Brush Bath

A good few years ago I gave my cousin a beautiful set of mini MAC brushes for her birthday, with that I gave her instructions to wash her brushes regularly! She took my advice and washed them, or rather BATHED them! yes, that's right, she ran a bath for her brushes and bathed them in it! I'll never let her live that that one down, although I guess I can't really blame her, it is probably my fault for not telling her exactly how to do it. Cleaning your brushes regularly can increase their longevity and will make for a better makeup application. Brushes and sponges also hold on to bacteria and oils, which is not something we'd want to go spreading right!?! Here are a few tips on how to clean you precious makeup brushes.

If you use your brushes everyday, I would say that your brushes should be washed weekly. As a Makeup Artist, I like to clean my brushes after every makeup application.

Any hair shampoo will do, but I like to use Johnson's Baby Shampoo on my brushes because it is very mild and gentle on the hair. You could also use a brush cleanser like MAC Brush Cleanser or Sephora Daily Brush Cleaner. With these Brush cleansers, You would pour some cleanser on a paper towel and wipe the brush gently , back and forth. These work great for in-between washes or if you're in a rush.

Put a little bit of shampoo in your hand or on the hair of the brushes and gently wipe them back and forth in your hand. Be sure to NEVER squash the brush in your hand with the hair spreading outwards in a circle, your brushes will not last very long!

Rinse them until the water runs clean. Make sure that your brush is always tilting downwards with the hair at the bottom of the brush. You do not want any water going inside your brush towards the handle as the water can loosen the glue that bonds the hair to the brush and cause your brush to start shedding hair.

Gently Squeeze the excess water out of your brush, reshape the bristles and lay them flat to dry on a towel. I like to use a black towel just in case there is any makeup left behind in the brush, it will not stain.