Pirouette Professional Gold Collection Review, Part II

I am have seperated my review of the vegan Pirouette Professional Gold 18pc set into two parts. There are a lot of photos, so I figured it would make it a bit more manageable to read. The first part of the review that covered the big brushes can be found here. 

I have been using this brush set for a couple months now, and (aside from two) I have been loving them. They are super soft, way softer than I thought any synthetic hair brushes could be.  For those that are wondering why I believe vegan brushes are a must or why I chose Pirouette Professional brushes read here first.  Pirouette Professionals also has a great page showing why vegan brushes are important and why you should choose them here.  

Please ignore the fact that I am long overdue for a manicure and the little fuzzies that are stuck to the brushes, I didn't notice until after I uploaded the pictures. :-)

Lets jump right in and talk about the smaller brushes in the set. These include: P06 Highlighting Brush, P07 Medium Shadow Brush, P08 Short Shader Brush, P09 Flat Definer Brush, P10 Detailing Brush. P11 Blending Brush, P12 Small Shadow Brush, P13 Dome Brush, P14 Angle Brush, P15 Tapered Blending Brush, P16 Precision Line Brush, P17 Lash and Brow Comb, and P18 Lip Brush. All brushes, like the entire set, have vegan bristles, which mean they are not derived from animal hair and are made from 100% Taklon fibers which is synthetic. 

For my review I am not going to go in numerical order.  I have paired the brushes together so that you can really get a good idea of their size in comparison with one another. I am writing about how I use them, which may or may not necessarily be their intended use.  When it comes to makeup brushes you really should use the brushes how you feel most comfortable.  The thing I really like about these brushes is that since they are all synthetic they all can be used with powders, liquids, and/or creams.  You do not have to worry about ruining a certain brush just because you want to use it with a liquid instead of a powder, like you would with an animal hair brush. 

First up are the P08 Short Shader brush and the P10 Detailing Brush. Both are dense and flat which allows you to have control over where you are placing your color. As opposed to a fluffier blending brush, with these brushes you are able place more product onto your eye allowing you to have a more pigmented outcome.  I chose to put these two together because although they look very similar, there are some differences that you may not notice unless you are viewing them side by side. 

The P08 Short Shader Brush is a bit larger and fluffier than the P10 Detailing Brush.  I like to use it to apply eye lid primer as well as a base eye shadow or under brow highlight.  It also works well to apply eye lid color for those who are lucky enough to have a lot of eye lid space. 

The P10 Detailing Brush is smaller, and a bit more dense than the P08 Short Shader.  It is awesome to use for spot concealing any acne spots or pigmentation on your skin.  It is also good for placing any creams or pigment right where you need it to go. This is great if you have smaller eyes, or a hooded eyelid like and you want to get the color on your lid as close to the lash line as possible. 

If you have a larger area to conceal, such as melasma, the brush I like to use is the P06 Highliting Brush. This brush is also uh-may-zing for highlighting and contouring with a concealer.  To use a concealer as a highlight youwant to use one that is a couple shades lighter than your skin tone. To contour, use a concealer that is a couple shades darker. I like to use the P05 Cream Foundation Brush when I want to be very precise with the highlight and contour, and then use the P06 Highlighting Brush to buff im circular motions and blend it in.  I will also use the P06 Highlighting Brush by itself for highlighting and contouring when I want a more subtle effect. While I do a subtle contour on myself almost everyday, I am not a fan of an intense contour, especially for the daytime.  You want your skin to look natural and polished, not overdone. 

I chose to compare the P06 Highlighting Brush with the P07 Medium Shadow Brush mostly because they look the most similar. The P07 Medium Shadow Brush is most similar to the P08 Short Shader Brush though. 

The bristles on the P07 Medium Shadow brush are a bit fluffier and not quite as dense as the Highlighting Brush or the Short Shader Brush.  This brush is ideal for placing eye shadow over larger areas of the eye. For example, applying a light shadow under the brow, or a medium to light shadow to blend out the crease color. 

I also like this brush for applying a more detailed highlight to areas like right above the brow, or above the lip.  I actually prefer it over the P06 Highlighting Brush for applying a powder highlight to smaller areas. Since the brush hairs are not as dense you are able to apply the product more sparingly.  

The P13 Dome Brush and P12 Small Shadow Brush look very similar online, but in person you can tell they are different. They are similar in feel and denseness, but the P13 Dome Brush is more rounded as opposed to the P12 Small Shadow Brush which is flatter and more like a paddle shape.

The P13 Dome Brush is ideal for applying color to the outer corner of the eyelid where you want the color to be the most pigmented. I also like to use it with a light shimmery color on the inner corner of the eye to give a highlight and make the eyes appear bigger and brighter. 

With the P13 Dome brush you apply the pigment with the tip of the brush, and you want to do it in either a very small circular motion or in a "windshield wiper" type of movement. 

With the P12 Small Shadow Brush, on the other hand, you want to apply the pigment with the flatter side of the brush.  It works best by pressing the color into the eye. This brush works better for for applying colors more softly than the P10 Detailing Brush because the bristles are not packed as densely.  It is a good basic makeup brush to have, and usually everyone starts their brush collection with a brush like this.  

I also like to use this brush to blend out corner eye shadow as well. I like that it is dense yet flexible enough to blend the color, but it is very small so I am able to keep the color precise and controlled. 

