Cleaning your Make-up Brushes

By Maria Martinez
Blog Content Contributor

Millennials are using more makeup tools than ever before. We have the beautyblender, Silisponge (Silicone Sponge), foundation brushes (liquid, airbrush, powder), contour and highlight brushes, concealer brushes, blush brushes, brow brushes, shadow brushes (smoky, blending, crease), eyeliner brushes, etc. However, most of us are making great makeup mistakes with them.

According to one survey, only 61 percent of women are cleaning their makeup brushes once a month, if at all. I have to admit, for the longest time I was part of that percent. I had no clue as to how, when or why I had to clean them. That was until the day my friend enlightened me with this life changing info.

Can you imagine all the makeup residue, oil and dead skin that is collected on your makeup brushes? Gross, right. As long as your brushes go uncleaned, you are just spreading dirt from your face, into your makeup, and back to your face again. Skipping good, regular cleansing can lead to clogged pores and breakouts. Making your best beauty tool, your skin’s worst enemy.

Just as we try to wash our face regularly, our makeup brushes should receive the same attention. Experts suggest to cleaning cosmetic tools a minimum of once a month, but say twice a month would be best.

It’s so easy to do it and you can do it with things you have at home.

• Choose a soap. Any gentle soap will work. Dawn, baby shampoo or even your own shampoo will do great when cleaning and disinfecting your brushes.

• Prep a bowl of lukewarm water, squirt a couple drops of your soap into the water and begin swirling the bristles or the sponge in the soapy mixture.

• Begin rinsing. Run the brush head under the faucet, with lukewarm water again. Make sure to keep the bristles pointing downwards, avoiding the area where the handle meets the head (if water gets in there, it can loosen the glue that holds the bristles together!) Work your fingers over the brush head, massaging out the excess makeup and foundation until the water runs clear.

• Reshape by using a cloth or a paper towel to dry off the bristles as you go. Forgetting this step may result in a weird, non-functioning brush shape.

• Let dry. Lay your brushes flat to dry overnight.

There you have it. A quick and easy process to take care of your tools. Please don’t forget to do it often! People have even found insects living inside of their brushes since they provide a moist, warm environment for microbes to breed in in the hairs of the brush. As you can see, making sure to clean your make-up brushes will prove to be very beneficial. 

Featured image by Maria Martinez.