Real Techniques' Eye Starter Set

Hi guys. For Christmas, I received this lovely Real Techniques brush set from my parents. After buying my first Real Techniques brushes (the Core Collection) back in 2013, I have been a huge fan of the brand due to its high quality yet affordable products. I asked for the eye starter set in order to accompany the Naked 2 palette that I knew I was also going to be receiving from my parents. Up until now, I have been a winged liner girl and I haven't experimented with eyeshadow too much for the fear of not being to have a perfectly blended smoky eye like all of the girls I look up to and watch on YouTube - including Pixiwoo themselves!

However, since this set has come into my life, it has made applying and blending out my new and beloved Naked 2 palette an absolute breeze! So today, I thought that I would do a little review of the Starter Set (which retails at £21.99) and tell you what I think about each brush so far!

Deluxe Crease Brush - This aptly named brush is perfect for applying eyeshadow into the crease of your eye to create more depth and definition. The brush is also great for seamlessly blending each colour into another. My only qualm with this brush is that it is slightly large for my eye shape, which means that it is sometimes hard to blend precisely and keep the colour exactly where you want it to be.

Base Shadow Brush - The base eyeshadow brush is brilliant at packing colour onto your lid before you blend it out. It allows your eyeshadow to be densely applied all over the eyelid, so the product is always evenly distributed. 

Accent Brush - This brush is excellent for adding eyeshadow on your lower lash line or in the inner corners of your eye. It's small size means that you can add colour where you need it precisely, which means that you can include subtle details into your look.

Pixel Point Eyeliner Brush - This eyeliner brush is very thin, so it is perfect to use in conjunction with a gel eyeliner to get a precise line. It's pixel point tip means that you can create the thinnest of lines but you can also build up your liner to make it thicker depending on what type of look you are doing that day. My only wish is that the bristles were a bit stiffer so that you feel like you have more control when applying the product.

Eyebrow Brush - Unfortunately, the eyebrow brush is the only brush in the set that I am yet to use. This is because I do not currently have a matte eyeshadow or brow gel to use with it! However, from what I have heard by fellow bloggers, this brush is perfectly angled to fill in your brows accurately whilst making them look as natural as possible. 

Overall, I am very impressed with this eye starter set. So far, I would give it a 10/10! It has everything a beginner would need to allow you to experiment with different eyeshadow looks and blend them out perfectly. As well as this, the set also comes with a holder for your brushes, so it's great to travel with too!

What do you think of these brushes? Have you got the starter set too? Please let me know by leaving a comment below!

5 Tips On How To Deep Clean Your Make-up Brushes

Deep cleaning your make-up brushes is a task that is rather like Marmite; some people find the task extremely laborious, whilst others revel in doing so. I, myself, apply to the latter half of that sentence. For some bizarre reason, I love the process of cleaning my brushes and get great satisfaction watching all of the dirt and grime that has built get washed away. Plus, the feeling of then using your newly clean brushes the next day is very satisfying! With that being said, there is a lot of confusion as to which way is the best way you clean your brushes. So, today I have a compiled a little list of tips that I have learnt since I have been blogging to share with you all. I hope you find them handy!

1. The best products to use to deep clean your make-up brushes are either a specifically designed brush cleanser or baby shampoo, if you are on a budget such as myself. The reason for this is that both formulas will be very gentle on your brush hairs, yet they will still give them a thorough clean at the same time.

2. Saturating your brush in lukewarm water before cleaning them will get rid of any excess product on your brushes, which will make your job a little bit easier.

3. I have found that the best method to use is to squirt a little bit of your chosen product into the palm of your hand, then swirl the brush around in circular motions. You should add a little more water in as you go too, to allow the product to lather up and to cleanse your brushes really well.

4. Rinsing your brushes thoroughly is key. When you squeeze out the excess water after you have washed each brush, it should run clear and not have any make-up or bubbles from the product you have used coming out of it. If it does, then you should repeat the process of rinsing the brush again until it is completely clear.

