The world of makeup brushes can be entirely overwhelming. It’s a difficult task when you’re starting from scratch! Most brush companies sell complete sets to make it easy for you, and “save” you money. The downside to those brush sets is that they include wayyy more brushes than you need.

You save more money by only selecting brushes that fit into your current routine, instead of adapting your routine to fit your new brushes. This four part series will educate you on everything you need to know about brushes! By the end of this, you will be able to create your own brush set, and I’m confident that you’ll love the results.

The Options are Endless

The average person doesn’t require a kabuki brush, a flat brush, and a duo fiber brush to do their foundation daily. Most people have a preference for the effect they want out of their foundation brush.

Today I wanted to break down each brush category and different types within those. I’ve tried a few different brands, but the brand I’m focusing on today is Morphe. They’re great quality while being affordable, and they’re absolutely killing it in the makeup industry right now! This is not sponsored, I truly love them!

The Basic Brush Types

I’m going to walk you through these brushes by following the process in which I put on my makeup. First, everyone needs a foundation brush. (Unless you prefer a sponge, then I provided two from Morphe that give the BeautyBlender a run for its money.) I go back and forth between a kabuki brush and a sponge, but linked are some other options.

Foundation

The M439 – Deluxe Buffer is a densely packed brush that blends the product into the skin, giving great coverage. These two sponges are fantastic dupes – one has a sharp edge that’s great for carving out contour and baking, and this one is very similar to a traditional BeautyBlender. The B5 – Duo Foundation brush is perfect for diffusing foundation and provides a more natural finish. Flat foundation brushes aren’t as popular anymore, but it’s all personal preference. If you want to check it out, the B85 is a good option. Even if you don’t like it, they’re great for applying masks!

Another option is beauty sponges. These are best for foundations that are of a thick consistency because they’ll absorb some, but leave you with a flawless finish. Pro tip: don’t use with really liquid foundations (unless you like having half your foundation sucked up into it, never to be seen again). The BeautyBlender is everyone’s go-to favorite, but Morphe sponges deliver the same results, for half the price.

This Highlight & Contour sponge is perfect for baking (taking your powder and applying it heavily to your under eyes, or anywhere you don’t want to crease, and allowing it to sit or “bake”). The angle sits right against your face and allows for precision in your contour. The Flawless Beauty Sponge is a great multitasker and my recommendation for anyone interested in trying a sponge.

Powder

Finding the perfect powder brush isn’t as easy as you might think. The goal is to find one that isn’t too dense but also doesn’t mush away from your face. It should press the powder into your face, but not drag the perfectly placed foundation underneath around.

The E2 – Round Powder is a good staple brush. The size allows it to cover your face quickly while getting the job done right. The M527 – Deluxe Pointed Powder is similar, but a little cheaper, and less dense. The E41 – Round Deluxe Powder is even bigger than the E2 if you’re looking to get the job done quick! The E3 – Precision Pointed Powder is one of those extra items – if you want to precisely place powder under your eyes. Lastly, the M581 Pro Pointed Powder is another less expensive version for under eye powder.

Contour

The M530 – Contour Blender is a great option for blending contour into the hollows of the cheek. The E8 – Detail Contour is the same shape, but a bit of an upgrade in bristle quality. The E4 – Angled Contour is just that – an angled version of the E8. (The “E” products are from the Elite collection and are going to be a little higher in price, and a little better quality, but totally worth it.)

Bronzer

The R2 – Pro Tapered Powder looks like a regular powder brush, but its flat on the sides, giving it a more oval shape overall. This allows for bronzer application exactly where you want it. The fact that it’s built like a powder brush allows it to blend seamlessly with your powder and gives you that sun-kissed glow. You can easily use any of the above powder brushes for bronzer as well! The E59 – Tapered Bronzer is a basic no-fuss brush that will always blend your bronzer flawlessly.

Blush

The E34 – Tapered Blush is a nice round shaped bristles for the perfect apple-of-your-cheek application. The E4 – Angled Contour (yes you saw this earlier!) is the same texture as the previous brush but is angled for better contour and application on the sides of the cheekbones. Where you should place your blush all depends on your face shape, and how you want to appear. The power of contour is amazing! The M104 – Angle Brush is similar to the E4, but a little cheaper.

Highlighter

Since the explosion of the highlighting trend, the types of brushes for application are endless. One option is the M601 – Soft Fan. Fan brushes work well at applying it to the high points of the cheeks, but personally, I think they’re overrated. I can get the job done just as well with an E61 – Pointed Highlight.

With this brush, I can highlight my cheeks, above the brow, the nose, the cupid’s bow, the chin…All the high points of the face. If you tried doing all this with a fan brush, you might end up with the highlight in places you didn’t want (and there is such a thing as too much glow!)

Eye Shadow

Here’s where I think it’s okay to be a bit excessive. If anything else, it will make your life so much easier to have more than one blending brush. You don’t want to have to wash your brushes after every use nor CAN you if you use a bright color and need to use that ONE brush again to blend. I recommend having different sized blending brushes as well, in case you want a little more precision.

The M433 – Pro Firm Blending Fluff is perfect for outer corner color packing. It packs and blends all in one! The M441 – Pro Firm Blending Crease is a slightly larger version, and more flat-topped. This one is used for the crease to outer corner, with darker shades. Another option is the M332 Fluffy Crease. Experiment with different brush hairs and decide which you like best with your makeup application style.

I always recommend having a large fluff, and the M510 – Pro Round Blender does the job. These big fluffs are ideal for the first wash of color. Getting that all-over blown out transition shade is key to any eye look. The M504 – Large Pointed Blender is another option.

The E18 – Round Crease is one of my favorites for applying eyeshadow on the lower lashline. It’s large enough to blend and diffuse the shadow, and small enough that you don’t end up looking like a raccoon! The E36 – Detail Crease is an even smaller brush for increased precision. A third option is the M431 – Precision Pencil Crease. All of these are technically crease brushes, but they’re very dense, and I find them better suited for under the eye.

The M213 – Smudger does exactly what is says – smudges out eyeliner. I suggest using your creamiest eyeliner for this technique, but it creates the best smokey eyes.

Phew.

You get a gold star if you made it through all that information. And if you did, then you’ll probably like the rest of this series, so be sure to add yourself to the email list (on the sidebar) or follow me on social media! Thanks for sticking with me through my daydreams…

Don’t forget that the first step to a flawless face is through your skincare, and I’ve been LOVING mine! I’ll link my favorite products here: The Key to Glowing Skin.