Hi Everyone!
Today I’m doing a 3-way This or That because I had three different brands of foundation brushes. Each of the brushes I bought as part of a set:
- Sephora- to be honest, I can’t remember what this brush came with and it’s not in my order history. I think it was a travel brush kit. This brush from the PRO collection looks the most similar out of the brushes they currently offer.
- Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Foundation + Smoothing Skin Equalizer Customizable Set | $83 CAD
- Step 1 Skin Equalizer smoothing primer
- Ultra HD Invisible Cover Foundation (your choice)
- Artisan Brush 106S (the brush is a short version of the 106)
- Arbonne Cosmetics Brush Set #7098 (6-piece brush set) | $47 CAD
The only reason I have a MUFE foundation brush is because it came in the set. I prefer applying my liquid foundation with sponges, so I probably wouldn’t buy a liquid foundation brush on its own.
Sephora liquid foundation brush
I do have another Sephora foundation brush, but it’s a little worse for wear. It is softer than this travel-sized brush, but performs about the same.
Arbonne
100% vegan and cruelty-free
Liquid Foundation / Flat Brush: Great for liquid foundations
and concealer for proper blending; features a rounded head to match the natural contours of the face such as the corners under the eyes.
Make Up For Ever Artisan Brush
This is a larger variation of a foundation brush for applying and blending ultra fast for an even result with fuller coverage. It can be used with all types of foundations and features straight fibers.
I used the Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Invisible Foundation for the swatches (the swatches are aligned with the picture of the brushes- top swatch is Sephora, middle is Arbonne and bottom is MUFE). I pumped once directly onto the brush just to see how much product it absorbed. The swatches are after two swipes of the brush. As you can see, the Sephora swatch on the top is shiny which means the foundation was still wet. When I did the second swipe, I did my best to go directly on top of the previous swatches. The Sephora brush fanned out a bit when it touched my skin. The Arbonne brush is denser/thicker (the other two are flatter). The Make Up For Ever brush is the widest and the swatch above shows that. The Sephora brush’s bristles aren’t as soft as the other two. Out of the three, the MUFE one is the softest, but it absorbs the most product.
I wanted to do swatches on a flat surface that wouldn’t absorb product, so I used a foundation palette. I pumped three equal-sized dots of Maybelline’s Fit Me Dewy + Smooth Foundation and I swiped the brushes twice to see how much product absorbs into the brush. Again, the swatches are in the same order: Sephora (top), Arbonne and MUFE. The Sephora one is the darkest and MUFE is the lightest swatch because the Sephora brush barely absorbs any foundation and the MUFE one absorbs the most. The Sephora brush has the stiffest bristles which reminds me of a paintbrush. The Arbonne brush is okay, but it’s not as wide as the other two, but it’s denser which means a lot of product gets lost in the brush. The MUFE brush is wide and flat and the bristles are soft. That’s why I have to give the win to the MUFE brush.
WINNER: Make Up For Ever Artisan Brush
Do you prefer sponges or brushes to apply liquid foundation? What’s your favourite brand for brushes/sponges?
Love,
