Bare Minerals Quick Change Brush Cleaner review

It's important to clean your make up brushes regularly as bacteria and make up build up over time. A couple of years ago I went into the Body Shop and asked whether there was a product I could buy that cleaned my make up brushes. The sales assistant seemed dumbfounded by my question which I thought was odd as she was using the very product that I needed. I spent hours trawling the internet for an equivalent but was told that companies don't sell brush cleaners for private use. I always clean my make up brushes with shampoo and warm water but it doesn't fully clean the brush. All of my make up brushes are synthetic but shampoo is gentle enough that it won't ruin the brushes and dry them out. I'd given up on the idea of a brush cleaner until recently and tried again targeting Amazon this time. After reading various reviews I decided to purchase the Bare Minerals Quick Change Brush Cleaner. It seemed to be the best option and it had good reviews stating that it cleans your brushes in between washes.

Retailing at £10 for 110ml for a small bottle with a quick pump spray, I decided to give it a go as Bare Minerals are rated quite highly by some. The reviews online specify not to spray the product directly onto the brushes. Not only does it ruin them but it also leaves a greasy residue on the hairs. I spritz a tissue a few times and drag it along the end of the brush. This squeezes out any excess make up. It's best to do this with the tap running otherwise you could stain your sink. It takes a little bit of time but there is a visible difference in the colour. As the name suggests it works to change the colour of your brushes. Unfortunately it doesn't clean the brushes fully and shampoo is still needed. The product is essentially a temporary measure until you can properly clean the brushes. However, I like to use the Bare Minerals Quick Change Brush Cleaner alongside my shampoo to ensure the brushes are cleaned there and then. It's got quite an overpowering lemon scent which smells a little bit like acetone after a while. A well ventilated area is recommended when using this product.

I have two lots of brushes, one set stays at home and the other at my boyfriend's house so I don't have to worry about forgetting my make up wherever I stay which is handy. I also have a lot of spares for when I inevitably have to throw some out. Most of my make up brushes (eye shadow brush, blusher brush and foundation brush) are all AVON. They last forever so I hardly have to replace them, they're quite cheap and they're really soft on the skin. My blusher brush is angled so that I can sweep my make up onto my face in one stroke.

I don't clean my brushes half as regularly as I should, (you're supposed to clean them every week). I wait until the brushes are completely covered in make up or the build up of product no longer blends on my face. It's a little bit gross I know but I don't have time to wash my brushes as often as I should.

Overall the Bare Minerals Quick Change Brush Cleaner seems to tick most of the boxes. It works best when used in conjuction with shampoo. If you don't want a full clean then this product is ideal. The scent is really overpowering so unfortunately I'm not a fan. I'll keep using it until it's time to replace it. Hopefully by then I won't have to shampoo my brushes as well.

At the time of posting this we've had no hot water in the house so I had to wash my brushes in the shower. The foundation brush on the left still needs a proper scrub as there's still a lot of build up in the bristles. After washing them I usually squeeze the excess water out and wrap them in a tissue to dry them over night. You should wait until the brushes are completely dry before re-using them which can take a couple of days air drying them. I like to wrap the tissue around quite tight to really squeeze out the water.  
                                                                                         

Bare Minerals Complexion Rescue review

I received this as a free sample which included samples of the colour Vanilla 02 and Natural 05. Before the product was released here in the UK, a sample of 62 women were asked to try the product out. According to the write up on the product, "100% of women experienced an improvement in skin texture after just one week." So you can imagine I was pretty excited about trying it out.

I started off with Natural 05 which unfortunately was a shade too dark for my pale skin. It did look a little orangey throughout the day so this wasn't great. I have prominent dark circles under my eyes which I try to cover up with concealer. When I first applied the product I noticed my bags were no longer visible. I was really impressed that it got to work so quickly and targeted a noticeable area on my face.

The product (which is a tinted gel) promises to re-hydrate your face and "repair and replenish thirsty skin." I noticed that this is the first product that I've used where my skin hasn't dried out and cracked up underneath my make up. The skin on my face looked like it was glowing and developed a shine throughout the day. Although it promises to re-hydrate your skin I don't want my skin to physically shine, but, it did visibly brighten my skin. It's quite a light weight gel formula with SPF 30 and felt quite cool when first applied to the face. It doesn't work particularly well as a foundation as I still had to use concealer to hide my spots. (I had hoped something that promises to rescue your complexion would conceal spots as well).

There's 10 shades available ranging from; pale yellowy colours to soft pinks and dark browns. Vanilla 02 seems to be the shade that matches my skin tone although I did feel slightly washed out with it so it's probably just a tad too light. I like that it gets to work quickly and targets problem areas but unfortunately the lack of coverage is an issue. Sadly, I don't think it will replace my current foundation. I persevered with this for a week and although my skin visibly brightened, it didn't target my spotty areas, scars or areas of visible discolouration (across my cheeks). Unfortunately, it can't perform miracles.