It’s the process and time most of us, well I know I definitely do, dread – makeup brush washing time. I should probably do it a lot more than I currently do, but I’d definitely say you need to deep clean your brushes at least every two weeks.

Today I’m going to show you how I deep clean my makeup brushes, it’s actually pretty easy and takes about 20 minutes to do all of my brushes so I really have no excuses. All you need is your makeup brushes, a bar of soap, a sink to do it in and a towel for drying them.

Yes that’s really all you need.

Before I tell you how I clean my brushes, please note that I do clean my brushes 2-3 times a week with the B. Makeup Brush Cleanser (£4.99, Superdrug). This product is genius, you simply spray it onto your brush and then take a clean tissue or towel and as if by magic, the product comes out of the brush in no time. If it’s a particularly pigmented you may need to repeat the process, but overall it’s a great way to keep on top of cleaning your brushes. However, this step doesn’t provide the same deep clean I’m going to show you today.

So let’s get started…

P R E P   Y O U R    A R E A

First and foremost, I would recommend cleaning your brushes at a time when you can afford to not use them for at least 12 hours. Personally, I tend to wash my brushes on a no makeup day in the morning, as this allows my brushes 24 hours to completely dry before use.

I tend to use the bathroom sink, so I find a flat surface in the bathroom where I’m able to place my clean towel, ready for when I need to put my freshly washed brushes there to dry.

I use the Tesco Bath Soap in Lemon (£1.20 for 4, Tesco), as I find bars of soap tend to clean my brushes more effectively than liquid soap. So I keep this on the sink ready for me.
Then of course, I have all of my dirty makeup brushes to hand.

T H E   P R O C E S S

I start by filling the sink with a shallow pool of water – a lukewarm temperature.
Then take any brush of your choice and dip it into the water, leaving around half a centimeter of the brush itself out of the water. This is important as you don’t want to get the brush handle wet, this is where the glue keeps your brush intact.

Once you’ve dampened the brush, then swirl it into the bar of soap until it’s completely covered and the product starts showing on the soap.
At this point take your hand and in circular motions, gently swirl the brush in your palm. This allows the soap to really work itself into the brush and breakdown any makeup in your brush. Do this process for around 30 seconds.

Once you’ve done this, dip the brush back into the lukewarm water and slowly swish the brush in the water to allow the broken down product to leave the brush.
Remove the brush from the water and using your fingers, squeeze any product and excess water out of the brush, starting at the base of the brush working towards the tip.

If when squeezing the brush, no extra makeup comes out, take your clean towel and gently press any extra water out of the brush. Then taking your fingers ensure the brush is in it’s correct shape before laying it flat onto the towel.

If when squeezing the brush, extra product continues to come out, repeat the above process again.

D R Y I N G 

Once you’ve deep cleaned all of your brushes and they’re in their correct shape flat on the towel, this is when the waiting game begins.

As I’ve mentioned, I tend to clean my brushes on a no makeup day morning. When I do this, I’ll do one of two things depending upon the weather.
If it’s a nice sunny day, I’ll find a window where the sun is shining in and place the towel next to the window, allowing the brushes to dry naturally throughout the day.
If it’s a rainy, miserable day and the heating’s on. I’ll place the towel close to, but not right next to, a radiator. This will speed up the drying process.

I’ll check on my brushes throughout the day to make sure the shape of them is correct, as once dry there’s not a lot you can do about it, and see how they’re getting on.

Only once they’re completely, bone dry, do I place them back into their pots. As previously stated, any water that gets into the brush handle where the glue is, could cause the glue to break down and then your brush will slowly but surely start to fall apart.

T A D A !

I hope you’ve found this post informative. If there’s any other processes you’d like me to show you a step by step guide to, please be sure to let me know in the comments.

Love, always. 

Becca-x

 beccapbeauty@hotmail.com
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