My sister always taught me that you can be an absolute make up expert - you could have the most expensive products and know how to apply it all perfectly - but unless you have a decent set of make up brushes and tools, you won't get far. That's something I've always remembered and tried to live by. It's only when I myself began to use proper make up brushes that I realized how much difference it makes.
I was recently sent some EcoTOOLS products to review and I was immediately pleased with the products I received. Although I do use make up brushes, the ones I currently use are only cheap ones and I've been after some professional ones for a while now. EcoTOOLS provided me with just that!
To begin with, EcoTOOLS are all about being green. EcoTOOLS is a member of 1% for the Planet, which is a collective of businesses that support environmental initiatives. Each member donates 1% of their annual revenue to environmental causes. All of their products are 100% cruelty free, using natural elements to stay as green as possible. In particular, their cosmetic brushes are made from sleek bamboo, recycled aluminum and synthetic taklon bristles.
I absolutely love that these products are designed to be as friendly to the planet as they can and that the company has such involvement in being green. It's really refreshing to find a company with such an inspiring message, as well as the fact that they do not test on animals at all. This is certainly a big factor in why I love these products.
The packaging is absolutely gorgeous as well ; it's simple but reflects the message behind the products. The storage pouches that the brushes come in are also reusable and each pouch has a 'Green Tip' on the back, as well as basic instructions on how to use each brush.
This beautiful Bamboo angled eyeliner brush is ideal for applying eyeliner without making a mess. I found that when using this, I ended up with very defined applied eyeliner which is a first for me! This small brush is beautiful - the bristles are extremely soft and it meant that it was a really smooth process when applying eyeliner. It's quite hard too in that the bristles are very defined - even after using it and washing it the bristles still stayed in place. I find that with other eyeliner brushes, once washing them the bristles divide between themselves and I end up with loads of gaps between them, making it really hard to use. However this brush didn't do that, which I think is a valuable factor when creating an eyeliner brush. The bristles weren't too thick either which meant the eyeliner line was just right - I could apply it as a thin line as it was, or build it up.
I think out of all the brushes I received, I've probably used the Recycled retractable foundation brush the most. It's not easy to use your foundation when creating an even complexion but this brush did the trick. Again, the extremely soft but hard set bristles made it so easy to apply foundation and left me with the most even coverage I've had in a long time. I felt that this brush also made it really easy to blend - something other brushes I'd used in the past had not managed to do. I usually find I have to apply foundation, use a brush and than further use my fingers to blend in more but I didn't need to when using this brush. My skin can be quite temperamental as well with skin around my nose being a bit dry and my forehead being a bit shiny/greasy but this brush prevented this and covered up any blemishes perfectly too.
This Recycled retractable kabuki brush is ideal for that 'final touch'. When you've added all your makeup, it's perfect to use when applying cover up in powder form, blusher or bronzer and is used to create a smooth and soft finish. This brush does exactly what it says on the packet and I find it really is perfect for finishing off any looks I am creating. I've used this brush out and about too and it's been perfect to use as a quick touch up. The thick and full bristles are so soft to use on my face. Some brushes I use all over my face can be scratchy slightly but this wasn't, in fact it felt really velvety! The taklon bristles are strong as well. I have found in the past that when brushing quite quickly or heavily all over my face, bristles can come loose and fall off but this was not an issue here.
This is perhaps my favourite product of all! This Bamboo 6 piece eye brush set is absolutely gorgeous. Each small brush is used for the different steps in developing that gorgeous look with eyeshadow. The brushes are soft and blend perfectly as well, making the sometimes hard and long process of creating a look actually a lot easier. I love the beautiful travel case it comes in as well, meaning it's so easy to carry the whole set around with you. In fact, the small case is just the right size to pop into your bag or clutch on a night out without taking up too much space. I also really love how each brush is labelled - you can easily see what each brush is used for in case you forget. This is something I haven't really found with other brushes before and think it's a really nice and helpful idea - you'd be surprised at how often you forget what brush is for what and personally I'm still learning myself! Therefore this thoughtful touch is really nice and just adds to the whole idea of EcoTOOLS being a wholesome and friendly company.
Overall, I really adore this company and the products they make. I can't stress enough how nice it is to find a company that is so involved in helping the planet and actively promotes the fact that being cruelty free is beneficial to everybody. I love everything about these products, from the packaging to the looks I've managed to create using these beautiful brushes.
Please keep your eyes out for some upcoming posts I'll be doing showing some looks I've created using EcoTOOLS.
EcoTOOLS products are priced from £4.99 and are available from Boots, Superdrug and Tescos nationwide.
Please note that although I was very kindly sent these products to review, all opinions are completely my own, 100% truthful and not at all biased. I chose to review these products specifically because I think the company itself is very inspiring and therefore their products are in the interest of my blog readers.
