Hakuhodo Mizubake Brush- Review & Pictures

Hakuhodo's Mizubake, which is part of the Japanese Traditions brushes, is a goat hair brush with a short cane wrapped handle, and it is definitely one of my most unique Hakuhodo brushes. According to Hakuhodo, it is made for the application of "face liquid and cream blush." I must confess that this little brush confounded me when I received it- so I studied it for a very long time before actually endeavoring to try it. I somehow thought that it wouldn't be a fantastic foundation brush, and didn't see it as a viable cream blush brush either because of the width of the flat head. Truth be told, I wasn't quite sure what to think of it, or how to best use it. So it sat, and sat, and sat. Then the other day I decided to try it, and that was when I discovered that all of my reservations about this beautiful little brush were misplaced.

The white goat hair is itself about 1" long, while the entire brush is a mere 3" long. The head is flat, deliciously soft, and delightfully fluffy. It is definitely too big and loose to be effective for picking up and laying down powder products-- you would pick up far too much product and likely make quite a big mess in the process. However, while I doubted Hakuhodo's claim that this brush was built for liquid formulas and cream blushes- I must now acknowledge that they were absolutely right. The Mizubake really surprised me in its ability to deliver a flawless airbrushed finish with my liquid foundation-- and I really mean flawless. There were no streaks, swirls, or lines of demarcation of any sort whatsoever.

My next test involved trying out the Mizubake's efficacy as a liquid/cream blush brush, and this is where I truly misjudged this brush. With doubt in my heart I pumped some Susan Thompson Cosmetics Liquid Blush onto the back of my hand and dipped the Mizubake into the blush and applied it to my cheeks. I expected it to produce a streaky mess that would need to be carefully blended out afterward, but much to my astonishment it applied and blended out my blush to perfection. For an exquisite review be sure to see what Gaia from The Non-Blonde has to say about this unique brush.

Overall assessment: I'm not entirely sure why I misjudged this brush before having tried it. I suspect it is because it is so different from all of the other brushes in my stash, and as a result I wasn't quite sure what to make of it. I was quite wrong in my initial assessments of what this brush was capable of doing.  I am positively delighted by this brush, and have been reaching for it on a daily basis since having made this discovery. It is uncompromising in its ability to deliver a flawless finish with liquid/cream foundations and blushes. In fact, it's such a great brush that I wish that I had picked up a second one before the price increase went into effect at the beginning of the year. I love this brush truly, madly, deeply!

$52.00 from Hakuhodo