girl makeup brushes

Ask a Pro: What’s the Deal with Makeup Brushes?

They come in all shapes and sizes and cover all price points. You can find them pretty much everywhere and you likely use one or more in your daily makeup routine. But how much do you really know about makeup brushes? We wanted to get the scoop on which brushes are the best and for what uses, so we consulted professional makeup artist Tiana Holiday and here’s what she had to say.

You must have good quality brushes and they must be clean. You can invest in a brush cleaner and use it with a paper towel daily, but along with that, cleaning them weekly with warm to hot water and a gentle liquid hand soap or baby shampoo will do the trick.

I am a huge fan of MAC brushes, although they have a steep price. Just know that I have had some of my favorite brushes for over 15 years. Remember, the better the bristles, the better they apply the products. And in general, when it comes to selecting brushes, the darker the color, the smaller the brush you should use.

girl makeup brushes

I prefer the Fluffy brushes, like MAC #217, which is my eyeshadow holy grail. I use it in a circular motion to blend the colors and I use a different brush for each color.

Other main eyeshadow brushes are the MAC pencil brush #219 to smoke out the bottom eyeliner and apply a crease color.


For foundation and concealers, I love the Beauty Blender. You can get one at Sephora, or even online from Amazon. MAC brush #168 is my go to for highlight and contour powders. Stila has the best powder brush that I use for bronzer. You can find it online . I also love MAC #182 Kabuki Buffer brush for powders.

MAC #208 is my favorite eyebrow brush. Lastly, as an Artist, I have to use MAC mascara brush #205 on my clients.

 

Tiana Holiday is a professional makeup artist with 17+ years experience in the industry working with celebrities, on music videos and commercials, weddings, private clients, photoshoots and fitness models. She is the owner of Tiana Rae Artistry.