How I Clean My Brushes (and sponge)

Today you get the joy of seeing a small portion of my bathroom and dirty brushes.  I know, it's overwhelmingly exciting.

The way I wash my brushes probably reflects the way that everyone else washes theirs but nonetheless I'd like to show you the equipment I use and the little tricks to get it done quickly.

Here is pretty much all I use to clean my brushes, I also sit on a little bathroom stool with a towel on my lap to give the brushes a dry off before they go into the brush tree you see set up below.

This was a really cheap item (about $3.50) from ebay which can be stored flat as in the first image and slotted together to create the 'tree' in which you shove the handles of you brushes to dry them.  I highly recommend it.

The other innovative little tool I use is a brush mat, on in my case a silicone pot holder from Ikea.  Sigma and other beauty brands sell legitimate cleaning mats which claim all sorts of differing patterns for varied brush types (read: bullshit marketing) but a silicone mat of some kind is fine.  I've even seen an Instagram tutorial in which the person applied hot glue to a clipboard for the same purpose.

So the slightly silly but effective way I wash the brushes is two take two similar brushes (shape and size) and hold them together.  I pour a little wash fluid (currently Daiso Brush cleaner but Daiso's Sponge and Puff cleaner is a cult favourite as well as all natural Castille Soap) onto the mat below the heads and in each hand I give the brushes a swirl and sweep.

Here I'm cleaning two flat shaders, these I tend to use a back and forth motion rather than circular.

And then partially drying them on my lap so they're ready quicker.

For bigger/fluffier brushes I still go back and forth but also swirl.  The froth should be white when the brushes are clean.  Obviously you also need to run them under water to remove the suds.  If they're a large brush it can help to give a gentle squeeze to remove water from the bristles.

With each brush I clean I place it into the tree handle first.  I tend to use more eye brushes than face so if I run out of small slots I bunch a few into the larger holes left over.

Cleaning sponges is really easy and should be done every time prior to/after use (as in don't use a dirty sponge).  I run it under water first, squeezing twice; then pour cleaner onto the dirty areas liberally.

After that it's as easy as squeezing until a foam forms and squeezing under running water until it dissipates.

That's everything I do to clean and prep my brushes for use.  Leave any tips or queries you have below.  Until next time,

Cassy