Real Techniques Makeup Brushes Review

When I was much younger (I'm talking early-ish teens, here), the thought of using anything but my fingers or, in hindsight, the horrendous quality 'brushes' that come with makeup sets, to apply cosmetics would never have crossed my mind. Now, however, I very rarely use my fingers at all, except for concealer and cream eyeshadows, and the Real Techniques Makeup Brushes have taken over my collection. Samantha Chapman, of Pixiwoo fame, brought out a line of various brushes around two years ago now and, like most people, I love them. I was easily swayed into buying a few, when I saw how flawless the Pixiwoo sisters looked after using them in their Youtube videos and my collection grew. There are only a select few that I haven't got my hands on, but I have bought duplicates of a couple and they are pretty much the only brushes I use for my face. Whilst the eye brushes are also nice, I do prefer my Mac and Sigma beauties.

The Real Techniques makeup brush collection consists of both face and eye brushes, catering for all your makeup needs and every eventuality.

Expert Face Brush - Densely packed bristles create a firm, broad brush perfect for applying foundation and cream products.

Powder Brush - Large, fluffy and soft brush for applying powder products.

Stippling Brush - A mix of short and long duo-fibre bristles to create a sheer, airbrushed finish when applying foundation, blush, bronzer or highlight.

Blush Brush - Fairly large, fluffy brush for applying cheek products.

Setting Brush - Small, rounded brush ideal for setting targeted areas of the face with powder.

Everyday Essentials Set (Including: Blush Brush, Expert Face Brush, Setting Brush, Deluxe Crease Brush & Miracle Complexion Sponge)

Flawless Base Set (Including: Buffing Brush, Contour Brush, Detailer Brush, Square Foundation Brush & Brush Cup)

Enhanced Eye Set (Including: Medium Shadow Brush, Essential Crease Brush, Shading Brush & Fine Liner Brush, Lash Separator & Brush Cup)

Artist Essentials Set (Including: Expert Edge Large Brush, Soft Accent Brush, Spotlight Fan Brush, Smudge Liner Brush & Lip Smudge Brush)

Made of taclon, the synthetic, 100% cruelty-free, hand-cut bristles of the brushes are so soft, keep their shape when you wash them and are great to apply both cream and powder products. Unlike more expensive brushes, the hairs don't shed and, ensuring you wash them correctly, they should last a considerably long time. I've had mine for around a year now and they haven't deteriorated whatsoever. Each brush is lightweight, though some are quite big to carry in your makeup bag, depending on how large it is.

The Real Techniques makeup brushes are colour coded depending on whether they are base (orange), eye (purple) or finishing (pink) brushes. Personally, I wouldn't rave about their design, but they certainly stand out against the rest of my (mostly MAC) brush collection and are instantly recognisable.

In particular, I love the Real Techniques buffing brush, using that to apply my foundation on most days. It's soft and packed with bristles, whilst still being flexible enough to blend well. It really works foundation into the skin effortlessly and you don't need to work hard to achieve a flawless finish with it. The stippling brush is great for a lighter coverage foundation/tinted moisturiser and for cream products, such as cream blush and highlighter. As it's small and rounded, the contour brush really gives sharp definition and structure to the face when used to apply/blend contour. Because of its softly rounded tip, I also love it for applying highlighter and even blush. The small setting brush is the perfect size to get into the sometimes hard-to-reach eye contour to set under-eye concealer. Being so tiny, it's a great size to carry in a makeup bag for touch-ups and for nights out. Another of my most-used brushes is the blush brush, which I personally find too large for applying blush, but it's the best brush for powdering and applying bronzer, for me. It allows you to add enough powder to give a decent coverage, but is fluffy enough that it blends everything seamlessly, leaving no heavy residues behind.

I wasn't too impressed with the powder brush, as it was just far to big for me to use, or the expert face brush, as the bristles are just too densely packed, meaning that it's harder to blend foundation with, compared with the buffing or stippling brushes. Considering they're made especially for foundation application, I was disappointed by all of the foundation brushes, as they're quite thin and flimsy. Rather than buff makeup in, they tend to just spread it on top with these brushes. However, the pointed foundation brush allows you to reach the trickier parts of the face, such as around the nose and the eye area, and be more precise.

Ranging from £6.99-£12.99 for the individual brushes and £21.99 for the sets, these brushes are fairly priced, cheaper than most higher-end brands, but just as good in terms of quality, if not better. Widely available in drugstores and around the whole world, they're pretty easy to get your mitts on. Unfortunately, not all of the brushes are available individually, which is SO annoying and means that you may have to purchase a whole set again, if you want to get another brush from one. I've bought the core collection twice, just to get another buffing and contour brush, so I do wish you could purchase them all individually. Since they were first launched, Real Techniques have added to their line up, so it seems as though we may have more fabulous brushes to look forward to, in the future, which I can't wait for!


Do you use makeup brushes in your makeup routine? Which brand are your favourite? Have you tried any of the Real Techniques brushes?

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