CLEAN YOUR MAKE UP BRUSHES

The Importance of Cleaning Your Makeup Brushes

Are your make up brushes harboring bugs? Are those sponges looking suspect? Great make up starts with clean beauty products and tools. We use cosmetics to take care of ourselves, but we also need to take care of our beauty gear. These tips will help your beauty products last longer and keep skin problems to a minimum.


HOW OFTEN SHOULD I CLEAN MY MAKE UP BRUSHES?

The answer to this question is: as often as you use them, according to some fastidious experts. Frequent cleanings prevent bacterial build-up (a potential cause of breakouts), ensure even color application and extend brush life. Unfortunately, very few women can be bothered to clean their make up brushes.
All make up artists are taught that they must clean their make up brushes after every single person they make up. Surprisingly, a lot of them do not conform to these rules; imagine the poor models who have had lipstick applied with the same lipstick brush as thirty other girls before them. Most models are in their late teens, a time when glandular fever is ripe (glandular fever would put a model out of work for at least a few month); it only takes one girl to infect all the others with an illness such as this. So if professional make up artists are guilty of this, we're willing to bet you are too.
Here is some information you may not know regarding women and their make up:

97% women participate in spring cleaning
Only 34% clean their makeup bags
61% almost never clean their makeup brushe

DIRTY MAKE UP BRUSHES CAN CAUSE ACNE

Oil from your face and old make up can get trapped in the bristles of your brushes and cause bacteria to grow, which can cause skin problems. Don't share make up brushes (or make up) with friends; anything that touches your skin, eyes or lips can spread bacteria.

HOW TO CLEAN YOUR MAKE UP BRUSHES
Fill the sink with warm water and mild shampoo.
Clean each brush by shaking bristles back and forth in the soapy water and then rubbing them until they foam. To keep wood handles from warping or glue from loosening, do not totally submerge brushes. Wipe handles with a damp, soapy cloth.
Thoroughly rinse all traces of cleanser from bristles in warm water.
Squeeze water from bristles, and then use a dry towel to squeeze out more water.
Place clean makeup brushes on the edge of a cabinet until they are totally dry before replacing them into holders.
I am afraid it is not just your makeup brushes that you have to clean, but all the tools in your makeup kit. Brow brushes can be cleaned with shampoo like other makeup brushes. However, if lint and brow hair become tangled and trapped at the base of the brush, use a clean toothpick to loosen between the bristles before washing. Eyelash curlers and pencil sharpeners can be cleaned using a swab saturated with rubbing (isopropyl) alcohol. Clean pencil sharpener blades often to prevent bacteria being redistributed onto your lip and eye pencils. Lash curlers can be cleansed, but if the curling inserts have cracks in them, they should be replaced. Replacement inserts are not expensive and can be purchased separately


EDITOR'S PICK: MAC BRUSH CLEANSER

This product is my favorite; it was recommended to me by make up artists. This brush cleanser cleans, disinfects and conditions the brush fibers, which will extend the life of your brushes. It is easy to use, helps shorten drying time and leaves your makeup brushes smelling fresh and clean.