Project Type: Custom development of 3 individual brushes
Client Profile: A small local makeup team / emerging brand in Iran
Starting Point: The client first reached out through WhatsApp, then gained further confidence after following our content on LinkedIn
Initial Request: To develop a small-batch, high-end brush set inspired by selected brush shapes and structural details from NARS and MAC, while making it more suitable for their own brand positioning
Main Challenge: Although the quantity was only 100 pieces per brush, the client had high expectations for shape, hair quality, overall proportions, structural details, and brand feel
What Made This Project Interesting: This was not a simple copy-from-reference project. It was a process of re-evaluating, refining, and rebalancing a direction that had already been shaped by mature prestige-brand references
Final Result: All 3 brushes were successfully sampled, approved, and produced, with a total of 300 pieces shipped to Iran. After receiving them, the client confirmed they were satisfied with the quality and had already started moving into the sales phase
Some clients know exactly what they want from the beginning.
Others are already very close to the answer, but still need someone who truly understands brushes to help push that answer one step further.
This project belonged to the second type.
The client came from Iran. They were a small local makeup team at the early stage of building their own brush brand. Although the team was still new and the order size was small, they were not casual about the product. On the contrary, they came in with a very clear direction: they wanted to reference the visual finish and user experience of established prestige-brand brushes, and create a set that could genuinely enter the market while still carrying its own brand identity—not just a few samples that looked “close enough.”
They first contacted us through WhatsApp. Later in the process, they also mentioned that one reason they felt comfortable moving forward was that they had continued following our content on LinkedIn. From their perspective, what came through in those posts was clear: we were not simply making brushes. We genuinely understood brush shapes, materials, structure, and usage logic.
Clients like this are exactly the kind we are willing to invest serious attention in.
Their quantities may be small, but their direction is sharp, and they know why they are doing it.
The Client Came with Prestige-Brand References, but What They Actually Needed Was More Than a Copy
This project involved the development of 3 brushes in total:
- A flame-shaped multifunction brush for highlight, setting, and light blush blending
- A black-and-white layered flat foundation brush
- A flat blush brush, which ultimately became the most representative brush in the whole project
The client initially gave us a relatively clear set of reference images. Some were clearly in the design direction of NARS, while others referenced structural and craft details seen in certain MAC brushes. At the same time, the client also provided sizing information and clearly expressed what they wanted: a group of brushes with a high-end feel, soft and convincing hair quality, shapes that were not just visually similar but genuinely good to use, and an overall finish that felt like it belonged to their own brand.
On the surface, this kind of project may not look especially complicated.
The reference images are there, the direction is there, and the client is not starting from zero.
But anyone who has truly worked with brushes knows that the more a project appears to come with a ready-made answer, the less you can afford to simply trace the outline from a photo.
Because whether a brush is truly successful is not decided only by whether the front profile looks similar. A slight change in hair length, top flatness, width, or thickness can completely change the way powder is placed, how the brush feels on the face, how much control the user has, how wide the placement area becomes, and how easy or difficult the brush is to work with. Prestige-brand brush shapes are absolutely worth studying—but studying them and mechanically copying them are not the same thing.
And in this project, our most important role was precisely to take the direction the client provided and turn it into a version that was better suited to their own brand.
First-Round Samples: Confirm the Materials and Direction First, Then Decide What Should Be Tightened Further
This project went through two rounds of sampling in total.
The purpose of the first round was not to “make a version quickly and see what happens.” It was to lock down the fundamental judgment first.
In this first round, the first thing we confirmed was the direction of the brush hair materials. The client wanted a natural-hair experience that felt high-end and aligned with mature prestige-brand standards, so from the beginning we did not move toward cheap substitute solutions. We approached it directly with a more serious and more stable material logic. After the first sample round, there was basically no disagreement on this point—the client accepted the material direction.
The flame-shaped brush had also already established a shape quite close to the final direction in the first round.
Overall, it was more restrained than the NARS reference and was not made as wide or as open. The client accepted that direction, but later asked us to make the top a little sharper, so the brush would have a stronger sense of spirit and precision.
