Sonia G. Builder, Crease, & Pencil Brushes Reviews & Photos

Pencil One

Sonia G. Pencil One Brush ($36.00) is a medium-sized pencil brush made out of blue squirrel hair, where the bristles come to a more tapered point that’s just rounded enough not to poke or feel harsh against the eye or in the crease. It’s a denser brush that maintains its shape while being used, and the brush moves easily back-and-forth, though it can be used in circular motions without being too sharp. It’s surprisingly good at picking up and depositing a lot of product as blue squirrel hair tends to be more delicate and tends to give sheerer/airier application (relative to goat hair)–it delivered exactly what it was intended to do (“a pencil brush that would be precise and powerful without compromising softness”).

I find the shape and density of the brush to work best for depositing very intense color into the deeper parts of my crease, maneuvering color on my inner lid area (if I’m wanting something quite precise), and for smoking out the lower lash line. If you like to get eyeshadow or eyeliner very close to your lash lines, I think the size is a bit too large for that purpose. I’ve since purchased a second of this brush as I’ve found it quite useful and reached for it often enough to “justify” (let’s be real, I have more brushes than sense!) another.

I’ve had no issues with washing it (retains its shape well after washing, and I don’t use brush guards), and the brush itself feels like it’s in the same (just over a year later), top notch condition as it did initially.

Per the brand, the handle has a total length of 148.5mm with a brush head length of 8.5mm and width of 6.5mm. As part of the core range, the handles are wider than average (the PRO range has thinner, more tapered handles). You can safely assume that the brush has held up beautifully over many washings and uses; if there are any issues from washing, shape changes, and the like, they’ll be called out specifically.

Pencil Two

Sonia G. Pencil Two Brush ($28.00) is a medium-sized eye brush that is wide, rounded, and comes to dome-shaped edge. It’s about half the size of the typical, tapered crease brush, but it’s significantly denser and firmer as a whole. The Saikoho goat hair bristles are incredibly smooth and feel like silk against my skin regardless of the movement or direction I use with it. The brush picks up product exceptionally well, whether they’re denser, firmer formulations or softer, more powdery ones.

The brush is supposed to be used to “pack on and smudge cream eyeshadow” and “define the outer v” and “inner corner.” It is, actually, the type of shape that is particularly good for applying cream eyeshadow into the crease, especially when the goal is to really diffuse and blow out the color. I’ve used a similar-shaped (smaller) brush that’s synthetic for this purpose for years, and this one is definitely softer and kinder on my eyelid area.

As I tend to work with more powder eyeshadows than liquid/creams, the most common way I use this brush is for highlighting the inner tearduct, as it lays down rich coverage while buffing out the edges easily. It worked well for applying color onto the outer corner/lid area and diffusing a bit into the crease area. I wouldn’t reach for this (or recommend it for) more traditional crease work, as the size is larger and density just makes it work better for blowing out color than getting into a small area precisely.

Per the brand, the handle has a total length of 151mm with a brush head length of 11mm and width of 7.8mm. As part of the core range, the handles are wider than average (the PRO range has thinner, more tapered handles). You can safely assume that the brush has held up beautifully over many washings and uses; if there are any issues from washing, shape changes, and the like, they’ll be called out specifically.

Builder One

Sonia G. Builder One Brush ($32.00) is a smaller eyeshadow brush that’s more in the line of a flat, shader brush, but it’s denser and thicker at the base and tapers on the front/back to a springy edge. The springy edge helps the brush distribute product more readily and smoothly across lids, while the overall density and firmness of the shape picks up product really nicely. It’s made out of dyed Saikoho goat hair, and dyed bristles tend to pick up product better than undyed hair (and they tend to withstand more “abuse”).

The brush is supposed to “define, smudge, and layer” by “pack[ing] on pigment exactly where you want.” I love the brush for packing on powder eyeshadows on my lid, particularly getting into the inner lid and center lid areas without fear of bringing up shimmers into the crease area too easily. The more I’ve used the brush, the more I’ve felt that the ferrule is a bit large that I can sometimes feel the metal against my lid (not in a painful way, just that I can feel the coolness of the metal), and it’s not my favorite brush to clean with how large the ferrule is compared to the brush head. I love the actual shape of the brush head for applying product to my lid area, though.

