Hello Gorgeous Ladies!
This post has been a long time coming. My subbies on youtube have been asking me to do a video on makeup sanitation, but I decided to write about it instead. Hope this is just as helpful if not more!
Sanitizing makeup is probably the thing I am the most wary of, especially since I am a makeup artist and use tons of brushes, and tons of makeup on my clients on a day to day basis. Sanitation is SO important because if you don't, your customers can develop skin reactions, infections, and many other things! Though I have not heard about any MUA being sued for something like that, it is a definite possibility and you don't want to be known for spreading infections, because in this industry, word of mouth is your greatest source for success.
There are a few different ways to sanitize makeup, and I will all of you about the different methods I have/still use. Originally, when I first started doing makeup I was taught the MAC method of sanitizing makeup, which is to take a tissue and rub off the top layer of your powder products. This includes eyeshadows, blushes, highlighters, etc. With you using brushes and double dipping into products (which is almost a necessity with makeup) you get into germ breeding. The brushes touch the clients' face, and then the surface of your makeup, which leads to all bacteria transferring from their face to your makeup. However, this bacteria stays on the surface of your product and does not penetrate below the top layer. That is why taking a tissue and rubbing off the top layer is a great way to sanitize powder.
Now, sanitizing cream products is much more difficult. If possible, you should use a spatula and scoop out some product to use. If you have not done this in the past, you can take a coin or knife, and scrape off about 2 layers of the cream products. On a cream product, bacteria tends to penetrate a bit deeper than on powder products.
Lipsticks, eyeliners, and lipliners are the easiest to sanitize. I use 70% alcohol (available at any drugstore for just a few $), pour it into a small cup, and then dip the above products into the alcohol, then rub off a layer on a paper towel. Though it sounds tedious, the aforementioned products are the easiest to sanitize.
When it comes to using lipglosses and mascara, make sure you always use disposable applicators, because mascara is the biggest carrier of germs! These disposable applicators are available at macpro.com, Sally Beauty Supply, and even crownbrush.com, so they are easily accessible and a MUST have if you are a MUA.
HOWEVER...
I just got my hand on an AMAZING brand of cosmetic sanitizers called Beauty So Clean. They have a cosmetic sanitizer spray as well as cosmetic sanitizer wipes. The spray is especially ingenious because all you have to do is spray it on the surface of all your powder and cream products (which is most of your kit, anyway!) and after 10 seconds, you are ready to go! This spray settles onto the surface of your products, and sanitizes it by removing 99.9% of the germs. Yes, that not 100% but even the daily soaps, shampoos, and anti bacterial sanitizer you use on yourself is 99.9% effective. Using the spray literally makes my sanitizing time about 20 minutes for my entire kit, while the aforementioned method took about an hour. The only downside is that the spray is really expensive, at $12.50 for a tiny on the go bottle, and $25.00 for the pro size bottle. Also, being a spray, you end up using much more of the product than you think, so it will not last a lifetime like most makeup products do.
www.beautysoclean.com
As for the sanitizer wipes, its meant to be used for lipsticks, lip liners, and eye liners. All you do is wipe off the tip, and you are ready to go! The only downside of the Beauty So Clean products is that they have a strong smell of alcohol, which can give you a massive headache (in fact I have one right now due to cleaning my kit!).
When working on a photo shoot or backstage at a show, I like to keep the sanitizer wipes and spray on hand, to quickly sanitize everything on the go, so your clients dont feel like they are in bad hands.
As far as brushes go, I use MAC's Brush Cleanser and clean ALL my brushes off after each use. It's a lot to do, but since the MAC brush cleanser does have some alcohol in it, so the bristles of the brush dry faster. However, it is worth your time and money to sanitize ALL of your kit AND your own personal makeup because you don't want a bad reputation from one eye infection!
Hope this was helpful!
