Brush cleaning is such a mundane task. But we all
should know that brush cleaning is super important, skipping this step
can lead to clogging pores and breakouts, yet so many of us still don’t
clean our brushes often, if at all. There are various formulated brush
shampoos on the market; I have tried both MAC's and the Strictly Professional
brush cleaner. I have also used both Johnsons Baby Shampoo and more recently Dr
Bronner’s Castile Soap. However, I have found the easiest, most effective, long
lasting and inexpensive way of cleaning my brushes is actually a bar of Simple Soap! Who would have thought?
Simple soap has no perfume, or colour, meaning it doesn’t ruin my brushes, or break me out. It works wonders on my synthetic brushes, giving them a true deep clean, unlike anything I have tried before. It doesn’t dry out the bristles, or leave them feeling stiff. I use the bar of soap for cleaning my brushes only, so I store it in a plastic soap dish with my other beauty products. On a side note, you can pick up a pack of four from stores such as Poundland and Savers for just a pound.
Along with a bar of simple soap, I like to use my trusty blue silicone oven glove. Yep, you read that right! The glove is a cheaper alternative to the Sigma Spa Brush Cleaning Glove and can be bought on eBay here for just £2.99. This glove is a little large and does look unnecessary, but it is so similar to the Sigma glove, with textures like the wash and rinse and it’s super effective and makes cleaning my brushes even quicker. Also you don’t end up with a wrinkly, dry hand.
I personally prefer to clean my brushes in the evening and allow them to dry over night. I take the damp brush and rub the bristles onto the bar of soap and gently lather them onto the mit, I then rinse under luke warm water and repeat until the top of the brushes are white. Always remember to keep the base of the brush head away from soap and water as this can loosen the glue over time. I always check the brushes for any left over soap residue, you can normally tell because the bristles will feel soapy, but I often squeeze the brush in-between my fingers just incase. I then brush the brushes onto a towel, or tissue to get rid of any excess water and then lay them flat, with the brush head hanging off the edge of a counter. This allows the brush head to dry back into the perfect shape and by morning my brushes are beautifully clean! Simple.