The Alcohol Experiment-Time Lapse

It is 8:50 pm on Wednesday night, and I realize I need to clean my big foundation brush for tomorrow's big day --Thanksgiving!  I like to use my Tarte Amazonian Clay foundation for pictures and it only seems to work well with the big brush that it is sold with. This is one brush that I find hard to spot clean with my Sephora Spray.  I do it, but it is the one brush I like to deep clean every 3 uses or so.  I digress, so I decide to try the alcohol method to see if I can get the brush to dry any faster. For this experiment I tried using 99% alcohol.  Next time I might try a different percentage depending on the outcome and after doing more research.

My understanding of alcohol cleaning is as follows:  take a shallow dish or cup and pour a small amount of alcohol into the container. Then swirl your brushes in the solution until the pigments are in the water and your brushes look clean. 

I filled a small white dish with a minimal amount of alcohol (only enough to clean the tips/hair of the brushes.) I would then swirl the brush several times until pigment came off in the water and wipe gently on a clean towel.  (I keep a few towels set aside that are clean but cheap or old enough to not worry about having makeup stains.) I repeated the process of changing the alcohol for the eye brushes, the blush and stippling brush, the kabuki brush, and the large foundation brush.  For the dense brushes I had to squeeze out the excess and repeat the process a second time. Oddly, the F60 from Sigma held more product than the Tarte brush.  Perhaps it could be the type of foundation I use with that brush.

For the record, I use Hourglass Tinted Moisturizer with the F60 and I use the Amazonian Clay Full Coverage foundation with the Tarte brush.

*I will do this experiment again because my brushes that were stained with black shadow and bright pink blush are nearly back to their original color*

Sigma Brushes (Pink and Black Kabuki) and Tarte Brushes (Bamboo)

The photo above was taken just following finishing the brush cleaning.  Next time I will include a before picture as well as a picture of when all brushes have dried so you can see how well the alcohol gets rid of the stains on the lighter brushes as well. My stippling brush was bright red from using Tarte's Natural Beauty Amazonian Clay blush.

At 9:00 pm I sat down with the brushes you see above and began by cleaning the smallest brushes first as they didn't have as much product on them. I was able to wash a few before having to change the alcohol.  I then proceeded to finish by size.  I was surprised to see that the Sigma F60 foundation brush held a lot more product (foundation) than the Tarte brush I set out to clean for tomorrow.

At 9:47 pm I checked the brushes.  Eye brushes are dry.  Blush brush and stippling brush are wet.  Foundation brushes soaked. Kabuki brush is almost dry on the outside and the center is wet. (I hear my Coco Beau brush calling my name...glad I have some backup brushes at this point.)

At 10:57 pm The stippling brush is about about  is drier, but not quite half way dry, the Kabuki brush is still damp in the center, and the large foundation brush is damp but not soaked.

At 11: 50 pm The stippling brush is a little more than half way dry, the center is wet.  The Kabuki is dry around the perimeter and damp in the center and the foundation brush is slightly damp on the outside and top of the brush but also damp in the center.

It is approximately 55 degrees outside and I don't have the heater on. I was under the assumption that the alcohol evaporated quickly, ergo, leaving your brushes to dry much faster.  Hopefully the rest of the brushes will be dry by morning. (Note to self...purchase the Sigma Dry & Shape)

Update:  As of 9am this morning brushes were completely dry.  

Happy Thanksgiving!
xoxo
Dani