MAC 239 vs. Sigma E55

Before purchasing my Sigma brush kit a year ago or so, I tried asking around on MUA, which brand people liked better for brushes, Sigma or MAC. By that, I quite frankly meant: Are the MAC brushes so much better than the Sigma ones, that they are worth me spending so much money on them.
Obviously, people had different opinions. However, I noted that one person told me that the Sigma ones can do just as good a job as the MAC ones - except for the MAC 239 brush, which that person said simply could not be duped.

Lucky for me, I already had the MAC 239, so I decided to purchase a Sigma Make Me Blush kit, and definitely do not regret it. Don't get me wrong - I do own a few MAC brushes and I absolutely love them - but I also feel that spending so much on brushes doesn't really make sense, when I can get almost the same thing for a lot less. I'm not a professional makeup artist, makeup is my hobby, so why not just spend the extra money on actual makeup, then?
And yes... I do admit that the fact that Sigma has pink brushes, might have played a small role... a girl never gets too old for a little bit of pink!

Above to the right, you can see the MAC 239 brush (the lower one) and the Sigma E55 (the upper one), which is supposed to be a "Sigma version" of the MAC one. Both of these brushes are meant for packing colour onto your eyelids.

Now, as you can tell from the top picture, and the one to the left, the Sigma one is bigger and thicker. This is both a good and a bad thing. Since the MAC one is smaller, it can fit into the corner of your eye more nicely and it is precise enough to be used for placing shadow under your lower lashline as well - the Sigma one is too big for this. I also find that the MAC brush delivers more colour to the eye - the shadow's pigments seem to transfer better with it.
However, the Sigma brush does a good job when dealing with glitter - and it is my go-to brush for that. That being said, I don't use glitter on my eyes very often, so for me, the MAC brush is a winner here.

Definitely worth the money, and although you don't feel like splurging on all the MAC brushes, I think you should check the MAC 239 out - it will be your best friend before long!

What do you think? Have you tried either one of these brushes? Tell me!

Love,
Miss Diorista

My Powder Foundation Routine

Back in February, I posted about my foundation routine. I planned on showing you my powder foundation routine soon, but... "soon" has a different meaning here on Miss Diorista than in the rest of the world, so you're getting my powder foundation routine now :)

I really like powder foundation, since it's quick and simple. Also, I'm young and I don't always need the heavier coverage that a liquid foundation gives me, but I still want something. So give it powder foundation a try if you haven't already!

1. First, I conceal my under-eye circles and any dark spots that have to be concealed. I really like the Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer, since I can use it both under my eyes and on my skin, because it doesn't have a pink undertone to it.
2. I set the concealer with a setting powder, very often my Dior Diorskin Powder. Sometimes, I also sweep a bit of this over my forehead, nose and chin to control any shine, before I put on the actual foundation.
3. Time for the foundation! I really like Hello Flawless! by Benefit, but I also have one by Dior which I really like. For both of these, I use a sponge (you can get them at the drugstore) for sweeping and patting them on. I also bring the powder down to my neck.
4. If I'm looking too powdery, I really like to buff the foundation in with a Sigma F80, which is a flat top kabuki. It makes everything look more natural and blended.

That's it! Finally, a nice tip to remember when wearing powder foundation, is that it never hurts to use an illuminator with it. You can either apply a luminizing primer underneath, or sweep on luminizing powder afterwards. Either way, you will look more glowy, younger and always fresh.

Love,

Miss Diorista

Sigma - Sigmax Synthetic Face Kit

My new love! This kit from Sigma includes the following three brushes:

• F80 - Flat Top Kabuki
• F82 - Round Top Kabuki
• F84 - Angled Top Kabuki

All of these brushes are made from the synthetic Sigmax HD filament, which is specially made to produce a flawless finish, using liquid, cream and/or powder products.

The brushes are very easy to use and wash, although they do take quite some time to dry after wash. Make sure that you don't have to use it the next 12 hours or so before you wash it. I have not noticed any staining, but you have to take care when you wash them, to reach the hairs in the middle, which can be tricky because of the density.

