A Guide to Brushes: Eye Brushes, Part 4: Angled Eye Shadow Brushes

Part four of my brush guide is angled shadow brushes.  These come in two styles: round and flat.  Think of either the blending crease brush or the flat shader brush sliced at an angle.  These are versatile eye shadow brushes, good for applying and blending eyeshadow.

Round Angled Shadow Brushes

Here are three sizes of round angled brushes; they are Paula Dorf Eye Contour, Hokuhodo G515 (Canada squirrel) and Make Up For Ever 18s.  They are all good for applying eyeshadow to the crease, and the three sizes would then fit different eye shapes.  They work well in a windshield wiper back and forth in the crease.  The largest is great for softening all edges after everything is applied.  I love the smallest also for applying eye shadow to the outer corner, patting it on really gets a good dark outer corner. 

The angled shape really fits into the crease well, and is great for a defined crease.  One thing I really love about them is that, as opposed to using one of the rounder or oval blending brushes to apply to the crease, you don't really get any shadow on your lid, it stays limited to the crease and upper lid areas.  This is amazing if you have small eyes because you can create the illusion of a larger lid space.

Flat Angled Shadow Brushes

These flat angled brushes are a Hakuhodo 239 and a MAC 275.  The MAC is the second brush I've featured that I haven't actually liked, I think.  The Hakuhodo, on the other hand, is divine, so consider all the pros related to that one and the cons for the MAC.  These are good for applying eyeshadow to the crease by using the tip of the brush; the angle fits nicely into the crease.  I also like them for a soft wash, and if you want to apply a large shadow use them the other direction across the tip.

You can use these brushes just like you would a medium or large flat shader brush, plus the angle means they're better for the crease.  It's also a good shape for shading the sides of the nose to make it appear slimmer from the front, which I really need to remember to do for my photos. 

Pros and Cons

Pros:  These brushes' unique shape allows for them to fit precisely in the crease.  The shape of the round ones in particular, make for almost foolproof crease placement.  They are a great finishing brush, too, blending out any harsh lines without disturbing placement.  I love them for outer corners and creases. 

Cons:  As a more unique brush shape, they might be either hard to find or expensive.  If you're building your brush collection, they probably won't be your first priority.  I think it's definitely worth having one of these, but I think you're more likely to buy one if you find traditional crease and blending brushes not working for you. 

The brushes featured in this post were Paula Dorf Eye Contour, Hakuhodo G515 Eye Shadow Brush CM Angled, Make Up For Ever Eye Shadow Brush 18s, Hakuhodo 239 Eye Shadow Brush Angled, and MAC 275.  All were purchased and I received no compensation for featuring them in this post.