I purchased these sigma brushes a bit over a year ago so I have tried them out a good amount now to know my feelings about each brush. First thing I have to say is I stupidly for some reason assumed that most of the brushes in the Essential Kit: Make Me Blush were made from synthetic hair bristles, I don't know why I thought this but I did and I was wrong. So out of the 12 brushes in the kit there are only 4 brushes that have synthetic bristles the E05, E65, F70 and F60, the F50 has both. If you had asked me about a month ago I would have said I much prefer synthetic bristles but I guess fur is fine, only recently I found out that because of the natural hair's surface being "irregular" things such as bacteria, dead skin cells and make-up get trapped in the hair follicle and cleaning most likely does not remove all these particles. That grossed me out a lot, not to mention the way that some animals are treated to produce make-up brushes, moving on from that I just thought I would share my take on animal hair brushes, unfortunately the Mrs. Bunny collection brush kit came out roughly 2 weeks after I bought mine otherwise I would have gone for that. Anyway onto the review.
F30 Large Powder Brush made from natural hair bristles; this is probably the worst brush in the whole 12 piece set, I kind of have a kinda like- hate relationship with it. As a powder brush it is pretty basic, it has a lot of bristles, fluffy (could be softer) nothing special but good enough, except that it sheds like you would not believe!!! Like I said I have had this for over a year and have washed it many times and still it sheds so much, I think the other day about 10 bristles came out plus it bleeds ink sometimes when I wash it. I am not impressed with the quality of this brush in that regard because I think for the price it should be of a better quality and should not still be shedding. It's performance as a powder brush is fine, pretty standard nothing to rave about, it is a good size though and not heavy.
Recommended Uses: To set your foundation, bronze your face, blend out your blush or a harsh contour line etc.
Pros:
1. Good size
2. Picks up enough product
3. Ok for blending out blush, bronzer
4. Good size
Cons:
1) Sheds like crazy (seriously I am worried I wont have much of a brush left- yes I am exaggerating but with the way it sheds it's a possibility)
2) Bleeds colour...still
3) Takes ages to dry
Only use for powder products.
Rating: 2.5 out of 10
F50 Duo Fibre Brush made from synthetic bristles (white part) and natural hair bristles (black part); the bristles on this brush are pretty flimsy so my favourite use for this brush is blush, because the brush isn't so dense it doesn't pick up a lot of colour so I avoid looking like a clown with my blush. I only tried this once for foundation and HATED it!! This brush still sheds too, so for foundation it was horrible I had to pick off the brush hairs from my face and I wasn't even getting a nice coverage or look so I gave up and used my F80.
Recommended Uses: Blush and highlighter
Pros:
1. Great at applying blush
2. Soft enough
Cons:
1. Sheds
2. Useless for foundation
Can use liquid, cream and powder.
Rating: 5.5 out of 10
F40 Large Angled Contour brush made from natural hair bristles; this is actually a really soft brush. I only really use it for blush, it would be great to contour with. Doesn't really shed. It's a pretty simple brush to be honest it doesn't do much in terms that it doesn't have multiply uses. Because I am not really into contouring my own face I think that's why I have a lack of an appreciation for the brush, but I do think the quality is good and it seems to work well.
Recommended Uses: Blush, contour, highlight
Pros:
1. Doesn't shed
2. Works well
3. Very soft
4. Picks up a good amount of product
Cons:
1. I don't have a lot of uses for it
Use only for powders
Rating: 7 out of 10
F60 Foundation brush made from synthetic bristles; this is just your basic paddle foundation brush, it's nice and soft but personally I don't really like these brushes for applying foundation to the whole face because one I don't like the coverage it gives and two I find it applies my foundation streaky BUT I do like this for blending out concealer under the eyes or around the face and I do find it handy for blending out foundation around the nose which my F80 has trouble doing.
Recommended Uses: concealer under eyes (not in the inner tear duct area but underneath) and face, selected area foundation blending, highlighter (more intense)
Pros:
1. Soft
2. Good at blending concealer in small areas
3. No shedding
Cons:
1. Not good for full face foundation
Can be used for powder, cream and liquids
Rating: 6.5 out of 10
F70 Concealer Brush made from synthetic bristles; this is a very small concealer brush, the bristles are very soft but very stiff, good for concealer under the eyes and the inner tear duct area. This is handy for spot concealing. There isn't a lot to say about this brush it works well for concealing and that's basically all you can do with it. It is a bit small but you could use it for cream shadows if you needed to.
