Spring Cleaning- Makeup Bag Edition

Spring Cleaning

Spring is almost here, and you know what that means. Cleaning is almost around the corner. I have mixed feelings about the impending spring. I love the warmer weather, opening the windows, but I hate spring cleaning. There is one type of spring cleaning that I don’t mind all that much; spring cleaning my makeup bag.

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Spring cleaning our makeup bags is probably the easiest cleaning we will do this spring. No need to change into our cleaning clothes. Stay in those PJ’s, grab some coffee, and lets spring clean that makeup bag!

Why Clean the Makeup bag?

On top of accumulating its fair share of rouge bobby pins and dust bunnies; our make-up bags are usually housing old make-up and unclean brushes that can wreak havoc on our complexions. The cakey consistency of old makeup can sink into our skin magnifying fine lines. Make-up past its prime can clog pores or cause skin irritations. No thanks!

What gets pitched?

Everything has an expiration date. That old lipstick that you swear you will wear one of these day? Yup, it expires. Your favorite eyeshadow that you wear for special occasions, it has a best by date too. Can you tell this cleanse may be hitting a little too close to home?

So, what do we toss from our make-up bags?

• Lipstick and Lip Liner will last about 2 years. However, if there is a change in the smell or look of the product, it is time to toss it.
• Mascara should be thrown out every 2-3 months. If you can’t remember when you purchased your mascara, take notice of its smell and whether the application has become clumpier. To extend the life of your mascara, and to prevent air borne bacteria, do not pump your mascara wand. Pumping the wand pushes air into the tube causing germs and bacteria to be pushed into the tube as well, oh, and air dries our mascara out. Yuck!

Instead of pumping the wand, twist the mascara wand as you draw it out of the tube. This is help get that thick coating of mascara onto the wand without forcing air into the tube.

• Powder Based Products this includes not just powder, but eye-shadows and blushes as well. These guys should be changed out every 2 years.
• Foundation is past its prime 6 months after we open them. Another sign that your foundation has got to go, is if it is separating, when applied it goes on streaky or unevenly, and if it has an odd smell. Foundation comes into contact with brushed and our fingers, both of which transfer germs and bacteria to the product. This is one reason it breaks down so quickly. If that weren’t annoying enough, using old foundation can also cause acne, skin irritations, and even infections.
• Eye Pencil & Liquid Eyeliner pencil eye liners have a 2-year makeup bag shelf life, while liquid liner should be thrown out after 3 months. To keep your eye pencil bacteria to a minimum clean your sharpener with rubbing alcohol frequently.
• Cream Eye Shadow last about 6 months. Again, its that whole fingers, brushes, bacteria love moisture thing.

• Special Ingredient Products like our anti-wrinkle creams, products with vitamin-C, retinols, and acne product degrade over time as well. Products that have FDA approved ingredients should have an expiration date on the bottom. Be aware, that expiration date is from date of purchase, not date of opening package. Once the product is open air goes to work breaking down the ingredients.

Products that claim to be anti-aging, anti-wrinkle, or promise some kind of skin change are not FDA regulated. It is recommended to throw them away after 6 months. If the skin product is in a pump bottle, it has about 1 year.

It is especially important that we keep these special products in a cool, dry environment, away from sunlight. Ingredients like Glycolic acid, retinols, hydroquinone, and vitamin C can become destabilized and deteriorate more rapidly when kept in a less them optimal environment.

• Nail Polish are ready for the trash anywhere between 1 to 2 years. Much like our makeup, creams, and such, nail polish does not like heat or moisture. Nail polish kept in a cool, dry place will have a longer shelf life when it is. A sign that our nail polish is finished, would be gooey, stringy, gloppy nail polish. I should add, in my personal experience, some brands develop a more chemical odor too.

• Make-up brushes need cleaned regularly, most experts recommend once a week no less than once a month. However, regardless of good care, there will come a time when your brushes may need to go to that great big trash can in the sky. Signs that our makeup brushes have seen better days would be cracks in the brush body (bacteria haven), shedding, the brush is becoming misshapen.

When cared for regularly, makeup brushes can last for years! I have some that are over 5 years old and still work great. Quality does not need to be expensive. I really like ECOTOOLS. I own many of their brushes. They are such a good product that I like them so much that I give them as gifts. That’s how much I believe in their quality. ECOTOOLS are durable. The brushes are soft. To boot all ECOTOOLS cosmetic brushes are vegan, made of recycled materials, and recycled bamboo. ECOTOOLS are good for you, good for the environment, and great for your pocket book.

Brush Cleaning prevents dirt, bacteria, and germs from being transferred to our faces and makeup. Regular cleaning also extends the life of your brushes.

1. Simply apply a gentle shampoo, like baby shampoo, to the natural or synthetic bristles. Rise with lukewarm water until it runs clear.
2. Next lay the brushes on their sides, so as to not misshapen the bristles.
3. Allow to dry naturally.

Cleaning your brushes, the correct way, really doesn’t take a lot of time. I recommend doing it at night so the brushes can dry while you sleep and they will be ready to go in the morning.

Pro Tip: Grab a trial size of bottle of baby shampoo to have on hand for brush cleaning. In a pinch it can double as a face wash too.

• Makeup Bag itself can be wiped out with an anti-bacterial wipe, if it has a plastic liner. If it canvas, check the label to see if it is machine washable.

Extending the Life of Your Make-Up

Do Not, I repeat, Do Not store your makeup bag in the bathroom. The extreme heat and cooling help to deteriorate your make-up. The moisture and heat from the bathroom spur on the growth of mold and bacteria in our makeup, lotions, and creams. Yuck!

Always keep makeup way from direct sunlight. The UV rays and heat help to break down makeup and facial care products.

In order to extend the shelf life of our makeup, lotions, and creams, store the makeup bag in a cool dry place, like a hall closet for example.

Storing your things in a place other than a bathroom, can seem like a pain at first. I started storing my makeup bag in our hall closet, about a year ago. After a week, I had figured out a routine that worked for me, now bringing my products into the bathroom is second nature.

Pro tip: Put all of your products and makeup bag into a caddy, just like in college. The caddy makes it so much easier to take them to the bathroom and it keeps everything organized!

Washing our hands is simple, but it’s an important and easy way to help extend the life of the products that we disperse or apply with our hands.