These oval makeup brushes are all the rage right now. Almost 2 months ago, I decided to bite the bullet and buy a set online. I’ve been testing out these brushes since they arrived and I will let you know my thoughts down below.

If you’ve never heard about them, they’re basically these really densely-packed makeup brushes that you can use all over the face for different purposes.

Before I start, I’m fairly certain that the original oval makeup brushes are from Artis. I’ve watched a few Youtube videos about them and the original 10-piece makeup brush set retails for $355US! That’s around $500NZ and there is absolutely no way I would spend that much money on brushes. I don’t even spend that much on clothes let alone makeup.

I searched for alternatives and I found different brush sets on eBay and Aliexpress. Just search ‘oval makeup brushes’ and you’d find a lot of sets in different colours. The plain black ones are the cheapest but I opted for the prettier set which is in this rose gold colour.

I got the 10-piece set as well but you can buy individual brushes too. This oval makeup brush set are from Aliexpress and were $22US so just over $30NZ. For 10 pieces, I thought this was reasonable. They arrived within 3 weeks. I wasn’t in a hurry to use them anyway and I almost forgot I ordered them. It depends on the seller too.

So the set has 5 oval brushes, 2 small circular brushes and 3 linear brushes.

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Let’s start with the oval brushes first:

There are 5 of them in varied sizes. This biggest oval brush is 6m long and the smallest oval brush is just under 3cm.

These oval brushes are so densely packed with bristles. The biggest one obviously has the most weight but it’s still fairly light and easy to grab. I’ve found the largest oval brush to be the best at smoothing my foundation over my face.

I don’t use it to apply foundation directly but I like to brush it all over my face afterwards for a smoother finish. It covers a lot of surface area so it doesn’t take that long compared to using my Real Techniques buffing brush.

The 2nd and 3rd size oval brushes are better to use for foundation but I still prefer my beauty blender especially if I’m in a rush and don’t have too much time to blend. I’ve found that it’s good at distributing foundation on my face though and because of how dense it is, it doesn’t absorb a lot of product.

The smaller oval brushes are apparently meant to be for concealer. I’ve tried using it under my eyes but I didn’t like it because it felt like I was dragging my under eye area too much. I’m not the only one that felt this way too as other Youtubers had the same thoughts. I think a sponge or your fingers are a lot gentler than using this brush for under eye concealer.

Another thing I’ve used the oval brushes for is setting powder. I’ve really liked using the two biggest brushes to set my foundation for a quick and even powder application. I didn’t feel like it dragged my foundation around and it set it well before blush or bronzer.

I have yet to use the brushes for cream bronzer or blush but for buffing foundation and applying setting powder, I like them and have been using them for those purposes.

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Next up are these linear brushes:

There are three in this set. The biggest one is 2.5cm, the middle is 1.5cm and the smallest brush is 1cm. These are meant to be for eyeshadow, brows and eyeliner.

I haven’t used these linear brushes yet and since I don’t wear eyeshadow very often, I doubt I’d be using these for my eyes any time soon. However, I’m curious to use middle and smallest brush for my eyebrows so I might give that a go.

I also plan on experimenting with the biggest linear brush to apply cream contour. I think it would create a definite line on the side of the nose and for cheekbones that might help me improve my cream contouring game (which is non-existent at the moment). I will let you know if I ever try these brushes.

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The last two brushes are small circular ones:

The Artis brushes also have these and they’re meant to be for lips, eyeshadow and brows. Personally, I wouldn’t use these for lipstick application as I never use brushes to apply lipstick anyway. I also feel weird using a circular brush on my eyebrows so I will pass on that.

What I’ve found these brushes useful for are highlight and concealer. The small size is great for blending concealer on the corner of my nose and for spots. They’re also great for inner corner highlight. The size makes it perfect to dab on the corner of my eyes and underneath the brow bone. I like them and have found them handy.

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Do I think these brushes were worth it? Yes I do. For the amount I paid for, I think they’re a good value for money. I’ve used the oval and circular brushes and I’ve found great use for them. However, I probably wouldn’t pay any more than $40 for a set like this. I’m not a makeup expert or artist for me to fork out a lot of money on tools so I’m happy with these dupes.

I didn’t find them hard to use either. I think you just need to get used to the different application. In comparison, these oval brushes are meant to be used with swiping motions and not tapping/circular dabbing motions on the face.

It’s something different but if you love makeup and trying new things, I recommend giving this a go.

Lastly, I’ve found the best way to clean these brushes is by rubbing/wiping it on a microfibre cloth that has makeup brush cleaner. I got the idea from Tati (glamlifeguru) and it worked for me. It did take a lot longer to dry though compared to my normal makeup brushes.

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 I hope you found this post helpful if you were thinking about getting a set. I don’t regret this purchase at all and I’m glad I have this in my collection now. If you’ve tried these oval makeup brushes, let me know your thoughts down below. I want to know if you’ve liked it too!

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