Animal Hair
Yellow Weasel Tail Hair: Considered the finest quality brush hair; it is soft yet resilient, comfortable to use, and excellent for blending eyeshadow-qualities highly valued by professional makeup artists. Major production areas include Hebei Province and the three Northeastern provinces.
Goat Hair: The most common animal hair material; it is soft and durable. Goat hair comes in 21 varieties, with the types best suited for professional makeup brushes including: No. 0, 'Shuitui' (water-treated), Yellow Tipped, Yellow-White Tipped, White Tipped, Medium-Fine Grade (*Zhongguangfeng*), and Fine Grade (*Xiguangfeng*). Major production areas include Henan, Hebei, and Wuxi.
Horse Hair: Soft but slightly less resilient than other types. It is categorized by color into natural brown, dark brown, and black; black is the rarest variety, with a total annual national production of less than 10,000 kilograms. The primary production area is Hebei.
Synthetic Fibers
Categorized by the tip of the fiber, they are divided into tapered (chemically pointed) and non-tapered fibers. Tapered fibers feature fine, soft tips; the strands offer greater resilience than animal hair, do not absorb product, and are easy to clean, making them ideal for thick, cream-based makeup products.
Beyond the material of the bristles, professional brush heads vary in size and shape depending on the area of application, featuring designs such as curved, pointed, slanted, or flat tips. The smoothness of the brush head's lines and curves directly impacts the makeup application, making the shape of the brush head a crucial factor in the final result.