Review | Make Up Store Home Spa Brush Cleansing Soap

When I first learnt of this product, I winced a little at the idea of using a cake of soap to clean my beauty brushes.

I was a little sceptical of its efficacy – sure, I knew it would clean my tools but wondered if it’d be too harsh on them. Thankfully, this solid cleanser performs pretty much like a moisturising soap bar and leaves my tools clean but not dried out.

That said, though its solvents aren’t abrasive, it can make some of my brushes feel a smidge too clean for my comfort. As such, I don’t use it on delicate makeup brushes such as my Hakuhodo ones. (A few lovely ladies on Instagram recommended Dr Bronner’s Castile soaps for those precious bristles.)

What I love about this soap is how easy it is to use. Here are the basic steps:

1. Wet your brush.

2. Gently rub it against the soap to work up a lather.

3. Repeat the rubbing motion to encourage the colours to come out of the bristles. (Try not to smoosh your brush into the soap to prevent unwanted splaying.)

4. Rinse out the brush till the water runs clear.

It’s as easy as that! It removes most cream products, which I happily welcome – powders are easy to clean off but crèmes are a pain; I love that they seem to melt away upon contact with this soap. And the best part? I don’t have to deal with too much of a mess as is the norm with foaming and liquid cleansers.

Do wash away the residue on the surface and let the soap dry before storing. Speaking of this, the packaging – while sleek – is a little odd: The soap juts upwards and sits somewhat closely to the edge of the case, which makes me despair at the residue that would run into the crevice. I’m not complaining about its generosity of size but it’d be easier to clean the case (and the soap) if the case were larger. If this bothers you, do transfer the cake into a bigger container.

Made in Thailand, this product contains several cleansing and hydrating agents.

Here is its ingredient list: Sodium Palmate, Sodium Palm Kernelate, Aqua (Water), Sodium Cocomonoglyceride Sulfonate, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Glycerin, Trilaureth-4 Phosphate, Parfum (Fragrance), Sodium Chloride, Tetrasodium EDTA, Tetrasodium Etidronate, Triclosan, Titanium Dioxide (CI No. 77891)

It might be a touch worrying that it contains triclosan but this shouldn’t be a concern as it appears towards the end of the list, plus it exerts its bacterial resistance property on the brushes, and not on the skin (though I wonder about its transfer, if any, to cosmetics).

In Singapore, it retails at S$21 for 120 g. I’d contemplated buying a backup piece when I purchased this, given how quickly it becomes out of stock. However, I thought I’d give it a go before getting an extra one. 3 months on and there’s plenty left, even after 2 major washing sessions (30 or more brushes at a go). It doesn’t dissolve quite so easily and lasts fairly long, so I’ll say it’s very much value-for-money!

Edited to add: A kind Instagrammer just informed me that the price is now S$25 and there are plans to further increase the price…a good reason as any to stock up. ;) Also, I’ve realised that the name and formula have seen a slight change: It used to have the word ‘cleaning’ in its name instead of ‘cleansing’, and it had Elotant MG 100 which no longer appears in the list of ingredients. You can see these subtle differences in Joey’s photos found in her review of the soap.