January 20, 2016

Sephora Solid Brush Cleaner Review

PR Sample / Affiliate
This was provided to me by a brand for review and I receive a small commission if you shop using the links in this post but all opinions are my own.

Sephora Solid Brush Cleaner 1

Sephora Solid Brush Cleaner launched a few months ago but more recently for Spring 2016 they have a mini, travel version available of this makeup brush cleaner. The larger size is $14 and the mini one is $8.

I hadn’t tried the original even though I had plans to purchase it when it launched. I rely heavily on makeup brush cleaner to get my brushes cleaned. I don’t really like using shampoo and feel like I get a deeper clean using Cinema Secrets or even MAC Brush Cleaner so those are two I tend to purchase often.

Sephora Solid Brush Cleaner

When I noticed Sephora had a Solid Brush Cleaner I thought it an interesting idea but wasn’t sure how deeply a clean it would offer.

Take a look!

Sephora Solid Brush Cleaner comes in a tiny little black compact pot. Inside you’ll find a circular bar of soap (0.6 oz in the mini version) and a little silicone grooved pad. Kinda reminds me of the one that comes with the L’Oreal 360 Cleansers and the bar of soap reminds me of the little bars of soap from the Hotel de Nice or any hotel soap really. The soap kinda smells fresh and I kinda got a little Jergens vibe going on with it. Although it apparently has argan oil and a warm Moroccan fragrance. Smelled like Jergens to me! Shrug!

Sephora Solid Brush Cleaner 5

Sephora Solid Brush Cleaner 6

In my testing I used this on makeup brushes only not sponges but according to both Sephora and the new Beautyblender BlenderCleanser Solid you can use it to cleanse sponges as well.

Basically you’ll wet your brush and swipe it across the bar of soap a few times. After that simply lather it up with your hands and rinse! Done! If you want to get a deeper clean you can slap the little silicone disc onto the side of your sink (it sticks) and you can gentle whisk the bristles of your brush back and fourth against it to work out makeup, dirt, oil, etc….You do get a way deeper clean using the disc than you do just massaging and lathering up the bristles. I had no problems at all getting my brushes very clean however, this cleanser struggled a little with creams. My foundation and concealer brushes still had residue on them after a cleanse but honestly, even with brush cleanser I have an issue getting cream completely out.

I love the idea of this product. I think it’s great for travel. Especially if you’re going to be away say two weeks and you’re only bringing a few brushes and you want to keep them clean this is a nice little cleanser to have around. It rinses clean away and does a fairly good job getting brushes nicely cleaned up.

However, for daily use, I’m a little skeptical about using it. The bar of soap remains wet after you swipe your bristles in it. I mean you are rinsing it off but it somehow freaks me out that I’m swiping dirty brushes across the bar a few times and proceeding to leave it out to dry after use. It just seems a breeding ground for bacteria. But…hey, we do the same with regular bars of soap right!?!

For me the Sephora Solid Brush Cleaner is a nice little travel friend but I don’t think it’ll be a brush cleanser I use daily.

Anyone try it?

Do share your thoughts!

Available now at Sephora.com.

PR Sample / Affiliate
This was provided to me by a brand for review and I receive a small commission if you shop using the links in this post but all opinions are my own.

About the Muse

Isabella MuseIsabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

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Comments

  • Chrissy

    I actually use trader Joes green tea soap to clean my brushes and I’m pretty impressed with it. It’s very cheap and gets my brushes clean. It does take an extra washing for the foundation to come out of the brushes though but I think that’s because I use heavy foundations/creams.

  • elicaroline

    I am totally freaked out by bar cleansers. For some reason I just can’t make myself believe it’s sanitary. I do like that it comes with a little cleansing pad. I might purchase one just for the pad alone.

  • anna

    This looks interesting. Funny, brush cleaner is not a beauty product I can get that excited about buying. Its like how very um…..functional. then I get distracted by something shiny.I am not big fan of bar soap but I like the look of that little rubber thing. I am sucker for little helpful gadgets like that.

    • Isabella Muse

      haha I don’t anyone really gets excited about brush cleaner or cleaning brushes for that matter such a pain!

  • Viking

    Thanks for reviewing this! I normally use baby shampoo for my brushes, but I just went ahead and ordered this. Seems very practical, I wash my brushes far to seldom. For $8 for a travel version I would get it for the rubber thing alone, but I like the idea of the soap.

    I am not worried about sanitation, you just have to let it dry once in a while (bacteria don’t like dry, the bar is probably too alkaline for them to thrive, and the water rinse should remove bacteria from brush).

    I would never have found this without your review, thanks!

    • Isabella Muse

      my pleasure Viking! I’m glad you liked the idea! I thought it was a nice idea too 😀 Let me know what you think after trying! And thanks, my germ-a-phobic good nature feels a little calmer now 😀

    • Maggie

      Hi Viking, I also used to use baby shampoo along with olive oil to wash my brushes. I purchased the full-size solid BC I didn’t want to deal with more liquids while traveling and I liked it so much that I now use it at home. I love how oil is already conveniently an ingredient in the bar soap and that I no longer have to fumble with 2 large bottles of oil and shampoo by my tiny sink and keep pumping out a bit of both as I wash like a 100 brushes–rather just the silicone mat with the bar of soap right there.

      And she is correct Muse! Soap is too alkaline for bacteria. I also rinse out the soap when I am done and let it air dry.

  • Marie

    I usually use a bit of oil-based makeup remover (or olive oil in a pich) to get foundation out of my brushes and sponges, followed by the cleanser/shampoo, btw. Thought I’d mention it since you’ve said you have trouble getting foundation out of things.

  • Natasha

    I’ve tried this as well as the Beauty Blender solid brush cleanser and I’ve repurchased this at least 3 times now. I recently vacationed in Europe and took it with me to clean my brushes. I love it and it cleans my brushes and sponges really well but I don’t think it lasts very long. It is also cheaper than the Beauty Blender solid cleanser.

  • Julie Ann

    Tried it. Love it. Does a great job of getting makeup that is deep in the bristles, using the pink thingy. One thing I do is rinse the soap bar off and put it back in the jat. The pink thing I put off to the side to dry. I don’t put the lid on until both pieces are good and dry. No gunky mess. Will bbuy again.

  • Cat Y.

    I have been using this for just over a year (full size) and I am super happy with it!

    I am not super religious about washing my brushes (I know this is bad…..like really bad ha ha) but when I do clean them this soap does the job for sure.

    I get the Jergins smell too! You’re not alone! ha ha