Essence of Beauty • Kabuki Brush • Makeup Brushes

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SilverVT on 1/24/2008 1:46:00 PM more reviews by SilverVT

Age: 25-29   Skin: Acne-prone, Fair   Hair: Blond   Eyes: Green    

I wanted to like this brush. The bristles are nice and tightly packed and it is cheap, but that's where it ends.
It's harsh and scratchy and gets worse with every wash. It sheds a fair amount daily. I've had it for months and it still sheds on me. The shape is too tapered and makes it tough to pick up the right amount of makeup and get it applied well.
Even though it's cheap, it's not worth it for the money.

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mayaari on 1/10/2008 2:38:00 PM more reviews by mayaari

Age: 25-29   Skin: Combination, Medium   Hair: Black   Eyes: Brown    

I really like using this kabuki - I use it on a daily basis to apply my mineral foundation (Monave or Silk Naturals). The bristles are dense and incredibly soft on my skin, and I could sit and buff foundation all day with this brush! It does have a tendency to build up the powder after a week or two, so I wash it once it starts to feel like it's caking on foundation - using some baby shampoo, just swish the brush in my hand around and work the shampoo in, rinse until water runs clear, and dry laying flat. The bristles will puff up after the brush is completely dry, and feels soft all over again. I haven't really noticed much of a problem with shedding, at least not to the degree that others have mentioned.

I'd definitely purchase a backup/replacement whenever CVS has another BOGO or 1/2 off sale.

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*TOP REVIEWER* Justina17 on 12/29/2007 5:03:00 PM more reviews by Justina17

Age: 30-35   Skin: Combination   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Hazel    

I bought this before reading up on it. And yes, it does suck. Very scratchy. The other brushes from Essences of Beauty are very good though.

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golickaclown on 12/20/2007 11:26:00 AM more reviews by golickaclown

Age: 19-24   Skin: Combination, Fair   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Brown    

I think next time I will be trying a brush like Too Faced's Kabuki, but for now I'm perfectly happy with this one. I use it with L'Oreal Bare Natural MMU and occasionally with my loose powders if I don't feel like really wearing makeup. It's barely shed, except when my kitten runs off with it, but I haven't enjoyed washing it. All in all, it was a good thing to try out, and I'll keep it till it's dead, but next time I'll get a better one.

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sdora on 12/18/2007 8:57:00 AM more reviews by sdora

Age: 30-35   Skin: Dry, Medium   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Brown    

It was good when it was new but after washing it few times it got so scratchy. Will not be buying it again.

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BonChicBonGenre on 12/15/2007 3:23:00 PM more reviews by BonChicBonGenre

Age: 30-35   Skin: Acne-prone   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Brown    

What a disappointment. I think this brush is rated highly mostly because it is a relatively good quality brush at a reasonable price. But for me, it is far too large and tapered to apply MMU very well to every part of my face evenly. It gets the broad expanses of skin really well (basically my cheeks), but doesn't do such a great job closer to my eyes, nose, and hairline. Worst of all, it sheds a little bit everyday so that I end up with at least a dozen hairs all over my shirt or if I'm unlucky, irritating my neck. I wash all of my brushes immediately upon purchasing, and this lost a lot of its softness with that first wash, and continues to lose its softness the more I shampoo it. It's only $10, but it's $10 that could have offset the cost of a much better brush, e.g. Alima, MAC, BB.

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*TOP REVIEWER* sadendingsong on 12/14/2007 12:43:00 PM more reviews by sadendingsong

Age: 18 & Under   Skin: Oily, Fair-Medium   Hair: Black   Eyes: Brown    

I waited until after I washed it to see if it really sheds but I have to say its held up very well. even though its a little bulky for a brush, you will always get even coverage because of the evenly placed (and soft!) bristles. highly recommend this brand

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auddity on 12/6/2007 3:30:00 AM more reviews by auddity

Age: 19-24   Skin: Dry, Fair   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Brown    

Not my favorite brush..... it's larger than the BE one, but it's shaped differently. The bristles taper more drastically at the end, and they sort of curve in more. The bristles aren't very soft, but they're not very scratchy, either. It also smells a little odd. For 10 bucks, I probably could have done better, but this still does the trick to put my makeup on.

