How To Clean Mascara Wand 5 Most Effective Ways

Are you tired of constantly replacing your mascara wand because it’s clogged with dried mascara and bacteria? Look no further! In this article, we’ll discuss the best methods for keeping your mascara wand in top condition, including the frequency and the most effective cleaning methods.

Whether you’re looking for tips on removing excess mascara from the wand, knowing the best way to disinfect it, or thoroughly cleaning it, this article has it all. We’ll also talk about whether or not you should clean your mascara wand based on whether you want to use it for other things, like shaping your eyebrows or taking care of your nails.

Don’t let dirty mascara wands prevent you from achieving your desired look. So without further a do, let’s get straight into the business

SHOULD YOU CLEAN MASCARA WAND

The answer is both YES & NO.

If you’re planning on reusing the mascara wand for applying mascara, we recommend you not to clean it after 3 to 4 months of use; instead, throw it away. However, if you’re planning on reusing the mascara wand for other uses like groomers for the eyebrows, removing cuticles, scrubbing lips, or for nail care or nail art, etc. you sure can clean your mascara wand so that mascara doesn’t smudge into your stuff.

According to Women’s Health magazine, mascara wands or spoolies are the breeding places for bacteria. Cleaning the mascara wand can help a little; therefore, acquiring new mascara every 3 to 4 months is preferable.

HOW OFTEN SHOULD YOU CLEAN YOUR MASCARA WAND

You should clean your mascara wand at least once or twice a month, according to most beauty experts.

Annie Chiu, MD, FAAD (A certified Dermatologist) said, “Washing your makeup brushes every 7 to 10 days is a good idea to protect your skin and destroy any hazardous germs that stay in your brushes.”

Both ways, you should clean your mascara wand a lot more frequently than you’re used to cleaning your mascara wand.

HOW TO REMOVE EXCESS MASCARA FROM MASCARA WAND

When we take our mascara wand or spoolie brush out of the tube, we often see a lot of mascara buildup with the wand. This happens to all of us, and the most significant reason is that mascara tends to start drying out from the date of opening the tube. If your mascara has totally dried out, there are numerous solutions to fix your dry mascara.

However, if your mascara is partially dried out, the wand tip is slightly dried and clumped up. You can follow the below steps.

THINGS YOU NEED – 

1. Tissue Paper or Paper towel.
2. Your Mascara wand or spoolie brush

STEPS YOU NEED TO FOLLOW – 

1st STEP – To begin, fold a single paper towel into quarters or four parts.

2nd STEP – Now, take your mascara wand and rub it against the paper towel a few times.

3rd STEP – If the wand tip is too clumped up, you can put a drop of hot water in the wand tip and then rub it against the paper towel again. This will altogether remove the excess mascara residue from the tip.

HOW TO CLEAN MASCARA WAND

Mascara wands can get dusty and clumpy rapidly. Clean mascara wands are hygienic and improve mascara performance. We’ll discuss all effective mascara wand cleaning methods here.

HOW TO CLEAN MASCARA WAND USING MICELLAR WATER

In addition to being an effective cleanser, micellar water can also be used as part of a comprehensive skincare routine. In addition to thoroughly cleansing the skin, it serves various other purposes that can streamline your routine and even replace other skincare products. Cleaning your mascara wand with micellar water is one of the many ways its unique formula can help you achieve more radiant skin.

THINGS YOU NEED –

1. Micellar Water
2. Paper Towel.
3. Mascara Brush or Spoolie

STEPS YOU NEED TO FOLLOW –

1st STEP – First, fold the paper towel in four parts.

2nd STEP – Next, fill in the paper towel with micellar water.

3rd STEP – Now, to remove mascara from the wand, press the paper towel against its head and gently drag it across the paper towel. The majority of the mascara residue will come off.

4th STEP – After that, switch to a fresh paper towel fold and repeat the steps.

5th STEP – After at least 60 seconds, you can re-insert the wand into the mascara tube.

6th STEP – Finally, you can use your spoolie brush to apply mascara again. 

HOW TO CLEAN MASCARA WAND USING ALCOHOL

Most mascara wands nowadays are made up of synthetic nylon materials, where using alcohol is safe. However, be careful not to clean your mascara wand using alcohol if the wand is made up of natural bristles. Alcohol does a spectacular job in cleaning & disinfecting mascara wand. All you should do is just adhere to the below instructions.

THINGS YOU NEED –

1. Alcohol
2. Mascara Wand
3. Paper towel.

STEPS YOU NEED TO FOLLOW –

1st STEP – First, take an alcohol spray bottle and spray directly and evenly into the mascara wand.

CAUTION: Check the packaging to know what material has been used in the bristle before applying alcohol.