Recommended Uses: Under eye concealing, spot concealing, you could apply lip products with this because it is made from synthetic haired bristles, cream eyeshadows, concealing the lid, highlighting the cupid's bow
Pros:
1. Soft but firm
2. Works well enough
3. No shedding
Cons:
1. Might be a bit small for some people
Can be used for liquid, cream and powder
Rating: 6 out of 10
E40 Tapered Blending Brush made from natural haired bristles; this is a good brush, I do like it quite a bit, I mainly use this to blend out eyeshadow not to place it in the crease because it is a bit too flared and not too direct with the colour placement, so really dark colour placement is not recommended. It does take a bit to blend out eyeshadow though, I think if this brush were a little more softer and slightly denser, it would blend even better but it still works well.I like this to set concealer, it works great for that.
Recommended Uses: Blending eyeshadows, setting concealer, contouring your nose (and other small areas), highlighting the brow bone or top of the cheeks, placing a crease colour (as long as it's a light colour)
Pros:
1. Pretty fluffy
2. Blends good
Cons:
1. Still is shedding when washed
2. Not as soft as I would like
3. A little flimsy in the bristles, I think if it were a little denser and softer it would work like a dream
Can be only used for powders
Rating: 6 out of 10
E70 medium Angled Shading Brush made from natural hair bristles; honestly I don't reach for this brush often because I have a similar one but it's from ecotools and works much better so I tend to use this if my other brushes are dirty but it works well to add colour in the crease and too blend it out. It is pretty soft, kind of thin though and doesn't have a lot of hairs so it lacks that soft fluffiness, but it works fine. I haven't had shedding problems (at least none that I remember). It works well enough that it does the job, nothing about this brush stands out to be honest it's pretty mediocre.
Recommended Uses: Apply colour to lid or crease, blending out eyeshadow, highlighting the brow bone, placing colour in the inner tear duct area.
Pros:
1. Works well enough
2. Good for highlighting the brow bone
Cons:
1. The brush isn't anything special it just works ok but doesn't stand out
Use only for powders
Rating: 5 out of 10
E55 Eye shading brush made from natural bristles; a good basic laying down/ packing on colour to any place on the lid. This brush is slightly fluffy so you can blend a bit with it too, so it works well to apply and soften colours. Works ok to highlight the brow bone, soft enough and picks up colour pretty well. Everyone needs at least one of these brushes and this one does a good job.
Recommended Uses: Packing on colour, softening and slightly blending, can smudge colour on the lower lash (being careful though), highlighting
Pros:
1. Slightly fluffy makes it useful in blending and softening lines so it can be put to good use.
2. Applies colour well
Cons:
1. Sheds a little and has hairs sticking half out
2. Shouldn't be used for cream shadows because of the natural haired bristles
Use for only powders
Rating: 6.5 out of 10
E60 Large Shader brush made from natural haired bristles; to be honest I don't get the point of this brush, it is targeted according to sigma's website to be used for cream eyeshadows but because it is not made from synthetic hairs but natural hairs it wouldn't make sense to use it for cream products because it will absorbed too much. I think this brush should have been made from synthetic hairs because that would have made more sense towards it's intended use.
It picks up eyeshadow ok, not great. It is a stiff brush so you can't blend with it, you can apply a highlight with this brush. I just think this brush isn't needed and wasn't made smartly. Maybe one day I will find a use for it but now it is kind of a waste.
My Recommended Uses: Highlighting the brow bone, applying colour to the lid
Pros:
1. Works ok to pick up colour
Cons:
1. Being made from natural bristles doesn't make sense to what the intended purpose of this brush is
2. Doesn't have much use, and the things it can do isn't a stand out as other brushes in the set can do it better
3. Kind of a waste, would have been better to add a different brush to the collection.
Use for powders
Rating: 2 out of 10
E30 Pencil brush made from natural bristles; very handy brush. I am a big fan of eyeshadow on the lower lash line and this is great for that, I love smoking out eyeshadow upper lash line too. I mainly use it for that and it does it well, if it were a little softer I think it wouldn't take as long so smoke out the eyeshadows. It can be a slightly scratchy but noting too bad. I do wish this was made from synthetic bristles so it would be better for smudging out eyeliner and creams, it can be used for them but it does absorb your product. I do use this a lot and it comes in handy.
My Recommended Uses: Smudging out eyeshadow from lower or upper lash line, good at making an outer V or a cut crease.
