You may buy the most costly contour stick, cream, or palette on the planet, but without the best tools, your makeup can only achieve this much. Sure, your fingers can mix all the pieces out in a quickie, but for those who want pro-level definition, streak-free mixing, and precise application, using certainly one of the best contour brushes around is important. Thought your foundation brush was a can-all, do-all? Re-evaluate: with a view to create a chiseled, flawlessly sculpted look, you are going to need the best high-quality makeup tool that is specially made for accenting the hollows of your face.

First off, how does one even contour in the primary place? Well, all of it is dependent upon your face shape, but Latest York City-based makeup artist Benjamin Puckey previously told Allure that there is one easy rule for all contour beginners to know. “Anything you shade will optically recede,” he said, so remember to make use of your contouring products on shadowed areas of your face, comparable to your jawline, under your cheekbones, and/or the perimeter of your brow. It is also value noting that contour and bronzer are two different products: “Contouring is about shaping and defining the structure of the face, while bronzing is about warming up the skin where the sun would naturally hit,” Latest York City-based makeup artist daniel martin previously told Allure. Since contouring is all about mimicking the natural shadows in your face, a matte finish is important to making a natural-looking finish.

Now, it is time to get to buffing and mixing. Below, take a take a look at a few of one of the best contour-sculpting brushes for dagger-sharp definition regardless of your budget.

Patrick Ta Major Sculpt Contour Brush

$35 at Sephora

$35 at Patrick Ta

Chanel Les Pinceaux de Chanel Contouring Brush N°109

$60 at Nordstrom

$60 at Chanel

If there’s one thing that skilled makeup artists and Allure editors can agree on, it is the contour-defining powers of Patrick Ta’s Major Sculpt Contour Brush. This Allure Better of Beauty winner has won over the hearts of our editors and Latest York City-based makeup artist Judi Gabbay Braha for its densely-packed bristles (that are synthetic, by the way in which) that work magically with powder and cream contour products. “Its bristles create an ideal stamp of contour with a seamless finish,” she says. “Simply etch your contour with the comb under cheekbones and along the jawline, flippantly buffing for a clean mix.”

On the lookout for something just a little more luxe? Enter: the Chanel Les Pinceaux de Chanel Contouring Brush N°109. This angled brush hugs the contours of your face because it sweeps subtle strokes of makeup for a natural-looking finish. It’s value noting that this brush can only be used with pressed or loose powder contour products, so keep that in mind before restocking your contour routine.

E.L.F. Dual-Ended Nose Contour Brush

$6 at E.L.F.

Tom Ford #12 Eye Contour Brush

$57 at Nordstrom

$57 at Saks Fifth Avenue

Allure associate manager of special projects Talia Gutierrez says that E.L.F’s. Dual-Ended Nose Contour Brush is a mainstay in her makeup bag. This dual-ended brush features soft synthetic bristles on each end which are shaped to effortlessly apply and mix your product of alternative. The firm (yet gentle) angled end provides precise application and sharp lines while the softer end is barely tapered to mix any and all your cream, liquid, or powder products.