MAC Makeup Brushes - Is the One You Have an Expensive Fake

MAC makeup brushes are, hands down, the best ones you can buy. But are the ones you have a fake? Unless you actually bought it at a MAC store or through the official website, you might have purchased a knock-off.Go and grab your MAC makeup brushes and let's see if yours are real.Is There Silver Metal?One of the big purveyors of fake MAC brushes actually makes it very easy to tell it's a fake. The reason? There isn't any silver colored metal on the brush -- they are all black.Real MAC makeup brushes have an area of silver metal connecting the brush hairs to the handle.Where is the Name?The new MAC brushes have the MAC name towards the silver metal area. If you see a new brush with the MAC name centered on the handle, it's a tip-off for being a fake.One thing to note here, though -- some of the older-style MAC brushes did have the name on the center of the handle. But since these brushes are so popular, the chances of you getting a genuine old brush that's never been used is somewhere between minuscule and non-existent.How Dense are the Hairs?One of the hallmarks of MAC is that the makeup brushes are dense bristles. The brushes are soft, but they are so densely packed that it's not easy (and impossible for some) to bend the bristles to the side.If you can pretty easily bend the bristles, or the brush head is thick but not dense, there is an excellent chance you have a fake.How Much Did You Pay?These wonderful makeup brushes are not cheap; even one of the least expensive brushes is more than $15, and most cost over $20 each. In fact, the 134 large powder brush is $52 all by itself!So when you see a set of 12 "MAC" brushes being sold for $45, you know it has to be a fake!Did You Buy it on eBay?While there might be a few sellers on eBay of honest-to-goodness-real MAC brushes, the vast majority are knock offs. Do yourself a favor; don't go to eBay and expect to see the real deal.You Have a Fake -- Now What?Well, if it's a brush that you use and like, then just keep on using it. Then one day when it falls apart (the fakes aren't made nearly as well), you can go and get yourself a real MAC makeup brush.Some of the fakes are really quite decent in their own right, and if you didn't pay much money for them, why not go ahead and use them?If, however, you paid a lot for a fake, and you bought it recently, try to return it.Cleaning Your Makeup Brush (Whoever Made It)