** This post was written by Fiona. She no longer blogs for Swatch And Learn. However, Mary still continues to blog and will be happy to reply to your comment. **

I love doing nail polish and eyeshadow swatches. Taking pictures of all those colors of the rainbow and posting them up is super fun, especially when you lovely peeps comment on what you like and don’t like. But as you beauty lovers know, makeup isn’t always fun and games and colors.

So let’s get serious here for a second and talk about one of my favorite brushes: the Crown Studio C135 Oval Shadow. To me, having a collection of brushes is just as important and as fun as shadows and blushes and lip colors. In fact, I actually enjoy washing my brushes! Well, not the actual act, but I like laying out all my brushes and looking at them all in one place. Am I weird? Continue reading →

** This post was written by Fiona. She no longer blogs for Swatch And Learn. However, Mary still continues to blog and will be happy to reply to your comment. **

Putting on makeup can be like a movie production, even if you’re only applying a few products. We mostly remember the colorful performances of star players and forget about the behind-the-scene hard workers. They’re important! After all, could you imagine if Jack Sparrow’s vest were hot pink (he’d still be drool-worthy)? Or what if The King’s Speech was done at a voice-editing level of an English-dubbed anime?

We give credit where credit is due when it comes to pretty eyeshadows, lip colors and awesome blushes. But what about the brushes? They play such a big part in applying makeup! Have you ever tried Crown brushes? I first experimented with them from IMATS last year and really liked the quality for the price.

Today I’ll be reviewing Crown Luna BK14 Deluxe Oval Shadow. I purchased this during a shopping spree online at Crown. I was actually looking to buy back-ups of this awesome shadow brush I got at IMATS, but I couldn’t find it. Too bad for me. Come see why. Continue reading →

** This post was written by Fiona. She no longer blogs for Swatch And Learn. However, Mary still continues to blog and will be happy to reply to your comment. **

I’ve had a blast sharing my favorite colors for my eyes, face and nails. Today though, I want to review a brush. Sure, it’s not as exciting. But we all know that a good brush does wonders when it comes to applying makeup. It helps makeup go on smoother, easier and more naturally. To me, that’s as exciting as jumping off a bridge with nothing but a bungee rope tied around my ankles… and wayyyy less risky.

On the brush stage is Crown Syntho SS004 Deluxe Oval Concealer. A while back I made a huge purchase of Crown brushes, and this one is my absolute favorite of the bunch. I paid only $5 and some change for this, and never did I expect that the quality be this good. Who says value doesn’t come cheap? Continue reading →

** This post was written by Fiona. She no longer blogs for Swatch And Learn. However, Mary still continues to blog and will be happy to reply to your comment. **

A few months ago, I found the Crown Brush website and went a little crazy. Yes, “a little.” Let’s just leave it at that. Everything that I wanted magically appeared in my shopping cart. (OK, fine. I put them there.) I didn’t care since the prices were so great! But I realized I should’ve done more research on each brush that I was buying.

Don’t get me wrong – there weren’t brushes that made cry my eyes out over wasting my money. But certainly, some brushes were better than others. The Crown Basic B6 Deluxe Shadow Brush would be one of the “others.” It’s not a bad brush; I just don’t like the shape of it. Read on for more details. Continue reading →

** This post was written by Fiona. She no longer blogs for Swatch And Learn. However, Mary still continues to blog and will be happy to reply to your comment. **

At IMATS last year, the Crown Brush booth was one of the most swarmed scenes. There was a woman who literally tried to elbow me outta the way!  (Sorry, Lady, but you can’t get me away from anything makeup related that easily.)

There was also this guy who went around the booth at least 3 times, stocking up a basket full of his best picks. Sigh. I wish I did that! I only came away with a few brushes (and my limbs still attached). I really liked the foundation brush I got, but unfortunately, I can’t find it on the Crown Brush website to order more. I did, however, land on the Crown Luna BK9 Deluxe Oval Foundation Brush. Boy, I’m so glad I did! Continue reading →