**REVIEW** Qivange Kabuki Makeup Brushes

Most of you guys know that I'm no expert at applying makeup (said the woman who almost put out an eye applying liner!), but I got to try these brushes:

Up until now, this  "oval" was my favorite (and only) kind of makeup brush:

There are things that I really love about the Kabuki style brushes, and there are a couple of things about the oval brushes that I prefer. By the way, there are 10 brushes in the Qivange set. Let's just do a little review.

To start, I will tell you something I recently learned: Kabuki brushes are also referred to as a "mushroom" brushes. And also that,

It is named after the Kabuki Japanese drama theater where actors wear Keshō, a very heavy makeup that emphasizes the nature of their characters. There, the kabuki brush is used to apply the white powder rice uniformly on the entire face. (Wikipedia)

What I like about the Kabuki brushes - or at least this set from Qivange - is how dang soft the bristles are. Normally, when I think of "bristles", I immediately think "itchy". Like most affordable brushes, these are made with synthetic fibers. The handles are wood and aluminum. And this is where these excel over the particular oval brushes that I have. The Kabuki brush is sturdier while applying makeup. I can exert more pressure on these than I can on the handles of the oval brushes. My oval brushes (and I actually have 2 different brands) tend to be flimsier. I have to hold the handles down close to the brush head so that they don't feel as they will snap - and I have had one snap and break completely.

Another thing I appreciate about the set from Qivange is the variety of shapes. In the 10-piece set I got these different brush heads:

1. Angled
2. Flat angled
3. Tapered
4. Flat (for foundation)
5. Round (for powder)
6. Precision round
7. Small flat
8. Small angled
9. Small flat angled
10. Small tapered

I know that there are ladies who do a lot of layering and contouring (because I often laugh at them) and could use every single one of these brushes every time they applied makeup. For myself, I use the starred ones most - and that's if I am applying what I call "special occasion" makeup aka The Works. On a casual day, I mainly use the Angled brush to apply some light foundation or BB cream.

This is me wearing my daily makeup applied with the Kabuki brush. I used the Angeled Face brush for the all-over foundation, then I did the undereye concealer and highlighter with the Small Tapered brush.

Another huge benefit of the Kabuki brush (over the Oval) is that I didn't have to use as much of my  BB Cream to get very even coverage. I'm almost out of my Black Radiance and it can sometimes be hard to find in my shade...

In case, I have one of my senior "moments" and forget what the heck I am doing or which brush I am using, each of them is nicely labeled on the handle:

Nice, right? Thank you, Qivange!

On the other hand, the oval brushes do have an advantage over some (only some) of the Kabuki brushes when it comes to the firmness of the brush heads. The bristles on the Kabuki brushes for eyes - with the exception of the Small Tapered one - are too soft for my liking. I could not use them for eyeshadows because the looseness of the bristles made it hard to control the application. Or maybe I am using them incorrectly. That's why I love the Small Tapered brush; The tight bunching of the bristles meant I could use it best in the areas around my eyes without puffing powder and shadow everywhere. The oval-style brushes for eyes, even the smallest one offers more even coverage and control, in my opinion.

These Kabuki brushes are a great value as far as I'm concerned. If you have Amazon Prime, you pay a dollar per brush because this entire set was (at the time I got them) ten dollars. That's not bad for the quality of the brushes and those wonderfully labeled handles. I used my favorites for 2 days in a row and, when I cleaned them tonight, they washed out more easily than my oval brushes do. I have one of those ridged brushed cleaners to gently scrub the bristles against. None of the bristles washed out, by the way

So these brushes are pretty neat and, compared to the oval brushes, I think it just depends on your preference. I personally like having both types around. I also use blender sponges and old-fashioned red cosmetic blotting sponges and, sometimes, disposable cotton-head Q-tips. I'm glad I have the Kabuki brushes in the makeup arsenal.

I'll leave with this little summary (because I know I kind of rambled).

PROS

• Strong handles that won't snap
• Soft bristles that don't irritate my sensitive skin
• Bristles didn't "shed"
• Brushes are easy to clean
• Each brush handle is helpfully labeled
• Better foundation coverage using less product
• A great value for 10 brushes
• A variety of brush heads

CONS

• Some of the brush heads didn't offer a lot of control

Basically, these are 4.5 of 5 stars in my book.

Peace
--Free