Product Review: Charm and Marionnaud Make Up Brushes

For quite sometime now, I've been collecting Make up brushes and brush set for years now. And I have an embarrassing make up brush confession. I seem to lug around these brushes with me whenever I go. I have yet to meet another person who has an "emergency make up kit" in the office like me.  I can still remember what my friend and colleague, Eisen, said, when I told him about the kit: 

It seems like the word "emergency" doesn't go with "make up kit" in one sentence. 

Haha! But seriously, I think I fell in love with Make up brushes first before the Make up Artistry itself. Maybe it reminds me a lot of my childhood that I used to paint. And before I know it, I've been collecting make up brushes now and I even like to mix and match brushes from their sets.

Mostly it consists of random make up brands and pieces from the brush sets that I own

(Not in photo: The Body Shops brush set, Bobbi Brown mini brush set, Suesh brush set)

I buy really affordable and good quality make up brushes so that I don't have to wear and tear the good ones that I have. And thank God, Apy and I have supportive friends who help us get few more:

This one we got through the help of Apy's friend, Carmi! Thanks again, Carmi! :) 

I remember reading something that Daphne Osena said that she bought a set of MAC make up brushes and for ten grand and they still work fabulously ten years later. Well, I'm no pro, not a celebrity and not Daphne. But I like to own my set of brushes someday, so one day, I finally got one. 

I still remember the very first set of make up brush that I bought. It was a CHARM brand and I got it in 2009 during a bazaar at the World Trade Center.  I think I bought it for around Php 900? I am not sure, but I think they better versions of the Charm brushes now. More than 3 years later, it looked like this:

It has a zippered pouch on the right side, great for storing hair clips and pins.

I love that its small and handy.

I like it also because its pink! Haha! 

(Not in photo: Charm blending brush)

I've had it for a good three years. I don't usually get to use all of the brushes. I just use the big ones most often compared to the others. Then I started to really like putting on eye shadow and experiment with blending, that my favorite eye shadow brush actually gave up on me.

I don't use the eye shadow applicators that eye shadow palettes usually come with. I think, from experience, eye shadow brushes gives more freedom, especially when blending.

And since I like mixing and my brushes from different sets, I started to look for affordable ones that can be purchased separately and available in the department stores like SM.

I came across the brand Marionnaud in 2011, but only this year that I actually bought one. 

The first brush from Marionnaud that I bought is a foundation brush, N33, which I use with LOreal liquid Le teint True Match foundation (that I've had for a year but never had the chance to blog about). I thought liquid foundations are to be used with make up sponges, but Suzanne, the make up trainer from Suesh, told us that using foundation brush provides good coverage on the face.

Six months later, I now have three: (Blending brush, foundation brush and angled contouring blush brush)

And finally, I bought two more from the same brand: The blending brush (N37) and the much raved angled brush for contouring (N32).

About the Marionnaud Brushes:

• It can be purchased separately. (This works for me because I have certain brush preferences and favorite items from the brush sets that I own).
• Affordable! (I got the blending brush for around Php 89 and the angled brush for around Php 169.)
• It is made of synthetic hair.
• Good packaging. No falling hair incident so far.
• Feel good on the skin. I am impressed (knowing we usually get what we paid for).
• Picks up the color on the powder really well, same with the liquid foundation. I use the foundation brush to apply BB cream and liquid foundation as well.
• I suggest to clean the brush first (with mild shampoo and warm water) prior to initial use, because it has a "packaging smell".
• Available at SM department stores and Watsons in the Philippines.

I am always on the look out for affordable and competitive quality make up brushes. Any recommendations?