(Above L to R: Angle Liner, Oval Eyeshadow, Crease, Concealer, Blush)
(Above: Kabuki Brush)
www.AfterglowCosmetics.com had contacted me a while ago to review some of their mineral makeup products, and included these brushes in the package, along with their mineral foundation, some eyeshadows and various other things. You can see a review and video tutorial of that by clicking here. I'm finally getting around to doing a review on these brushes!
These are vegan, animal cruelty-free brushes, meaning they are completely synthetic.They are handmade brushes, and the material is high quality Taklon. Now, Taklon comes in a few different varieties, I have some cheap Taklon brushes from Crown Brush and these ones from Afterglow are absolutely nothing alike. These are definitely high quality brushes; they are very well crafted and sturdy, precisely cut, and very, very soft but still offer enough resistance for good control.
What amazed me is how densely packed these brushes are! They are extremely dense, especially the kabuki and the blush brushes, which are my two favorite in this set. I also love the concealer brush! I'd wager to say the Afterglow kabuki is studier and denser than the MAC 182, and although I still love the 182, this is a great synthetic alternative. It is a bit smaller, so it would probably be more comparably to the limited edition MAC 181. The Afterglow brushes do not lose any color dye whatsoever upon washing and barely shed - in fact, I'd say these brushes have not shed at all. The added bonus of these brushes is that since they are synthetic, they keep their shape perfectly and you don't need to be as careful when washing, compared to natural hair brushes. They dry perfectly in shape and don't have any flyaways.
The only downside I can point out is that the oval eyeshadow brush is pretty large, so for small-lidded people like myself, it's a bit clumsy to work with. If you have a larger lid space, I could see this working to your advantage. The crease brush is very comparable to MAC's 222 brush, only I find it doesn't offer enough control because the hair is pretty long. But if you like the MAC 222, you will probably like this synthetic version of it. They also sent me the long-handled sponge tip applicator brush, but I didn't even bother posting that on here - I'd say give that one a miss.
All in all, if you are looking for high quality, vegan, synthetic brushes, these ones by Afterglow are very good. They are a bit pricey, but they are just as well made as some of my MAC brushes. The handles and ferule are sturdy, the brushes are densely packed, and made of good materials.
If you want to try out some of these brushes or other Afterglow products and live in Canada or USA (Free shipping over $100 purchase):
www.AfterglowCosmetics.com
www.AfterglowCosmetics.com
If you live outside Canada and USA, please visit the UK Afterglow site:
They look stunningly gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteI mean look at them!
Too bad they don't ship to Europe.
Btw, that's a nice review!
The UK site ships internationally and to the rest of Europe.
ReplyDeletethey look really nice!
ReplyDeletevegan and animal cruelty-free brushes is always a good thing in my book, thanks for sharing
ReplyDeletei might want to check out the website :)
hey! you can get the same brushes from http://www.auralinebeauty.com
ReplyDeletekabuki brush comes even with the same little purse and cost only $12
http://www.auralinebeauty.com/components/com_virtuemart/shop_image/product/845df3afe0d1c577ceb5ef438211513f.jpg
I had no idea! Hm the kabuki does look it has the same case but I can't find the other brushes on that website.
ReplyDeleteI just emailed with Auraline beauty to find out more and they do not ship to end consumers, you have to buy in bulk - $500 per order and up. So that site is geared towards people who want to create their own line. HTH! :)
ReplyDeleteHm... it says on their website that "Our Minimum Wholesale Purchase For Domestic Orders is $50"... which is no good for european people, but isn't a bad deal for americans, considering that for $50 you can get 4 of the same brushes and just swap them on makeupalley (which can be a good option, considering that they don't ship to europe) etc. from afterglow you only can get 2 brushes for $50. i'll do a little bit more research and let you know if I find any retailers selling these brushes for cheaper. perhaps it's worth asking Auraline beauty is they can suggest a place where we can buy this brushes as an end consumer!
ReplyDeleteBy the way afterglowcosmetics.co.uk charges £35 (which is $55!!!) for a brush which costs $12. Isn't it ridiculous?
The email I got from Auraline did specify that they do not cater to end consumers. This is what they wrote in the email:
ReplyDelete"As well, we are a wholesale company and only sell to other businesses or makeup artists / aestheticians / hairstylists (not to the end
consumer)."
So I have no idea really.