Let me start by saying professional makeup brushes are definitely an investment. They are usually at least $20+ each. So, let’s face it… like any other investment, we want a great return on our investment, right? So, what you want to do is clean your brushes regularly. If possibly store them with bristles facing upward or in a separate containers away from other makeup products. This will keep them the cleanest and least contaminated. Cleaning them on a regular basis will remove:

• old make up
• bacteria
• dirt/debris
• oils
• dead skin
• other products

Cleaning your brushes on a regular basis helps promote good hygiene and also feels great! Cleaner brushes means softer brushes. Have you ever noticed that once your brushes start to get dirty, they also become rougher? Well, that’s harsh on any skin type especially sensitive skin. So, wash those brushes and your skin will thank you!

Now, you’re probably asking yourself “how often should I be washing my brushes?” That’s a good question. You should be maintaining them every day ideally. If you do that, then you only have to wash them once a month. There is a spray that you can buy that disinfects but doesn’t do much conditioning and this is used to maintain everyday after every use between thorough weekly or monthly cleanings.

Below are a few popular brands that are easy to use. From my experience it’s as easy as a few spritz on a paper towel and wipe the brush gently, but each product is different. Follow the directions on the bottles for specific daily brush cleaning.

ULTA Professional

Sephora Professional

Bare Escentuals

That’s quite alright if you don’t have the time to maintain your brushes every day. That just means that you have to clean your brushes more frequently. You should probably do this this about once a week or biweekly with MOST brushes.

Although, brushes used on or around the eyes need to be washed every few days for hygienic purposes. Liquid foundation or concealer brushes don’t apply to either of these rules. They should be washed after ever single use. This is because the the foundation dries, hardens and once stiff makes it hard to get and even coverage the second time you try to apply your foundation.

For those of you that suffer from acne, you’ll greatly benefit from keeping your foundation brushes clean at all times. To cut down on cleaning time, rotate brushes so you always have a fresh clean one to use!

How to Clean your Makeup Brushes

What you’ll need:

• Dirty  makeup brushes DUH!
• Paper towels
• warm water
• 2 glass or metal bowls
• extra virgin olive oil
• antibacterial soap

1. First, put 1-2 drops of olive oil in one bowl. DO NOT  use more oil than this. It is not necessary and will leave brushes greasy if you do so. This will be your wash bowl. Add a small squirt of antibacterial soap to the same bowl. Again, don’t over do it. It doesn’t take much to get your brushes clean.

2. Fill both bowls with warm water. Make sure the water is more on the hot side then the cool side. This will kill all the nasty bacteria in the brushes. Preferably the bowls should be non porous, such as metal or glass, to prevent transfer of lingering particles or bacteria in containers. The empty bowl (without olive oil and soap) is for rinsing brushes.

3. To get brushes ready: get bristles of brushes wet under faucet with warm water to prepare them for cleansing mixture. Rinse them and then squeeze out water. Repeat this a few times to get out loose particles before putting into olive oil and soap bath.

4. Now, your brushes are ready to clean! Dip each brush into the mixture of warm water/olive oil/soap. Swirl it, swish it, stroke it, splash it around (however you can get them clean). Focus on mainly cleaning just the bristles.

5. Rinse in clean, warm, reserved, water in other bowl. You can refresh this bowl of water after every few rinses to ensure your getting thorough cleansing results if you’d like.

6. Squeeze out excess water and pat dry with paper towels. Make sure handles a totally dry to prevent rusting (if any metal) and molding (if any wood).

7. It is very important that you lay each brush flat on a paper towels till COMPLETELY dry. This means at least over night. You do not want to store right side up while drying. Water will go inside the brushes and this will create molding.

***Make sure your makeup brushes are 100% dry before using them again. Otherwise, they will become extra chunky, clumpy, and will not apply your makeup evenly. Again, This is why it is a good idea to have a second set of makeup brushes so you can ROTATE!!!