I used to watch, quite possibly, hours of YouTube makeup tutorials. Not because I was going to try out a multi-colored cut-crease or a smokey eye, but because they soothed me. They also made me buy things. Often it would be things I didn’t need, but every now and then, I would uncover a gem: a lip gloss or a tool that made my daily life a little shinier. I don’t watch as many tutorials these days, but I still carry with me a vestige of my old self, the greatest thing I ever learned from my YouTube days—the power of a fluffy blending brush.
The fluffy blending brush is a soft-bristled, tapered brush that diffuses whatever pigmented powder you’re using and automatically makes you look like you know what you’re doing. Luxie makes one of my favorites: the sweet pink handle makes it easy to find in my makeup bag, and the synthetic, soft bristles blend out shadow effortlessly. I asked New York based makeup artist Mical Klip for a professional perspective on what makes it so foolproof: “I like to use these to blend and diffuse shadows that I’ve already laid down with a denser, firmer brush,” they explains. “I’ll use a flat, dense brush to put shadows where I want them, and then use the fluffy guy to blend them into each other.”
I know this may seem like a lot of pomp and circumstance for one little brush, but a fluffy blending brush does so much more than just eyeshadow. Luxie makes several different sizes of this useful tool, and I love to keep at least two in my makeup bag, one for shadow and another for applying highlighter to my nose, cupid’s bow, and cheekbones. Makeup artist Gita Bass elaborated on all the ways she loves to use the FBB as well: “I keep at least 10 in my kit at all times,” she notes. “They are a great tool to blend under eye concealer and keep it from settling into fine lines. Another trick is to use them to blend out lipstick and create that trendy hazy lip line that looks a tiny bit smudged and less perfect.”
Day to day, I love to use a warm-toned brown shadow, applying it by swirling my Luxie brush on the palette and brushing it directly to my lid crease. The tapered bristles fit perfectly in the little hollow of my eye; I swish the brush around a few times, and voila! A look nowhere near as complicated and artful as the YouTubers I once watched—but it’s always an homage.
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