Accessories in your kit usually make the application a lot easier and quicker.

Keeping tissues and cotton buds handy is always a must. Cotton buds can be used to remove smudged make-up or apply some sections of your application – like highlighter to the inside corner of the eyes or apply smoky lines of eye shadow to your lash line. As well as cleaning up your lip line when using a dark lipstick.

Applying your foundation with a natural sea sponge usually provides a much more sheer natural application. Use by wetting the sea sponge in water, squeeze out the extra liquid and dry off on a towel or a few tissues. Apply the liquid foundation onto the sponge and quickly streak the foundation onto one area of the face, blend the area that you applied using a dry latex sponge and then move onto the next area. Make sure you don’t press to hard whilst blending – blend don’t wipe off.

Photo: Mini natural sea sponges should measure around 3cm in length and about the same in width. High quality foundations that don’t hold oil, should rinse out the sponge easily. Your sponge should last a few months. Don’t rinse under hot water. Sea sponges are available on-line or in leading pharmacies.

Eye lash curlers, tweezers and metal eye lash combs also help to complete your make-up look. Rather spend your money on a high quality tweezer that will last years, your plucking process will also go a lot quicker with a great tweezer.

Make-up brushes: A work man is only as good as his tools, therefore investing in a good set of make-up brushes is a must. Once you have practiced a few times using brushes you won’t look back. Your application will last longer and will look more blended and smooth.

Wash your brushes once a month. If you have invested in a set of brushes, it is worth taking care during the cleaning process. Use hair shampoo to clean them, wet the brush hair and apply the shampoo, making sure you are keeping the brush hair more or less together at all times. Run the water over each brush – facing the hair down under the tap and gently press the shampoo out the hair. By keeping all the hair together and not allowing it to open out all over the place you will - ensure the shape is maintained and the hair bristles is kept in good condition. Dry the brushes flat on a towel in sunlight. Lip brushes and concealer brushes can be dipped into a brush cleaner once a week, to ensure the brushes are stripped clean of all old sticky product. Your foundation brush should be washed with soap after every use. Professional brush cleaners can be purchased from professional cosmetic companies. You can also spray your larger brushes with the brush cleaner once a week and wipe off excess powders on a tissue. This will remove bacteria helping keep the brushes clean until the next wash.

Professional brushes are an investment and they are therefore worth looking after.

It is important to know what you are looking for when it comes to make-up brushes. I only recommend that you buy your make-up brushes from cruelty free brands that take time in making professional quality brushes. This way you can be sure your brushes will last a long time and that the shape and length of the brushes hair is correct for areas the brush has been designed for. Purchasing brushes in a set is not always possible, so if you do buy individual brushes, buy a case for the brushes to use for traveling. When you are at home, put your make-up brushes in a heavy cup, so they don’t fall over and you will have easy access.

When choosing make-up brushes there are many cruelty free options available. Real animal hair is still used in make-up brushes, and most of the time the source is not cruelty free. Cruelty free options are readily available and also have the advantage of carrying no bacteria, which can be a problem with real animal hair brushes.

When it comes to lip, eyebrow, eyeliner and concealer brushes, you need to purchase brushes that are firm for dipping into moist lipsticks and concealers. Eyebrow and eyeliner brushes can’t be soft and floppy when you want to achieve a great professional application – therefore firm brushes are also recommended for brow and lip applications. The cut and length of the fibre will assist with the firmness of the brush.

Look on line for cruelty free cosmetic brands that stock non animal nylon brushes/ synthetic fibre brushes. The following companies sell cruelty free individual brushes and travel kits:

www.eyelipsface.com
www.brandedjcollections.com  - you will also find a brush cleaner on this site
www.smashbox.com

Also visit: www.caringconsumer.com