As for the most important flat brush in the project, the first round already gave us a very strong signal.
The client had originally referenced a NARS-style flat brush, but the version we delivered in the first round did not mechanically chase the original size or original proportions. Our version was smaller overall, shorter in hair length, more contained in outline, and instead of being cut into a dead-flat top, it preserved the layered character of the natural tips within a small flat surface. Once treated this way, the brush looked more controlled, and its handling also felt more deliberate.
After the first sample round, the client’s response to this brush was actually very clear:
it was better than the reference version they had expected.
That was the moment the project truly started to become meaningful.
Because from that point on, what the client was confirming was no longer simply “Can you make it look similar?” but rather “Do you actually understand how this brush should be made better?”
The Foundation Brush Was Approved Almost in One Pass—and That in Itself Proved the Initial Judgment Was Correct
Among the three brushes, the black-and-white layered flat foundation brush moved forward the most smoothly.
This brush had almost no major issues even in the first sample round. Its hair structure used a layered combination of shorter black hair and longer white hair, but in essence both were still within a goat-hair system. That kind of arrangement itself requires a factory to have stable judgment over material layering, length relationships, and overall surface control, because if the layering is not clean, or the long-short relationship is not managed properly, the final visual effect becomes messy, and the touch and pressure distribution in use also lose consistency.
But when this brush came out in the first round, the client basically approved it immediately.
That was not because it was “easy.” It was because its direction had not gone wrong from the beginning.
In many projects, what consumes time is not the workmanship itself, but inaccurate judgment at the front end. If the structure is judged incorrectly in the first round, all later revisions become increasingly passive. On the other hand, when a brush is already essentially correct in the first round, it usually means the earlier understanding of materials, proportions, and usage was right from the start.
This foundation brush is not the protagonist of the article, but its role is still important.
Because it shows that this was not a case where “only one brush turned out well.” The direction of the whole group was relatively stable from the very beginning.
The Key Brush: We Did Not Simply Follow NARS—We Made a Version Better Suited to Blush Control
In this project, the brush that best represented our judgment was still the third one: the flat blush brush.
The direction initially given by the client was a flat brush with a very clear prestige-brand visual language. There was nothing wrong with that direction in itself—it looked sharp, modern, and identifiable. But if we had simply followed that original reference, our judgment was that what we would get more easily was a resemblance in outline, not necessarily the most suitable level of control for blush application.
So from the beginning, we did not focus on “copying the silhouette.” We focused instead on how this brush was actually supposed to work on the face.
Our version made several key adjustments:
- The overall size was made smaller
- The hair length was made shorter
- The outline was made more contained
- The top retained a small flat surface, but instead of being cut into a stiff, dead-flat edge, it preserved the layered character of the natural tips
Taken together, these adjustments changed not only the appearance but the logic of use.
For powder blush, what determines whether a brush is truly good is often not whether it is larger or fuller. It is whether it can keep the placement range within a comfortable and controllable area. Too loose, and the color diffuses too far. Too thick, and it becomes too heavy. Too flat and rigid, and the color trace can start to look harsh. What we wanted was a state that was easier to control, without losing softness.
And this is exactly where the excellent natural tips of high-grade goat hair played a crucial role.
Because genuinely good tips are not only about “feeling soft on the face.” They help powder settle more lightly and more evenly onto the skin. They allow the brush to create a thin veil when needed, while also giving the user room to gradually build intensity without pressing the blush on too heavily at once.
The reason the client finally accepted our version was exactly this.
Not because it looked more like a certain big brand, but because in actual use logic, it behaved more like a truly mature blush brush.
By this stage, the client’s trust in us was no longer limited to “Can you make it?”
It had begun to shift toward “Are you willing to help us make it more complete?”
The Second-Round Samples Were Not a Rebuild from Scratch—They Tightened What Was Already Right
By the time we entered the second sample round, the central question was no longer “Which direction should this go?” It was how to take what had already proven correct in the first round and make it more complete.
