Six Brilliant Brushes from Mac, Stila, Smashbox, Bobbi Brown and Sonia Kashuk

My brush collection keeps expanding and expanding, and oh, expanding some more. Having lots on hand means I don't have to wash the same ones over and over (bonus) but it also means finding favourites can become a bit like The Hunt For Red October (not so good). Despite that, I do have my pet brush children, so this post is dedicated to them.

Here they are, the ones that make it to the top of the class.

1. Smashbox angled blusher brush - this was part of a limited edition from about four years ago now and it's absolutely my fave brush for powder blusher because of its nice fat, soft head. It just applies blusher perfectly and I love it muchly
2. This was a Target purchase in New York and is one of Sonia Kashuk's line. I *think* it's the Synthetic Crease Brush and it's fab for very precise shadow placement
3. This is another enduring favourite. It's a Bobbi Brown Eye Shader Brush and I use it every day to apply a pale wash of colour across the whole eye. Its big head looks like it might not work, but hey, it really does
4. This is Mac's 130 Short Duo Fibre brush and is very like its larger siblings except it's got a smaller, shorter head. This is very good for finely buffing foundation in around the eyes and nose but for me, it's main strength is for use with cream and liquid blushers and highlighters because it gives a really polished finish. Love it
5. No surprises with this one: it's Mac's 187. I have a few other duo-fibres but none are as good as this. I use it for liquid foundation and for highly-pigmented blusher too because it applies product more sheerly
6. And this is another oldie and one of the first 'proper' brushes I got. It's a Stila number 9 brush and is a big, fluffy blending feller. I have several other blending brushes which have tighter heads, but this one is so soft and nice to use and diffuses colour so well I come back to it all the time

So that's what I pick as highlights from my sprawling brush collection. What about you? Got any similar faves to me or have you particular picks of your own? Tell us in a comment.

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