Now, you know that when a self-described brushpeologist like Sonia over at the Sweet Makeup Temptations blog is resistant to buying a brush, it’s got to be really, really super expensive.
It’s also just fun to see what’s on her most coveted list, given her already extensive collection of luxury brushes, which she wrote about in a post entitled “My Secret and Obscene Brush Collection.”
Tops on her unquenched-craving list: the Shu Uemera #15.
Also known as the Pure Kolinksy Eye Brush, this brush isn’t actually sold at Shu’s USA web site for some reason. One seller has them listed on eBay for $169. (They say it’s a retail value of $270 and is 100% original, but we’re not really sure … We like to buy directly when we’re spending that kind of dough!)
Kolinksy brush hair is said to be the crème de la crème. According to the contributors at Wikipedia: Kolinksy brush “hair is obtained from the tail of the kolinsky (Mustela sibirica), a species of weasel rather than an actual sable; The finest brushes are made from the male hair only, but most brushes have a mix of about 60/40 male-to-female hair. Kolinsky bristles tend to be pale red in colour with darker tips.”
Sonia has some still-expensive suggestions for Shu #15 dupes in her blog post above. Many are Japanese in origin and not easy to get in the USA; she’s in Europe. For example, she does list the Shu #12, also not available in the USA. Apparently, the closest we can get here is the Shu #11, which is available on Shu’s official website for $140.
You don’t want to know (or maybe you do) about the other brushes on Sonia’s unquenched-craving list, such as the Chikuhodo Kiwami set. Retail price: $2,115. No kidding.
Chikuhodo Kiwami set. Retail price: $2,115
According to the website that claims to be the sole distributor of Chikuhodo brushes (and please do your due diligence, as we are not endorsing the site): This set is “the ultimate masterpiece set of brushes made by Tesshu Takemori to commemorate the 60th anniversary of Chikuhodo. The brushes are made from rare materials collected by Tesshu to create brushes of uncompromised quality. These items can only be purchased as a set.”
If you’ve purchases these brushes, we’d love, love, LOVE to hear what you think of them!