Makeup Brush Cleaning

(not for synthetic brushes, real hair only!)
By: Mikena “the traveling makeup artist” Afoa

As always, please read the entire document before trying this! I just want to make sure that you understand what to do and what not to do and to prevent product damage. I know makeup brushes aren’t cheap!

Supply List:
- Sturdy Paper Towels
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Baby Shampoo (I love Johnson & Johnson’s Lavender and Chamomile baby shampoo)

Every week you should conduct a deep cleaning of your makeup brushes. There are many companies out there that tell you that you need their product in order to really clean your brushes. Don’t believe those statements for one minute! There are some products that are handy and make life easier, but those aren’t necessary to truly sanitize your brushes.

Step 1:
Grab that sturdy paper towel and get some olive oil on it! The best way to do this is much like you would do when using nail polish remover. Place the towel over the opening of the bottle, hold it tight with your pointer finger (I just got that finger song stuck in my head – I will have to sing that at the end) and tip it upside down. Do this about three times in order to get a good amount for your brush.

Step 2:
Take that dirty brush of yours and dip it into the olive oil. You want to pretend (I love to pretend!) as though you are painting – the olive oil is your paint and the rest of the paper towel is your canvas! The purpose of this is to loosen up any product that is in your brushes – you do not want that old product to go on your face from a month ago, do you!? Nooo!!

Now, you can get frugal (which I love to be! Think – save money = more money to buy makeup!!) I like to unfold the paper towel and use whatever soaked through, as well. Remember, this step is just to loosen whatever pigments are in the brushes. You do this by dipping and brushing onto the paper towel.

Step 3:
Rinse the brushes.

!!! This is really important here – never, ever, ever… EVER! Submerge your brushes. You want to try your best to only get the bristles that you can see, wet. Getting the brushes wet completely ruins them because it can rust the metal that typically holds the brush together or the glue that holds the bristles in place.

**Tip if your brush tends to shed a lot of hairs onto your face and you spend more time removing those hairs than you do putting on makeup – it is time for a new brush.

Step 4:
Place about a pea-sized amount of baby shampoo onto the tips of your fingers. Swirl the brushes around on the tips of your fingers. Why the tips? Because they are more sensitive than your palms (and paper towels!) so you can feel the brushes better, prevent bristle damage and make sure the soap cleans each bristle.

Step 5:
Using a clean paper towel, squeeze out any excess water. At this point, you always want to reshape your brushes so that as they completely dry, they are as good as new! Place them to dry on a hand towel, or towel of your choice.

Now, a couple of additional things:

1. Oh! No! I submerged my brushes! What do I do!

I have done this many times because I use to take a bowl of water and work with my brushes to get them clean – not a good idea, as you can imagine! Anyway! Finish up the process I described above and then go ahead and wedge the brush somewhere that allows it to hang dry… bristles down. I have use clothes pins/laundry clips to hang the brush by. It works well – or get creative and figure out your own way! Learn what you did wrong when you got your brush so wet, and don’t do it again!

2. As a makeup artist, I have separate brushes for my clients and myself. I always deep clean my “business brushes” after using them on someone. But for myself, I only do it once a week. I still clean them nearly every day though, by using a brush cleaning spray.

- I simply spray the bristles and work out the makeup onto a paper towel. No rinsing necessary.
- There are several brush cleaning sprays that I have tried:
- Japonesque (I get the big bottle from Ulta for about $10)
- Sephora makes another good one
- I’ve also bought ones that I like from stores like Fred Meyer’s
- I have never disliked a brush cleaning spray, just some smells I like better than others.

Such a girl!

Now for that song... "where is pointer? where is pointer?" ... "HERE I AM! HERE I AM!" ... "how are you today sir?" ... "very well I thank you..." ... yeah, that's the song stuck in my head now... grrreat! =]

Have a blessed day! Hey! Think of 10 things you are thankful for before you leave your house or work! Find joy in everything, it makes life so much easier to look for the good.

=]
xoxoxo mikena

P.S. Questions and your findings are more than welcome - what works for you? Sharing is caring! =]