How Often Do Makeup Brushes Actually Need To Be Cleaned?

Brush cleansing, how often should we be doing it? Today, while applying my makeup, I noticed that my brushes had become a little gunked up with excess makeup. When it comes to my brushes, I can be a little (okay a lot) lazy. I only have a couple of sets of makeup brushes so sadly brush rotation isn’t really an option for me which means ensuring I’m always on top of brush cleaning – eugh.

As my skin is blemish prone – spots, redness, you name it, I get it, I can’t risk spreading germs across my skin. So after each use I clean my brushes, and if you have sensitive or acne-prone skin, it’s worth doing the same. I say after each use but what I actually do is using cleansing wipes to clean them. This gets rid of most of the makeup remnants but sadly, not all of it. Hence how my brushes ended up caked in the remnants of all my favourite products.

While my makeup brush cleansing routine might be a little lazy, it could be a lot worse. According to a friend of mine who’s in training to become a makeup artist, for personal use brushes should be deep-cleaned every two to four weeks. Of course, how often you cleanse your brushes should also depend on how regularly you use them. I only use my brushes a few times a week, as I don’t wear makeup every day. (I work from home, so there’s no need for a full face of makeup each day.) As a rule of thumb, the brushes that need to most regular cleansing are concealer, foundation and eyeliner brushes.

Working out when your brushes need a deep clean is fairly easy, it’s just a case of looking for the telltale signs. The most obvious sign that your brushes need cleansing is that the bristles are caked in visible product, they’re scratchy and rough, or harder to use. Brushes that are coated in makeup remnants make it harder to achieve a flawless finish, something that you may notice when using them.

When deep-cleaning my brushes, I use Forever Living Aloe Hand & Face Soap as it’s gentle and safe for use on sensitive facial skin. Plus, it’s an amazing cleanser – it removes every speck of makeup and dirt from the bristles leaving my brushes looking like new again.