Best budget face brushes

I use a lot of make up brushes - like a lot. Surely more than anybody needs for one relatively small face. However, every time I do a deep clean I'm surprised at just how many brushes I've managed to get dirty. That's proof though that I do actually use the large amount of brushes that I own. Above are my favourites and the ones that I use pretty much every time I apply make up.

The Beauty Blender: worth the hype?

Since the original Beauty Blender was created in 2003 it's cemented its place as the beauty industry's favourite sponge. In the past few years, plenty of other brands have been coming out with their own 'dupes' and lots of beauty bloggers and makeup artists have dismissed them as lesser competitors. So is the original pink sponge worth it's resound praise or it's £16 price tag?

No7 Blend & Contour brush

A blending brush is an essential to any eyeshade lover. A good one will beautifully buff out, smoothly blend eye shadow and quickly apply a wash of colour in a pinch. The Mac 217 is a prime example, the cult favourite blending brush, but at £18, it isn’t for everyone.

Eco Tools Fresh & Flawless Set

Wandering the isles of Boots recently I began browsing the Brush section - always a dangerous pursuit. I spotted a cute little box containing a set of five of Eco Tools face brushes. The box promised a 'Smooth Airbrushed Finish' and 'Beautifully Soft Brushes' and was under £15 so I popped it in my basket and left Boots a happy girl.

Firstly, I think that these brushes look really cute. They're travel size so perfect for popping in your handbag or taking on holiday. The ferrules are also different colours, unlike the usual Eco Tools brushes, and have pretty leafy and floral designs on. The ferrules are also made out of recycled aluminium, and the bristles are cruelty-free so you can feel good about yourself for being eco too!

The set includes five different face brushes which I could easily use for ever step in my makeup routine. All of the brushes are of a lovely quality, I love the bamboo handles and the bristles are nice and soft. They aren't quite up to the softness standards of a Real Techniques set but they are cheaper and perfect if you're just delving into the world of beauty and want a nice set of make up brushes to start out.

Firstly the Precision Foundation brush, this is very similar to the Foundation Brush in the Real Techniques Core Collection. It's a small flat foundation brush perhaps a little petit for applying foundation but it is perfect for blending out under eye concealer.

The Buffing Concealer brush is a bit like a tiny buffing brush, it's quite densely packed with a slightly rounded top. I like to use it to blend out concealer. I did find this a little bit more scratchy than the other brushes but works fine used with a soft hand.

The Flat Concealer brush is a reasonably dense flat brush with a rounded tip. It's fairly small so great for applying concealer precisely over spots and blemishes.

The Complexion Blending brush reminds me of the Real Techniques Buffing Brush but a lot smaller, it's also slightly flat and nor completely round. I reach for it instead of my Buffing Brush to blend out foundation, concealer or blusher if I'm travelling as it's so tiny. I've also found it to be a great shape for contouring.

Finally the Full Powder brush is a nice soft fluffy brush, less densely packed than the Complexion Blending brush. I use it to apply my face powder or a powder highlighter.

I love this little set and use many of the brushes daily, especially when I'm travelling as they're just so handy and small. I would definitely recommend this, it would make a perfect gift for somebody new to make up or a handy travel set if you just want to expand your collection.

I picked up my set in Boots but for some reason these aren't on the Boots website. If you can't find any in store you can buy these from Feel Unique for £11.99 which equates to about £2.40 per brush - bargain!