How-To: Clean Makeup Brushes

****Looking for the May Giveaway?  Click HERE!****
_____________________

How often do you clean your makeup brushes?
Confession time: I have never (eek!) cleaned my makeup brushes!  Now, let me clarify...I have cleaned my sponges, and I do that on a regular basis in the washing machine.  But I haven't cleaned my brushes since I got them several (yes, several) years ago.  Bad, I know!

Apparently not washing your brushes about once a month is terrible for your skin.  They can carry dirt and germies :( ick!

Let's get those brushes clean!  Here's to a healthy complexion!

*I saw this tip on Rachael Ray, so I can't take any of the credit!

Materials:
Baby shampoo
Baby conditioner
I went to Target and bought these just for this project.  I spent maybe $1 on each bottle.  I bought the Target brand because it was cheaper, but I'm sure any brand would work.

Use baby soap to lather up your brushes, one at a time.  The baby soap is gentle and won't ruin the brush, but strong enough to cleanse.  Get in there and rub rub rub out the mess!  Rinse and repeat later until no mess (like colored eye shawdow!) comes out of the brush.

You're supposed to also use baby conditioner to condition (duh!) the brushes after they're washed (do this right after you wash them).  I bought baby spray-on conditioner, because I thought I'd actually use it for my own hair this way.  I sprayed each of the brushes on one side, then flipped and sprayed the other side.  I used leave-in conditioner, so I didn't have to rinse.  If you use regular baby conditioner, be sure to rinse it out.

Lay your brushes to dry.  Be sure to have the brushes tilted so that the water runs out of the brush instead of down into the brush-- very important step!

I let the brushes dry overnight.  They were clean, smelled fresh, and were soft!  I definitely saw a difference in how it applied my makeup!

Now let's see if I can keep up the routine!