Zoeva Brushes... worth the hype and shipping costs...?

To answer what you are thinking... YES, they are worth it!! 

Zoeva is a German brand that sales (possibly manufactures...?) these amazing brushes and also makeup. Check out their website if you want to check out their selection -> Zoeva Website. 

I want to mention briefly that the shipping costs for international customers is steep haha like scary steep. I was hesitant to purchase for a few weeks but when I saw the amazing selection and heard the great reviews, I knew I had to place a medium sized order to make the costs worth it. I paid $18 for shipping *insert dramatic sad face emoji here*. But I felt like it got to my house relatively quickly, I want to say about 10 business days. I was totally expecting to wait about a month or something ridiculous ha!

~Getting back on track now~

I purchased four (4) brushes total and as you can see from the picture, they are relatively unique shapes for brushes - except for the pencil brush haha.

  

To list off what I purchased, here it is from Left to Right: 126 - Luxe Cheek Finish, two of the 105 - Luxe Highlight, and 230 - Luxe Pencil

Thoughts on the Luxe Cheek Finish brush - UM AMAZING.

I absolutely adore this brush!! It is very multipurpose and so incredibly soft. I have been using this for my cream bronzer but you can use this for foundation (it is VERY similar in shape to the Tom Ford Cream Foundation brush btw...), highlighting products, cream and powder blush, setting powder... basically all your face product application needs can be met with this brush alone.

Next, the Luxe Highlight brush - perfection.

Yeah...so I purchased two of these bad boys and I'm so glad I did!! I use one for setting powder and the other for powder highlights. It's the perfect shape to do both! Of course, this brush also has multiple purposes but I primarily purchased these for under eye setting powder application and highlight application.

Lastly, the Luxe Pencil brush - makes smoking out the lash line effortless!

This the most boring brush of the bunch haha but works amazingly! The bristles are so soft and do not irritate my lower and upper lash line, unlike other brands. The blending of the products, whether it's smudging out an eye pencil or blending out shadow, it's effortless and gorgeous. The product is never blended too far down nor apply/smudge the product in a patchy manner. It's amazing!

So folks... I think can forget about the obscene shipping costs and buy from Zoeva again. The quality and prices are unbeatable. Each brushes was less than $15 each, I think. Which is AMAZING.

I use these brushes EVERY day and never once have their shed or stained or anything. They are just amazing brushes that are worth checking out.

I hope you enjoyed this review, if you have any questions feel free to ask. I will answer your Q's as best I can.

Hope you are all well and I will talk to you all later :)
Bianca

Hakuhodo Brushes!

I can't get enough of these brushes. Seriously, some of the best brushes around. I have different brands in my makeup brush collection but nothing beats these. I added 3 more to my little collection, totaling up to 6 brushes from Hakuhodo. 

Each brush I purchased were under $20. So they are an investment but I would rather have a select few that are out of this world and multipurpose than a ton of mediocre or shitty quality brushes. My opinion, of course.

So here for pictures of the three I got. I got a tinyyy pencil brush, fluffy crease/blending brush, and a small synthetic detail brush. 

G5514 BkSL

J5533 BkSL

K005

I will be doing a brush comparison with the rest of the brushes in my collection. Just so you can be size comparisons and thoughts on those brushes. Performance is important when investing in these brushes or from any brand of makeup brushes. It's nice to know if you are getting your money's worth.

Do you have any recommendations for Hakuhodo brushes? I'm thinking my next makeup brush purchase will be from the Wayne Goss face and eye kit coming out soon! I'm thinking one or two from each. I don't need the whole kit :). Some of my old brushes are shedding and performing poorly so it's time for an upgrade :).

Thoughts? Questions? Anything...? Let me know in the comments. I would love to hear from you! :)

LOOKING FOR NARS ITA NO. 21 BRUSH?!

Hey everyone,

I am here with a quick post talking about the very much coveted NARS Ita brush that Casey Holmes (itsbl0ndie) and Jaclyn Hill - among others - have made veryyy famous.

