Ecotools Retractable Kabuki Brush: Brown VS. Silver

Ecotools is an earth friendly brush company that, in my honest opinion, makes some damn good brushes. I have long been a fan of their retractable kabuki brush. I originally bought the silver one in 2012 when i first started using powder. In 2013 I saw the brown version and i had to have it. I didn't buy it only because of the color, I had been wanting to buy another one anyway, one for at home and one to carry with me. I just figured if I'm going to buy another might as well spice it up a bit. When i got home and tested out the brown one i realized it wasn't the same as my beloved silver one. Let's go to the pictures.

Ok, so far there are only cosmetic differences. One is tinted brown and has the Ecotools 'e' on it. Right away I FELT a difference. The silver one feels like the metal casing is thicker and has a bit more weight to it. The brown feels a little flimsy, like it could be crushed by squeezing it hard enough. It also feels a bit lighter.

When you open them up you can see the bristles on the brown one are darker. They are also slightly uneven. The silver one has a better dome shape and lighter bristles. Please ignore the scuff marks on the silver cap. its just from over a year of use. The bristles on the brown one are softer and DO NOT pick up as much powder as the silver one which means you will have to add multiple layers to achieve the same results. the silver brush has stiffer bristles and pick up (in my opinion) just the right amount of powder. 

One more thing worth mentioning about the packaging, the brown one is FLIMSY. I am afraid to carry it around because the cap isn't as tight and the retractable part if very loose. I feel like it wont last me as long as my silver one. 

I felt like i had wasted my money and i felt like i should have maybe just bought the silver one again. Then I got an idea. I got my Maybelline blush in Coral Burst (swatches coming soon) and decided to test it out with the brown brush. I had tried the blush before with a non-Ecotool blush brush and didn't like it because it looked ridiculous. The brush had picked up too much of it, and the blush is orange. When i applied it with the BROWN ECOTOOLS brush it left a beautiful sheer wash of color and made the blush look perfect. So while the brown brush may not work for face powder it is a very nice blush brush.

The silver brush I bought for 10.99 at Rite-Aid

The brown one I bought for 7.99 at a DIFFERENT Rite-Aid

Both brushes where purchased with my money, I am not affiliated with ECOTOOLS in anyway. This review is my own honest opinion and I am receiving no monetary compensations for it.