Beauty Product Reviews

Beautylish does it again!

Brushes are absolutely gorgeous. I feel really lucky that I got these on pre-order. The Mt. Fuji design is truly unique and imo tops the Sakura patterns of the 2015 and 2016 releases. I like the brushed finish of the ferrules; the red in my 2016 Sakura edition has faded with time. Hopefully the matte finish will hold up better with washes.

The large powder brush washes and dries to a fairly fluffy consistency but is also dense enough that it strikes a good balance between being directional and providing a diffused look. It's suitable for loose powder and is good for applying powder foundations with a light hand.

The smaller powder brush is similar to the one in the 2016 collection. It holds on to product pretty well, so if you're lazy like me and don't wash your brushes too often, it can "glop" leftover blush if you're not careful. Part of me thinks the 2015 Sakura powder brush (which was also basically the Z4) edges this one out, but I'm also a sucker for squirrel powder brushes.

I do not own the T-3 but it looks like the foundation brush is similar in construction. I typically use brushes for blending out cream/stick foundations and this does it seamlessly. You can go about 2 uses before application gets streaky, and 3 is pushing it. The surface area is large enough to be efficient and small enough to get into areas on my face that can be a challenge (i.e., around my eyes, nose). This one is probably my favorite of the bunch, and gives the GSN-5 a run for its money.

I don't own the T-7 either, but the eye brush in this set bears a close resemblance. Chikuhodo tends to make smaller eye brushes so this one is a bit inefficient for my large eyelids but gets the job done. The end is loose enough for it to serve double duty as a blender brush, unlike the 2015 (better for application) or the 2016 (better for blending).

Hair is well bundled; I had one hair that was a smidgen longer than the others in my foundation brush but that's not a dealbreaker for me.

Now let's get to the one con, and why I knocked off a star: the case. I don't think I'm being nitpicky when I say it's not good at all. Why include this? It is little more than a flimsy pleather envelope. The brushes fit but are a tight squeeze. There is nothing inside the case like an extra flap to protect the hairs. And it's white, which is pretty, but impractical. If you plan on getting your brushes dirty and squishing them in this case, godspeed to you. I would gladly pay more for a better case. Adding something else like a brow or liner brush and including brush guards instead of this case would have been a much better idea. Nothing tops the 2016 Sakura brush roll.

Overall, these brushes are beautiful and a welcome addition to my collection, and if you are a collector too, I strongly recommend. I'm already looking forward to the next collaboration!