REVIEW: Zoeva Classic Brush Set! | Drumbeat Heart

(L-R: The face brushes from the Classic Brush Set - the 125 Stippling brush, the 105 Luxe Highlight brush, the 128 Cream Cheek brush, and the 142 Concealer brush)

Hello little friends ...

It was my birthday recently, (had I mentioned that? I didn't think I had. At all. Ahem). My brush collection had become deplorably dirty, so my sister convinced me, (tough task, I assure you), to let her buy me some new ones from Zoeva. 

Founded in 2008 by Zoe Boikou, Zoeva is a cosmetic line originating in Germany. The name comes from the Germany word for 'life', ('zoe'), and honours 'the first woman on earth', ('eva'). 

I didn't want to get a set specific for eyes or face, so I got the Classic Brush Set, which costs €60 on their website. The sets range in price from €35 to €185: all sets are cruelty free, and there are a couple of vegan-friendly sets too!

The eye brushes in the Classic Brush set

The face brushes in the Classic Brush set

The set contains four face brushes, and four eye brushes, which I will go into in more detail further on. The brushes came in a faux-leather wallet/bag/thing which I have found very convenient for travelling recently. The one thing I didn't like - only five of the brushes came with brush guards, and the ones for the eye brushes didn't even fit. It felt a little half assed, like someone gave up packaging halfway through.

Having never been in contact with the brand before, I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of positive reinforcement their products and their branding carries. It's not something you get with a lot of brands, and it feels very authentic.

But you don't want to read about the packaging, do you?

L-R: The 142 Concealer Buffer brush, 128 Cream Blush brush, 125 Stippling brush and the 105 Luxe Highlight brush

Starting with the face brushes - I was wary of the 125 Stippling brush, (I'm just wary of stippling brushes in general. How does it blend it in? Sorcery). No, but this is very good at both stippling AND buffing, and I think it will grow to replace my Real Techniques buffing brush. It applies product evenly and flawlessly, and the bristles are super soft on your skin. Be warned though - those thinner bristles will never be white again. Ever.

The 142 Concealer Buffer brush is an exact dupe for the Real Techniques Deluxe Crease brush. It is really stiff and dense (like every man I've ever encountered, amirite?) and it blends product out beautifully. I rarely applied concealer with a brush before, but I'm a convert now.

The 105 Luxe Highlight needs to be seen (and felt) to be believed. All the brushes are fairly soft but this might as well be a rabbit's tale, (it's not because that would be lousy). It is perfectly shaped for applying highlight, with the brush picking up a lot of product. It wouldn't make a bad contour brush either: the chiseled tip is perfect for creating your own chiseled cheek bones.

I'm not a blush person. Thousands of makeup tutorials later and I still can't apply the shite without resembling a whoopie cushion. It should be no surprise then that 128 Cream Blush brush was my least favourite of the set. I tried using it a couple of ways - highlight, contour and yes, blush - and the brush just wasn't effective at applying any product. The bristles are firm or dense enough, and it feels the cheapest of the lot.

Now the eyes ...

L-R: The 317 Wing Eyeliner brush, the 228 Luxe Crease brush, the 230 Luxe Pencil brush and the 227 Soft Definer brush

The 227 Soft Definer brush is your standard flat base colour brush. It's not rounded enough for blending, but that's ok. It's does its job. It's good at its job. My only crib is that I already have plenty of brushes that do that exact same job, just as well, I also found that it didn't wash very wall, and
there was some bristle fall out after.

The 228 Luxe Crease brush AKA THE PERFECT AFFORDABLE BLENDING BRUSH. This is beautifully soft and so rounded - great for softly defining the crease or buffing out harsh edges. I really really liked this product. When I washed it though, compared to the other brushes, it didn't keep its shape very well. Again, there was a tiny bit of bristle fallout after, but not enough to stop me loving it. (I am very sad).

I usually wear smokey eyes going out, and the 230 Luxe Pencil brush is going be really useful for those kind of looks. It's a good enough size that it can kinda of be used for everything - cut creases, soft creases, smoking out eyeliner, your lower lashline, highlighting your inner corners ... Multi-purpose wonderfullness!

Last but not least, the 317 Wing Liner brush is a basic angled brush. You could use this on your brows with gel or shadow, or for eyeliner - either applying or smoking out.

Eight brushes for €60, with only one dud, ain't too shabby - it roughly works out at €7.50 a brush, which is what you'd pay for most good quality ones in the pharmacy/drugstore.

Overall, I'm impressed, and I would definitely consider repurchasing again. In fact, I already have my eye on the Cocoa Blend eyeshadow palette! Pity you only have one birthday a year, huh?

Have you tried any Zoeva products before? Are you a fan?

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