XO Beauty Brush First Impressions

Hey Beauty Babblers!

Today I am doing a little overview of XO Beauty Brushes with a review to come tomorrow. I have only used the brush twice so far and just want to try it out a bit more before I review it.  

So, I was so excited when Shannon from the widely popular Youtube channel Shaaanxo ( check her out if you haven't already cause she is amazing! http://www.youtube.com/user/shaaanxo) designed a range of affordable, high quality brushes! 

She offers a 12 and 9-piece brush set. These sets have all the basic brushes that any beginner will need. There is also a 4–piece kabuki set and you can individual purchase the brushes in this set.

I purchased the round top kabuki for about $21 Australian dollars on Thursday and received it on Wednesday which is a quick delivery time. There is also free worldwide shipping (yes worldwide, woohoo!) right now so I jumped at the chance. I think this brush is great value, particularly if you live in Australia or New Zealand. The kabuki brushes from Sigma are a few shiny coins cheaper but shipping will cost you more!

Shipping is always a bone of contention for me living in Australia because it is so far away from the US and Europe where I usually buy my products from. This means long wait times and huge shipping costs. Like an order from Sigma Beauty costs $25 in shipping using USPS (the slowest method!) and takes around 4 weeks to get here.

I was thrilled to receive my brush. The packaging of the product is beautiful as you can see from the pictures. It was quite minimal compared to other brands but I thought it looked cute. It also held up well in the post with the handle and bristles undamaged. 

Attached is a business card with brand name and contact details. There is also a message about what to do if there is ever any damage to brushes which is so helpful! I also loved the little heart cut out of the corner of the card (because that is just too cute). The pink ribbon was the final touch to the packaging which to me made it feel really personal, as if Shannon has personally wrapped it for me herself!  

 

The brush handle is nice and sturdy which I quite like. This is especially handy if you want to use the brush to buff out foundation because your grip on the handle will be slightly stronger. 

Lastly, when I was searching for reviews for this brush one thing kept on coming up that these brushes were “as soft as kittens.” I thought how can a brush feel like a cat but oh my goodness it really does! They are so soft, the softest brushes I have come across. This is a feature you want especially in a kabuki brush. Because the bristles are densely packed that you don’t want harsh ones as well otherwise it would feel really rough on the skin. 

I also washed the brush before I used it, as we all should do, and I don’t think even one bristle feel out. Go Shannon! 

Overall my first impressions of this brush is great! The process of buying the brush was quick and easy, the packaging was cute and the brush was of an exceptional quality. 

The link to the website is http://www.xobeautyshop.com/. Keep in mind that the pricing in is New Zealand dollars but you smart cookies can work out the conversion! And don't forget there is free worldwide shopping until the 1st April 2013. 

Check back here tomorrow for my review of the brush :)

Stay Beautiful,

Annie xxx

PS. I now have a twitter which is @annief123. Come and say hi, give me some feedback or throw an idea my way :)