Saturday 2 August 2014

How To Spot Clean & Deep Clean Your Makeup Brushes



Cleaning your makeup brushes has to be one of the worst beauty related chores but it's also incredibly important. Dirty brushes carry a gross mix of old makeup, dead skin cells & bacteria which can lead to blemishes & infections. I'm definitely guilty of leaving a brush cleaning session until they've become too disgusting to use. The whole process is such a faff that I tend to only end up washing them once a month! For us super lazy girls a quick spot cleanse can make all the difference. Just don't forget to give them a deep cleanse every few weeks as well. Here's the lowdown on both brush cleaning processes...





SPOT CLEANING
Spot cleaning your brushes is the quick & easy method. It works best on smaller tools like eyeshadow brushes. If you're lacking in the blending brush department & need to blend out your eye makeup with a clean brush then a spot cleanser is a great solution. There's plenty of these products on the market. Depending on your budget ELF, No7, Clinique & MAC's offerings are all good options. My current fave has to be The Pro Makeup Shop Hygiene Collection Makeup Brush Cleaner. It gets things clean in a flash but is still fairly cheap. To spot clean my brushes I simply spritz the cleanser onto some kitchen roll or directly onto the brush bristles & gently swirl my brushes in the product until all traces of makeup have been removed. A couple of minutes later my brushes are perfectly clean, dry & ready to use again. Spot cleansers tend to be quite alcohol heavy which can dry out & damage natural bristle brushes. They won't fully remove every trace of foundation either. That's why a deep cleanse is still needed. But if you want to temporarily make things a little less yucky then this method will keep everything sanitary enough to use.




DEEP CLEANING
For a deep cleanse you can't beat Dr Bronner's soaps. The reason I recommend these over Fairy Liquid or regular bar soap is because they contain nourishing oils such as coconut, olive, hemp seed & jojoba so they'll condition your brushes as well as cleansing them. They come in loads of different scents but I prefer the minty ones such as Tea Tree & Peppermint as they make everything smell really fresh. Tea Tree is a natural antiseptic too so it's a good choice for staving off blemish causing bacteria. I really like both the liquid & solid soaps, it just depends which kind you prefer using. The liquid is better for bristle brushes and the solid one is better for sponges, powder puffs & densely packed brushes like the Sigma F80. I find that the solid one is a little less wasteful.

A lot of people will tell you to swirl your makeup brushes on your hand to get them clean & this always dried out my hands. If you have as many makeup brushes as I do, washing them takes a long time & subsequently wrecks my hands! Last year Sigma came out with a fancy brush cleaning glove which seemed a bit gimmicky at the time but it really does help to remove all of the ground-in dirt from your brushes. Then some clever cloggs realised that you can buy a silicone oven glove that does exactly the same job for a mere fraction of the price! I picked up my one from eBay and it makes brush washing so much quicker & easier. The glove protects your hands & the ridges tackle the grime so I'd definitely recommend buying one of these.







To give my brushes a deep clean first of all I wet each brush & swirl it in some of the liquid or solid soap. Then I rub it against the oven glove to lather it up. Rinse & repeat as required until all the makeup & soap has been completely washed away. Then just give the brush a final rinse under the tap being careful to hold the bristles facing downwards.



DRYING
When you've finally finished the washload, squeeze out the excess water & swirl them on a towel to dry them off a bit. Then either lay the brushes flat on a towel or balance them over the edge of a table, leaving them to dry overnight. Even better, if you've got the Real Techniques brush holders you can use the elastic in them to dry your brushes upside down. Never dry them with the bristles pointing upwards. This allows water to come into contact with the glue holding the bristles together which leads to shedding - my pet hate when it comes to makeup brushes! Once you get into the routine of washing your brushes regularly, it becomes a whole lot more manageable & less time consuming. I'm gonna try my best to keep mine as clean as possible from now on, pinky promise! It's a dirty job but someone's gotta do it...


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23 comments:

  1. I use the Johnson's Baby Shampoo to wash mine, it's a really cheap shampoo (for babies obviously) so it doesn't have any harsh ingredients in it and is very gentle :) works a treat! xxx

    Blog This With Hannah

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    1. I used to use that but it kept drying out my hands. I used it on my daughter's hair too & it kept making her hair dry and knotted. I figured if it was doing that to her hair, it couldn't be doing much good to my brushes either xx

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  2. I love this post, it's so handy! The glove sounds like a great idea, I just use Baby Shampoo monthly (or more often) to deep cleanse my brushes but the solid soap looks good, I think I might need to try it!

    www.racheljaynebeauty.blogspot.com

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    1. The solid soap is really handy. I've always thought the liquid one was great until I tried the bar. You waste much less product with it! xx

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  3. I use Dr Bronners too! I try and deep clean mine once a week as I'm paranoid about germs and stuff. I really want one of those oven gloves to clean but my parents will think I've lost the plot if they see me with it hahaha!

    Danniella x
    www.famousinjapan.co.uk

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    1. Haha oh you should totally get one anyway! It really does make the whole process a lot quicker :) xx

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  4. I use baby shampoo to deep clean mine but I also have the same silicone glove that I bought a couple of years ago as the Sigma one was far too expensive!

    Beauty and Lifestyle Blog

    xx

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    1. I don't understand how they can charge £30 for it when it's obviously a cheaply made silicone glove. At least we got a bargain eh? :) xx

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  5. I use Johnson's baby shampoo to clean my brushes!! I'm just as guilty at leaving my brushes until they are all Daley - we sounds gross! That glove is a good idea! I will be definitely investing in one of those and I totally know what you mean about drying out your hands!! Xx

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    1. I'm trying really hard to clean mine more regularly. It's such a chore! The glove makes things a lot easier, especially if your hands get dry! xx

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  6. Replies
    1. I think it's a good idea to use oils as baby shampoo can strip the brushes. People forget that it's important to condition the brushes as well as clean them xx

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  7. When I first heard of that Sigma glove I think I laughed out loud. Seeing it over and over again kind of makes me want to have it though? This blogosphere is soooo enabling! ;)
    xx

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    1. I know I thought the same! Such a random invention. Just get the cheapo ebay version, it really does work a treat! xx

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  8. I am a lazy girl when it comes to brush cleaning, but I know what difference it makes. I tend to like cleaning my brushes on a hot day so I can sit outside with a bowl of water then it makes it a bit of a tanning session at the same time!

    Colourful Stuff | Beauty, Fashion, Life ♥

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    1. Ahh that's a good idea! I just crank up the music & sing to my heart's content. I find it a bit less boring that way ;) xx

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  9. Thanks for sharing this, I've been looking for new products and ways to clean my brushes.

    xx
    ladypoter.blogspot.com

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    1. No problem, we spend so much money on brushes it's important to know how to look after them properly :) xx

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  10. These products look so good. I am definitely going to give them a try cause I am rubbish at cleaning my brushes.
    xx
    http://beautystreet284.blogspot.co.uk/

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