“A good tool should make doing something easier, not harder.”- Matthew Waitesmith

What sane person would spend $80 on a makeup brush? That’s a question I asked myself until I held the sexiest brushes ever made in my hand. You’re likely to have been living in a cave (I kid, I kid) for the past few years if you haven’t seen some variation of the Artis brushes and their various knockoffs recently.

I first saw brushes with this shape a few years ago at MAC and immediately wrote them off because why fix what isn’t broken? The brushes didn’t last long at MAC and the creator, Matthew Waitesmith, went on to develop his brushes under the “Artis” label.

Nowadays, I’m more willing to give different things a chance and various reviews I’d seen on the internet made me curious so I decided to purchase two brushes to try. I got the Oval 6 and Oval 8 brushes in the Fluenta line because I felt like those were the ones I’d get the most use out of. I’ve used the Oval 8 for foundation and powder application and the Oval 6 for concealer, contour, and blush. Needless to say, these brushes are versatile!

Artis brushes are made out of something called CosmeFibre, which is supposed to apply makeup more efficiently, in addition to having 3-10 times more bristles than traditional makeup brushes. They also hold their shape better whilst resisting the absorption of makeup.

Now when I spend a ton of money on something, the packaging better correspond with the price and my Artis brushes don’t disappoint. The brushes come in a satin-lined black velvet box that can be repurposed for your own use. The fluenta line, in my opinion, is also far sexier looking than the elite collection. Everything about these brushes just scream luxury. They are sleek and feel reassuringly weighty in the hand. The brushes feel like velvet on the skin and are incredibly easy to use.

The Oval 8 ($80) is great for foundations, setting powders, and bronzers and allows me to apply my foundation in seconds. It has hundreds of thousands of fibres and gives the most flawless application. I like to apply the foundation directly to my face and just glide the brush across my face. for best results. Bear in mind that I have quite a large face so this may be too big for those of you with smaller faces. I’d recommend the Oval 6 or the Oval 7 in the elite collection for you instead.

I like the Oval 6 ($60) best for concealer and contour and because the bristles don’t hold on to product, you can just wipe the brush on a paper towel and use it for both in the same application. You literally only have to glide the brush across your face to get the best application. I also find that I use way less product when I use these brushes so that’s a bonus.

Now how exactly are you supposed to clean these brushes? I have a friend at the Neiman Marcus counter who hooked me up with the cleaning pad and foam cleanser free of charge. You squeeze a small amount of the cleanser on to pad and swirl in circular motions to clean the brush between applications. The brush dries in minutes. However, I still like to deep clean my brushes under running water weekly and I’ve experienced no adverse effects.

Clearly I love my Artis brushes but are they a “must-have?” I’d have to say- “no.” If you already have a set of good makeup brushes, I don’t think you have to add these but if you’re looking for new ones, then definitely give these a look. They are very expensive and although I think that the price makes sense when you actually have them in your hand, they are more of a luxury purchase than an essential one. They also have a few sets which may make more sense than buying them individually as they work out to be significantly less expensive.

Artis brushes can be found at Net A Porter, Saks, Bloomingdales, and Dillards. The fluenta line however, is exclusive to Neiman Marcus.

Have any of you tried the Artis brushes before? Let me know in the comments!

 Nana Adomah