For the last couple years, I’ve hardly been able to go online without encountering It Cosmetic’s Heavenly Luxe Complexion Perfection Brush #7. Kim Kardashian featured the dual foundation/concealer brush in her Vogue beauty tutorial, Jessica Alba called it her holy-grail complexion tool in an Us magazine “What’s in My Makeup Bag” interview, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley sang its praises in her everyday makeup essentials video for Rose Inc., and Mariana Hewitt, beauty blogger and co-owner of the mask brand Summer Fridays, took to her YouTube channel to share how beautifully this brush buffed foundation and contour into her skin. Still, my interest wasn’t totally piqued until my favorite makeup artist, Nikki Wolff (who’s worked with everyone from Dua Lipa to Kendall Jenner) called it one of her must-have travel necessities in an Instagram story. Once Wolff espoused it, I had to know what was so special about it.
I’ve tried and loved brushes by It Cosmetics in the past — their #227 brush is one of my all-time favorites for seamlessly buffing blush into my cheeks. But when it comes to concealer and foundation, I tend to use either my own fingers or a beauty blender to achieve that barely-there, natural finish. Considering this brush is $48, double the price of my already-pricey beauty blender (and $48 more expensive than my fingers), I was hesitant to make the purchase. But the noise around the brush had become too loud to ignore. I convinced myself that the high price was justified because it’s technically two brushes in one (one side is for concealer, the other is for foundation), and hopped on the 6 train to the Ulta on 86th Street.
Here’s my takeaway. Much like my beloved #227, both sides of the It Cosmetic’s Heavenly Luxe Complexion Perfecting Brush are incredibly soft, feathery, and distribute product gently and evenly onto the skin. The thicker side (meant for foundation) works, I’d say, just as well as my beauty blender for achieving a natural, seamless finish, but it distributes the product much more quickly across the face. The real reason this brush is worth the expense, in my opinion, is because of how incredibly effective the petite, slightly tapered concealer side is. I often find that my beauty blender is not the best at spot-concealing, or at getting into the small nooks and crannies of my face (around my eyes and nose). This does a truly exceptional job at both: it flawlessly conceals my blemishes, and quickly and easily buffs away dark circles. I’ve even found it’s better at gradually distributing product than my OG favorite Sigma F64 brush — even if I’ve concealed 13 blemishes, this brush makes it look like I’m wearing no makeup at all.
In sum, this brush gives my skin the beautiful, airbrushed-yet-natural effect I’m constantly striving for. I know it’s expensive, but as someone who wears a tinted moisturizer or foundation and concealer almost every day, I have found it to be completely worth it, especially because it allows you to tackle your concealer and foundation with the same tool. It’s made quickly achieving a perfect complexion easier than ever. And it definitely doesn’t hurt that it frees up some space in my makeup bag (I totally understand why Nikki Wolff doesn’t travel without it).
A cheaper alternative I like
I have hunted and hunted, but have yet to find a dual-brushed dupe. This $6 foundation brush from Elf, however, works almost as well as the foundation side of the It brush, so if you aren’t a concealer person, go for it.
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