Review: Real Techniques Brushes

A few weeks ago, I purchased two Real Techniques Brush Sets at Ulta.  The The Real Technique's Sam's Picks and Real Techniques Starter Kit both come with 5 brushes and I was able to test almost each of them out the last few weeks.  First off, all the brushes are super soft.  The second is the design with the long ferule and the bottom handle being flat, so the brushes can stand upright.  I have seen reviews on these brushes and they are absolutely right that these are very well made and an affordable price.

Sam's Picks includes: multi-task brush, buffing brush, essential crease brush (set exclusive), setting brush, pointed foundation and fine liner brush.

How I use these brushes:

multi-task brush - bronzer application
buffing brush - all-over face powder application
pointed foundation brush - under eye concealer and spot concealing
essential crease brush - crease color
setting brush - highlighter powder application (MAC MSF)
fine liner brush - cream eyeliner

The starter set includes: base shadow brush, deluxe crease brush, accent brush, pixel-point eyeliner brush, brow brush and panoramic case.  

How I use these brushes:

base shadow brush - all-over lid eyeshadow and blending

deluxe crease brush - patting on deeper colored shadows on the lid

accent brush - highlighter eyeshadow on the brow bone & dabbing the corner of the inner eye

pixel-point eyeliner - have not tried this yet since Sam's Pics had the fine liner brush

brow brush - filling in with brow powder

These have become the stand-bys.  I don't normally do a full face everyday, but I will reach for these when I decide to do a more complete look.

I still have to compare the pixel-point and fine liner brush with creme eyeliner application.  The fine liner brush did well picking up product and smoothly applying the liner.  The panoramic case is a great idea, but it has space limitations.  Doubling up the smaller brushes, doesn't secure them in the case and they slip out.

These are the usual suspects.  These sit pretty in a Sonia Kashuk Gold Standard Vanity Cup (scored from the clearance section at Target).  I also picked up the Real Techniques Blush Brush to round out the set since I use the multi-task brush for just bronzer.  

The one brush I didn't quite like was the brow brush.  I have tried a few other brow brushes, but I always come back to this Anastasia 7 combo brush and spoolie.  The Real Techniques brow brush is really soft, but didn't create the more pronounced brow that I like when filling in.  The densely packed, natural bristles of the Anastasia brush pick up more product and allow me to define my brows quickly.  I would like to try the brow brush with a cream brow product such as Anastasia's Dipbrow Pomade or Make Up Forever's Aqua Brow to see if there is a difference in using a more pigmented, gel product with this brush than a powder.

Pros:  -Taklon bristles are super soft
          -They apply product very well
          -The full size handles make it easy to use

Cons: -The sets might not have brushes that you may need or want.  You can always purchase the brushes you need individually.

Cost:  Prices at Ulta.  I also took advantage of the promotion at the time of buy one, get one 50% off and also their $3.50 off $10 purchase coupon that you can find on the Coupon Sherpa app for iPhone when you are shopping in-store.

          -Sam's Picks $29.99
          -Starter Set $17.99
          -Blush Brush $8.99

Would I recommend these to a friend?  Yes!  These are fantastic and affordable brushes if you are looking to add to your collection or even replace brushes.  I have kept my other set as back-ups to use when these are drying after cleaning.

What are your favorite brushes?  Have you tried any Real Techniques brushes?