Makeup Madness

It's no secret to my family and friends that I am a woman of many different roles. I'm a corporate professional Monday-Friday 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Saturday's and Sundays, I love to be a great housewife---making casseroles from scratch, cleaning the house, and getting all dolled up for date nights with my man. Throughout each day, I manage to maintain great friendships with people I really care for. And somehow, someway...at the end of all that....I'm still able to work in some personal hobbies. As you all well know by now, I heart to coupon and thrift. Also known to you is my passion of decorating for get-togethers all Martha Stewart style. But one thing you may not know about me is that I also HEART makeup.

Now when I say I love makeup and cosmetology...some of you may be thinking my love is like this.

But, dear readers, you'd be wrong to assume that. The love I feel for makeup is above and beyond what is normal for any human being. When I walk into any makeup store...any store at all...I instantly feel like

And then I have to tear myself away pretty quickly. Not leaving the store in a sufficient amount of time could easily result in:

I don't even want to calculate MENTALLY what I've probably spent on makeup and hair crap throughout the years because in a word....it's depressing. I especially love my makeup brushes which have lasted me FOREVER I will definitely admit (hey...sometimes you get what you pay for ;)

The only real qualm I have with my brushes is how friggin dirty they have gotten over time. I mean...it's pretty gross. I attempted to use those spray makeup cleaners, water, and even those expensive wipes and NOTHING came even close to restoring my beautiful brushes to their former glory.

This is when I came up with a brilliant plan to find a DIY makeup brush cleaner. All I needed for hte recipe I found was dish soap, warm water, and white vinegar. Most of us already have those guys just lying around anywho!

I just added a tablespoon of dish soap and vinegar to the cup of warm water as instructed. It kind of came out cloudy looking like this:

Yes that is one of my engagement photos on my glass. I know, I know....I'm awesome ;)

Then I basically just began dipping my brushes in one by one---giving them a slight push on the bottom. I swirled each brush for about five seconds, then removed it from the water, reshaped it, and laid it on a towel to dry.

You could

You could literally see the old makeup residue coming off in the water as depicted above!!!

If I wasnt fully convinced that this technique is not only inexpensive but HIGHLY efficient, here is further proof on one of my favorite MAC brushes.

BEFORE

AFTER

Aye carumba!!!!! I'll definitely be using this method monthly to clean my brushes!!!! Does it leave your brushes smelling like vinegar? Eh....maybe a little...but nothing I can't get past and just LOOK at how clean they are!!!!!!! Not to mention, it's nothing that I can post for proof, but holy guacamole....the brushes feel like HEAVEN!! I used a dish soap that is intended to be soft on hands and I so recommend it for those of you trying this tutorial. You can pick up a small bottle at the dollar tree and my brushes now feel even better than new!!!!

Take it from me and give this method a try this weekend :) You won't be sorry you did!!!!