worked with these particular brushes I found myself increasing annoyed. They just were not doing what I wanted them to do. Eventually I stopped reaching for them in my brush roll and simply took them out. I'm not going to compare them to their MAC counterparts in terms of what they look like. I just expected these brushes to be very well made considering they are handmade. The quality does not match the claim.

All is not lost for Sigma though. The brushes I can live with are:

• Eyeliner brush
• Concealer brush
• Foundation brush
• Small angle brush
• SS224 blending brush
• SS275 Angled brush

Notice a trend? Bar two, they are all synthetic brushes. Now in my opinion, it is very difficult to mess up a sythentic brush like a foundation or concealer brush. So if these had turned out to be rubbish as well I would have been very unhappy. They aren't the best out there but they serve as great "extras" in my kit.

I only realised about 3 weeks into testing these brushes out that the eyeliner brush is not a lip brush. I automatically used it as a lip brush and have continued to do so. I never once saw it as a liner brush. So it will stay that way.The small angle brush is flimsy-ish but it works when needed. Not as firm as I would like but hey I can live with this one. I have a love hate relationship with the SS275. It's STUPIDLY flimsy but it's great for blending out concealer. Sheds the worst this one. So I hate but it but like it all in one go.

The one brush in this whole brush set that I find worth having is the SS224 blending brush. It is still a bit scratchy. And it sheds and bleeds as well. BUT this brush blends VERY WELL. And I love to blend. Sigma did right with this brush. If it didn't smell or bleed or shed I would love this brush 100%. It is the only brush that performs it's job excellently in this set. The rest are a bit meh.

So this post is probably useless because most of us in the blogosphere have bought what we wanted from Sigma, but I felt like telling you guys anyway.

The question remains: Are they worth it?

If you are starting out from scratch, kinda broke and want something cheap to learn with then maybe.

If you're a season make-up junkie, consider the synthetic brushes but definitely look into the SS224.

If you're a make-up artist possibly consider the SS224. That's the only brush that I believe will be worth your time in the end.

Stay Blessed lovelies xxx

REVIEW: ADesign Master Brush set (14pc)

Not too long ago two very special people blessed me with kit building funds. They thought my freelance business was worth investing in and so they helped me get a few things I've been wanting to get for my kit for a very long time. Ladies I present Adesign Brushes :)

The Adesign Master Brush set comes with 14 brushes and retails for about $175 from Camerareadycosmetics.com or Adesignbrushes.com. Normally I'm not a fan of brushes that come in sets but after much research I decided that these would be a very good buy. There is always a chance that your decision could turn out wrong but in this case I was bang on right. They are brilliant.

The come is this rather sexy faux leather snake skin brush roll. When I first got it I thought maybe they'd left out some of my brushes. I was stressed cause it was a little too compact for my liking...
However when you open it out this is what you get. 14 beautiful brushes. These brushes are very well made. They are all black and on the bottom end of the brush they have the name Adesign on one side of the brush and the name of the brush on the other side so you know which one you're picking up. I'm not sure if the handles are made out of wood but they are quite light and the handles for some of the brushes can be short. Which isn't a bad thing mind. It helps you get better control of the brush when you're working on a client.

When I first washed the brushes, the black haired ones lost some dye. Not anything that would alarm you but just enough for you to notice. Since then they haven't lost any colour. Shedding wise when I first washed them I had some shedding from the bigger fluffier brushes but since then I haven't lost any hair from them and they remain luxuriously soft.

Left to right:-

XL Powder: this brush is huge! and THE SOFTEST brush I own. Hands down. Great for fine powders
Powder: good size head, distributes well, shorter handle, very soft
Cheek: good size head, great for powder blush, soft, medium sized handle
Angle cheek: slightly bigger than MAC 168, not as densely packed, great for a soft wash of colour, not so much for contouring, soft brush

Left to right:-

Foundation: smaller than usual head, great for getting into smaller facial corners, very soft
All Over Shadow: beautiful for all over shadow, soft, can be used to blend outter crease on larger eyelids
Eye 1: amazing brush, soft, packs on colour as well as if not better than MAC 239, tapered to get more definition if needed
Eye 2: great for wet/creme eyeshadows, smooth application, soft, longer handle
Eye 3: amazing with gel liners or smudging khol liners for smokey eye looks, precision application with this brush


Left to right:-

Medium concealer: works like a charm, picks up enough product, longer handle, smooth application
Eye 5: my new eyebrow brush! dense enough to give nice definition, soft enough not to be too harsh, picks up colour well
Lip: smooth application, a tad smaller for fuller lips but does a good job
Small concealer: gets into those tight places like under the eyelid, great application
Groomer: grooms even the wildest of hairs into place, excellent:)

Honestly, I find it really hard to fault this brush set. It was worth every penny spent on it and it's helped loads with upping my game when it comes to make-up application. I am a happy girl!

