Real Techniques Travel Essentials Makeup Brush Set Review

British makeup artist Samantha Chapman, aka YouTube guru pixiwoo to most of us, has launched Real Techniques, a 10-piece makeup brush collection that claims to help you look pixel-perfect even in harsh light.

I have the Travel Essentials Set, which comes with an Essential Foundation Brush, Multi-task Brush, Domed Shadow Brush – all made with 100% cruelty-free, hand-cut synthetic taklon bristles- along with a panoramic black brush case that doubles as a stand.

The Essential Foundation Brush is about the same size as my favorite M·A·C 190 Foundation Brush. Just like the M·A·C, the bristles are very dense yet soft to the touch. It worked beautifully with both liquid and cream foundations without soaking up too much product and always left behind a streak-less finish.

Real Techniques Essential Foundation Brush

The Multi-task Brush is a medium-sized fluffy brush, again with really soft bristles. Since I prefer a smaller brush for the cheeks, I save this for applying powder/bronzer all over and to sweep off excess product and it did a brilliant job.

Real Techniques Multi-task Brush

The Domed Shadow Brush is a medium-sized brush with a tapered design to smoothly shade and define the eyes. The bristles are similar to that of the foundation brush – dense yet gentle on the skin – and worked great for applying both powder and cream eyeshadows on the eyelid.

Real Techniques Domed Shadow Brush

Another cool thing about these brushes is their extended aluminum handles. Not only do they feel light and rest nicely on my hand, they are color-coded to correspond to the key steps of makeup application. Orange is for creating a flawless base, purple is for enhancing the eyes and pink is for adding the perfect finish. You can also find the name of each brush printed on the back of the handle, making them perfect for newbies as well.

Finally, despite the super affordable price tag (everything is under $18!), these brushes are very durable. They did not shed or splay and still looked brand new even after a few washes. Thumbs up overall!

Real Techniques by Samantha Chapman is available at Ulta stores and Ulta.com.

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