Spring Cleaning: Beauty & Wellness Edition

Spring is finally here and The Edge could not be more psyched about it. As stereotypical as it sounds, we look forward to spring cleaning every year, but this season we’re giving you new beauty and wellness cleaning hacks that will leave you feeling more refreshed than a day in the sun. 

Toss Your Expired Products: Makeup & Medicine

We know you love it, but honey, it’s time to get rid of the Naked Palette you’ve had since your sophomore year of high school. Though we’re sure you’re tired of hearing about how you need to get rid of your old makeup, it really is time. As hard as it can be to part with the eyeshadow colors that got you through both your high school proms, it’s no longer worth risking eye irritation or infection. We’ve already written an article about how to know when your products are expired which you can read here. 

To avoid racking up old makeup in the future, try to buy things in smaller sizes. Instead of buying a big palette that you probably won’t use all the colors in anyways, try eyeshadow singles. Kylie Cosmetics has them for $7 and Mac has them for $18. Buying sample sizes of other products like concealer, primer, and mascara will also save you money in the short term and you’ll avoid the pain of having to part with expired products because they’ll likely be gone before they would need to be tossed. Additionally, if you’re someone who loves to change up their makeup looks frequently, it’ll allow you to do so without putting product to waste.

Makeup isn’t the only thing you should clear out before the summer. Medicines can be a crucial part of maintaining your wellness, so make sure those are all still good. We all probably have supplements that have been sitting around for far too long, so check them to make sure they are still effective!

Clean Your Brushes

Yeah, we know you haven’t cleaned your makeup brushes all semester, and we know you definitely haven’t even considered cleaning your hairbrush, so this is your sign to do it. Those brushes are touching your face and hair frequently, so you definitely need to clear off the buildup that develops over time.

For your makeup brushes: wet your brushes and then squirt a little shampoo into your palm. Swirl the makeup brush around in your palm to work up a lather and then rinse and repeat until the water runs clear.

For your hairbrush: special thanks to Real Simple for this method. The first step is to (duh) get all the hair out. Pull as much out of the brush as you can while it’s dry. To really get it clean, run your brush under some water, then put some shampoo on a clean toothbrush and use it to scrub the head of the hairbrush to get rid of product and dust build-up. Rinse the shampoo out of the brush and then let it dry face down overnight.

Assess Your Products

Viral TikTok trends have made us so much more aware of what goes into the products we use on our faces and bodies. Hyram taught us to avoid fragrance in our skincare, and we learned about tons of hair care products that actually make things worse. None of us wants to be putting toxic products on our skin or hair since the whole point of doing so is to improve those areas. Spring is the perfect time to reassess the products we’re using and we recommend using EWG’s website to find information about different ingredient concerns in your products that could be harmful to you. EWG also does a great job of laying out alternative products that you may want to consider if yours don’t make the cut. 

Snag Some Sustainable Products Instead

As you start to run low on supplies, take a second to see if there are any sustainable alternatives you can pick up instead. Makeup wipes could still be great for a night spent out, but if you’re at home try a usable makeup remover instead. Our faves are the Erase Your Face (4 for $10!). The same can go for cotton rounds if toner or micellar water is a part of your daily routine. You don’t have to be perfect, but making an effort to buy more sustainably can make a real impact!

We’d love to see your spring cleaning routines, so if you try any of these out be sure to tag us @theedgemag.