Coastal scents 22 piece brush kit

Hi Everyone,

storage/carrying pouch

I hope your having a wonderful weekend, today I decided I wanted to review one of my Christmas gifts.My cousin decided to give me a brush kit from Coastalscents for Christmas. I was very excited, because my brush collection is made up mostly of drugstore brushes purchased from different brands.
I have been looking for a good set of brushes that will not break my wallet. I know the value of quality brushes, but I'm not a make up artist by profession. So I don't feel that need to invest on high end brushes like MAC, Hakuhodo, Ray Morris etc.
What my cousin got me is the 22 piece brush kit from Coastalscents, it comes in a black leather carrying case and all the brushes are inside.

brushes and carrying case unrolled

Product description:

Looking for a complete set of the best makeup brushes? You can create an endless array of looks with our 22 Piece Brush Set. This complete collection of luxury makeup brushes includes the essentials used by the pros. Each makeup brush caters to a different need no matter what look you’re trying to achieve. All twenty-two cosmetic brushes fit perfectly together in our matte black, Coastal Scents imprinted roll up case making this set ideal for travel. Roll it, snap it, and you’re set to go!

The set comes with a Large fan brush, powder brush, round brush, flat stippling brush, angle blush brush, foundation brush, concealer brush, large shadow brush, blender brush, doe foot blender brush, done shadow brush, dome blender brush, medium shadow brush, detail shadow brush, lip brush, detail concealer brush, pointed blender brush, brow brush, smudge sponge, large liner/brow brush, medium liner/brow brush, small liner/brow brush and a compact case.

Face brushes left to right
Angled brush, flat top brush, flat foundation brush, fan brush and stippling brush

Product experience:

First thing that I noticed when I first opened the kit was the strong scent of turpentine. I don't know what they used it for, but the smell was just everywhere, on the brushes and on the case. The company recommended that you clean your brushes first before using them. I assume to get rid of the smell and any left over chemicals used on the brushes.

concealer brushes

To clean the brushes I used olive oil and a regular shampoo. I just poured some olive oil in plastic cup and worked it in the brush hairs. I then used a little shampoo and worked in the brush to get rid of the oily residue and then I rinsed the brushes clean tap water. I just felt that the brushes needed to cleansed thoroughly because I could smell turpentine.
The scent of turpentine was hard to remove on the brushes and even harder to remove from the carrying case. It took a few deep cleanings before I was able to get rid of the smell off the brushes and I had to air the case for a few weeks to remover the smell.

basic eye shadow brushes

Some of the brushes broke after the first cleaning. The ferrule of the large stippling brush and buffing brush came loose from the handle and eventually broke off. I had to glue the handle back with super glue.
The kit is either made up of pony, goat, nylon or synthetic bristles.When I used the rest of the brushes I must say I was sort of disappointed.
The angle blush brush sheds like crazy, I find a lot of hair on my cheeks and my shirt even after a few cleanings and use.

dome shaped brushes

The flat brushes that is used to lay color on your lid is too soft I ended up with a lot of fall out especially eye shadows that has some glitter. I did like there are 3 different sizes for most of the basic eye brushes.
The dome shaped brushes in this kit is very scratchy. I find that all the domed shaped brushes have the same size only different animal hairs. So if you have bigger eyes then the dome shaped brushes will not work blending your eyeshadows.

angled eyeliner brush

I don't mind that they have 3 different size of liner/brow brushes. The sponge tipped smudger is practically useless since all the dome shape brushes are small enough to smudge and blend eyeliners.
I did liked that it came with it's own pouch so storing the brushes is easy.

lip brushes and smudger brushes

Pros:

• A nice long handled brushes.
• A kit contains basic face and eye brushes.
• Carrying case makes storing brushes easy.
• Inexpensive brushes $34.95 per set of 22 brushes plus a carrying case.

my first casualties after my first cleaning

Cons:

• Inconsistent quality of brush.
• Some of the brush hairs are too scratchy even after several deep cleaning and after using hair conditioner to try and soften the hairs a bit.
• The ferrule on two brushes has become loose and eventually fell off the handle. I've only owned this brush set for over a 1 year.
• The scent of turpentine was hard to remove, I had to air the carrying pouch for a few weeks before the scent went a way and deep cleaned the brushes twice.
• There is not a lot variety of brushes in this kit, its the same brush either different animal hair or just a different size.
• The storage/carrying pouch too bulky to travel with.
• Can only be purchased online.

I was disappointed with this brushes, some are good but some are just bad. The quality is just hit and miss. There is not a lot variety especially with the dome shaped brushes and you need those to blend your eyeshadow. I have Asian eyes, they are small but even I can't use those brushes to blend my eye shadows. In the end I can't recommend buying this brushes invest your money else where.