Most of us try to find the right colors, brands and types of makeup that work best for us, but we’re all guilty of forgetting some important makeup maintenance tips in the process. I know I can go weeks forgetting to take care of a few maintenance tips myself. The key to keeping your makeup making you look great is to make sure you take care of it! Implement these easy makeup maintenance tips so your makeup lasts longer and keeps you feeling and looking fresher!
1 Wash Your Brushes
This is hands down one of the best makeup maintenance tips you’ll ever hear. Your brushes are prime breeding ground for bacteria. Even if you wash your face regularly, makeup residue from applying makeup ends up on your brushes. You don’t need to wash them daily, but once per week put all your brushes in a large jar or glass and fill it with water. Add 1 tsp. of baby shampoo, give it a good stir and let the brushes sit all day in the jar. I like to do this on my day off when I’m not going anywhere. Then, that evening, take them out, rinse them off and dry them really well with a towel to make sure to get most of the water out. Leave them laying on a papertowel or napkin overnight to finish drying and in the morning your brushes will be like new! This keeps your face from breaking out and keeps your makeup brushes lasting longer.
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2 Replace Mascara Every Three Months
Mascara is one item I try to replace more than any other. Mascara is one of the quickest products to dry out and it is one of the worst for breeding bacteria. Replace your mascara once every three months. I buy smaller tubes since I know I’ll use them all up before I end up tossing them. You can get really good mascara at a good price if you buy a smaller tube as well. Remember to stick with waterproof if you’re worried about smudges!
3 Moisturize Those Lips
One of the most important tricks to making sure your lipstick stays healthy and keeps you looking great is to moisturize your lips. When your lips are dry, they flake off skin. This creates two problems. First, when you go to apply lipstick, it doesn’t go on evenly and looks cakey. Secondly, that dead skin sitting on your lips ends up in tiny particles into your lipstick (or gloss), and ends up being breeding ground for bacteria. Keep your lips moisturized to prevent this and use one without any chemicals. I like using coconut oil and organic lip balms, or even natural based ones such as Burt’s Bees brand.
4 Wash Your Makeup Containers
Ever look at your makeup in your cosmetic bag and think how dirty it looks? I do! Your makeup can flake off colored dust particles onto other products, creating a dirty look to your containers. Not only is this unsanitary, but also messy! Once a month, wipe off all your makeup containers on the outside with a hot rag soaked in dish liquid or baby shampoo. Dry them off and they’re like new!
5 Wash Your Cosmetic Bag
This is such an important makeup maintenance tip that I often forget to do! Your cosmetic bag is, in essence, like your handbag. It goes everywhere you do daily, or for most of us anyway, and in the meantime, it picks up tons of bacteria. Wash out your cosmetic case in the washing machine, or handwash in the sink once per month. For ease of use, I do this on a day I’m washing my other makeup products too so it doesn’t become too big of a hassle. All those pieces of makeup that end up in the bottom of your cosmetic bag aren’t just messy, but unsanitary and when you go to put on your makeup, all that bacteria can end up on your face and even in your mouth if you apply lipstick. Keep it clean and wash it!
6 Update Often
Be sure you update your makeup as often as needed. Go through it once every six months. Is that lipstick you bought and hated still lagging around because you think you might change your mind and use one day? Just get rid of it! By now, it’s not only six months old, but also highly unlikely to be used. If you buy something and hate it, donate it to a friend so it doesn’t go to waste. Otherwise, don’t let it take up space in your makeup case. Keep only what you use and make sure you don’t have anything in there over a year old- yuck!
7 Keep in with the Season
Along with updating your makeup, be sure you have colors that fit in with the season. Case in point: don’t wear fall shades in the summer, and vice versa. Make sure you have a few seasonal colored lipsticks, glosses and eye shadows. Also make sure you wear less orange colored bronzer in the winter and instead go with more golden tones closer to your skin tone.
Maintaining your makeup is so important ladies! If you want to be sure it keeps you looking great, you have to take care of it! Do you have any favorite makeup maintenance tips to share?