Pros:
1. Works well to smudge eyeshadow
Cons:
1. A bit scratchy
2. Made from natural hair bristles
Better used for powders
Rating: 7 out of 10
E65 Small angle brush made from synthetic bristles; this brush is really small and great for doing thin lines on you upper lash line. Good for applying creams, gels and powders. Good for precise eyebrows but might take a little too long because the brush is so small. Stiff enough and bristles are nicely in place to make putting on eyeliner easy.
My Recommended Uses: Great for eyeliner, eyebrows, putting on lip colour because of the good angle
Pros:
1. Good at precise lines for any product
2. Can be used for putting on dark lipstick with precision
Cons:
1. Might take a while to do eyebrows
2. Might be too small for some people
Can be used for powders, gels, liquids, creams
Rating: 7.5 out of 10
E05 Eye Liner brush made from synthetic bristles; this brush is nice and stiff with a thin precise tip great for gel liners. I don't use this often but I like to use it with eyeshadow to apply it to be top lash line and it works well. I sometimes use it to apply my pencil eyeliner to my upper lash line.
My Recommended Uses: Any kind of eyeliner or eyeshadow
Pros:
1. Nice thin tip for precision
2. No shedding
Cons:
None
Can be used for gel, liquid, cream or powder
Rating: 8 out of 10
It then comes with the 2 cup holders which are great and so handy. You can click them together for travelling so the brushes wont get damaged. It is good quality, you can put other brushes in there, it's just a really great idea.
The Essential kit in my honest opinion it is overrated, it is a decent set but for $120 (I am pretty sure I paid a little less before the prices increased) I would expect something better. I don't think it is worth the money, if you were interested in buying a set I would say get the Sigma Mrs or Mr Bunny collection, I have never tried it but watching and reading reviews online, it seems that it is a better quality, softer and more dense and all brushes are vegan (made from synthetic bristles) so liquids, creams and powders can be used. Sigma has recently increased the prices of their brushes and I think that is ridiculous, I think they are taking advantage of their popularity as I do not think the Essential Kit: Make me Blush is worth $120 USD, yes there are some good brushes but nothing spectacular, the fact that it is over a year and I still am experiencing shedding (a lot with the F30) makes me question the quality and craftsmanship. I have always made sure to elevate the brushes when they are drying so no water gets in the ferrule so I know that the shedding is not because of me not taking care of the brushes.
(Full size) E25 Blending Brush made from natural bristles; great brush, really good at blending or placing colour in the crease. Great for softening edges and adding a brow bone highlight. Very, very soft and well made. I love the shape of the brush. Very handy, works good. Sometimes it can take a little while to blend out colours but the job does get done eventually.
My Recommended Uses: Blending, placing colour in the crease, softening colour, highlighting
Pros:
1. Blends well
2. Applies colour to the crease nicely
Cons:
None except that I wish it was made from synthetic hairs but that's just a personal choice.
Can be used only for powders, really absorbs liquids
Rating: 8 out of 10
Sample E25 Blending brush made from natural bristles; this is just the free gift you get with a purchase over $30, every one raves and loves this brush but mine is so so so scratchy, it is a bit uncomfortable to use. It blends ok, not as good as the normal full size version though. Comparing the two they are absolutely not the same in quality. I know how much everyone loves this brush so I don't know if it's just mine or what but it was disappointing.
My Recommended Uses: Ok for blending our colour, applying colour to the crease, highlighting
Pros:
1. Blends ok
Cons:
1. very scratchy
2. Not the same quality of the full size
Use for powders only
Rating: 3 out of 10
F80 Flate Kabuki Brush made from synthetic bristles; this brush is quite popular on youtube after seeing shaaanxo using it I decided to get it hoping it would work just as good and hoping it wasn't an over hyped product and it isn't, I LOVE this brush. It is by far my favourite sigma brush, I love it to apply liquid foundation it gives me the best coverage, streak free and gives me the best overall look with foundation when I use this brush. It is so soft but also very dense. I just love it, great quality I think it shed once which was the first time I washed it. I highly recommend this!!
My Recommended Use: liquid or powder foundations and/ or powders, blending out a contour line or harsh blush
Pros:
1. Super soft
2. Blends amazingly
3. Synthetic
Cons:
1. It can take a while to dry because the bristles are so dense
2. Harder to do foundation on the crevices of the face such as the nose area, so you will need a different brush (like a paddle foundation brush)
Use for powders, creams, liquids, gels
Rating: 9.5 out of 10
What are your thoughts on sigma brushes? Do you think they are over-hyped as well?
