MAC 219 Pencil Brush Photos & Review
Beauty Basics: MAC Eye Brushes
Beauty Basics is a series covering basic products and tools that help to make applying your makeup easier. To view the entire series to date, be sure to visit the beauty basics, or you can view posts within the series about MAC Eye Brushes.
Focus On: MAC 219 Pencil Brush
MAC 219 Pencil Brush ($23.00) is one of my very favorite brushes, and I definitely consider it a must-have in my brush stash. It was one of the first few full-sized eye brushes I purchased. It can be used for all sorts of things (don’t you love a multitasking tool?) from depositing color into the crease, defining shapes, tapping color on the lower lash line, or smudging color. I personally reach for this to apply eyeshadow to my lower lash line. It’s a soft, fairly firm brush (but not stiff), with densely packed bristles. I can get a good amount of color and have most of it deposit where I’m applying it (and not just sucked up by the brush). It also works well to blend colors on the lower lash line or even smudge out colors for a smokier effect. I’ve been considering picking up a second one of these, but I’m trying to resist!
How do you like to use this brush?
See close-ups…
I ADORE that brush! However, i prefer an angled eyeliner brush to apply color to the lower eyelid.
But for me , its a little too dense to apply color to the outer V. It makes the color look muddy 🙁 Or perhaps its just my total lack of technique.
Still practisin’, still practisin’ :p
What brush do you prefer for the lower lash line, Chiara?
I love this brush 2! definitly a must have!
Yayy!! Agreed!
I like this brush a lot but I don’t own one yet. I’ve used my friend’s a few times. It’s good as a liner brush.
You definitely gotta get one of your own, Dawn 😀
You, Christine, are the one who actually convinced me to buy this brush awhile back after seeing how often & successfully you used it in your looks. It’s a phenomenal brush. I struggle using it on my lower lash line still, but with practice might be able to get better at it. Just seems to line them to heavy for me. However, i use it very frequently for laying down the color in my crease & for defining my outer V. It does these two tasks for me like a champ! Love the 219.
I use it ALL the time in the crease/outer V, too, Nic! 🙂 I use just the tip when I want to use it on my lower lash line.
I’m not a big fan of this brush. Maybe mine is a fluke, but it seems to be a bit scratchy. On the rare occasions I do use it, I use it specifically for depositing color into the crease, and for lower lash line color application/smudging. I have found that I prefer the 214 for these tasks, however.
This is a great brush. When someone asks for the 1 brush they need from MAC I say this one. Because it’s one that, so far, no one else makes. There are some close but they all are different in enough ways that you can’t really say it’s a dupe. Most of the others that are of the same size and shape are way too soft so they don’t deposit the color as well. My only complaint is there seems to be some variance in the manufacturing of these. Probably as a result of being hand made, I’m sure. Something that isn’t as noticeable in some brush designs but shows up in this one. Mine is, and never was, this pointed. It tapers but the end is more rounded, the bristles are not cut at as sharp an angle, if that makes sense. The cut is more gradual. I’ve learned to use it and it does everything the brush is supposed to do and does it well but they are considerably different. I have been considering a 2nd one myself but I will look at each brush in the store to make sure I get one more pointed. If they don’t have one I’ll wait till another shipment comes in.
That’s a really good point, Angi! I didn’t even think about whether or not other brands make this type of brush.
I used to use this brush everyday, but I haven’t picked it up in probably two months. I have found that the 272 does my out V without any effort. The Nars #15 (so close to the 214) smudges my liner and cuts the crease like a dream. I also use the angled liner brush to cut the crease. I just never grab for this since finding the smudger brush and the 272. I wouldn’t say it is a bad brush at all as I used it for a very long time, but for my eyes and needs I have found others that work better.
Poor 219! Totally displaced amongst your brushes now, LOL!
I cannot even imagine how many of these babies get a workout on a Friday or Saturday night! For all the reasons Christine mentioned, this brush is loved by many MAC addicts. I don’t use it for eyeliner but I use it to apply my color over the liner. I, like the OP, don’t use it for outer V or crease, which I intended it for originally. I have small eyes and need a larger brush to create more depth. I consider this a must have for those creating a collecting.
I use it to apply shadow as liner, whether over pencil/gel liner or alone 😀
I usually use the 226 to deposit color into the crease, and then I use the 219 and use it with an even deeper color to add more depth that way.
I love that MAC brushes are handmade, so there are different versions of the same brush. One may be too big, while another of the same style is perfect. Your 219 is much more pointed than mine, as is your 226.
It could be how they are laid to dry, too 🙂
i have all mac brushes . and this especially is my favorite <3.
i love everything from mac and i own almost everthing from mac ,wfg<3333333
Hello christine ! MY 219 is not soft at all, It’s kind of scratchy .Do you have any recommendations about this problem ?
I would return it!
My 219, like yours, Angi, isn’t this pointed, but I don’t mind that at all, as I wouldn’t use it to apply shadow as liner. I prefer the 263 or the 209 for that because I like my line thinner. I have a problem though, with my latest acquisition, the 217 (which I adore, by the way :)) I washed it with shampoo and it became fluffy, and I don’t like that 🙁 Can you advise me on what can I do, Christine?
@t7n7t The 217 is supposed to be pretty fluffy 🙁 Did you mold it into shape while you let it dry?