Tips & Tricks

How To: Clean Your Makeup Brushes

April 13, 2006

A good set of makeup brushes will last you at least a few years. In order to keep them in good shape, you should always treat them with extreme care and keep them clean. Here is how to do it!


1. Gently wash them with a baby shampoo or a brush cleaner.

2. Once you are done, lay them flat on a piece of paper towel. Do not stand them up because the water can drip into the part connecting the handle with the metal part, messing up the glue inside.

3. Let your brushes air dry – this means no drying them with a blow dryer! You will only damage the hair.

4. Once they are completely dry, gently reshape them.

You do not have to wash your brushes every time after you use them but if you do wear makeup every day, you should definitely wash them at least once a week.

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12 Comments

  • Reply Anonymous April 13, 2006 at 1:04 pm

    thanks for the tips! I was wondering what brushes you think are the best.

  • Reply Phyllis April 13, 2006 at 2:11 pm

    it’s hard to just name one brand – it really depends on what kind of brush you’re looking for. Some high end ones are MAC, Shu Uemura and Cat’s Cosmetics and some cheaper ones are Sephora, Sonia Kashuk and L’oreal.

  • Reply wendy May 12, 2006 at 11:49 pm

    what do you think of Chanel brushes? i see them on Ebay and they are sold as a bunch of 16 for something like $100 (minus postage) are these genuine u reckon? the sellers have 100% postive feedback

  • Reply Phyllis May 14, 2006 at 12:29 am

    hi Wendy, I have heard good things about Chanel’s brushes. Their most popular brushes are the foundation brush and kabuki brush. I would say get them if you don’t already have a nice of brushes and you have the $ to spare.

    It’s hard to tell whether these brushes are genuine or not because I personally have not seen them. However, Chanel brushes generally cost as much as MAC’s so $100 for 16 brushes is a great deal.

  • Reply Anonymous October 19, 2007 at 10:52 pm

    how come i have to use “baby” shampoo to clean can i just use normal soap?

  • Reply Anonymous June 24, 2008 at 9:51 am

    Hay Phyllis, Ive done a MAC make up artist course, and we were told to disinfect the make up- ie so you dont spread the germs, for an eye pencil, lip liner etc. I dont know what they use. Would rubbing alcohol work?

  • Reply Anonymous June 24, 2008 at 9:52 am

    Hay Phyllis, Ive done a MAC make up artist course, and we were told to disinfect the make up- ie so you dont spread the germs, for an eye pencil, lip liner etc. I dont know what they use. Would rubbing alcohol work?

  • Reply Phyllis June 24, 2008 at 10:26 am

    Baby shampoo is a lot more gentle than regular soap.

  • Reply Phyllis June 24, 2008 at 10:31 am

    The easiest way to stop germs from spreading when you use your eyeliner/lipliner is simply to sharpen them.

    I have seen the folks at MAC dip their products in a glass of alcohol before they try out products on customers. You can try putting rubbing alcohol in a spray bottle and spraying it onto your makeup to disinfect them before you use them on different people.

  • Reply Anonymous July 3, 2008 at 3:43 am

    Hay P,

    How do you disinfect eye pencils before you use them on other people, just so that when my friends use my colourful pencils, i know we’re not spreading germs!
    Thanks!

  • Reply Rebecca August 14, 2008 at 4:41 pm

    Hi Phyllis! I am not sure what exactly constitutes a “constructive comment”, but if any one else has had issues with their brand new MAC makeup brushes shedding hair, a MAC makeup artist informed me that all of their brushes should be washed prior to first use. I suppose since the bristles are hand-bound to the handle, there can be loose bristles that should be able to be removed with that first washing.

  • Reply Emma Hå January 18, 2010 at 4:42 pm

    Hi! I wonder if there is any quick and cheap way to keep my eyeshadowbrush clean between each color. I don’t want to mix them up accidently… I would love for you to respond on email or on my blog!

    Thanks! // Emma

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