In one of the forums I frequent, a few members have mentioned that their brushes had molds after deep cleansing (as in shampooing and rinsing). The thought of it alone is disturbing as I am very much of a neat freak esp. wiv my makeup and my tools. Since I’ve never had a molds case ever in my book, let me share how I clean my brushes and keep them mold free. It just might be of help. 
Method #1: Use Cinema Secrets brush cleaner.
It’s freakin expensivo (~PhP1200 for the FOUR ounce bottle here in MNL) but it gets the job done esp. on shoots. The small brushes dry in 5 minutes while the bigger ones like the kabukis are ready to use after 10-15 minutes. If you don’t like the scent of vanilla, don’t get this. Your brushes will smell a bit like it when it dries up.
Method #2: Use undiluted 70% isopropyl alcohol.
This was taught to me by my MA friends from MAC. In the US (I saw this in SG too but unforch, it’s not practiced by all MAs here in MNL), they’re supposed to show the customer that they’ve sanitized the brushes, lipsticks, or pencils by dipping the hair, the cream bullet, and the tips respectively in an Erlenmeyer flask found in the counters before doing a demo or so. So dip and wipe (or drain) using a tissue paper. Never leave your brushes soaked. Done correctly, this method will not damage your brush (I do this to my brushes daily and they’re all in pristine shape).
Method #3: Shampoo, rinse, disinfect, and drain very well.
Here’s how I deep cleanse my babies once a week:
What I use for deep cleansing
MAC Brush Cleanser or whatever shampoo am on
Pour some shampoo and water (1:3 ratio) or MAC Brush Cleanser (undiluted) on a shallow dish
Using a shallow dish allows you to see if the water is getting into the brush ferrule (aka. the usually metal band that holds the brush hair).
My brush pre-deep cleansing
Swirl the brush carefully into the cleanser
Let running water wash off the cleanser
Squeeze the water out of the brush starting from the ferrule towards the hair tips
If you do this the other way around you’ll just end up pushing the water back to ferrule.
Disinfect the brushes by spraying alcohol before drying
It’s painstaking but wouldn’t it be nice to have really clean stuff touch your or your client’s face?
The most crucial step: dry your brushes thoroughly
While it’s easier to lay all the brushes wiv their hair hanging on an edge (like what I did above and yes, the fan is also turned on), I usually tie the handle of bigger brushes wiv a rubber band and hang them like this:
This lets the water drip down and dry up faster. No water and faster drying means decreased chances of having the glue from the ferrule wear off and of course, less chances of getting molds.
The end result: a squeaky clean and disinfected brush
19 Responses to “How I keep my brushes mold free”
My goodness. You are the most OC girl I’ve ever known. I will TRY to do this, but then, I think my trusty baby shampoo and conditioner’s okay with me already. It doesn’t hurt to do a “major cleaning” for these brushes once in a while
OC! :))
Let me just add that I quite remember you volunteering to sanitize my brushes during the bazaar. priceless. OC again :))
ohmy! once a week! di ko yata kaya! I just bought MAC brush cleaner. Thanks for this very helpful post with matching pics pa!
please won’t you hold a make-up seminar one of these days? I bet I could round up 3
friends to join. We just want to have different alternatives for when we go out.
This is very helpful indeed. I always wanted to sanitize my brushes with alcohol but was scared it might ruin them.
i washed my babies yesterday and if i read this earier, i should have **disinfected my babies as well. i didn’t know about the alcohol trick. but i do use alcohol before i use them… hmmm, alcoholic pa man din ako. i love the smell of alcohol hihihi
thanks for the tips!
elianto’s brush cleanser is okay too - less than 300 lang
hindi nakakaiyak gamitin hehe
Amazing article, girl! I love the clothespin spin. =) Is there a difference in the frequency of using alcohol for natural hair as opposed to synthetic hair brushes? I’m thinking if they’re natural hair, they might get damaged if exposed to alcohol all the time…I may be wrong, though!
I love the step-by-step instructions! BTW, what brand of stippling brush is that? Looks awesome.
Sophie: hahahahahaha that’s why I work so slowwwww! I have to have either a LOT of eye makeup brushes or I’ll keep on sanitizing in between!
Via: Once every two weeks deep cleansing is advised by a lot but since I use a LOT of makeup (esp. on shoots), I need to do this every week
Let me fix my schedule for this and next month, kk? I’d love to join you girls for an afternoon of makeup gabbing
Jing: I was about to publish this when I got your comment. Lemme know if you have further questions
Kibi: You’re welcome! I’ll go check that cleaner from Elianto tomorrow.
Aileen: Ohhh thank you for the kudos!! :”> (Per my MA friends) Natural hair should be fine even for daily sanitation. Just of course, do not leave them immersed for a long time. Just dip (or spray in my case) and drain on a tissue.
That’s the Bare Escentuals Feather Light Brush. I love that to bits as it’s SO handy!
[…] Ramos of Swipe Some Gloss has shared ways on how she keeps her brushes mold-free. She shared three methods, you get to choose which one is most appropriate to your needs. Method […]
wow…ang sosyal ng brushes, elseve pa ang gamit!
great tips phoebe! me naman, i use the brush cleanser i bought from beauty bar…it’s okay for e/s brushes since after a few minutes it’s dry na..but for kabukis and powder brushes, i use J&J body wash once-twice a week.
Jheng: Thanks for the kudos! :-* They used to indulge in Kerastase Soleil but because am broke there…Elseve! :p
The one from Beauty Bar comes wiv an atomizer too right? About 500ish?
I should have my mom read this. In her room is a graveyard of dead brushes; she’s got em’ piled up and she never throws them out for some reason. Year in and year out, during her birthday or Christmas, I give her make up stuff. I never really know what to choose, though. Maybe I give her low-end brushes that die out too quick. Like hamsters.
Bim: Send me her brushes. I’d LOVE to clean them one weekend.
I looove your 8th pic. That’s how my brushes look too after I wash ‘em(on the bed and nakatapat sa fan hehe) I’ll try spraying them with alcohol after washing too.=)
Micah, don’t we all just lurve seeing all of our brushes lined up??? XD
hi there..im a new MMU addict..LOL
and im really havin problem with my brushes…thanks for this advice,,,:)
stay pretty… ^_^
Hey kai
Just go ask if you have q’s re: MMU. I’ll try my best to answer them!
Oh and thank you! :”>
your so sweet..thanks.. dont worry im gonna list all my questions..
lol..just kiddin’
you could also try smashbox’s brush cleaner.. cheaper at around Php600 and a lot of my MA’s use this
Jack…
Very good blog I will back soon…