I've honestly lost count of how many Hakuhodo brushes I have. I've spent years building my collection. I have the Kokutan Series, the S-Series, and the J-Series... and some random brushes in between. They are incredibly sturdy, with little to no shedding. The only 'blended' brush (synthetic and goat) brush I have is the foundation brush from the G-Series. Otherwise all the other brushes are natural hair. I MIGHT have a synthetic one that I don't know about (I sometimes find a little brush buried somewhere in a case), but as far as I know they're all natural hairs. I prefer them for cream and powder application. I find them incredibly kind to clients' faces... someone always comments on how using those brushes feels like I'm taking care of their skin. That's reason enough to me to continue investing in Hakuhodo. I've learned how to clean them (tedious, but worth it) so that they retain their shape and softness. Hakuhodo makes a brush 'detergent' that you have to use with scalding hot water (I use rubber gloves). But it works, and it gets EVERYTHING out of the brushes... especially the goat ones from the J series. My favorite collection remains the Kokutan brushes (I prefer them even to the S-Series) because the handles are so user friendly. They're weighted perfectly and I've been able to do more with them than any other Hakuhodo brushes. The J series is good for every day (I tend to use them a lot on myself), and the S-Series is for special occasions. Brides love them... so I tend to pack those for the 'fancy' bride who wants everything in her photographs (including the makeup brushes) to look amazing. I don't know anything about the MAC 187 'long term' beyond my first impression (it went back) because honestly, I detest that brush, and those types of duo fibre brushes in general. I find them to be wasteful in terms of product, and substandard in terms of performance. It's a personal preference. I will always prefer a denser brush when it comes to base application. You use less product, and you control distribution a lot better. The Hakuhodo version is much denser than the MAC version.
I have this one. That teeny 'second layer' that you see at the top is the synthetic fiber. They have variations of this brush, with the goat hair shorter ... and longer synthetic fibers (I have the most dense mix), but this is the general shape and idea of the brush. I prefer this to the MAC 187, but whether or not it's 'better' is a matter of personal opinion. I'm not a fan of the 187 brush, or any type of brush like it, so I'm probably the wrong person to ask.:lol:
Not sure how it will go on a bit, but right now I am a fan. Weird, I summer I did not like it 
