 Throughout the world, women every
day do all they can to look beautiful. You’ll see a village girl with kohl in her eyes and fragrant flowers in her hair, or a city girl in high heels and mauve lipstick. But sometimes, does our pursuit of beauty have its own repercussions?
Make-up has become a saving grace in our lives. It exaggerates our best features and hides our flaws. But if we’re not careful about it, make-up can diminish our overall beauty. Head Make up Artist, Lancôme, India, Stafford Braganza, shares some excellent tips on how to maintain make-up hygiene.
Care for your brushes
Make-up brushes easily accumulate oil and bacteria after repeated usage. This can cause the spread of rashes or acne that can be easily avoided. Stafford emphasises the importance of disinfecting your brushes before application of make-up. He suggests spreading a drop or two of hand sanitizer evenly on a tissue and then stroking the brush over it. The hand sanitizer contains alcohol, so it dries instantly. This is most important when you switch between powders. Wash all your brushes (especially the foundation brushes) twice or thrice a week with mild detergent or shampoo and dry them overnight.
According to Stafford, sharing make-up brushes is as unhygienic as sharing toothbrushes — when put so strongly, I doubt I’ll be sharing any more! But if you absolutely must share, don’t forget to disinfect them using sanitizer.
Don’t forget to take off your make-up
"Imagine living with a bag over your head," says Stafford. He explains that you’re subjecting your skin to similar torture by not removing make-up before going to sleep. Your skin is a living, feeling organ, and it needs to breathe! At night, especially, your skin is being repaired, so that every 21 days, a new, fresh layer of skin appears. He suggests using a creamy, milky cleanser to remove all traces of make-up from the skin. If you’re expecting to have a late night out, keep a cotton swab and cleanser right where you will see them, so that you have no excuse for not removing your make-up. After taking off your make-up, make sure you use a night cream to replenish your skin with vitamins and minerals that have been stripped away. "You should be as enthusiastic about taking off your make-up as you are about putting it on," emphasises Stafford.
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 Your make-up has an expiry date
Usually your make-up comes with an expiry date. Stafford suggests you use this only as a guideline. The date of disposal should depend on the date from which you begin using the product. Liquid or cream-based products tend to collect bacteria easily. "Take mascara, for example," says Stafford, "Just think about how much air you pump into the tube every time you plunge the brush in." As a rule of thumb, he suggests you dispose of a tube of mascara 6–9 weeks from the day you start using it, regardless of the frequency of usage. This applies to all eye make-up. Eye-shadows, being dry products, can be used for a little longer. Liquid foundation has a usage life-cycle of 4–6 months, after which you should dump it! Same goes for lipstick but, to avoid a build-up of bacteria, Stafford suggests storing it in the butter compartment of your refrigerator.
Stafford’s quick tips
- Keep your make-up area clean. A dusty dressing table will only add to the accumulation of bacteria.
- Store your make-up in a cool and dry place.
- Always sanitize your hands before applying make-up.
- Use cotton pads that are meant for babies, as they are gentle on the skin. Do not use cotton meant for medical use.
- Watch out for a high lead content in your lipstick, as that can lead to pigmentation.
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