For smudging along the lash lines, it works well for giving a more precise, slightly blurred line of color–less diffused than if used with Pencil One. I don’t find myself using it much for that purchase I tend to use pencil brushes there myself. The narrower edge fits well, though, along the lash lines and when creating a cut-crease effect as you can get close to the cut-out area without going beyond it.

Per the brand, the handle has a total length of 153.5mm with a brush head length of 8.5mm and width of 10.5mm that narrows to 7mm. As part of the core range, the handles are wider than average (the PRO range has thinner, more tapered handles). You can safely assume that the brush has held up beautifully over many washings and uses; if there are any issues from washing, shape changes, and the like, they’ll be called out specifically.

Builder Two

Sonia G. Builder Two Brush ($34.00) is a large, dome-shaped, dense eyeshadow brush designed to “build any type of product” and “gradually” get it to “the desired intensity,” whether applied to the “browbone” or used for “blending, smudging or polishing.” It is made out of Saikoho goat hair, and the bristles taper as they get to the more rounded, dome-shaped edge.

This is the type of brush that should work well for someone who works with one to two shades on the lid, as it is a larger brush, and it’s a versatile shape that ca pack and press on color, spread and blend out the color, and fit into the crease (for a less precise, more diffused crease color application) or to sweep across the lid in one, fluid motion. The brush is dense, firmer but not stiff, and it worked well in any direction or motion. The brush works well to deposit heavy color to the brow bone and inner tearduct as well, and for me–as the whole concept of one-to-two shade looks is nearly foreign–those areas are where I’ve primarily taken to using this brush on.

I love the overall shape and feel of the brush but find it too large for my needs and eye space. The newer Builder Pro is a more manageable size for my lid space, but it’s seemed a bit less dense and flatter, giving it less of a “buffing” feel against my skin; I find that the brush head is different enough in shape that it didn’t feel like a smaller version of the Builder Two. Builder Two performs well with how it is described, but the nature of brushes is that how it functions, whether it’s useful enough (or will replace something else you use), and so on, really comes down to personal preferences, the size of your features, and how you like to apply products.

Per the brand, the handle has a total length of 156.5mm with a brush head length of 11.5mm and width of 12mm. As part of the core range, the handles are wider than average (the PRO range has thinner, more tapered handles). You can safely assume that the brush has held up beautifully over many washings and uses; if there are any issues from washing, shape changes, and the like, they’ll be called out specifically.

Crease One

Sonia G. Crease One Brush ($38.00) is a smaller, very tapered crease brush that comes to a more prominent point. It is made out of blue squirrel hair and was designed to both deposit and blend out products with more targeted intensity. For the hair type, it actually didn’t feel quite as silky and smooth as I’d expect, though it was certainly soft and never scratchy.

As I’ve tried it with numerous brands and formulas over the last year, I enjoy the size for more precise, detailed crease work, especially for depositing intense color into the deeper part of my crease, it’s doesn’t consistently diffuse and blend out products as well as I’d like (given it is supposed to do both). More blendable eyeshadows tended to diffuse well with the edge of the Crease One brush, but firmer, stiffer, and more intense shades needed something more rounded, a bit fluffier to really pull and diffuse the edges outward. I prefer the more rounded shape of Crease Two for getting better, more consistent blending across a myriad of products (at all different colors, finishes, and quality levels!) but would love to see a smaller version. (Crease Pro is smaller but still a little wide just before it tapers in, and it has a stronger point.)

Per the brand, the handle has a total length of 154mm with a brush head length of 14mm and width of 7.3mm. As part of the core range, the handles are wider than average (the PRO range has thinner, more tapered handles). You can safely assume that the brush has held up beautifully over many washings and uses; if there are any issues from washing, shape changes, and the like, they’ll be called out specifically.