At the Make Up Counter: Brushes

This week has seemed to drag on, and not in a good way either. Work has been busy and it has just been so stressful. I've had 3 or 4 posts on draft for the past week and I just can't seem to find enough time to get them done.
Finally I have a few minutes to myself to get something complete...

I want to preface this post by saying I am a complete amateur at makeup. I love playing with it, experimenting and what not. But I have no proper knowledge and I am not a make up artist. Having said that...

 I was asked recently where you can find good affordable makeup brushes. So I decided it was a good time for a post on makeup brushes...

Of course we have all heard of MAC brushes being really good, I however haven't used those yet but I am pretty sure they would be awesome. Check out Allthatglitters21's MAC brushes video, she really does a good job of explaining all the brushes she owns...

I have a Bobbi Brown Foundation brush which I love. However Bobbi Brown brushes can be very costly, my foundation brush alone was $35 dollars. On a college student's budget that doesn't get very far... that is why that brush was a gift from my aunt.

Bobbi Brown Foundation Brush

My main brushes have come from Coastal Scents. I love this company, which I have said before. The brushes can be bought individually or in sets and they're priced just right. The low prices of the brushes allows you to buy many and experiment finding which ones work for you!

Coastal Scents 13 piece set

I have the 13 piece brush set, $16.95, its really good for anyone just starting out in the makeup world. It gives you a good base of brushes to have.
The 13 brushes in the set contain a blend of sable and goat hair, except for two synthetic brushes. I found that even though these brushes have a low price, they are a good quality. I have been using them for over a year now and none of them have shed and all remain in good condition.
The brushes come with a carrying case, which I dont really use. The case isn't anything amazing, though other sets come with cuter cases. The only times I have used the case was to protect my brushes while traveling.

Aside from this set, other brushes I use often include:

• Crease brush, not really sure where this one is from, Avon or Mary Kay someone gave me a brush set for my birthday forever ago. But I still love this one. 
• While I don't own any, I have used Sephora brushes before and liked them. 

Cleaning brushes:
Cleaning your brushes is very important! They are going on your face and in your makeup and along the way they will pick up bacteria which can cause infections!
I use Sephora Anti-bacterial brush cleaner at least once a week. Anytime I use my brushes on someone else I clean them before and after use. Also when using liquid/ gel eyeliner, liquid foundation or a cream eyeshadow, the brush should be clean after each used.
At least once a month, I thoroughly wash my brushes using Johnson's No More Tears baby shampoo.

Just remember to have fun with your makeup, play around with the brushes... nothing is set in stone.  

Formal Dash

So I usually take forever to get ready... I have to get up extra early, wash my hair, do make up get dressed... I usually give my self at least two hours to get ready for school or work. For formal things like prom back in the day... I gave myself at least half the day to get ready. But yesterday, when I was getting my sister ready for a formal event she was invited to, she gets this call. Its a call inviting me to come along with her.... I have an hour to get ready. 

I immediately ran to the shower to wash my hair... a quick conditioner and then I blow dried it... with my mothers help. I then straightened my hair in the quickest time I have ever done it before did makeup and got dressed in about 45 minutes... It was amazing I was so proud of my self, because I thought that we would for sure be late to the event! But we weren't. 

I am so thankful that we still had my dress from prom like two years ago... and that it still fit pretty well. 

For makeup, I did my normal: moisturizer, concealer, foundation... I used a Clinique base on my eyes, then I used and NYX eyeshadow pencil and covered my eye in that. Then I used an ULTA eyeshadow quad I put Silk (which looked like a creamy silvery white on the eye) all over and up to the brow bone. Then I used  Gunmetal (a dark shimmery grey) in the corner and I used Twilight (a purpley grey) to blend into the Silk. I put Indigo Blue gel liner from coastal scents. Estee Lauder Plum blush and a Clinique lipstick with my Sugarberry Mark Kay lipgloss over it. 

Makeup Trip!

For some reason... (Mom) I have recently gotten really into makeup. My first love will always be fashion, but I have been experimenting in makeup recently. I really like to watch allthatglitters21's makeup tutorials on youtube.com and I have bought some really neat makeup.... so I guess I shall share my amazingly awesome finds. 

First, I have been a big fan of Bobbi Brown since high school, but now since I am a "starving college student" I must turn to cheaper stuff I or rather mom has found that Revlon Colorstay works just as well.  I got mine for $10 and Wal Mart.

Second, even though I love my Estee Lauder eyeshadow palette... it doesn't contain a large variety... but my Coastal Scents 88 piece eye shadow palette sure does! And its only $18.95, I really think this was a Great Buy! 

And Last but not least! I think the thing I am loving the most this summer is my Coastal Scents Gel liners! And I must say, at first Coastal Scents sent me the wrong liner, but they were great and are sending me a replacement liner and they aren't even making me go through the hassle of sending the other color back! so the gel liners are $6.95 each and worth every penny... I am currently loving Indigo Blue the most!

Images used are from coastalscents.com and Revlon.com