You are probably thinking "I cannot find that son of B anywhere, wtf!!". I know, I was thinking the EXACT same thing.

So here is what I know thanks to one of my friends that work at the NARS counter at my local Nordstrom.

IT'S COMING BACK!!

In late March/early April, NARS will be rereleasing their entire brush line (which includes that Ita brush).

I strongly suggest going to a NARS counter and pre-ordering one. That way you are guaranteed to get one (this is what the sales associate told me). Or you can order from NARS.com when it's released or run the risk of paying more than you have to (aka on eBay).

You can bet that NARS will be releasing a very limited amount of the Ita brushes because sooo many people are willing to invest in that brush.

Side note: there are TWO Ita brushes, No. 21 and No. 28. The No. 28 is a wider version of the No. 21. Google it if you are interested. So you want to make sure you are ordering the right one.

Okay folks, I hope you found that helpful!

Talk to you all soon,
Bianca

Hakuhodo Brushes! - My First Purchase :)

Hello everyone! Hope you are all doing well :). I'm back with something exciting. Today, I'll be talking about my first Hakuhodo brush purchase. It's been a long time coming since I've been hearing about this line of brushes for a looong time, especially on YouTube.

I purchased on the US Hakuhodo website: HakuhodoUSA.com and had no problems with my order or shipping. Shipping costs are a con for me haha; there is no minimum purchase for free shipping. It is a flat rate shipping cost passed onto customers. For US customers, it is $9 Priority USPS Shipping so after it leaves the Hakuhodo warehouse, it should arrive at your door within 2-3 business days. They ship out from California so the closer you are, the faster you will get it.

I am not the most educated about this brand but I have done plenty of research on YouTube and Beauty Blogs about the must haves from the brand. And to be honest with you, no one has a bad thing to say about this range. It is that good. What I do know for sure is that the J and G series of the Hakuhodo brushes are the most affordable. You get AMAZING quality brushes for the price and they should last you years if you take proper care of them; which I already do :). (Some of my brushes are 5 years old and still going strong :D).

For my first purchase, I picked out three eye brushes. Because as a makeup lover, you can NEVER have enough blending/eyeshadow brushes ;). The picture will have the labels and numbers if you are interested in specifics.

 There is how they come packaged. If you order a ton of brushes at once, the brushes will be shipped in a cute box instead of this pod/thingy. Either way, they package their brushes really well.

The brushes come wrapped securely in their own plastic wrap, sealed at both ends to ensure sanitation and whatnot.

Hakuhodo: J5523BkSL, G5513BkSl, and J142BkSL

 Can just admire how beautiful these are?! Seriously, they look and feel luxurious. The top and bottom brushes were $18 and the middle one was $16. So it is really nice to see brushes cost less than $20 for really nice brushes.

I'm also a sucker for white goat hair brushes simply because they look so pretty, sleek, and luxe. You don't see this very often I think and if you do they are super pricey (I'm looking at you Tom Ford....)

Here is a full on view of the brushes. They do have a shorter handle compared to Sedona Lace or MAC brushes but it is nothing too crazy or unmanageable.

The embossed Hakuhodo name is in a silver holographic design and the handles are black with a shiny finish.

I used these brushes within the past 2 weeks and I'M IN LOVE!! I love that they feel SO soft and blend out eyeshadow so seamlessly. If you can check them out in person, only at IMATS and The Makeup Show - trade shows for makeup loves and professionals, do it!! If you cannot, like me, I checked a million blogs and saw many videos reviewing this line. You will run across ones that every one love.

The only downside to Hakuhodo is that if you want to return the brushes, you CANNOT take them out of the plastic casing/wrap they come in. They state for sanitary reasons, they will not accept brushes that have been out or used at all. So I do suggest researching beforehand.

Aside from that, I already have a wishlist going for the next brushes I will be buying from Hakuhodo. I love them that much and wholeheartedly recommend.

I hope you enjoyed this and that I covered everything. If I didn't, let me know! I'll do my best to answer any questions you might have :)

Talk to you all soon,
Bianca xo