In this round, we mainly made three types of refinements.
The first was the flame-shaped brush.
The client had already accepted the first-round direction overall, but asked us to make the tip slightly sharper. So, without destroying the restrained silhouette, we refined the top to be more pointed and more lifted, so the brush kept its multifunction character while gaining more visual precision.
The second was the key flat blush brush.
The first round had already proven that our direction was right, so the second round was not about overturning the design. It was about further refining the proportions, top profile, and flatness control so that the brush became more mature in finish while still preserving its control.
The third was the handle and the overall sense of material quality.
This part was actually very important. Because the client did not just want three brushes that were functionally correct. They wanted a group of products that looked branded, complete, and ready to enter the market.
In the earlier communication, the client had shown strong interest in that particular kind of structural language often seen in Japanese-style brushes—especially the more crafted feeling created where the lower edge of the ferrule meets the handle. In previous samples, we had applied this idea to the first two brushes. The client liked this structure very much, because it was not just decorative. It made the brush feel like a product that had been seriously designed.
But later, as the whole direction moved further toward a denser, more premium visual presence, we also had to face a practical trade-off:
if the final handle was going to move into a harder, more substantial ebony-style direction, then that original structural treatment might no longer be the best fit.
In the end, the client chose to prioritize the overall handle texture and material presence.
That is to say, they did not reject that structural language at all. In fact, they liked it very much and kept it as a possible option for future projects. But for this specific project, they wanted the brushes to finally present a steadier, heavier, and more brand-defining presence.
This is actually a very common kind of trade-off in mature product development.
You do not pile every attractive feature into one product. You decide, within the current budget, current positioning, and current stage of the brand, which feeling is the one that most needs to be right first.
At this sampling stage, we used some of our existing in-house logo handles to reduce development cost and move the process forward more efficiently. What the client was confirming here was not the final branding presentation, but the overall direction of shape, materials, proportions, and product feel.
From this point onward, the project no longer felt like a few isolated samples.
It felt more like a new brand was slowly setting its first representative group of products in place.
Why We Were Willing to Support a Small Order with High Standards and a Natural-Hair Direction
From a factory perspective, this was not the easiest kind of project.
Each brush was only 100 pieces, for a total of 300 pieces.
But what the client wanted was not a simple ready-made product with a logo added. They wanted reference-based judgment, material selection, shape optimization, overall style adjustment, and finally a level of completion that could actually enter the market. For a process-driven factory, a project like this does not become simple just because the quantity is small. In many cases, it becomes even more demanding in communication, sampling, and internal execution.
To be honest, at this quantity, this is not the kind of order that would usually stand at the top of a standard factory priority list.
But we still decided to support it, for reasons that were quite concrete.
First, although the client was a new brand, their direction was very precise.
They wanted high-quality natural-hair brushes, and they were genuinely willing to spend time discussing shape, material quality, and finish. For us, this type of client is not a “troublesome small order.” It is actually very close to our core capability.
Second, the project was structurally feasible from an execution standpoint.
For example, we already had experience with part of the hair materials, and the handle direction also had internal processing conditions that made it workable. In this case, once the project moved toward the ebony-style handle direction, it no longer depended on a complicated external paint chain. We could complete the process ourselves, from raw material preparation to sanding and surface treatment. That means that even with a small quantity, a project like this can still be done seriously if the direction is right.
Third, the market this client came from was also meaningful to us.
Iran is not a market where we have already built a large client base. But for exactly that reason, when a serious, professional, and well-directed new brand is willing to trust us, we are also willing to support it within a reasonable range and bring our quality and service into that market in a real way.
We do not want to turn “supporting new brands” into an empty slogan.
It is much closer to a practical judgment: when a client is serious enough, the project itself is executable, and the direction of both sides matches, we are willing to help them get their first batch right so they can enter the market with lower risk.
In Addition to the Requested Samples, We Also Sent Things We Thought the Client Might Like
There is another detail in this collaboration that I think is quite representative.
