Makeup Forever Face Brush Review: 126, 152, 160

Make Up For Ever has one of the largest beauty collections in the industry. Normally I'm wary of purchasing items from a company that has their hands in so many aspects of the beauty world, mainly because I feel the quality would be lacking in areas in which they aren't known well. Make Up For Ever is generally known for their quality make-up products, not so much their brushes.

While at IMATS Toronto late last year, I picked up a few MUFE face brushes from Frends Beauty (I had done a large pre-order there) and I was absolutely blown away by the quality of the brushes. Hands down these brushes were my favourite purchase from IMATS.

The Make Up For Ever brush line is created in France. Each brush is hand-made by the hands of thirty(!) brush artists and twenty-five stages of production, while being quality checked fifty times throughout the entire process. Normally I'd say this was the guise of clever marketing, but very much so like high-end brushes, these synthetic hair brushes perform up there with quality rivaling Chikuhodo and Hakuhodo, without using animal hair. They have a really nice soft wooden handle, a gunmetal ferrule, and brown and black brush hairs.

The brushes are made to mimic animal hair, with some brushes composed of straight hair, some wavy, and some both. Straight hair brushes are great for applying a more dense amount of product, whereas wavy fibers allow you to have more of a diffused application. For example, if you want a full-coverage application of foundation you should use a straight fiber brush, and if you want a soft blush or highlight you should use a wavy fiber brush, or a combination brush. You will know how to differentiate the type of brush as the composition is written on each brush handle.

Differentiating between use for each brush is easy as well, with the 100 series being for face, the 200 series for eyes, the 300 series for lips, and the 400 series for artistic use.

I picked up the 126, the 152, and the 160 face brushes.

The 152 Medium Highlighter Brush is probably the brush I use the least. I expected it to be smaller than it actually is. It's made with wavy fibers, great for a diffused application of blushes or highlighters. For its size, I feel it would be a great soft contour brush for larger faces, or a controlled blush brush for smaller faces. For the average face, you could use this brush to dust a soft highlight on your cheekbones and forehead. I do find the bristles on this brush to be slightly less soft than the other two I own.

The 126 Medium Powder Brush is a super-fat, fairly dense, domed buffer brush. It contains both straight and wavy fibers. I love how soft, full, and luxurious this brush feels against my skin. I use this brush to buff powder products into my skin, such as my MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Dark, or my CoverFX Pressed Mineral Foundation is B15 (N80). Literally the only thing I did with this brush when I first got it was run my hands through it because it was so unbelievably soft and fluffy.

The 160 Blush Brush is probably the brush I get the most use out of. It's quite long and floppy, but still manages to be full and fluffy at the same time. I use this brush for my blush, under-eye setting powder, and light powder foundation application to cover oily areas, as it doesn't cake on the product over my foundation. I also use this brush to apply a super soft wash of highlight to my cheekbones. This brush has a mixture of straight and wavy fibers so that makes up for the floppy nature.

Side views of each:

I did pay pro price for these brushes, but even if I had to pay full price, I definitely would. I don't have many negative things to say about these brushes, other than the steep cost. Generally I stay away from buying such expensive objects, but in my opinion I feel the full amount paid is completely justified. I've had to repurchase or toss out several of my "name-brand" brushes because they would fall apart over a short period of time. I feel the mass-production of those brushes led to the downfall in quality. The quality of these brushes, like most Make Up For Ever products, is awesome. Definitely give these a try if you're in the market for good, sturdy face brushes!

Have you tried any Make Up For Ever brushes? Test them out in-store next time you're at a Sephora and let me know your thoughts!

Make Up For Ever brushes can be purchased at Sephora and Make Up For Ever stores. International customers can find their closest Make Up For Ever location here.