Battle of the Brush Cleaners - Which one is the best?

Hi Bellas,

I was inspired to do this video because a makeup girlfriend of mine and I were chatting about our favorite brush cleansers.   And yes, some are much better than others.  I thought I'd give you a run down of the best and the worst and how to use them to get the best results.  I've even included a test comparing some of the most popular in my opinion.  Brush cleaning is super important so this is worth a watch.  Check it out!




Check out the video!

This used to be the only brush cleaner I used to buy when I was first starting my makeup career.  Those were the days when I was obsessed with MAC.  First off, I would recommend putting this in a spray bottle because you waste a lot of product with it's current bottle.  I find that it does clean, have a gentle scent, but it leaves brushes too wet.  You must wait minutes between cleans which isn't always convenient.  I also find that it only does a mediocre job of cleaning out makeup from bristles.


Those of us in the makeup industry all know about this infamous blue bottle.  I honestly didn't become a fan till recently.  The hype is real.  This brush cleaner quickly and efficiently cleans all types of makeup from all types of brushes.  It dries so fast and smells super clean.  This is awesome for cleaning brushes while using them during a gig or to switch colors because the bristles dry in mere seconds.


I fell in love with this cleaner several years ago when I first tried it at a makeup trade show.  It's got an amazing orange scent and I was amazed at their demo of how the citrus oil in its cleanser was able to break down bright red lipstick off a brush.   I find that this cleanser also dries super quickly.  It has a tendency to leave a bit of an oily residue though so you may have to follow up with a spritz of alcohol to unclump your bristles.  However I do find it works the best for getting any foundation or liquid makeup out of stained bristles.


In sum, I think it's a tie between Cinema Secrets and Parian Spirit.  They both of their advantages and they performed well during my live brush cleaning test during the video.  I recommend buying the biggest bottles you can get and then refilling the smaller spray containers to get the bang for your buck. I would skip on the MAC Brush Cleanser all together.

Hope this was helpful.  Till next time, Ciao Bellas!