2nd STEP – Now, using a paper towel, wrap around the mascara wand and twist the wand against the towel to remove the mascara residue.

3rd STEP – If after the 2nd step, more mascara residues are found on the wand, then again spray some alcohol directly on the brush and then rub the wand against the paper towel. 

4th STEP – Next, allow some time for the wand to let it dry.

And with that, your old wand spoolie is good to go again.

HOW TO CLEAN MASCARA WAND USING HOT WATER

If your mascara wand is all gunked up with mascara residue hot water method is what you should try. The hot water method is not only effective in cleaning the mascara wand its also effective in disinfecting the wand. Follow the below steps – 

THINGS YOU NEED –

1. A steel bowl.
2. A stove/heater
3. Mascara wand
4. Paper Towel/Washcloth.

STEPS YOU NEED TO FOLLOW – 

1st STEP – First, get some water boiling in a steel bowl.

2nd STEP – Drop the clogged mascara wand into the bowl and give it some time to soak.

3rd STEP – Next, remove the mascara wand from the bowl and rub it thoroughly against a paper towel or washcloth. This will clean the wand thoroughly.

4th STEP – If you still see some mascara residue left in the wand, redo the 2nd & 3rd steps to clean the mascara wand/spoolie.

5th STEP – Finally, let the wand dry up a bit before starting to use the wand.

HOW TO CLEAN MASCARA WAND USING BABY SHAMPOO

Many makeup gurus prefer to wash their mascara wand using baby shampoo rather than soap & water. And the most significant reason behind that is baby shampoo doesn’t dry up the mascara bristles. As Baby shampoos are made for use in Babies, the ingredients are gentle. Also, it cleans up the oils and the darts on the mascara wand effectively.

THINGS YOU NEED – 

1. Baby Shampoo
2. Mascara Wand/Spoolie
3. Paper Towel.

STEPS YOU NEED TO FOLLOW – 

1st STEP – First, wet the bristles with running water over the mascara wand. 

2nd STEP – Next, take the shampoo bottle and squeeze some shampoo out of your hand. 

3rd STEP – After that, take your mascara wand and rub the wand around in your hand. The lather from the baby shampoo will help loosen up the mascara gunk.

4th STEP – After all the mascara residue is cleaned, take a paper towel and rub over the wand to help it dry. Keep it out in the open air if you prefer to let the wand dry naturally.

Once the wand is thoroughly dried, you can start reusing again.

EXPERT TIPS FOR CLEANING MASCARA WAND

Expert Tip #01 – Before even deciding on the cleaning method, identify the material the bristles are made. Information like this is prominently displayed on mascara packages.

Usually, most wand bristles are made of synthetic nylons, which are more durable than natural ones and easy to clean.

Expert Tip #02 – If your wand bristles are made of natural materials, try using a gentle cleanser like baby shampoo. It will prevent the bristles from drying up.

Expert Tip #03 – Never rub the mascara wand forcefully since it may weaken the brush’s bristles, reducing its lifespan.

13 OTHER USES OF MASCARA WAND

Have you ever imagined how great it would be if you could use one beauty tool to serve multiple purposes? It would save space in your makeup stand and some money to invest in more beauty products.

One tool like such is your mascara wand. You can reuse your mascara wand after adequately cleaning it, for example, grooming your eyebrows, nails, and eyelashes, removing cuticles, or decorating a cake. Your mascara wand can serve multiple purposes. Also, mascara wands are cheap and available in any online beauty store or superstore. If you don’t want to reuse your mascara wand, you can buy some mascara wand spoolie for these purposes. I bet you’ll thank me later.

• GROOMING EYEBROWS – 

This is one of the most basic and practical methods for reusing a mascara wand. Brush a dry mascara wand through your brows, angled slightly upwards, if you only want to tidy them up a little. Also, you can spray some hairspray or dab some Vaseline on the wand to offer some grip. Your brows will instantly look fuller and more groomed after just one use.

Many people also go for Eyebrow Microblading or apply Eyebrow Gel to make their eyebrows neat, polished & thick. A mascara wand or spoolie will be handy in those cases as well.

• TOUCHING UP THE ROOTS – 

We understand how frustrating it can be to spend time daily smoothing down your troublesome stray hairs or baby hairs that refuse to cooperate with your carefully crafted hairstyle.

If you find yourself in possession of a clean, used mascara wand or spoolie brush, you need not worry. These miniature disposable brushes are ideal for pinpointing where bleach or color must be applied to your hair’s roots while avoiding the rest of your hair. Take your used but clean mascara wand and apply some bleach or color, or maybe to tame them down, some petroleum jelly, and then directly apply it to your baby hair.

