I’ve been meaning to get it on with Zoeva brushes for months - and now that we’ve met, I know we’ll be seeing a whole lot more of eachother. If you’re not familiar with the brand, Zoeva is a rare breed of quality make-up brushes at affordable prices - and has recently extended its line into make-up. I’ve only tried a few things so far, but it’s always a good sign when something moves straight into your everyday essentials.
Let’s start with the brushes: think strokably soft, nicely cut, with a luxe look about them.
DEFINED BUFFER 103 is an angled, flat topped foundation brush which fits well into the face’s contours and is great for sweeping on colour quickly and easily. Impossible not to compare this to my much loved Real Techniques Buffing Brush; this one has similar density and is slightly larger with flat rather than curved edges. They have the same function and give equally good results, so you don’t really need both, though I find this one can give a slightly more sheer finish and faster results, while the rounded edges of Real Techniques leave less room for missed bits.
Best for: quick, even foundation application
LUXE PETITE CREASE 231 is designed for applying eye shadow in the crease of the eye, but my favourite way to use it is for blending shadow or liner along the lash line. I’ve been hunting for over a year for the perfect brush to do this with - and think I’ve finally found it. Others I’ve tried have either been too fluffy so that they over blend the product, or too hard so they move it along rather than gently smudging. This one falls somewhere in the middle - and softens liner for a slightly smokey look without wiping it away or spreading it too far - and works well with both powder and cream shadow.
Best for: smoking out eyeliner
LIP CONTOUR 330 is softer and fluffier than any other lip brush I’ve tried. For this reason I couldn’t resist trying it for concealing small areas like the corner of eyes or edges of nose, where it’s perfect both for application and blending out. It does work on the lips too, but best saved for a more natural lip or stain effect rather than a diva red lip, which requires sharp edges for more precision.
Best for: colour correction and concealing dark circles
ZOEVA MAKE-UP These two items are highly pigmented with intense colour payoff - as you can see in the swatches. I tried Luxe Cream Lipstick in Floral Crown and Graphic Eyes+ longwear waterproof eye liner in Female Attraction. The liner - a dramatic deep teal - can be blended out before it sets and gives exceptional wear time. The colours were a little intense for a natural tone lover like me, but I’ve no qualms with the formula and am especially impressed with the liner. Special nod to the lipstick packaging in weighty metallic with that satisfying magnetic clunk as it closes. It’s the little things!
Zoeva is available here.
My stand out from this little group is definitely the Luxe Petite Crease Brush 231, a new daily staple. So which brushes do I need to try next?! (Did someone say Rose Gold?)
