I think pretty much everyone who has social media would have heard about the Mac 217 brush being the holy grail eyeshadow blending brush, right? Perfectly blended eyeshadow has never really been my forte so when I saw loads of positive comments on the Mac 217 about how it makes life 100x easier when it comes to blending eyeshadow I took no notice of the price tag and went ahead and purchased it! It certainly has made my eyeshadow a lot more seamless and I would definitely recommend it to anyone - however I have also come across what I believe to be a perfect dupe for less than half the price.


Since purchasing the Zoeva 227 I use it equally as much as my 217 as they are pretty much the same brush and it saves me the job of cleaning my 217 all the time. They both blend shadows a beautifully as each other and to be honest there are only two minor differences which I have noticed.

(Zoeva 227)

Difference 1:
The bristles of the 227 are a LOT softer than the 217 so it is slightly more comfortable when blending the shadows. I personally don't find the 217 bristles a problem but I have seen a few people find them a little too stiff!

(Mac 217)

Difference 2:
The 217 is slightly more tapered than the 227! However I find that they both pick up the same amount of product and both blend seamlessly.

The Mac 217 retails for £20 and it is available here or the Zoeva 227 retails for £9 and is available here. Considering there is such a price difference between these brushes I would definitely recommend trying the 227 before spending out the the 217 but they are both genuinely good brushes and I couldn't be without either!