When we ship samples to a client, as long as the parcel weight allows it, we usually do not limit ourselves only to the exact brushes they requested. Sometimes we also include a few extra samples that we believe may interest them. First, they can function as a gift. Second—and more importantly—they allow the client to feel our materials, style, and custom development capability through real physical objects.
That is exactly what happened in this project.
When we sent the samples, we also included some ebony-style eye brushes. After receiving them, the client responded very positively to that material direction and overall style, and also expressed interest in potentially extending the line in that direction later. Although the project did not continue further because of the regional situation afterward, the gesture itself still had value.
Because very often, a client is not unwilling to develop more products.
They simply have not yet seen the full boundary of what you can do.
If you only answer the immediate question in front of them, they can only see you as an executor. But when you let them see that you also have maturity in other directions, they begin to understand you as a more complete partner.
This kind of extra gesture does not always turn into an order immediately.
But it often changes the way a client understands you. And for a newly emerging brand, that kind of understanding is itself very important.
Final Result: The Client Confirmed Their Satisfaction and Had Already Started Moving into the Sales Phase
From development to final completion, the whole project took about 35 days.
The second-round adjustments were relatively fast—around 7 days—because the first round had already established the core direction and major judgments. What followed was mainly the tightening of something that was already fundamentally right.
In the end, all 3 brushes were approved and moved into production, with 100 pieces per brush and 300 pieces in total, shipped to Iran.
The client’s feedback after receiving the order is something I do not think needs any exaggeration, because it is already direct and real enough on its own:
“The quality is very good and we’re satisfied with the brushes. We’ve already started working on the sales side.”
For us, a response like that already carries real weight.
It means the products were not just “visually acceptable.” They had genuinely reached the point where the client could continue into the market phase.
The client later also said that when the opportunity came, they would send us some photos, and they thanked us for the follow-up and effort we had put into the process. That kind of feedback may not sound dramatic, but it is real. For a newly starting brand, receiving the first batch of products they are truly satisfied with, and then moving into sales preparation, is already a very important step.
Later, communication gradually slowed because of the regional situation.
So the project ultimately stopped in a somewhat unusual place: the products were successfully delivered, the client clearly expressed satisfaction, and the sales phase had already begun—but after that, no further updates came.
And perhaps because of that, when we look back at this case now, we value those final confirmations even more.
At the very least, we know these 3 brushes reached the client successfully, and they entered the very first step of that brand in a condition the client was genuinely happy with.
For Us, the Most Important Question in This Kind of Project Is Not “How Similar Is It?” but “Is This Revision Worth Making?”
What best represents us in this collaboration is not whether we can reproduce the outline language of a certain well-known brand. It is whether, after receiving a mature reference from a client, we can continue to make our own judgment.
We have always believed that there is nothing wrong with referencing mature brands.
In fact, if you truly make brushes, it is impossible not to study products that have already been validated in the market. The real question has never been whether reference is allowed. The real question is whether you understand why that brush was designed the way it was, and whether you have the ability to go one step further on that basis.
This Iranian client gave us a very typical scenario.
They already had a clear direction and a clear aesthetic reference.
They were not lacking ideas. What they wanted was someone standing on their side, helping them judge which parts should be preserved, and which parts could actually be made more suitable for their own brand.
What remained in the end was not a mechanical copy of a set of reference images.
It was a group of products that had been re-organized, rebalanced, and made more suitable for this new brand at its current stage.
If you are working on a similar project right now—if you already have references, already have a direction, but are not yet sure how to turn them into a brush range that genuinely belongs to your brand—you can take a look at our custom makeup brush service.
Very often, the most valuable thing is not simply that someone can make it. It is that someone can help make it more right.
Privacy Note: To respect client privacy and our cooperation agreement, the brand name, logo, and certain identifying details have been concealed in this article. The content and images shown here have all been selected and organized within a shareable range, with the purpose of presenting the real decision-making process and development experience behind the project—not disclosing the client’s commercial details.
