DIY Daily Brush Cleaner

This is a long one, folks. You should get a snack.

Most of my make-up is applied with brushes. I wear Bare Minerals powder foundation, so I use brushes for pretty much everything. I don't have a lot of duplicate brushes either, they are way too pricey for me to have 15 of the same brush. Plus I don't wear make-up everyday, so it's not really a wise investment for me. Bare Escentuals offers a product they call "Quick Change" that you can use to quickly clean off your brushes in between colors. But at $18, it's a bit out of my price range at the moment. I figured I could find a good recipe online for a homemade dupe...but no. I decided to try and figure it out...with a little help from my friends.

Supplies:

isopropyl alcohol 70%

distilled water (especially if you have hard water)

vegetable glycerin

witch hazel

funnel

scale (if you want to attempt precision. not really needed)

small clean spray bottle

clean rag

essential oils if you want

Ratio:

0.50+/- ounces of distilled water

0.60+/- ounces of isopropyl alcohol

0.40+/- ounces of witch hazel

0.10+/- ounces of vegetable glycerin

These are all really rough ratios. I ended up adding more alcohol at the end because I wanted this stuff to dry faster. But if you add more alcohol, you should add a drop more witch hazel and glycerin so you don't dry out your brushes. 

adding the distilled water. And yes, I keep a small bottle of this in the house for beauty related stuff. Our tap water is 40% rocks, I'm almost positive.

add the alcohol next. The bottle will get warm here, but don't worry. It's completely safe.

add the witch hazel next. You don't have to use witch hazel, but I wanted to use some sort of toner in this recipe, and witch hazel is an excellent toner.

add the vegetable glycerin

then remove the funnel and decide you don't have enough alcohol...add a bit more.

put the spray top back on your bottle and give it a good shake.

Ok, time to test!

Here is one of my blush brushes. It's actually pretty clean because I shampooed all of my brushes a few days before. This brush has white synthetic bristles on the tip, so it's the best to show the before/after.

peachy pink blush...dunno what brand. 

I sprayed a bunch of the mixture, probably too much, on the cloth. Then I swirled the brush around until it looked clean.

my potion seems to work.

Looks mostly clean. We'll see when it's dry.

And here is where I used actual science-type-thinking! (My husband was so proud) I actually cleaned two brushes in this test: the one pictured above and a small eyeshadow brush. I wanted to see if different sizes dried differently. 

Five Minute Check:

Both brushes still smell like make-up, which I kind-of expected. This isn't a proper brush cleaning. But there is no noticeable color left on either brush, not even when I swipe it against a white paper towel. Both brushes are still too damp to use. 

Ten Minute Check:

The large brush pictured above is completely dry and usable at this point. The smaller brush was still a tiny bit damp.

Fifteen Minute Check:

Both brushes are completely dry and usable.

I think I used too much of the spray for this first test, so I did a second one with a small smudge brush that had recently been used with navy shadow. I sprayed five sprays on a clean rag and swirled the brush around until no more color was coming off. I checked back in five minutes, and it was completely clean and dry. Five sprays is definitely enough to clean the make-up, and five minutes is pretty reasonable time-wise. I think that when I make this next time, I will add just a bit more alcohol to speed that drying time up even more.

both my test brushes. Perfectly clean!

Directions for Use:

spray five pumps of potion onto a clean white rag (my bottle is a pretty fine mist, so you might need less or more depending on your bottle)

swirl your brush on the rag until the brush seems clean

grab a cookie

come back to clean, dry brushes!

I'm pretty pleased overall on how this turned out. I was a little worried about trying to dupe a product I had never actually used. But thanks to a secret informant, it turned out brilliantly! And the best part is, now that I've saved some money on this I can absolutely get some of the new Bare Escentuals eyeshadows!

come visit me over at bedlambeauty.com if you have any questions or comments about this post!

Sometimes things don't go my way...

I love "nail polish stickers". Generally, they are the answer to an uninspired day. And usually, they are dead easy to apply...unless you haven't cut your nails in a month. I could not get these Trend Tips by Sephora by OPI to work for me (by the way, this pattern is on sale for $5). I've used the Sally Hansen ones a bunch with good results, but never when my nails are this long. There was folding and tearing, and a fair amount of cursing. I managed to keep them on for about two days before I gave in and removed them. But damn if they don't look cool from far away.

New Target Exclusive e.l.f. Fall Polishes

Saturday was a good day for polish, but a bad day for the rest of my life.  One of my mother's cats is very sick and I'm really worried about him.  I wandered off and wound up far from home, up near Dorney Park at one point.  I went to three Sally Beauty Supply stores, for their 50% off clearance sale, but didn't find a ton of stuff.  Then I stopped into an Allentown, PA Target on a whim...and I found a new e.l.f. display.  Ten polishes...sadly, nameless.  I bought two, which I call George and Arthur, my first e.l.f. polishes.

George is a deep, vampy purple with fairly visible cobalt and fuchsia shimmer.

A lot of vampy shades completely hide their shimmer, but this shows in most light.  The cobalt shimmers are especially vibrant at times.  Still, I needed to see if sponging helped, especially to bring the fuchsia out a bit more...

