Brush Cleaner Basics

One question everyone seems to ask is: What kind of Brush Cleaner should I use for my makeup brushes?  It’s a legitimate question.  I mean you could spend a fortune trying all the ones out there on the market.

There are definitely good cleaners out there on the market, cleaners that will remove the makeup, sanitize and condition your brushes without ruining them.  But then there are others that have a high level of Isopropyl Alcohol in them which can ruin any brush by drying out the cuticles and causing them to fray.

MAC Cosmetics has a decent one, though it doesn’t dry as quickly as they promise and even Sephora’s Daily Brush Cleaner is good.  But if I had to choose one out of all of them it would be Cinema Secrets Professional Brush Cleaner.  It’s blue and smells like yellow cake, breaks down makeup & oils like magic and conditions your brushes at the same time.  Simply love this stuff!

None of these brushes however are quick dry, so use sparingly when cleaning your brushes on the job.

Now, if you are on a tight budget and even $13 (Cinema Secrets Professional Brush Cleaner 4oz Bottle is $13) seems like a little too much to spend, you can get your brushes sparkly clean and conditioned for pennies with a little product I like to call Dawn Dish Soap.

Yes, you heard me right!  Dawn Dish Soap is a miracle cleaner.  Its gentle formula will quickly break down the oils in the brush without stripping them and ruining them.  Works great with synthetic as well as natural hair brushes.

If you’re using the Dawn Dish Soap method you can give your natural hair brushes a nice deep conditioning treatment by using your hair conditioner.  I know, sounds funny to hear me telling you to use dish soap and hair conditioner but it’s true.  They work great for those of us on a more restrained budget.

Well I hope this gives you some food for thought and an idea of what you should be using to clean your makeup brushes.

Method Makeup Academy, Sacramento’s Makeup School