I mentioned that in the set there are two brushes that I am not too thrilled with. The two brushes I referred to are the P11 Blending Brush and the P15 Tapered Blending Brush. 

For years I have used the original Laura Mercier Ponytail Brush.  It is an amazing blending brush that almost had a bit of a point on the end, instead of being rounded like most other blending brushes. The only problem (other than it being made from animal hair) is that this particular brush isn't made in the same shape it used to be.  At some point, a few years ago, it changed and is now a more rounded blending brush as well.

To me these brushes do not feel quite as soft as the other brushes in the set.  I will say though, they are VERY similar to the MAC 217 Blending Brush and 244 Tapered Blending Brush.  If you want a vegan version of these two MAC brushes, then you will like the similar brushes by Pirouette Professional.   

The P11 Blending Brush is a bit smaller, with a flatter top than the P15 Tapered Blending Brush.  This makes it better for blending out areas such as the corner of the eye, your eyelid and your crease. You want to use a small circular motion with this brush, as it will help buff the colors out.

The P15 Tapered Bleding Brush has a bit more of a rounded top and it is nice to use to blend out cream eye shadows. It feels almost a bit sturdier than the P11 Blending Brush. 

I would love to see a brush made by Pirouette Proffesionals that is similar to either one of these brushes but that has more of a point to it. That would make it the ideal blending brush for me.   

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The P16 Precision Lining Brush is great for eyeliner. It works well with gel, liquids and cake liners.  It would be a bit more difficult to use it with a powder liner, unless you wet the bristles or have a very pigmented powder.  Not every eye shadow is meant to be used this way, so I would double check first before wetting your shadow.  I love defining the eyes with eyeliner for everyday, without it looking heavy. I love that you can use this brush to create a very thin line right along the lashes and also use it to create a more dramatic winged cat eye effect.

I have compared the P16 Precision Lining Brush to the P14 Angle Brush so that you can see the thickness of it.  A lot of people tend to use an angled brush for eyeliner, but unless you want a very thick line I would personally stck with using the P16 Precision Lining Brush. 

These two brushes are the P14 Angle Brush and the P09 Flat Definer Brush. While you can use them for eyeliner, I wouldn't recommend it unless you want a thicker line. I think both of these brushes work best for eyebrows.  You can use these with either eyebrow powder or eyebrow gel. 

I also like to use the P09 Flat Definer Brush to apply eyeshadow as eyeliner underneath the eye,  Instead of using a dark pencil in your waterline, which can look harsh and close in your eyes, use this brush with a bit of shadow and smudge it under your bottom lash line. This will give you a soft yet defined effect, and make your eyes appear bigger.

Here are a couple more angles to show the P14 Angle Brush up close. 

One tool that I use every time I do my makeup is the P 17 Lash and Brow Comb. Eyebrows frame your eyes and can really enhance any makeup look.

The P17 Lash and Brow Comb is essential for great brows.  You can use it to brush you brow hairs up and out of  place. After applying your brow product use this brush to comb it through so that it blends and looks natural.  You can also spritz a bit of hairspray onto your brush and comb it through as a finishing touch to keep your brows in place.

Not only for use with eyebrows, the P17 Lash and Brow Brush doubles as a brush for your lashes as well. You can use it to de-tangle and de-clump your lashes after mascara. Take the brush and place it on top of your lashes and rotate it up and back.  This will help de-clump your mascara as well as to reinforce the curl in your lashes.  If you want to achieve a really nice curl make sure to use an eyelash curler before you apply your mascara.  Be careful not to have it touch your lid as you rotate it, or else you may end up smudging mascara onto your eyeshadow. This can be very frustrating to remove.

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The P18 Lip Brush is great for travel.  It is detachable  and you are able to carry it along with you without worrying that your lip color with get all over your purse. If you ever have the problem of being unable to fit everything you need into a small purse or clutch, one trick you should do is to apply a bit of your lip color onto the tip of the brush, close the lid onto it,  and only toss it into your small bag.  This works well if you are only going to need a quick touch up of lip color, say after dinner. Apply a bit of alcohol to a q-tip to clean it afterwards. 

Though not it's intended use, I also like to use this brush to apply gel eyeliner.  I like that it is thicker and more sturdy that the P16 Precision Liner Brush, but not as big as the P14 Angled Brush.

The set comes with a vegan leather brush pouch.  It did have a plastic funky kind of smell at first, but after airing it out for a couple days it went away.  I keep my brushes in a cup container, but I like having the option of storing it in a pouch when I travel.

While this Gold Collection set covers a lot of basic brushes, there are a few brushes that are missing for me.  As I mentioned earlier I would love to see a Pirouette Professionals come out with a more tapered blending brush as well small smudge brush, and thinner versions of their P16 Precision Liner Brush and P14 Angled Brush. 

Overall though, this brush set surpassed my expectations for a synthetic brush set. The brushes are good quality at a ridiculously good price. I would definitely recommend them to anyone, and I am most likely going to be purchasing another set eventually, as I like to have doubles of all my brushes in my kit, Click here to visit their site and check them out for yourself.

I hope this review was helpful in making your decision to switch to vegan brushes, Pirouette Professional brushes, or even offering you a better understanding of how to use similar brushes you already have. 

If you have any other questions about brushes I would love to help you out, please contact me or comment.

***I am in no way affiliated with this company, and have purchased these brushes with my own money. I am sharing my thoughts because I love reading reviews (positive AND negative) before purchasing a product.***