There it is!

I really love George, BUT... the brushes on both are horrible.  It's one of those thick, round ones with stiff bristles.  The polish itself doesn't help the application much. Still, they go on (with a little effort) without too much streaking or bare spots and George and Arthur are both strikingly beautiful.

Arthur has a black base with dense color-shifting fleck shimmer...

Sometimes they're blue, sometimes green, and occasionally even a bit of purple....not that you can see it much here.  Because the flecks are so dense, when they shift it changes the nature of the whole polish.

Beyond the brush suckage, the whole cap feels....ok...*is* cheap.  The pattern came off when I touched it with lotion on my hands!?!  ...not that I'm complaining...the snakeskin looks a bit cheesy.  Another downside?  They both STINK.  Hardcore STINK. Still, for $2 each for 0.34oz they're a decent bargain...and pretty!  That's what really matters, right?

The other eight colors just didn't catch me and the display itself is a bit...

...well...it's not the most attractive display, even if you're a nail polish fiend.  Along with the ten shades of polish there were also snakeskin pattern nail buffers, eyelash curlers, travel foundation brushes, Beauty Book palettes, and a couple of empty spots for other things.  I'm not sure if this collection has a name or if it's a Target Exclusive, but it seems to be.  I asked on Twitter, but never got a reply.  Meh.

*Polish Update* -  They are Target exclusives and I did wind up going back for one of the other shades! I call this one Stanley. Stanley is a deep, slightly murky green with a borderline-jelly finish and a TON of flashy green shimmer.

It has the same bad brush and 'just ok' formula....that that STINK.  I don't love this color as much, so it's not as forgivable.  It will be a great color for Halloween though!  I'd recommend George and Arthur first, but I'd say that for $2 you might as well get Stanley too, if you're into vampies.

Best wishes for poor Neko...

He's now a shadow of the big gorgeous boy he was here.  We don't know quite what's wrong with him and it's not looking too good at the last update.  That's my bed he's on up there, and I miss seeing him every day.

*Kitty Update* - We visited my family last week and saw Neko.  He's had a steroid shot and seems to be doing better.  Hope he keeps improving and pulls through this!  Poor guy.

Five minute make-up

Getting ready in a hurry is not one of my strong suits. I'm perpetually tardy. I don't mean to be, but I am. It's a character flaw that I have come to accept. 

Sometimes, having the right tools available makes things go a little faster. Using a palette of coordinated shadows seems to help me along, since I don't have to spend time digging around for what I want. 

This look took me five minutes, give or take. I finished my make-up before my flat iron had heated up all the way. Which might be a personal record!

Products Used

NYX Cosmetics Eye Shadow palette in Bohemian Rhapsody

Clinique Naturally Glossy Mascara in Jet Black

Dr. Jart+ Water Fuse Beauty Balm

some random lip stain whose label has long since worn away

glasses are important

I miss my red hair...normal hair just doesn't suit me.

OPI Every Month Is Oktoberfest and German-icure By OPI

Best things first...and jumping right into it....

I think I have a new favorite.  No, I'm *sure* I do.  I adore Every Month Is Oktoberfest.  I come close to worshiping it.  It blows my mind.  I had longed for Black Cherry Chutney and its radiant glow, but this just pushes it aside and dazzles like nothing else.  Don't get me wrong, I do still want Black Cherry Chutney...but...THIS...and it goes on like butter...

Every Month Is Oktoberfest is a slightly sheer deep blue/purple with endless maroon/copper shimmer.  It's beyond words.  You NEED this if you ever wear dark, vampy polish.  This is their QUEEN!

German-icure By OPI is also a stunner...

It goes on with only the slightest streaking, so much better than a lot of similar finishes.  It also looks lit from within, like Oktoberfest.  They're both must-haves, as far as I'm concerned.

German-icure is usually a deep copper, but sometimes...

Love it too!

....but it looked familiar.  Really familiar.  I went digging among my older polishes and...yep!  I'd call this a very near-dupe.

Can you even tell which is which?

The index and ring are both Revlon Rocker Chic, a long-gone LE from Fall '05.  Rocker Chic is a little redder, with slightly less shimmer in slightly larger pieces.  Still...very, very close.

...and after the typical swatching and dupe-hunting, I had to play a little.  Very little this time...I did a subtle tape/dot thing over China Glaze Evening Seduction...

I have soooo much brilliantawesomeamazinggorgeouswordscoolpretty new fall polish to show you that I couldn't dilly dally too long with this, no matter how much I love it...but I did sponge it quickly, just to see how much it boosted the shimmer...

....I love this just so soooooo soooooooooooooo much!  It takes the shimmer that already dominates Oktoberfest and just explodes it all over the nail!

...and a little "bonus" photo and review, I do own another of the new OPI Germany shades, Don't Pretzel My Buttons.

I bought it hoping it would be *my* nude.  It's not.  It's very much not.  It's a lovely honey beige that just doesn't look good enough on me to be worn alone.  This could be gorgeous on someone with the right coloring.  It makes a terrific base (I used it here).  The application wasn't as good for me as I usually expect from OPI.  It wasn't awful, but I did need to use Gelous for a very smooth look.

