We know that brushes are an investment. You can't have great works if you have crappy tools,right? You have to take care of your brushes just like how you take care of your make-up. How do you do that? Simple, buy a brush guard... or so the pros keep on saying.
I was browsing through Ebay one time looking for brush guards because i am getting irritated with the splayed bristles on my brushes. I placed a bid on an authentic variety pack brush guard when i saw a
1 meter cosmetic brush guard mesh for only $1. I immediately bought 3. I mean 1 meter for just a dollar... how cheap is that?!
Since it's cheap to start with i bought 3 & i think that it's a nice purchase.
Now, i'll just clear this from the start that
i have the authentic brush guards in variety pack. So this would be a comparative review. A bit like a splurge or save post too..hehe
What i like about the variety pack is that it covers small to big brushes. I'm sure you have reviews about it already so i'll not bore you into details about it since this post is about the dupe.
In this picture you'll see the real brush guards compare to the 1 meter brush guard mesh protector that i am telling you.
See how different it looks from each other?
I'll give you my idea of how it works like but i'm not sure if i got it right,ok? This is just my opinion.
The real Brush Guard has several strands of nylon lined up perfectly then woven intricately. The ends were melted together to stop it from splaying & running out. The thickness of the nylon i guess helps it to "absorb" the water from the bristles then slides down to the tube for faster drying. That's most probably the logic behind it.
The brush guard has a specific size for different brushes. It doesn't mold to the shape of the brushes but retains its tubular shape when you use it... except of course when the brush has thick bristles.
Now on to the mesh protector...
Well, what do you expect...?
It's a mesh. It reminds me of fruits that are in a styro mesh to keep it protected.
It's a thin plastic mesh that molds to the shape of your brush to help retain its shape. Since this is made of plastic i don't think that it can easily absorb water from the bristles for faster drying but then this is thin enough to let the air pass by compare to the brush guard so i guess that it would somehow compensate for the material.
The ends of the brush guard are melted together, as what i said before, now the mesh protector doesn't need any melting at all because it has this hexagonal mesh that connects each other so you can just cut it freely without worrying over splayed fibers unlike the brush guard.
This is what i was saying about the shape. The mesh protector molds to the shape of your brush while the brush guard retains its tubular shape.
I'll let you know too that
i don't actually like using brush guards when drying my brushes.
Why? It takes a long time for it to dry. I prefer to just air-dry as is then i put the brush guard later. I hate it when my brushes has this weird scent because it took too long to dry. I know you know what i'm talking about so don't go telling me that maybe i didn't rinse my brushes really well because i do!
This most especially happens on kabukis because they have thick bristles. The middle part of the bristle begins to smell weird if you let the bristles dry clumped together. Actually whenever i air dry my brushes i see to it that i fluff the bristles out by spreading them around to let the air circulate on it to make sure that any moisture left on the base of the bristles would totally evaporate.
Anyway, this is just my opinion.
I prefer to use the brush guard for storage not for drying them out. So if you'll ask me if it functions like the brush guard when drying i can;t answer you because i haven't tried it & i won't try it because i really hate smelly brushes!
This is how it looks like when put on a brush.
It keeps the bristles all where they are supposed to be. As long as it does the function of keeping my brushes in shape i don't care whether it's the original or not.
Now one thing that i find maybe a bit disconcerting is the length of them.
Since the brush guard's length is already fixed per brush, on which it will definitely cover the ferrule & a big allowance at the end. I thought that it is somehow a waste that 1 guard is about 2/3 the size of the whole brush itself on which you only need it for the bristles,ne?
See this pic?
The frugal in me thought of cutting it in half so i could maximize my money's worth. haha!
But i think that it will just look ugly if i do that. Again, the brush guard's shape is like a tube. I think part of its functionality is it's length too. That means i can't go on splitting it in two. I might just regret it.
Now, as for the mesh protector, i can maximize it without any problems at all.
Why? It's because it molds to the shape of the brush. It can retain the shape of the brush from the ferrule up to the end so it will not matter if you cut it really short. The shorter you cut it the more protector you have for your brush since you are the one deciding how long/short you want it to be.
The only thing is the appearance. If you cut it short it would look weird. I mean how funny your brushes would look if you have something that covers it only up to the ferrule? it would be like seeing a man wearing a high-waist beach short! haha!
But since these are just my personal brushes i don't care if they look like so as long as the shape is ok then im fine with high-waist short. LOL!
Now my main issue about this is that it will be hard to use this for tiny eye make-up brushes like angled brush for one. The mesh protector could accommodate big brushes because it could stretch wide but it couldn't really mold into small brushes,wouldn't it? You can still use it though, it just wouldn't really snugly fit those small ones.
I bought this at Ebay
HERE for just a little more than a dollar ($1.04 to be exact) with free worldwide shipping. See?! That is already amazing by itself,ne? $1 + free shipping!
PROS:
- works great
- really cheap!
- 1 meter can cover a lot of brushes!
- free worldwide shipping!
- no need to worry of the ends running/splaying unlike the brush guard
CONS:
- not locally available (but hey, they offer free shipping!)
- would not really give a snug fit to small brushes, but it would still work though
With all of those said, what's my verdict?
Did i like it?
Yeah, it works great in keeping my brushes in tip top shape. It's also cheap & i get my money's worth, actually double my money's worth because if i'll compare it with the brush guards it can have 10 or more mesh protector with just a fraction of a price. The brush guards retail for more or less than $5 with just 6 pieces or so.
Will i recommend it?
Sure!
Again, i haven't tried it in drying my brushes because of the said reason but if you are looking for an affordable way to keep your brushes in shape then go ahead & get this. Your dollar is well-spent.
I won't mind buying again but since i have 3 of them i think i have enough to keep my brushes in shape for the time being.
Have you tried brush guards?
Will you still try this one then if you have the real brush guards?
Hope you all have a great day!
Jaa ne~!
^_^
ps:
i'm not connected to the seller. i just thought of making a post about this because it works ok & it will save you money. ^_~
