Fourteen questions. Straight answers.

What are the parts of a makeup brush?

The classic construction is three parts: the bristle head, the ferrule (the metal collar) and the handle. Most brushes are built this way, and other formats are variations on it.

• Base / kabuki brush — a bristle head set into a base, in plastic or aluminium.
• Retractable brush — a cap, a base, the bristle head and the joint between the two covers, with the bristles enclosed when closed. Usually plastic or solid aluminium.
• Integrated brush — the ferrule and handle are formed as one piece.

Which bristle materials can I choose?

Animal hair

Goat hair is the most common and can cover high, mid and entry-level programmes. It is graded as fine light tip, medium light tip, white tip, yellow tip, No.2, No.10, double-even and single-even. Other options: grey squirrel, squirrel, horse, weasel (kolinsky), raccoon, badger, ferret-badger and boar bristle.

Synthetic fibre

Straight filament holds together well and suits foundation and eye brushes. Wavy filament is crimped, spreads rather than clusters, and suits large powder and blush brushes. Both come in single-colour, two-colour, three-colour or mixed.

Derived synthetic types

Bio-mimetic, quick-dry, antibacterial, BASF fibre, nano-filament, high-density fibre, micro-crystal silk, corn fibre and biodegradable fibre.

What ferrule materials and finishes are available?

Materials: copper, anodised aluminium, electroplated ABS or plastic. Copper costs roughly four to six times an aluminium ferrule.

Finishes: matte, electroplating, baked lacquer and brushed.

By crimp at the handle joint: no line, sharp double-groove, round double-groove and single-groove.

Colours can be matched to a Pantone reference.

Which handle materials do you offer?

Materials: plastic, resin, acrylic, wood, aluminium and bamboo.

Woods: birch, beech, oak, walnut, rosewood and ebony.

Shapes: standard, round tail, pointed tail or slanted tail, straight flat base, and the waisted profile.

Material, colour and finish can be combined to match your collection.

What types of brushes can you produce?

Professional brush sets, single brushes, functional brushes, double-ended brushes and travel brushes — plus novelty and luxury styles such as themed designs, rhinestone-set handles and four-in-one or five-in-one formats.

What are the standard ferrule and handle sizes?

Ferrules are specified by inner diameter, and this also determines the handle outer diameter.

Ferrule inner diameter

• Small (brow, small lip): 5.5–6mm
• Eye: 6 / 7 / 7.2 / 7.5 / 8 / 9 / 10mm
• Fan: 7.2 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 16 / 18mm
• Medium: 11.5 / 12 / 14mm
• Large: 16 / 18 / 20mm

Ferrule length

35 / 40 / 45 / 50mm. Flared ferrules are measured top and bottom separately.

Handle sizes (diameter × length, mm)

16×90 / 16×95 / 16×100, 14×90 / 14×95 / 14×100, 12×90 / 12×95 / 12×100, 11.5×90–100, and 9.0 / 8.0 / 7.0 / 6.0 / 5.5 ×100–130.

What packaging can you supply?

Pouches and buckets

Envelope pouch, zip pouch, diamond-pattern PU pouch, belt pouch, roll-up pouch, tri-fold pouch, upright pouch and slot pouch. Buckets in 18cm, 20cm and 22cm.

Simple packing

OPP bags and zip-lock bags, with stickers, silk-screen printing or hot-stamping; velvet pouches.

Boxes and gift packaging

Paper boxes, PVC boxes, gift boxes and gift bags. Paper boxes are typically 350g or 400g white card with matte or gloss lamination, and can take a white-card or PVC insert. Gift boxes can use grey board with an EVA insert and a flocked surface.

Other options

Blister trays, tin boxes and drawstring pouches in cotton-linen or flocked fabric.

Note: silk-screen printing tends to break up on leather-grain and diamond-pattern pouches, so embossing is usually the better choice.

Which logo techniques do you use?

• Laser marking / engraving — the mainstream choice. Crisp, durable, no risk of colour fading and the best value.
• Silk-screen printing — slower and more expensive, and prone to blurring. One or two colours are straightforward, white is easiest; more colours become difficult.
• Colour printing — for patterns and logos.
• Hot-stamping gold or silver — the high temperature can damage the bristles during finishing, so stock products are usually not suitable for hot-stamping.

How do you control quality?

Appearance

Bristle shape and colour must match the order or the approved sample; no reversed or trapped hairs and no glue leakage. Ferrule colour and dimensions must be consistent, the surface smooth and clean, free from scratches. Handle colour and dimensions must be consistent, free from bubbles, flow marks and shrinkage, and free of glue marks or dirt.

Performance

• Density / shedding — the head is drawn up and down across the palm 50 times (25 passes each way). No more than 15 hairs may shed in total, and no more than 8 hairs over 5mm.
• Pull test — checks the ferrule-to-handle joint. Over 3KG for large brushes, over 2KG for small ones.
• Colour-transfer test — the sample is soaked in water at 60°C for 2 minutes, then stroked three times across white paper. No colour transfer is allowed.
• Logo adhesion — tape is pressed onto the logo and pulled off quickly three times to check that nothing lifts.

Which materials are used for beauty blenders and puffs?

• SBR (styrene-butadiene rubber) — coarser pores, strong water absorption, soft touch and a light, translucent finish. Works well damp for foundation and suits volume programmes.
• NBR (nitrile rubber) — low water absorption, good resilience, resistant to oil and ageing, and does not absorb product. Strong coverage when used dry, with long wear.
• NR (natural rubber) — not used for finished goods, but rubber sheet can be supplied for die-cutting.

Synthetic latex contains no natural proteins, so the allergy risk is far lower than with natural latex.

Why is there a size tolerance on sponge products?

Sponge is an elastic material, so a tolerance of ±1mm on the finished part is normal process variation, not a quality defect. On new dark or mixed-colour products, a slight floating colour and some fine powder residue are also normal.

What do you need to develop a new shaped or two-tone product?

We need a precise design drawing so we can build a 3D model and make samples. Images alone are not enough to open a mould or make fixtures.

What are the levels of customization?

• Light customization — the logo on the handle and ferrule, and silk-screen printing on the handle.
• Heavy customization — handle colour, material and finish; bristle material, colour and shape; ferrule colour and dimensions.

What is your minimum order quantity?

It depends on the product and the process involved. Bristle type, handle material, logo technique, packaging and the level of customization all affect the minimum. Send us your specification and target quantity and our team will confirm the MOQ for your project.