5. Once you have cleaned each brush, you will want to place it somewhere convenient to let it air dry. Although some people say that laying your brushes down flat on a table is fine, I disagree. The best angle to allow your brushes to dry is have the brush hairs facing downwards (I tend to prop mine up on my window sill.) This will ensure that any extra water can run out of the brush, instead of run deeper into the brush which in turn will start to damage the glue that holds your brush and its hairs together.

Extra Tips

- Aim to deep clean your brushes about once a week.
- Spot cleaning is a great way of keeping your brushes sanitisied inbetween washing them.
- Some people use brush guards to protect their brushes and keep the bristles in shape.

So guys, those are my five top tips for deep cleaning your make up brushes! Of course, this is just my method but I have found to be very effective and so I wanted to share my pointers with all of you as well. Please feel free to let me know what your method is or if there are any ways that I can improve my method by leaving a comment below :)

My Real Techniques Brush Collection

Hi guys, today I thought that I would share my Real Techniques brush collection with you. Surprisingly and rather embarrassingly, I had never used proper make-up brushes up until last year, aside from a cheap Superdrug brush to apply powder and blusher etc. However, after starting my blog in March 2013, I soon discovered Real Techniques brushes and how much everybody adored them. So, I went to Boots and picked up the ever-so-popular Core Collection and that is when my obsession begun. Since then, I have added three more RT brushes to my collection and also hope to buy more in the future. Using high quality brushes has completely revolutionised the way that I apply my make-up and so today I wanted to write a post about the seven brushes that I own so far and what I use each one for. Let's get started!

The Core Collection - £21.99

Buffing Brush - This is without a doubt my favourite brush out of my entire collection, I use it religiously to apply my foundation. I love the way that it blends liquid foundation into my skin so easily and buffing the product in a circular motion leaves me with such an amazing yet natural finish, no matter how high the coverage is.

Pointed Foundation Brush - Although this brush was originally designed to apply foundation, I actually use this brush for a different purpose. I like to use it to pinpoint applying powder instead. As it is quite small and flat, I like to pat on powder under my eyes and so on to set my concealer in place and make sure that it doesn't budge throughout the day.

Contour Brush - Similarly with the contour brush, I tend to use this brush to apply powder highlighters instead. The shape and size of the brush makes it perfect for applying highlighter on the high point of my cheekbones to add luminosity and dimension to the skin. However, on the odd special occasion when I do decide to contour, this would be the brush that I would reach for too.

Detailer Brush - This is definitely the brush that I get the least use out of. I haven't really found many uses for it aside from pinpointing concealer on to really small areas such as blemishes, so that is what I use it for when pesky spots occur. I could also use the detailer brush to apply lipstick precisely but I tend to do just fine applying lipstick directly from the tube.

Powder Brush - £12.99
The powder brush is the first extra brush that I bought after purchasing the core collection. I love how big the brush is and it makes it so easy and quick to apply powder to set the rest of my make up. I think that the brush picks up the perfect amount of product too, so it never applies too cakey or thick.

Blush Brush - £9.99
The blush brush is my second favourite brush from my collection, as well as being one of the newest editions to my set. I love how fluffy this brush is and how it is slightly tapered, which means it applies blusher and bronzer beautifully. Just like the powder brush, it applies the perfect amount of product on to my cheeks.

Expert Face Brush - £9.99
I got the expert face brush for my birthday along with the blush brush above. I wanted it as an alternative to applying foundation as so many people rave about it but I do not like it anywhere near as much as my buffing brush, so I do not use this one very often. However, it is great for blending out blusher or bronzer if I have applied too much, so that is what I tend to use it for.

I hope you have all enjoyed reading about my Real Techniques brush collection! I think its safe to say that I would never go back to not using brushes ever again because I love them so much. Real Techniques are a wonderful brand and have amazing yet relatively affordable brushes, and the fact they are designed my Sam and Nic Chapman (aka Pixiwoo) makes them even better! Do you own any RT brushes? Which one is your favourite? Please let me know by leaving a comment below!