Wednesday, 14 September 2011

Real Techniques Starter Brush Set Review

Hi Everyone!
I recently ordered the Real Technique's by Samantha Chapman Starter Brush Set and wanted to share my thoughts and opinions on this product with you all. For those of you who haven't heard of Samantha Chapman she is a UK based make-up artist who, along with her sister Nic, post tutorials on YouTube under the username of Pixiwoo (click here to see her channel). Samantha is such a talented make up artist and I love to watch her videos and have seen her using her own brushes and wanted to try them. The brush handles are black and purple in colour, the black part has a rubberised coating which provides you with a better grip. The brush hairs are made from soft, hand cut taklon bristles and are cruelty free. There are currently 3 sets of brushes available, as well as some individual ones and I chose this set which contains 5 eye brushes.

Front of Packaging

Back of Packaging

(L to R) Accent Brush, Brow Brush, Deluxe Crease Brush, Base Shadow Brush, Pixel-Point Eyeliner Brush

OFFICIAL BRUSH DESCRIPTIONS
Base Shadow Brush: Applies a smooth, flawless foundation of colour.
Deluxe Crease Brush: Soft, over sized design for effortless contouring.
Accent Brush: Designed for precision detailing, spotlighting, highlighting and contouring.
Pixel-Point Eyeliner Brush: Tapered cut is ideal for dense or fine eyeliner application.
Brow Brush: Distinctive shape easily defines eyebrows.

I took 4 of the brushes from the collection and compared them to similar brushes that I already own to see how they measure up. The Accent brush is the only brush that I haven't compared against another brush as it is nothing like anything else I own! I especially love this brush for applying colour to my lower lashline as it really fits under there well.

(L to R) RT Pixel-Point Eyeliner Brush, Sigma E05
First up I took the Pixel-Point eyeliner brush and compared it to my Sigma E05 brush. As you can see from the picture above, the RT brush is much fuller and longer and less pointed than the Sigma one. To be totally honest I am not sure whether I really get this brush or not! It is good for when you want a thicker line but I would rather have the more precise Sigma brush. I think that I will be using it for applying colour underneath my lower lashline.

(L to R) RT Brow Brush, MAC 208

Next up I am comparing the brow brush to my usual MAC brow brush, the 208. As you can see, the RT brush is much bigger than the 208, however, the 208 is very small, and in my opinion, a little too small. You obviously won't be getting the same precise control with the RT brush as you would with the MAC one, but the RT one is quicker to use. I have also tried applying gel eyeliner with it too and it works really well!

(L to R) RT Base Shadow, MAC 239
OK, as you can see the RT shadow brush looks nothing like the MAC 239 but they are both supposed to do roughly the same job! The RT brush is much fuller and fluffier than the 239, the bristles on the 239 brush are much shorter and more tightly packed together. The RT brush applies pressed shadows really well, but I feel that it is a bit too fluffy to apply loose pigments as you will get quite a bit of fall out. The advantage that it does have over the 239 is that it can blend out your eyeshadow as well as applying them which is great for when you are in a rush and want to apply one colour all over your lid.

(L to R) RT Deluxe Crease Brush, MAC 224, MAC 217
Finally I have compared the RT Crease Brush to the MAC 217 and 224. The bristles on the RT brush are quite tightly packed together, similar to the 217 brush but is is fuller than it, it is also much rounder at the tip. It is also shorter than both of the MAC brushes. The RT brush is great for applying colour to your crease and deposits more colour that the 224 brush would but does not give the precision of the 217. Overall, I would say that the RT brush is a cross between the 224 and the 217 brushes.
To conclude, I think that these brushes are excellent quality and are very different from other brushes that I own which is great. I love the look of the brushes, mainly because purple is my favourite colour and how easy they are to grip. They biggest plus point has to be the price, I feel that the set is great value for money especially when you think of the fact that you can easily spend that amount of one brush from MAC. I am really impressed with Real Techniques as a brand and will definitely consider buying more from the range.
I purchased my brush set from Cocktail Cosmetics for £20.95. They are also available at Ulta stores in the USA.
Maz x


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