How To Clean Your Makeup Brushes

First of all, apologies for the very long hiatus from the blog! Laziness and life happened, and after I found myself sharing more/new information with friends, I was like wait a minute….I need to write again! Today’s topic is an important one. Like…a really important one. Washing your makeup brushes is soooo important for staying break-out free and ensuring the best makeup application. I know it doesn’t sound super fun but I promise it will improve the condition of your brushes, your skin, and dare I say…your life.

I know girls that have NEVER washed their brushes, and I am talking years (you know who you are.) This is horrible for many reasons, but the main one is that your brushes are now crawling with bacteria and you are letting that touch your skin over and over again. The only brush of mine that gets daily usage is my powder foundation brush and I aim to wash that once a week. I am in no way saying that you need to wash all of your brushes constantly, but the ones that get frequent usage definitely need some TLC. It prevents product from building up and that, in turn, helps with a smooth application of whatever makeup you are using.

I have tried all different methods of washing brushes – baby shampoo, olive oil + dish washing soap, drugstore brush cleansers, face wash, etc. But, I have found the cheapest and easiest way is to use simple bar soap. My favorite product used to be the Sephora Solid Brush Cleaner (which I still recommend for travel) but I found out that it is essentially just bar soap in a cute container. So, what I do now is I get a travel container for bar soap (you can find this in the travel section of any store) and just put my favorite soap in there and call it a day! What I love about bar soap is that it is easily accessible and it lasts for ages. My recommendations are: Cetaphil Gentle Cleansing Bar, Dove’s White Beauty Bar, any of the Dr. Bronner soaps, and the CeraVe Hydrating Cleansing Bar. All of these are gentle without being too stripping, because the bristles on your brushes need to stay conditioned in order to last for a long time. An optional tool to have is a silicone brush cleansing pad, which just helps to get the soap out of your brushes faster and more efficiently. My recommendations are this one from Sephora or this one from Real Techniques. I have a video up in the highlights section on my Instagram page showing how exactly I clean my brushes in case anyone wanted more detail, but it is essentially: wet brush and swirl around in soap, get soap out by swirling the brush either on the palm of your hand or on a silicone pad, and then lay them down flat on a towel to dry. *Never stand your brushes up straight while they are drying because water trickles down into the base of the brush and loosens the glue that holds all the bristles together.* This method also works really well for cleaning makeup sponges like the Beauty Blender (just don’t use the silicone pad because that would rip it to shreds…I’m guessing.)

Now, if you are in a pinch and can’t or don’t want to wait for your brushes to dry…there’s a tool for that! This is definitely not necessary or essential but curiosity got the best of me and I had to try this out for myself and see what the fuss was about. An electric makeup brush cleaner…yes, there is literally a solution for everything nowadays. I first heard about this from someone on YouTube and saw that it was on Amazon. At $36, this is in no way cheap or practical but (sadly)…it actually works really well. It comes with the brush spinner, charging station, 8 rubber collars, brush cleanser, and a glass bowl with a splash guard. To use, you fill up the bowl with about 1-2 inches of water, pour in a small amount of the brush cleanser, attach the appropriate rubber collar to your brush, and then dip your brush into the solution and use the spinner to clean and dry the brush. Depending on what spin speed you use, your brush can be completely dry in just 15-20 seconds and small brushes, like eyeshadow brushes, are dry in even less time. Like I said, this is definitely not something you need, but if you own a lot of brushes and they get a lot of use, this wouldn’t be a bad investment since it does cut down on drying time and not to mention makes cleaning brushes fun!

And, since we are on the topic of makeup brushes, I highly suggest that when you travel you have a separate case for your brushes. Throwing your makeup brushes into your makeup bag that probably hasn’t been cleaned since you purchased it and no doubt has loose particles of eyeshadow, powder, etc. caked in there isn’t doing your face any favors. I recently started using a brush roll because it’s more flexible in shape and lighter in weight than those cylinder cases (which I still love, but only when I actually know I am going to be needing a ton of brushes.) I like this brush roll by Sonia Kashuk. Sephora even sells a cute little case for beauty sponges now, which I think is a must-have if you are using beauty sponges everyday. Making little changes like this will definitely keep your brushes in good condition for much longer. I hope these tips help you out in some way or another 🙂