F80 - Flat Top Kabuki
This brush has to be my favourite from the three, and it is the best foundation brush I've found so far. It is also very versatile; the flat surface is perfect for buffing in foundation, as well as blending out blush or bronzer.

F82 - Round Top Kabuki
This brush is great for achieving perfect blending under your eyes. After I've applied my concealer and set it with powder, I run this brush once or twice below each eye, and my concealer doesn't crease the whole day! This is also good for blending around your nose, because of the round edges.

F84 - Angled Top Kabuki
This brush blends together products on your cheeks very well, because of its shape. This is also very useful if you wear both blush and bronzer, but don't want to see where the blush ends and the bronzer begins. I usually only blend with this brush, I don't dip it into the actual product (the same goes for the other two brushes).

Top to bottom: Flat, Round, Angled Top Kabukis.

I do love all three brushes and use them very much, but the one I use the most is the F80 Flat Top Kabuki. I honestly think that if you want to (or if you're on a budget), then you can purchase only this one and skip the other two, since it can actually do everything the other two can do. That being said, if you are very serious about your makeup, you might find the other two very useful. I know I certainly do.

L-R: Flat, Round, Angled Top Kabukis. I love how dense these are!

Product (65%) - 9.5/10

Value (10%) - 9/10

Would I repurchase? (15%) - 10/10

Packaging (10%) - 9.5/10 (They came very safely packaged and in a blue pouch)

Overall - 9.5/10

xox,

Miss Diorista

Sigma Brushes - Haul and First Impressions

 The mailman must have thought that I was kind of crazy, jumping up and down like that when he delivered my Sigma brushes some days ago! You should have seen me... or his face :D ok, no, I didn't really jump up and down... but I did so in my heart ;)

I ordered two sets of brushes, one "Make Me Blush", which holds the classic twelve brushes from Sigma (in pink!), as well as a genius brush carrier which snaps into two brush holders! I also bought the "Synthetic Face Kit" (also known as the "Sigmax brushes"), which holds three differently shaped kabuki brushes, made for giving you an airbrushed finish.

Brushes from "Make Me Blush"

• Small Angle - E65
• Medium Angled Shading - E70 - (This is a dupe for MAC 275, which I love!)
• Large Shader - E60
• Pencil - E30 - (Great for a cut crease, but a tiny bit scratchy...)
• Large Angled Contour - F40 - (I love this for both my blush and contour colour!)
• Large Powder - F30
• Duo Fibre - F50 - (Comparable to MAC 187)
• Foundation - F60
• Concealer - F70
• Tapered Blending - E40 - (Good for blending, but I find it way too big for applying colour to my crease.)
• Eye Shading - E55
• Eyeliner - E05

 

Isn't that mouse just so adorable?

And of course I had to get them in pink! I did think about it for a while, and was afraid that it would be too pink and I'd get bored with it after a while. However, it isn't too pink at all, and I don't see myself getting bored with those brushes anytime soon! Pink is so much more fun than black :)


Brushes from the "Synthetic Face Kit":

• F80 - Flat Top Kabuki - Probably the most multi-purpose one of the three, but I mainly use it for buffing my foundation in.
  F82 - Round Top Kabuki - I have found this one great for blending in tricky places, like around my nose and even under my eyes.
• F84 - Angled Top Kabuki - I use this for blending together blush and bronzer (or just blush/bronzer, depending on what I'm wearing).



Here they are, in the same row as in the description above. They all feel very sturdy and are actually quite heavy. I've been really loving those since I got them!



And finally, Sigma sent me a gift with my purchase: A travel sized E25 blending brush. It's so cute :) I haven't gotten around using it much, but from what I've tried, it's a good size for my eyes, both for blending and for applying shadows to my crease.

Whew, 16 new brushes! I get overwhelmed just thinking about it :) And I love them all :P

Don't forget to participate in my giveaway!

Love,

Miss Diorista 

P.S. I will post reviews on those brushes once I've used them a bit more :)

In life, we all have unspeakable secret, irreversible regret, unreachable dream and unforgettable love. - Diego Marchi

(I love this quote, because sometimes, all those things combine into one...)