Finding the best makeup brush set for you
Japanese makeup brushes are renowned for their consistently high quality. The only downside of this is that it can make choosing which brush set to buy a difficult choice! Committing...
Japanese makeup brushes are renowned for their consistently high quality. The only downside of this is that it can make choosing which brush set to buy a difficult choice!
Committing to a set, or furthering your makeup brush collection with a set, can be a comprehensive way to embrace the makeup brush journey.
1) The Premium Makeup Brush Set
If you're after a top-of-the-range set, go for the Chikuhodo Z-Series. This series is Chikuhodo’s softest, most luxurious brushes, with most of the bristles made from of 100% squirrel hair. Each hair is hand-picked by a team of specialists. The bristles are left uncut, allowing for the silkiest feel possible.
This 10-piece set includes a comprehensive range, with powder, cheek, eye, and lip brushes and more. It comes in a stylish box and case that will keep your brushes beautiful and clean, no matter where you take them. The set is also available in 4 and 6-piece versions, if you are looking for something smaller.
Chikuhodo Z Series 10-Piece Makeup Brush Set, $694
2) The Budget Makeup Brush Set
If you thought that the prestige of a Japanese makeup brush set was out of your price range... good news! There are more budget-friendly options out there.
Chikuhodo 5-Piece Makeup Brush set, $49
Although listed on our site as a gift set, it is also perfect for treating yourself to a high quality but cheap makeup brush set. It is also a well-balanced set which covers a variety of your needs such as providing
- A Sokoho Goat Hair cheek brush,
- A horse hair eyeshadow brush,
- A sponge applicator,
- A brush and comb for eyebrows made from tanuki/horse hair
- And finally a lip brush from weasel hair.
3) The Vegan-friendly Set
If you prefer a non-animal-product based makeup brush set, Chikuhodo has been working away to replicate the quality of natural bristles with synthetic materials. The result is their AF collection.
The 100% animal-free synthetic fibers of Chikuhodo's AF Series recreates the delicate touch of Chikuhodo's highest grade bristles. The AF fibres are designed to have tiny cuticle and crimps to recreate texture and feel of natural hair. They use corn-based material to make it eco-friendly, and have silver is sewn into the fiber to make it antimicrobial.
This set includes:
AF-1 Powder Brush
Bristle: Flat round, 48ｍｍ
AF-2 Foundation Brush
Bristle: Round, 20mm
AF-3 Cheek Brush
Bristle Round, 33mm
AF-4 Eyeshadow Brush
Bristle: flat round, 10mm
AF-5 Eyeshadow Brush
Bristle: flat round, 10mm
AF-6 Shadow-Liner Brush
Bristle: flat round, 6mm
AF-7 Eyebrow Brush
Bristle: slanted 8.0/5.5mm
AF-8 Lip Brush
Bristle: flat, 11mm
C-24 Brush case
Dimension
- Extended: 360 x 210mm
- Closed: 115 x 210mm
Material: Nylon
4) The Elegant Travel Set
Chikuhodo collaborated with the Yamanaka-Shikki to produce special Maki-e Brush. This luxurious set includes all the portable Maki-e makeup brush collection.
Yamanaka Shikki / Lacquerware is traditional crafts of Ishikawa prefecture. They have been producing quality lacquerware for approx. 450 years from late 16th century. The crafts were granted with Royal warrant in 20th century, and continues to produce high-quality lacquerware.
Yamanaka Shikki / Lacquerware is traditional crafts of Ishikawa prefecture. They have been producing quality lacquerware for approx. 450 years from late 16th century. The crafts were granted with Royal warrant in 20th century, and continues to produce high-quality lacquerware.
This gorgeous set of Makie-decorated makeup brushes includes:
5) The Men’s Grooming Set
Set of high-end grooming tools, carefully selected by Chikuhodo.
It includes eyebrow and nails grooming kit below.
SH-3 Brow brush/brush & comb set with ebony wood. Bristle come with good volume and density. The hand is made of natural ebony wood, with a firm grip and good weight for easy application. This set comes with the wooden stand made of same ebony wood as brush handle!
6) The Beginner’s Brush Set
Chikuhodo S-R-5 R-series 3-piece Starter set in Red, $52
It is a simple set, and lets you try out one powder or cheek brush, one eyeshadow brush, and one brush and comb tool! This helps you not to make the mistake of buying too many brushes while allowing you to still experience a luxurious Chikuhodo Japanese makeup set!
It even comes with a stylish case. This can ease your worries of making a mistake and overloading yourself with unnecessary brushes! As you become more skilled in using makeup brushes, you will be able to upgrade your sets and slowly add to your Japanese makeup brush collection.
7) The Eye makeup brush set
Eye makeup brushes can be tricky. Everyone wants to know how many to buy. Japanese manufacturers recommend that you buy about three to five makeup brushes, but it can also depend on the technique of the user. Unless you are a makeup artist who has great technique and many different types of eyeshadow/eyeshadow styles which you will employ, then we recommend that you listen to the manufacturer’s recommendation of 3 to 5 brushes.
The eye is a delicate area of the face and therefore deserves some attention and high-quality care. In the same way that you use the top-rated Clinique or high-end makeup like Shiseido and skincare, why not buy a Japanese eye makeup brush set which will treat your delicate eye area with gentle finesse.
AJJ recommends…
Chikuhodo E-S-1 Eye and Eyebrow Brush Set, $73!
There are four brushes (the happy medium between 3 and 5!)
A fine brush for eyeliner or eyebrow purposes, a screw brush, a large eyebrow brush, and an eyeshadow or nose shadow brush made from a variety of famous Japanese materials such as badger hair, Tanuki, and horse hair.
By purchasing this set, you can get a variety of brushes without buying too many, meaning you save yourself from spending excess money on brushes you might not have a reason to use. Keep your makeup tool kits precise and without clutter!