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bablondie32 on 11/20/2007 12:24:00 PM more reviews by bablondie32

Age: 25-29   Skin: Normal, Fair-Medium   Hair: Blond   Eyes: Green    

I'm not sure if I would buy this again or not. It is very soft and luxurious and feels very high-end. Mine was new and rec'vd in swap but I hear they are very inexpensive. With that said...I feel it's too huge. I cannot figure out how to use it on mineral makeup and my face with it having so many bristles (I mean literally thousands of them). If you pick up mineral makeup with it, it will use way too much and waste it. I can only see using this to "buff" the makeup all together at the end as a last step in the makeup routine..with that said I don't think that I would need it then..b/c my little retractable mark kabuki works excellent. It is also hard to store being that it's so big. If anyone knows how or what you use it for...PM me please! I will update this if I figure it out : )

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*TOP REVIEWER* CatMc on 11/20/2007 12:21:00 PM more reviews by CatMc

Age: Unknown   Skin: Oily, Medium, Neutral   Hair: Brown, Straight, Fine   Eyes: Blue    

OMG, does this brush shed! I bought it because I love the other EoB brushes I have (little to no shedding with those), and because it was so full and soft. I was really surprised at how much it sheds--after using it to buff on my BE, the sink looks like I gave myself a haircut. I bought it during one of those sales at CVS, so I didn't pay all that much for it, but still, it's disappointing. It's a little too soft to apply the BE properly too, so it's just sitting in my makeup box for now.

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*TOP REVIEWER* tmpr on 11/17/2007 7:10:00 PM more reviews by tmpr

Age: 25-29   Skin: Oily, Medium   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Brown    

Holy Softness, Batman!!

This is an excellent kabuki brush. I was using Lumene's for quite a while, and I was okay with it. I decided to try this one based on the raves and he price (I have a small budget). This is an excellent brush. It is incredibly soft, picks up and holds the right amount of powder (Right now, I use EDM in medium beige, warm) and it provides beautiful coverage. It does not shed at all, the hairs are nicely packed, and the shape is wonderfully tapered. This is a true keeper.

If you have $10 to spare and live near a CVS, go ahead and give it a whirl. I doubt you will be disappointed.

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star2007 on 10/14/2007 4:33:00 AM more reviews by star2007

Age: 19-24   Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium   Hair: Black   Eyes: Black    

I just got this at the CVS sale for EoB items and I like it! I had been using the BE Flawless Face brush or whatever it's called and I just realized a month ago that my face was a little itchy--don't know if it's the brush or the product but in any case, I've been using the EoB brush with Signature Minerals and I like it a lot. It is a lot softer and there are some hairs that have come off but nothing significant. It's so round and full, it gives me joy. My skin isn't too horrible right now since I'm in SoCal so I don't know how well this covers more troubled skin but I am happy, for now.


ETA: I edited this rating and review from my previous one (from a previous username) because I returned it to CVS promptly after washing the kabuki. It shed a bit, which is fine because it's very dense, but it lost the softness of the bristles. My skin got more red being slightly irritated by the bristles than it usually is and I really have no use for a kabuki because most of my skin is too dry to have anything being buffed in (afraid of getting flakes). I have read on the boards good things about the Too Faced kabuki, which is synthetic.

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veeboo on 10/5/2007 5:34:00 PM more reviews by veeboo

Age: 30-35   Skin: Combination, Olive   Hair: Black   Eyes: Brown    

I think I had a dud.... my kabuki sheds! Even so- I love it- it is soft and dense and exactly what I was looking for. The only kabuki I have is the BE one which is horribly coarse compared to this one. I only wish my brush didn't shed.

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birdgirl on 8/18/2007 3:09:00 PM more reviews by birdgirl

Age: 36-43   Skin: Sensitive, Fair   Hair: Red   Eyes: Blue    

HFG! Based on reviews here, I went to my nearest CVS in hopes of finding this kabuki. I had a mini freak-out at the store though b/c all they seemed to have were brush boxes, an eye MU set & a stand-up powder brush. But I ventured down the isle & found all of the MU tools and was relieved to find this brush. It is about 30% larger than the BE brush, 50% softer, has shed only 1 hair (compare to the BE's 20-25), and OMG does it do an amazing job with minerals (I'm playing with EM stuff right now). My BE starter kit is about to be sent back to Sephora. I cannot believe that they are selling that little POS BE kabuki for $28. They should be ashamed.

