Caring For Your Brushes

Whether you’re new to makeup or a few years in, cleanliness is always important when it comes to your makeup brushes. Many people are unaware of the proper way to care for their brushes. No matter how expensive or inexpensive your brushes are, they can last years if you take care of them. It’s important to clean your brushes in between uses and give them a deep clean as well. Combine this with proper cleansing techniques and you will get the most out of your tools.

For in between cleaning, I alternate between two professional cleansers. My favorite is the Cinema Secrets Professional Makeup Brush Cleaner. The 32 ounce retails for only $36.00 via Sephora’s website. This is a rinse free, quick dry formula. It cleans without drying out your bristles and leaves no oily residue when you’re ready to use your brush. This is great for quickly spot cleaning your brushes. Cinema Secrets is safe for use on natural and synthetic brushes, and will last a long time as you on only need a small amount to clean them.

My second and newest favorite is the Vera Mona Color Switch Duo. This revolutionary product is amazing for quick brush cleaning especially when working on clients. Positioned inside a small, round tin are two sponges that work together not only for cleaning but applications as well. The outer portion contains a textured sponge that grabs and removes the pigment from the bristles of your brushes. The smaller sponge in the middle is great for wet application. Wet the sponge with water and use it to intensify shadows that work well when wet. The outer sponge can be washed and reused as well as being used on either side.

For my deep cleaning (which I try to do once a week) I regularly use Philosophy Purity Cleanser. It is very gentle on my brushes and gets them substantially clean for me. If I have any stubborn stains I follow-up with my Cinema Secrets. It never leaves my bristles feeling stiff. As I’ve mentioned in previous posts I use a Beauty Blender quite regularly. To clean my sponges, I use the corresponding Beauty Blender Blendercleanser Solid. This is the only thing that removes all of my makeup from these sponges. This also works as an excellent brush cleaner but goes quickly if you have as many brushes as I do. I can almost use a completely brand new solid when cleaning my entire brush collection so it isn’t cost-effective.

A few things to remember when cleaning brushes is to never use hot water. This loosens the glue and causes your brushes to fall apart. When cleaning sponges, use water as hot as you can stand, because this will disinfect your sponges as you clean them. Always wash your brushes with the bristles facing down. This will prevent water from leaking into the core of your brushes. When working with any kind of soap be sure to rinse your bristles thoroughly. Ensure all soap is washed out and squeeze as much water out without pulling on your bristles. To dry your brushes set them on a towel and position at an angle. Be sure the bristles are facing downward. As I stated earlier, you don’t want water getting into the brushes’ core as this loosens the glue as well. If you take care of your brushes they will last longer than you think. It is a long process but worth the time to protect your investment. As I always say, research and find out what works for you. Put on your favorite playlist and your brushes will be clean in no time.

-Keisha Campbell

Sources: www.sephora.com ; www.theengineerguy.com ; www.popular.sleekhair.com ; www.veramona.com