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Caring For Your Brushes.

Posted by Olivia Westerhuis on
Caring For Your Brushes.

I hope a lot of the things I talk about in this blogpost serve as nothing but reminders for you and your brush care routine, but in the instance where it does not...please do yourself, your wallet and your makeup a tremendous favour and keep reading. Trust me - you'll love yourself sick for it!


There are often a number of excuses I have caught myself and others using when it comes to brush care and maintenance, with my personal favourite "they won't dry in time" being a common occurrence. Truth be told, if it's not in your current routine, finding the motivation and time to sit down and clean your makeup brushes can be scarce. But if you're like me, this mundane chore can quickly become one with very rewarding and therapeutic qualities. Personally speaking, it has become a Sunday night ritual that I look forward to for a multitude of reasons that I will explain below.


Ideally, in a perfect world we should all be washing our makeup brushes once a week. Giving them a weekly scrub-a-dub will reap the most rewards, however as much I like to live as a dreamer, it's during times like these that we need a realist to pull us back down to Earth and deliver hard truths. Once a fortnight is the minimum washing frequency. I stress this because even after a single use, your brushes become a bacterial breeding ground. If we all possessed the vision of a microscope, I guarantee you you would faint at the mere sight of the monstrosities that will set up camp in your brushes. If the hidden nasties don't scare you, swatch these perks: 

  • Frequently washing your brushes will prolong their life and maintain the strength of the bristles.

  • Clean bristles are softer and less irritating for your skin (especially foundation/cream brushes). If you're applying foundation with a dirty brush, you put your skin at risk of micro-exfoliation and irritating your pores.

  • Besides bacteria, brushes will also hold a build up of dead skin cells and oils. Bleugh!

  • The cleaner the brush, the better the application. A build-up of product on your brush can heavily impact the brush's performance and it's application of your makeup, sometimes giving it an unwanted texture.

Weekly/Fortnightly Deep Clean How-To Guide

There are many brush shampoo's you can get your hands on, however my personal fool-proof favourite is a simple bar of Dove soap. They are a gentle soap, suitable for sensitive skin and are available virtually anywhere for a few dollars. Here is a step-by-step process of my Sunday Clean.

What you'll need: 

- Bar of gentle soap

- Running warm water (bathroom sink is ideal!)

- Rubber cleaning pad (optional)

- Clean towel

How-To:

1. Grab your first brush and run it under warm water for a few seconds, ensuring the internal bristles are wet.

2. Swirl your brush over the Dove bar in a circular motion ensuring you are coating each bristle in soap.

3. Use your fingers to wash the brush and eliminate any build-up of products. This is where a rubber brush-cleaning pad can be really helpful, otherwise hands will do just fine.

4. Continue to wash and rinse the brush until the water runs clear and the brush is clean of all product/residue.

5. Lightly dry the brush using a clean towel and lay the brush flat on the towel to dry.

6. That's it. That's all it takes.

Depending on how many brushes you have, this shouldn't take more than 15 minutes and is best done in the early evening, leaving enough time for your brushes to dry overnight. 

If you haven't cleaned your brushes for quite some time, it might take a few washes to get them feeling soft & new again, but stick with this routine and you will see a difference. 

Stay tuned for more posts. If you'd like to know anything in particular, send us a message and we'll back to you as soon as we can.

Ciao for now! Olivia x

     

     

     

     

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