October 26, 2011

Napoleon Perdis Luxe Ultimate Brush Collection Review

It’s a sea of Holiday Brush Sets out there.

It’s possibly the best time of the year to make serious purchases to add to your personal brush stash. Buying single brushes from brands such as MAC can become a costly experience that’s why the Holidays are such a great time to stock up because you can get so much more for less.

Almost all high and mid-range brands have 3, 5, 10, or more brushes available in a set. Sometimes brushes are full size if you’re lucky but in most cases they are normally mini. Mmm sometimes they do suffer quality problems if they are mini but I think it’s safe to say in many cases I’ve always been plenty pleased with sets I’ve purchased during the Holidays.

This is particularly the case when you’re looking at a five piece set for say $50. That puts you at $10 per a brush therefore knocking down the price on that $35 full size blending brush to a mere $10 for the mini version. Sweet right?

Napoleon Perdis is always kind enough to introduce his Holiday Brush Sets in full size version. Score!

Take a look at one of his new Luxe Brush Collection Sets for Holiday 2011.

There are some things I love about this set and others I’m not too impressed with. The price is $85 for eight full size brushes in a wicked black envelope clutch.

Did I mention brilliant black clutch? I love this case as not only does it hold the brushes nicely although, note, it doesn’t have any special slots or attachments for holding them in place so they are kinda left to their own devices in there, but it also has a luxurious feel to it. I think it’s faux leather but my nose is telling me it might be real? Obviously you aren’t going to leave your brushes in here forever so in fact the clutch is a nice little way to store an ID, credit card, some cash and perhaps a lipstick during an evening out. It has a gold plate with Napoleon’s name stamped on it but I wasn’t particularly bothered by that and just liked the overall design of it. If you aren’t a big time beauty person you’re probably not going to know who he is anyway so you can easily get away with the name plate without people wondering after it.

At $85 you’re looking at around $10.60 per a brush. This is obviously a good deal considering they are full size brushes.

You get:

  • Powder/Blush Brush
  • Foundation Brush
  • Lip/Concealer Brush
  • Eye Shadow Brush
  • Creased Eyeshadow/Lip Brush
  • Angled Eye/Brow Liner Brush
  • Sponge Eye Shadow Brush
  • Mascara/Brow Brush

After using them a few days I’m perfectly happy with how soft they are, how they have just enough density to not flop all over my face or eye area while I’m using them, and how they have no issues with shedding.

The set is a good value however the addition of the spiral brow/mascara brush and the sponge applicator bring that value down a few notches. These are obviously cheaper brushes that you can pick up anywhere for alot less. Secondly, the weight behind each brush is a tad disappointing as they are somewhat flimsy and the handles are made out of lightweight plastic.

Performance wise the brushes are pretty nice and the packaging they come in gets a hearty approval from me. However, the handles and the two inexpensive brushes thrown in do bring the set value down a little bit particularly when you have brands like Sephora selling quality brush sets for around the same price tag.

Napoleon Perdis Luxe Ultimate Brush Collection needs a little shave off the price tag to get my yay vote. I appreciate the killer packaging, variety of brushes, and full size of each however if I’m dropping near $100 on a set of brushes I do expect a little more value for that chunk of change. The value is here but it needs a little push to set the bar.

These will be available shortly at Dillards, Dillards.com, Napoleon Perdis Stores, and NapoleonPerdis.com

About the Muse

Isabella MuseIsabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

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