I intend to collect the other brushes from Adesign that didn't come in the set because there are some that I suspect will work wonders for some clients I have in mind.

My wishlist:

Angle eye
Eye 4
Pointed Concealer
Cream Cheek
Skin Care brush set
Kabuki set
Pointed Foundation Kabuki
Flat Top foundation Kabuki

Yeeeeaaaaaahhhh so I got a lotta saving to do. But I think they'll be well worth it!

Stay Blessed!

Review: GOSH Professional Art Brushes

Hello!

In the UK we don't have as big a selection of make-up products as the USA does. But that don't mean we don't have anything at all. In fact today's review is on a brand of brushes that are more common to the UK than to the US so I hope this will help out my British sisters!

Unless you're rolling in some serious money, are a professional or have someone to spoil you, MAC brushes aren't always the most affordable brushes to buy. Most of the MAC brush prices start as about £16.64 and for one brush in these credit crunching times, that is a lot of money. I'm going to review GOSH Professional Art Brushes as a cheaper alternative that can help you achieve a good make-up look but still be easy on the pocket.

Here they are:

*Note: GOSH Brushes do not come with Red tipped ends. That's just how I mark my
brushes.*

Left to right:

Powder Brush, Synthetic Powder Brush, Stippling Brush, Foundation Brush, Concealer Brush, Eyeshadow Brush-Round, Lip/Eyeliner Brush, Eyeliner Brush- Slanted

These are pretty sturdy brushes with a black wooden handle and shiny black metal ferrulle. They look quite sleek and certainly have the professional feel to them.

POWDER BRUSH

The GOSH website describes this brush as follows:

Large soft brush made of black goat hair with “tips” (i.e. uncut ends so they have a natural finish). The brush is rounded and incredibly soft to work with. Ideal for firm or loose powders.

The Good: For a drugstore make-up brush, this powder brush ain't half bad. It is soft, doesn't scratch your face and becausely its densely packed it is quite good at evenly distributing powder. It has quite a big fluffy head on it and like I mentioned earlier it is a very sturdy brush.It costs about £11-£12 depending on where you buy it but Superdrug does stock it.

The Bad: When you wash this brush it sheds like a balding man! Seriously I lose a good 5 hairs each time I wash it. Not gued! That being said I still like it. I've had mine a while and it still has a stack of hairs in it! It's still as fat as ever!

SYNTHETIC POWDER BRUSH

This brush is not featured on the GOSH website.

The Good: When I bought this brush, I didn't buy it because I knew what to with it. I bought it cause I liked how it felt! Sad excuse I know but it feels lush! It's a dual coloured brush (darkened ends blending into white) and it is super soft and densely packed as well. So what CAN you use it for? In my opinion you can use this brush for several things. It's excellent at applying cream based products. So if you want to apply your moisturiser or primer this brush will do it for you. Wanna apply cream blush? This brush can most certainly do that too and what about foundation? If you're patient enough to work the foundation into your skin after the streaking then this brush is good for that as well.

The Bad:Nothing :) It doesn't shed. It's easy to clean. Probaly one of the best brushes in the GOSH range.

STIPPLING BRUSH

This brush is not featured on the GOSH website.

The reason why I bought this brush was simply because I was looking for a dupe for the MAC 187 stippling brush. At the time everyone online was raving on about how great a brush the MAC 187 was for applying foundation and powders but there was no way I could afford at the time to fork out £29. So at £11 this was a good alternative for me.

The Good: For £11 this is a very good brush. It has dual fibres. The short black bristles and then the white bristles that come through at the top which do the stippling. It's a soft brush that is densely packed as well and it is good for applying anything from foundation to blush and powders. As an alternative to the MAC 187 I think this brush does a good job. I highly recommend it if you're looking for a cheaper alternative.

The Bad: This is another shedder. However I must add that it doesn't shed as much as it's sister the powder brush but you will lose a couple of hairs here and there. Other than that it's pretty good.

FOUNDATION BRUSH

The GOSH website describes this brush as follows:

Looking for a perfect tint? Then use this make-up brush with any GOSH make-up. The dual-coloured nylon hair brush does not absorb make-up onto the hairs but ensures that make-up is evenly applied without waste.

