Before I begin my tutorials, I would like to take a moment and show the different makeup and brushes I will be using. I will be referencing these items a lot throughout, so I thought to show you what I'm packin'~ heehee
Eyes:
Clockwise from upper left: Coastal Scents 88 color palette, 88 color warm palette, and 88 color ultra shimmer pallette, Chanel Les Quatre Ombres Quadra Eye Shadow in Variations, Urban Decay Skyscraper Multibenefit Mascara, MAC Plush Lash Mascara in Plushblack, Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion, MAC Liquidlast Liner in Point Black, MAC Fluidline Liner in Blacktrack, The Face Shop false lashes, MAC Technakohl Liner in Smoothblue, MAC Eye Kohl in Smolder and Fascinating, The Face Shop Greatist Liquid Liner in Black, Shiseido Eye Pencil in Black, Urban Decay Glide-on 24/7 eye pencil in Zero, Shiseido Lash Curler, MAC shadow in Carbon, MAC Mineralize Shadow Duo in Sea and Sky, MAC shadows in Pen N Pink and Charcoal Brown, MAC Hello Kitty Shadow Quad in Too Dolly, and MAC Shadows in Beautiful Iris and Typographic.Lips:
Starting from top, then going left: MAC Lipliner Pencils in Subculture and Brick, MAC Hello Kitty Collection Lipstick in Fashion Mews, MAC Lipsticks in Creme Cup, Black Knight, Snob, and Russian Red, Another Fashion Mews (I bought two, it sold out fast!) Shiseido Perfecting Lipstick in Brown Red, MAC Glimmerglass in Blackware, MAC Lustreglass in Luminary, 2 MAC Lipglass in Prrr, Urban Decay Pocket Rocket Lip Gloss in Timothy, Urban Decay Lipstick in Midnight Cowboy (the little purple one) and Too Faced Sparkler Glamour Gloss in Pink Bling.
Face:
Rows from Left - Right: MAC Studio Sculpt concealer in NW20, MAC Studio Fix in NC25, The Face Shop Hydro Splash BB Cream, MAC Prep + Prime Face Protect SPF 50, MAC Sheertone Blush in Tenderling, and MAC Glimmershimmer in Etiquette.
That's all of the makeup... Next come the brushes!
13 of these babies... Here goes~! From left: MAC 129, 187, 195, 208, 214, 217, 219, 224, 227, 239, 242, 266, and 318 brushes.
Yes. MAC brushes are expensive. Especially if you only plan on using them once or twice and that's it. However, if you are a frequent makeup user, the quality of these outweighs the price. My 129 and 217 brushes are almost 2 years old and still look and perform like new (aside from the numbers on the sides coming off) and I do take very good care of them. I do wash them after almost every use (especially after using black eyeshadow because it STAINS if you leave it too long!) with MAC's brush cleaner. Face brushes (foundation/concealer/blush) I sometimes wash every 3-4 uses, since the colors of the products I use on them does not change or harden up on the bristles.
How I clean my babies up~ Use WARM, NOT HOT water and have the fibers facing downwards at all times! We don't want too much water seeping up into the handle. It will eventually warp the wood, rot the base of the fibers, and ruin your investment.
1. Rinse excess makeup out of the hair and squeeze out the excess water, leaving them more damp than wet. Be careful, unless it is a concealer brush or lip brush, it's probably made of natural hair and we don't want to damage this.
2. Squeeze a little bit of the brush cleaner into your palm, and one at a time (unless you have a few shadow pencils) swirl the fibers in the soap like you are brushing on your hand. Soon the soap will start to lather and you'll see the makeup just suck right out of the brush and into the soap. You do NOT need a lot!
3. Usually once should do it, but if your brush is REALLY dirty, go another round. You do not need to use any conditioners or disinfectants, the cleaner has antibacterial/moisturizing properties in it already and is fragrance free.
4. Rinse, rinse, RINSE!
5. Squeeze out the excess, but also take the time to make sure the hairs are reshaped back to their original form. Again, like the hair on your head, the natural fiber brushes will dry into whatever shape you leave them in.
6. Lay flat on their sides, a key point being to make sure the fibers and about 3/4 - 1 inch of the handle thereafter are over the edge of the table/desk/whatever you're drying them on. This reduces dry time, and makes sure no water remains in the base of the hairs. (Remember all that stuff I said about rotting/warping? That can happen from improperly drying them too.)
They usually do not take too long to dry. For the bigger brushes, sometimes they dry tightened up as I reshaped them. When they are dry, give them a quick brush against your arm, or your clean un-made up face. They will spring back into original position, ready to help you out again!
As I add more tools and products, I will update accordingly, worry not~!
