After getting your skin extra clean, return the favor for your bodycare arsenal. We often hear and read a lot about keeping makeup tools clean, and it makes sense; They get caked with products every day, are blotted or brushed directly onto your skin, and then get tossed back into a makeup bag amongst other tools and items that are touched and used on a regular basis. What we don’t hear about as frequently is keeping body and bath tools in shape. Cleaning and caring for your body tools are not only helpful in the hygiene department, but it can also help preserve the life and efficacy of your tools for years to come. If you’ve got dry brushes, rollers, or gua sha tools sitting in your bathroom and you’re just now realizing you’ve never given them the same cleaning and care as you do for your makeup brushes, this guide is for you.
Dry Brushes
Dry brushes are an incredibly effective way to deeply exfoliate and smooth skin that’s rough in texture or prone to issues like Keratosis Pilaris. However, scrubbing with a dry brush that hasn’t been cleaned or has collected bacteria on its surface kind of misses the whole “deep cleaning” point. Begin by taking a dry cloth and wiping away any dead skin or debris that may have collected on the surface. Next, take a bowl and fill it with enough water so that it sits just above the brush. Add a few drops of antibacterial soap or tea tree oil (which also has antibacterial properties) then place the brush with the bristles facing down in the water. Gently swish the brush around for a couple of minutes, making sure to work the water through the bristles. Try to avoid submerging the whole brush in the water, as the twine handle and wood backing can warp over time! Lay the brush bristle side down on a clean towel and let it air dry. Aim to wash your dry brush at least once a month if you’re using the dry brush regularly.
Body Rollers
While body rollers don’t require as much maintenance as a dry brush, they’re still prone to collecting bacteria–– especially if they’re rolled across a body covered in oil and then placed back in your beauty cabinet. To clean your body roller (or any facial roller, for that matter), use a damp cloth or towel to gently wipe around the surface of the roller. Never wipe or submerge a quartz or jade roller (which is what our body roller is made of) in extremely hot water, as they are both fragile semiprecious stones that don’t jive with excessive heat. To get your roller extra clean, use a facial cleanser or gentle soap (like castille) on the cloth to remove any bacteria. Let it air dry on a clean surface. If you find that it’s really squeaky clean after washing (e.g., the roller makes squeaky sounds when you move it) add a drop of oil to its hinges to keep it in solid working condition. We recommend doing a quick wipe down with a cotton cloth after every time you use your roller and go for a deeper clean once or twice a month.
Body Plane Tools
Our Body Plane is inspired by an ancient Greek and Roman body tool called a strigil, which was used as a soap replacement by gently scraping its dull metal end across the body to pick up dirt and dead skin. Now that we have soap to cleanse our bodies (yay!), it’s now used as a deeply exfoliating body tool, and it too needs regular cleaning. Because the Body Plane is used in tandem with body oil, it does a great job of collecting dead skin after a long bath, but the Body Plane can look pretty dirty after each use. Simply take a damp cloth with soap and wipe the blade side clean. Because it’s made of colloidal silver which is naturally antibacterial, you can actually wipe it down with a small amount of rubbing alcohol to really disinfect it. Be sure to wipe off any debris on the blade after every single use, and then aim to do a deeper clean every month.
Gua Sha
Like body and facial rollers, Gua Sha tools are usually made from semiprecious stones like jade and quartz, which are sensitive to heat and require more of a gentle clean. For Gua Sha tools, dampen a cloth with warm water and soap (your facial cleanser should do the trick) and then wipe the Gua Sha to rid it of any bacteria. If it feels really squeaky clean after washing it.
If cleaning and caring for your body tools isn’t a regular habit, try going for a deep clean when you clean your makeup brushes and sponges and just make sure to do a quick wipe down of your body tools after every single use. Unlike makeup sponges or brushes which can wear over shorter amounts of time, body tools can last for years if they’re cleaned, cared for, and stored properly!