• EXFOLIATING LIPS – 

Frequently we look for lip scrubbers that help avoid dry, chapped lips by removing the top layer of dead skin. Gently scrubbing lips regularly is extremely important to have a healthy & smooth-looking lips. Your used mascara wand or spoolie brush can help you have a gentle lip scrubber or lip exfoliator.

Simply apply lip balm or petroleum jelly on your mascara wand or spoolie brush. Also, you can directly apply balm or jelly on your lips and gently massage or press to exfoliate.

• BUILD THE IDEAL MASCARA – 

We often run into this problem when we try out different mascara brands. We get used to the spoolie brush or wand that comes with it because it’s easy to control, has fine bristles, and is shaped favorably.

If this is your case, you can reuse your old mascara wand with the new one. Make sure you properly clean & disinfect the old mascara wand or spoolie brush.

• REMOVING CUTICLES – 

Have you ever faced this problem where you are on a very tight schedule, and suddenly you notice the dead skin at the base of your fingernail? Haven’t you felt awkward at that moment? Of course, you did.

Now, here’s the question how do you solve the problem? Do you cut it off? No, you should never. That’s the worst idea. Let me tell you can use your old mascara wand or spoolie brush to solve this problem. 

Squeeze some remover onto your cuticles and massage for a minute. Give them a minute to soak in the marinate before you start scrubbing. Those wand bristles might be tiny and soft but they are very effective.

• NAIL ART – 

Are you into abstract nail design or like a cute scrubbed texture on your nail? If you love playing with their nail color or experimenting and creating artistic effects mascara wand or spoolie brush can come in handy compared to cotton swabs. Just ensure you have adequately cleaned your wand to remove the previous residue.

• HOUSEHOLD CLEANING – 

We all are pretty annoyed when we see even a tiny amount of dirt in our households, isn’t it? It’s challenging to keep our temper in check if the source of your frustration is a crack or fissure where grime and dirt can quickly accumulate. For example, computer keyboards, wristwatches, blow-driers, remotes, etc. Your used mascara wand or spoolie brush can easily tackle the specks of dirt.

• NAIL GROOMING – 

When you use an orange stick or a toothpick to clean the dirt between your fingernails, it can sometimes seem like you’re picking dirt off of a blackboard. 

A mascara wand or spoolie brush, which is similar to a toothbrush but much more effective, can be used to clean your nails in a gentler manner. You won’t have to be concerned about stabbing yourself in the nail bed by accident anymore.

• FOR LASH HYDRATION –

Hydrating eyelashes is as vital as cleaning or applying them. You can prolong your lash hair or can help them grow if you regularly use Eyelash Serum or castor oil. 

Saturate the mascara wand or spoolie brush with eyelash serum or castor oil, and then apply it to your eyelashes. Before bringing it anywhere close to your eyelashes, always give your mascara wand or spoolie brush a thorough disinfecting.

• REMOVING MASCARA CLUMPS – 

If you often see your mascara getting clumped up because of overapplication. You can reuse your old mascara wand to brush through your lashes to lighten those gunk up a bit. Also, brushing thrush the lashes a few times will help evenly distribute the mascara in the lashes 

• CLEANING JEWELRY – 

We have used our toothbrushes at least once to clean our rings, nose pins, maybe earrings, or other jewelry. A toothbrush cleans jewelry; however, our toothbrush bristle starts losing its stiffness after a month or so. In that case, you can clean your mascara wand or spoolie brush and reuse it to clean your jewelry. It gets the job well done.

• CAKE DECORATION – 

If you are someone who loves cooking or loves baking a cake. Then let me tell you about a free tool through which you can decorate your baked cake. Mascara!!

Because of the easier grip than most cake decorating tools, you can use it to create designs and clean up if you make any mess. Mascara Wand or the Mascara Spoolie Brush can handle that pretty quickly. 

• HAND OUT FOR WILDLIFE USES – 

This is probably the most wonderful cause listed here. Your mascara wand can be used to clean, groom & Treat wild animals. Rather than throwing it off after using your mascara wand or spoolie brush, you can consider sending it to various non-profit organizations working for animals. There are tons of such non-profit organizations. Among them, Wands For Wildlife is pretty popular and Authentic.

FINAL THOUGHTS

To sum up, keeping your mascara wand clean is essential to your beauty regimen to ensure your eyes stay healthy and your makeup always looks flawless. Hope you have liked all the effective methods of cleaning your mascara wand and the ideas to reuse your mascara wand we have shared here. You can choose the cleaning technique that suits you best. Remember to share these tips with your friends and family, and in case you know some other fantastic cleaning techniques, feel free to share them with us as well.

If you are a mascara fan just like us, feel free to check out some of our other articles on the topic. Additionally, if you are looking for similar beauty tips and tricks, consider subscribing to our weekly newsletter, in which we discuss various beauty tips and share the insights of various beauty experts.