The Good: This was the first ever foundation brush I bought for myself and I loved it. I've had it for ages now but I must admit I don't use it for foundation anymore. I've moved on to other things. As a foundation brush though, this brush is pretty darn good. I have no other similar brushes to compare it to but in my own peronal experience its a good brush. I really can't fault it. It's soft and applies product very well. It has never shed on me and once you get used to it you really can apply your foundation quite well with it. Again this brush retails for about £11 and at that price you simply can't go wrong with it. If you don't fany using it for your foundation you could always use it apply cream blushes, primers and moisturisers too.

The Bad: Zilch in my eyes.

CONCEALER BRUSH

This brush is not featured on the GOSH website


The Good: This brush retails in Superdrug for £11. It's a large paddle shaped synthetic brush that you can use for applying concealer or eyeshadow. Personally I love to use this brush for applying my Mehron AQ colours as bases. It helps me get the right consistency. As an eyeshadow brush this brush is good at putting colour on your lid but you do have to work a little to pack colour. If you're looking for sheer coverage then this is your brush. Applying concealor with this brush is no problem.

The Bad: It can streak a little on you but all you have to do is work the product in a little and you're good to go.

EYESHADOW BRUSH - ROUND

The GOSH website describes this brush as follows:

Round, short brush made of the finest, softest, light brown pony hair. Perfect for applying make-up just below the eyebrow line. Can be used with all kinds of powder eye shadow.

The Good: I have to admit I never bought this brush for it to be a highlighter brush. I never once saw it as that. It costs about £6 and I bought it because I thought it would work well as a crease brush whilst I saved up to get a better one. Here's a bigger picture to show you exactly why.

Does that look like a brush you would use on your brow or your crease!??! I'm not saying you can't use it on your browbone but it just looks as though it was created to work in the crease with all its supadupa roundedness. It's an excellent shape for crease work. It blends out the colours well enough and it's easy to use and durable. For a drugstore brush its probably the best crease brush we have around in the UK for it's price.

The Bad: In my view, this aint the softest brush around. It's a tad scratchy but it ain't anything you can't deal with. I'm just a tad fussy! Other than that, right on with this brush dude!!!

LIP/EYELINER BRUSH

The GOSH website describes this brush as follows:

Multi-purpose, fine-grade brush made of pony hair. Can be used as any eye liner brush with eye liner or effect powder. The brush is perfect for applying lipstick and ideal if you want to use up all your lipstick, as there is always a 1.4 cm residue of lipstick left at the bottom of the holder once the stick has been used.

The Good: This brush is great for lip work. It's soft and can give you very precise lipgloss or lipstick application. The soft hairs are great at distributing the product and you save a whole lot of gloss/stick by using this brush. This brush is also very good for applying eyeshadow on the inner eye (tear duct) as it's small enough for those tight spaces. If you're wanting detailed work on the eye in general this brush will work however I'm still for it being a lip brush more than anything else.

The Bad: As an eyeliner I don't like this brush much. I feel like it's too flimsy to give a good solid line without splaying all over the place. There are definitely better brushes elsewhere for this.

EYELINER BRUSH - SLANTED

The GOSH website describes this brush as follows:

Slanted brush made of nylon hairs. The perfect eye liner brush due to its shape, which is ideal for applying all kinds of eyeliners, powder eye shadow, both wet and dry.

The Good: As an eyeliner brush, I can't complain. This brush is soft enough not to scratch your eyelid but firm enough to give you a good clean line if you're applying liner or shadow on your upper or lower lash line. It holds eyeshadow well when applying it to either lash lines and it works just as great as an eyebrow brush too. If you need to fill out your eyebrows this brush is pretty good at that too. For £6 you can't complain.

The Bad: Nada :)

CONCLUSION

GOSH Brushes are certainly worth the price if you're starting to become serious about your make-up but perhaps don't quite want to splurge on expensive brushes like MAC. They are very well made and look good so who can complain? Apart from the shedders I love my brushes and I use them in my professional kit as well. Gosh does make a few other brushes that I have no feature here, namely:

Eyeshadow Brush - Flat, Eyeshadow applicator, Eyebrow Brush/Comb, Fan Brush and Blush Brush.

I haven't gotten round to buying these yet but if I do, I'll certainly review them for you guys. These brushes are available from Superdrug but in store only as far as I am aware but if you're lucky you can grab a few at a really good price on Ebay.

Stay blessed!