Farida Abdel Malek 
The beauty blender has been every woman's best beauty buddy for a long while now. Some people literally can't go about their foundation application without it. It is however, a pain to clean compared to cleaning makeup brushes and does need a little bit more care and maintenance. When it hasn't been completely clean for a while, it gathers bacteria and oil and this is when you start noticing breakouts and acne. So here's how you can properly clean and sterilize your beauty blender...
1. Sterilize
This has been a topic of discussion among the internet, but geniuses have found the best way to do so, and even though it sounds a bit scary, it works. When your beauty blender start smelling odd and you can start to notice acne, this is your cue that the bacteria is building up and you need to do the following: Get a microwave safe bowl and fill it with around an inch of water. Soak your beauty blender in it until it drops and is sunk in the middle of the bowl. Place the bowl in the microwave for 30 seconds and keep an eye on it for safety. It will expand and you might see faint smoke but remove immediately if it starts to inflate or balloon up (don't microwave a dry sponge, it could catch fire!)
2. Cleansing
Wait until the bowl and the beauty blender have cooled down. Then, after getting the bacteria out, you still need to remove the makeup from it. You can clean your beauty sponge with any soap but the following have been shown to be the best ones; the beautyblender brand's very own solid cleanser and oil mixed with soap. Soak your blender under the tap and add the cleanser to it, gently rubbing your finger across the dirty areas (try to avoid your nails from scratching it because they might tear the sponge). Squeeze the sponge to let the makeup out and repeat until the water coming out is clean.
3. Drying
Squeeze out any excess water from the beauty blender and pat it with a dry towel. Leave it to air dry completely. Don't place it a drawer or makeup bag while it's still damp because (I've learned that the hard way after throwing out 2 beauty blenders) the moisture might cause it rot and develop black spots on the surface if it's not left to dry properly in an open space (if you see black spots or signs of rot, throw it out immediately).
*Remember your beauty blender or sponge is not meant to be used for a prolonged period of time, so make sure you regularly change it for your skin's sake.
Main Image Credits: Instagram @beautyblender
