Makeup Kit Hygiene...Is Your Kit Clean & Presentable?

As makeup artists, we make sure our nails are short and clean, sanitize our hands, use disposable mascara wands, & do everthing possible to ensure our clients have a great, comfortable experience with our services. However, with so much focus on the obvious, we tend to forget about other visuals. Does your kit look messy, dirty or non hygenic? This can send chills down the spine of your models and clients. A messy looking kit can make the person in your chair feel uncomfortable, perhaps even be skeptical of your skills and wonder if they will be getting pink eye after your services.

Avoid an embarrassing situation by taking the extra time to give your kit a maintenance check up. Cleaning and prepping kits is no fun but can be a deal breaker or maker for word of mouth referrals that can result in more cha-ching in your wallet $$$.

Below are a few ways that I make sure my kit looks clean and presentable:

* I always spray my products such as bronzers, shadows, pressed powders, lipsticks, etc with Beauty So Clean cosmetic sanitizer. It disinfects, sanitizes, cleans, removes bacteria and dries super quickly. A must in every single makeup artist's kit.

* Make sure that your makeup palettes, especially the ones with black cases are clean and free from smeared shadow and makeup marks. You can do this by cleaning with makeup remover or baby wipe around the outer case. The inside (in between shadows, blushes, etc) can be cleaned by taking a q-tip and dipping with makeup remover and swiping over palette.

* Brushes should always be clean and washed. It grosses me out when I work with other MUAs and I look over and notice that their brushes still have makeup from a previous job from another day, and do not bother to even spray and clean before use on present client to at least make up for not washing. So if I feel uneasy for the client, imagine how they are feeling? If your brushes do not look clean, then more than likely your client will assume you are using a dirty brush on them and not practicing good hygiene, which can result in not booking you again or referring you.

* Prior to using a lip liner or an eye liner, sharpen and then spray with alcohol to disinfect, then wipe again with a clean tissue to remove alcohol.

* When having to take cream, or a product from a jar, it is best to scoop out with a small spatula instead of dipping your hand into the product, applying on client with hands and double dipping again.

* Make sure that foundation mouths or pumps are clean and do not have any leaking foundation liquid falling from it, dry or wet.

* Always have tissue paper or papel towels along with makeup spray brush cleaner to use in between clients if you do not have an extra set of brushes. However, it is always good to have at least one back up set of brushes instead of just one set.

* I prefer my lipsticks to be crushed and placed in a palette. I have a case that I purchased at the Makeup Show this year but prior to that I used a bead jar and pill containers to carry crushed lipsticks. This is great to do because it looks more professional, is more hygenic and saves you time by avoiding having to disinfect lipstick prior to each use.

* Disposable mascara wands are always a must in my kit. If you do not have access to purchase some or cannot order online, then you can use a small fan brush, they work marvelously. I never recommend using the actual mascara wand from the tube, because even if you disinfect it does not look professional.

* You can purchase small travel cases at your local drug store or pharmacy to fill with alcohol, and sanitizer etc. It makes your kit look polished and you will be ready to clean anything necessary while on set.

* Use a mixing palette to mix any foundations, lipsticks, or any colors instead of the back of your hand. It is more sanitary. (I must admit, I sometimes add product to the back of my hand...hey I am not perfect lol).

* Never double dip when using a gel or cream liner. Instead, scoop a small amount with a spatula and place on a mixing palette and work from there. Sure you tend to sometimes waste a bit of product that way, but I would rather waste a bit of product that to have my client end up with pink eye and then tell others of the bad experience with me.

There are many things besides makeup that a MUA must carry in their kit besides cosmetics, I have list on a previous blog posting but some of the things we must carry to help sanitize and maintain a clean kit while on set are:
* Disposable mascara wands
* Q-tips/Cotton Swabs
* Baby Wipes
* Makeup Wipes
* Beauty So Clean-cosmetic disinfectant spray
* Brush Cleaner Spray
* Tissue paper/paper towels
* Hand sanitizer
* Alcohol (preferribly, one that is pharmaceutical or at least of 70% alcohol)

I know that this may be annoying to have to do and not everyone has time to clean their kit everyday, especially those working MUAs that are doing makeup everyday on clients but doing a thorough cleaning often can make your kit look polished and more inviting.

It feels so great as a MUA to have been told by several other makeup artists and clients that I am the cleanest, most sanitary MUA they have ever worked with. That means a lot to me and I want to continue to provide good, clean service to my clients and respect them by making sure to maintain a clean kit and use proper hygiene practices.