I will probably buy a few more of these shades eventually...but...*curses her budget*...I'll have to wait.

Maybelline Mirror Image - One Item Blog Sale *ended*!

*ended*

Anyone who knows me knows I have crazy "good" luck finding things that you generally don't see in stores..  (My wallet wouldn't call it good.)  Well...this kinda tops that long list.  I was doing one of my typical wandering shopping trips and I found a *bunch* of Maybelline Mirror Image.  It's been discontinued for a while now, sadly.  If you're not familiar with it, it's the most reflective silver chrome polish EVER.  Better than Layla Mirror Effect, Sally Hansen Chrome Nail Makeup...any of them.

I mean....WOW!!

*Previous sale has ended.*

If the pending sales don't go through, the last couple left will be in a larger blog sale that I will hopefully have up soon!  Thank you for your interest and extra thanks to people who bought some!

Caring for your cuticles

the arrow points to a coffee filter patch that I completely screwed up. It's not supposed to be that big. Next time I break a nail, I'll take pictures of the patching process.

My nails. In their unedited, un-polished state. Really, they are currently waaay worse. This was a good day. Constant polish wearing can do a number on natural nails. I'm also more than half certain that my beloved Seche Vite contributes to the yellowing. After wearing polish for years on end with that top coat on top, my nails look like I used turmeric in place of soap.

A good scrub with a nail brush and warm water will remove a bit of the staining, but honestly I've had great luck with regular old cuticle remover. I like to kill two birds with one stone when I can. I try to completely do my cuticles every two weeks. Every couple of days, I just push them gently back with my nail. I am FIRMLY in the "no cut" camp when it comes to cuticles. It's just asking for trouble, in my opinion.

So, after removing your nail polish, assemble your tools. You'll need some cuticle remover and a pusher of some sort. (Here is a neat set, but you can generally find both of these things at any drugstore) And you'll need some oil/balm/lotion for afterwards. It doesn't really matter what you use, but I like the vitamin E oil from Trader Joe's.

basic instructions for applying the cuticle gel. 

Apply the cuticle gel ALL OVER your nails. Cuticle can sometimes be dragged up the nail as it grows, and you'd never see it. (I am fond of this video, it gives a far better explanation than I could.) Let the gel sit for no more than 10 minutes. Seriously. That time is set in stone. This is the reason I only do one hand at a time. You could irritate your skin if you leave this stuff on too long. I generally start pushing my cuticles back at the 5 minute mark. Use the funny scoopy thingie and GENTLY push your cuticles back. I find it works best it you make little circles while you push. The key here is to be gentle. If it hurts, you're doing it wrong. Your cuticles are the first line of defense when it comes to healthy nails, so treat them right.

After each hand is finished, wash with warm soapy water. You want to make sure you get all the gel off so that you don't hurt yourself. I like to use a nail brush when I do this because it'll help remove any loose skin bits that are hanging on. Dry your hands thoroughly and apply your choice of oil, balm, or lotion.

taa-daa!

I find that doing this will remove a lot of the surface stains. Look at my thumbs in the "after" picture. 100% less blue there! 

China Glaze New Bohemian collection (part 3)

[part 1 and part 2]

Funny how this was gonna be a simple swatch-and-review...I just couldn't stop playing with these beautiful new polishes!

My next step was stamping, but I still suck at that so...you're not gonna see it! :P

Swanky Silk looked so cool over I Brake For Manicures that I just had to see how it looked over a lighter neutral.  I bought OPI Don't Pretzel My Buttons, from the new Germany collection, hoping it would be my perfect nude.  It completely isn't....but it made ideal undies for Swanky Silk!

I'm not crazy about how it looked mattified, but I *love* how it looked with a high shine top coat!!  That borderline between glitzy and conservative...little more toward the glitz on this one, but Swanky Silk is right in the middle, depending on how it's used.  Love that!

Nichole wanted me to do french braid nail art with them, so I did an accent...

...if only it looked that good in person.  It was tricky and the result looked kinda...lumpy.  The formula is too thin and streaky for stuff like this.  Oh well...I had one last idea...tape!

even the first step looked good!

Sponging and tape work so well together!  I'm gonna have to do that more often!

...and I had to mattify it, of course...

So....the whole review thing that kinda got away from me....

I wish I'd gotten Rare And Radiant too!  These are such astounding beauties that I feel weird not owning the whole collection.  The formula is thin, but it builds well, especially on the darker colors.  The streaking can be an issue, but can be minimized by doing two thin and one thick coats, making sure to dry between them.  They're MINDBLOWING when sponged and lend themselves so well to a variety of nail art, as long as they're not brushed on.  Most look best over black, except Swanky Silk, which is best over nudes or neutrals.  I think I like Deviantly Daring the most for color pop and Swanky Silk is the most versatile.  The duochrome takes a backseat to the chrome, but it's there on all of them if you find the right light.

These are a must-have for anyone who likes bold colors and chrome finishes.