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*TOP REVIEWER* bunnychick on 8/11/2007 11:06:00 AM more reviews by bunnychick

Age: 30-35   Skin: Combination   Hair: Other   Eyes: Brown    

Excellent, dense and soft brush. I have the BE Kabuki and much prefer this one. Great for the price. Would highly recommend this brush no matter your beauty budget.

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usernameistaken on 7/26/2007 7:00:00 PM more reviews by usernameistaken

Age: 30-35   Skin: Combination, Medium   Hair: Other   Eyes: Other    

Love this brush, it is so soft and doesn't shed. I've washed it several times and there was no change or smell. At first I was apprehensive at how large it was but I'm finding that it makes application really easy as it only takes a couple of swipes to do my whole face, which also gives me really nice and even application. (As opposed to a smaller brush which would take several more swipes and more opportunity to apply heavier in some parts of my face than on others.) It was a steal at $10 and sometimes they even have BOGO 1/2 off sales too. I will definitely repurchase, I just hope they don't ever discontinue it! :)

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shimmersweetie on 7/23/2007 12:27:00 PM more reviews by shimmersweetie

Age: 25-29   Skin: Acne-prone   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Brown    

I began purchasing Essence of Beauty brushes last year after reading all of the rave reviews here on MUA. I was so excited to try them out, since they seemed like good quality brushes at such a decent price! I've been using the brushes (foundation, eyeshadow, lip, etc.) every day since then, but have actually been slightly disappointed by their performance. Unfortunately, most of my brushes are shedding like CRAZY and are pretty scratchy. So I obviously hesitated to purchase the new EoB Kabuki brush a few weeks ago, but I'm so glad I finally did! It's my favorite of all the Essence of Beauty brushes. First of all, it's very full, round, and super soft. Also, mine does NOT shed, thank goodness! I'm really glad I didn't give up on the EoB brushes completely, even if this is one of their only brushes that I really love. UPDATE: This weekend I got the chance to use a BE Kabuki brush on a bride on her wedding day, and I have to say that I like my EoB one MUCH more! It seems softer and more densely packed.

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*TOP REVIEWER* luvactuallyisallarnd on 7/16/2007 5:32:00 PM more reviews by luvactuallyisallarnd

Age: 18 & Under   Skin: Combination, Medium   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Brown    

I bought this at CVS at the buy 1, get 1 half-off sale. I needed to kabuki brush to apply EM foundation, so I decided to give this one a try after reading the reviews here. The hairs are so incredibly soft and not scratchy at all. It picks up the foundation pretty well. My makeup looks very good. However, I did notice some shedding. It's not too much to be so bothered by it, but a couple of hair land on my face after applying. I would repurchase again since it's so cheap.

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*TOP REVIEWER* luloo on 7/16/2007 3:30:00 PM more reviews by luloo

Age: Unknown   Skin: Combination, Fair, Neutral   Hair: Other, Wavy, Medium   Eyes: Other    

This was a little poky/stiff. I returned it. The Essence of Beauty Foundation Brush is super soft and a better bet for applying powders IMO (I mean for loose powders, it's the wrong shape for pressed). The Posh kabuki is also excellent.

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kochou on 7/14/2007 1:48:00 PM more reviews by kochou

Age: 25-29   Skin: Very Oily, Tan, Warm   Hair: Brunette, Wavy, Medium   Eyes: Hazel    

after reading the reviews on this product i decided to go to CVS and purchase the brush. i experimented with it this morning and i have to say i'm impressed by how lush, dense, and soft the hairs are. excellent price,too! i also the bought theBalm mini-kabuki at Sephora yesteday - i'll be taking that for a test drive soon.

this perfectly buffed my foundatin so that it looked airbrushed on - perfectly blended. minimum fuss. this is a must have item.

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