Eyeshadow and pink eye

[Ashmedina11]

My son gave me pink eye and I know I have to trash the mascara and eye liner but what about eye brushes and eye shadow palettes??

[Shosh85]

@Ashmedina11 I work in a medical field and have done some research on the topic before. Technically, the CDC recommends throwing away and replacing any eye or face makeup you used while infected.

That being said, obviously no one wants to throw away an expensive eye palette! I’ve read that eyeshadow palettes can be successfully disinfected using rubbing alcohol, preferably 70%—90% alcohol. People have done this and not contracted the sickness again. I have disinfected this way too, but not due to sickness. A lot of recommendations say to first swipe the top layer of shadow with Kleenex. Then, using a clean brush (preferably one you don’t care for as much because alcohol can make the bristles brittle), dip in alcohol, shake off excess and swipe each shadow individually, making sure to cover the entire surface of the powder. Some have even completely just saturated the palette, but I’d be careful with this since rubbing alcohol can melt/warp plastic if it sits too long. 

You should definitely throw anything away that has a brush that dips in and out of product, (like mascara.) All brushes should be washed well with antibacterial soap- some have used rubbing to clean their brushes- I would be careful doing it this way because as I mentioned earlier, most brushes can become brittle if saturated.

[Ashmedina11]

Thank you so much I'm going to try this all! I don't want to throw away my palettes 😢😢😢

[nichollesaurus]

Actually you want to use 85%, anything higher will dry too quickly and be ineffective, and use a spray bottle to mist the product until lightly saturated. Dipping a brush in alcohol and swiping across powder is just gonna make a mess.

[Shosh85]

@nichollesaurus Thanks, I actually meant to write 70%— 90%!! And In case you’re interested: The CDC recommends 70% (up to 91% according to their site) for disinfecting one's tools or even products because 95% and 99% essentially "freezes" (coagulates) the cell. When a cell surface coagulates the best analogy to picture it is Han Solo "frozen" in carbonite. He's alive inside but "frozen" on the outside and nothing can penetrate the shell. Essentially that's what happens to the cell when you use 95% or 99% Isopropyl Alcohol which makes using it for disinfecting purposes useless.

Ive tried the spraying technique before and its actually what I prefer but it ended up ruining my the plastic part of a couple palettes!! It is effective and easier, but I didn’t want to suggest something that might ruin the palette! When I do this now, I’m just careful to wipe the alcohol off the plastic part sooner versus letting sit super long. Also, a light spritz on the eyeshadow is good for basic cleaning, but considering we’re talking about something as infectious as pink eye, a little more than a light spray is better!

I should’ve been more specific about the brush technique- this is the best for single pan/powder products. Obviously, doing this to a multi-colored palette would make a mess— if you did go this route, you’d have to do it one-by-one, (wiping/shaking off brush, then re-wetting each time) This takes longer, but it works if you’re worried about damaging the palette itself.

@Ashmedina11

[Ashmedina11]

Got it and thank you so much!!!

[natslovelist]

I dont think so because you can sanitize them. I wouldn't toss them. I would wipe down the pallete with alcohol wipes, and wash my brushes. But there may be other ways to sanitize a pallette.

[Ashmedina11]

Thank you!!