Makeup Mondays With Mario: How To Clean Makeup Brushes

Celebrity makeup artist Mario Dedivanovic is answering your burning beauty questions!!! Every Monday, he will answer a beauty/skin care question as part of a weekly column on Spoiled Pretty, Makeup Mondays with Mario.

Hey Mario,

I'd like some advice on how to best clean my makeup brushes. I don't know if I should be using soap, shampoo or a special kind of brush cleaner. And how often should I be cleaning them? I've spent a small fortune on brushes but have no idea how to care for them.

Thanks so much!
Ella


Hi Ella,
 
It took years of experimenting with different techniques and products to clean my brushes and I've found a way that works for me. I hope it does for you as well.
 
To clean brushes with natural or synthetic bristles, I use a basic hair shampoo. First run water over the brush hair then rub into the shampoo in a circular motion (I pour a bit of shampoo into a bowl). Rinse under running water again to get all of the soap out. I finish off by squeezing the water out, making sure not to pull on the hairs.
 
To dry your brushes, you should lay them flat on a towel. If you stand them up in a cup to dry, the water seeps into the handle and causes the brush to weaken and fall apart over time.
 
Thanks for visiting Makeup Mondays with Mario!

xo,

Mario

Got a question for Mario? Email your makeup and skin care queries to spoiledprettyquestions@gmail.com, and check back next Monday to read Mario's expert advice!

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Bed Head Foxy Curls Styling Iron Giveaway Winner!

Congrats to the winner of the Bed Head Foxy Curls Styling Iron Giveaway - C and C girl.

She has won the Bed Head Foxy Curls 1-1/4 Inch Tourmaline Ceramic Conical Styling Iron, which creates softer, shinier, natural looking curls and waves – without frizz. The iron heats up in just 30 seconds, and the temperature dial has multiple heat settings that can be adjusted to suit your hair texture. The cool tip lets you get a grip, without fear of burning your fingers. And forgetful gals will appreciate the iron's automatic shutoff feature – which powers down after an hour.

Many thanks to Bed Head for sponoring this contest. And stay tuned for Spoiled Pretty's next giveaway, which will be revealed very soon!

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Revlon Crazy Shine Nail Buffer

My natural nails, sans polish, are so dull that I'm kind of embarassed to go without polish. So when I saw Revlon's new Crazy Shine Nail Buffer at my local CVS, I snatched it up. And, let me tell you...the name is accurate. Crazy accurate, in fact. My iPhone photo above doesn't do the shine justice.

The double sided buffer smoothes and evens out the nail surface - creating an outrageous, mirror-like finish. The tool promises to create 400% more shine than bare nails. To be honest, I couldn't tell you the difference between a 100% and 400% increase in shine, but I will say that it looks like I'm wearing a clear topcoat on my nails. And this was achieved in about three minutes (all 10 nails) - no drying time necessary. What I also love is that you can use the white side on polished nails - to restore shine when your mani is looking a lil murky.

Revlon Crazy Shine Nail Buffer retails for $3.99 - but right now it's on sale at CVS for $2.99.

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Gold 'N Hot 1875 Watt Foldable Handle Travel Dryer

To get my relaxed hair poker straight after shampooing, I rely on a comb/pik attachment when blow drying. I own a “universal” pik attachment that fits perfectly on my beloved Conair Infiniti Pro, which is fine 99% of the time. But a full-sized dryer is a bit bulky to travel with, especially when you’re a chronic overpacker like myself.

Problem is that most travel hair dryers have a wide barrel that isn’t compatible with pik attachments. For what seems like forever, I’ve searched for a travel dryer that comes with a pik attachment – to no avail. After endlessly searching in stores and trolling the Internet, it got to a point that looking for travel dryer with a comb attachment became – to steal a phrase from Cher Horowitz – "as useless as searching for meaning in a Pauly Shore movie."

But a few weeks ago, my pik attachment prayers were answered. While browsing around Folica.com, I came across the Gold 'N Hot 1875 Watt Foldable Handle Travel Dryer. Folica.com sent me a sample to review and take on my trip to Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Swim in Miami this past weekend (more on that later) – and after using it, I can tell you that it is exactly what I’ve been searching for all of this time. In fact, this travel dryer is so fabulous that you could use it as your regular dryer.

Unlike many travel dryers which are just glorified fans blowing hot air on your hair, the Gold 'N Hot 1875 Watt Foldable Handle Travel Dryer has all the power of a full-size dryer but in a lightweight, foldable model complete with concentrator and comb attachments! Two speed and heat settings along with tourmaline conditioning and worldwide dual voltage ensure that you have perfectly styled hair no matter where you travel. And how cute is the giraffe motif on the sides of the dryer?

Whether or not you use a pik attachment, the Gold 'N Hot 1875 Watt Foldable Handle Travel Dryer is an excellent buy. And did I mention that Folica.com has it marked down from $50 to just $29.99? Bottom line: this travel dryer blows the competition away.

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Bed Head Foxy Curls Styling Iron Giveaway!

Bed Head Foxy Curls 1-1/4 Inch Tourmaline Ceramic Conical Styling Iron creates softer, shinier, natural looking curls and waves – without frizz. The iron heats up in just 30 seconds, and the temperature dial has multiple heat settings that can be adjusted to suit your hair texture. The cool tip lets you get a grip, without fear of burning your fingers. And forgetful gals will appreciate the iron's automatic shutoff feature – which powers down after an hour.

To catch some Gisele-esque waves, follow these instructions:

For a looser curl at the ends, take a 2-inch section of hair and put the end under the kink-free mini clamp. Hold the iron at a vertical angle and rotate it, wrapping the hair tightly around the barrel. Hold the iron in this position for a few seconds, depending on your hair type. Release the clamp and pull the iron out from the center of the curl. For a looser curl at the roots, place hair closest to the roots under the mini clamp and wrap hair down the barrel, leaving the ends out. Repeat this process until your desired look is achieved.

Natural curls are never uniform in size or direction – so to create "maybe she’s born with it" ringlets, it's best to alternate curling methods. Once you've finished your entire head, let the curls cool and then gently shake them or loosen them by finger combing.




This week, Spoiled Pretty is partnering with Bed Head and giving a Foxy Curls Styling Iron away to one lucky reader. To enter, leave a comment below. Be sure to post your email, Twitter handle (make sure you're following @spoiledpretty so I can DM you) or some other way for me to get in touch if you win. Contest open to U.S. residents only.

Contest ends on Friday, July 22 at 5pm ET. I'll announce the winner then. Good luck!

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Winner of the ghd Iconic Eras of Style Giveaway

Congrats to the winner of the ghd Iconic Eras of Style Giveaway - Jessica Lucente!

Jessica will receive the Boho Chic set - which includes the ghd Gold Professional 1" styler, two sectioning clips and a step-by-step booklet showing you how to recreate iconic styles at home - packed in a heat-resistant, brown fringed clutch!

I own the same set and I'm obsessed. It's like the styling iron of my dreams, made real. I love that it heats up in mere seconds, and beeps to let me know it's time to do the do. And the contoured plates allow me to create both straight and curved styles. It also shuts off after 30 minutes of inactivity, which is a big plus for me because I'm constantly paranoid that I've left my flat iron plugged in and I'm going to burn down the house. But my favorite feature is the plate guard - it slips on like a cap so you can just throw your hot-as-hell styling iron into your bag (or wherever) without fear that it'll singe up all of your stuff. Love that!

Jessica is going to love it too. Congrats, girl!

Many thanks to ghd for sponsoring this giveaway and to everyone who entered. Check back tomorrow for Spoiled Pretty's next giveaway!

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