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.

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