Sanitized paints?!?

a face painting mom wrote:I am not sure about the H-F-M thing, that would make me angry too. Why are they at school if they have it? I think I would be thinking about taking my kid out. personally.

I just use common sense here. I clean my paints with baby wipes or wet ones. and I do this after every gig. I have ivory soap in my kit, and I swipe my brushes with it and have three rinse bins so the last one is clear, and I change them often. I have a lot of sponges, and I don't mind using a new one on each child, or a couple if I need to. I use three sponges on a tropical sunset face. They are really cheep if you buy tack sponges at the original horse shop, something like 4.95 for a dozen, so I have two dozen, and a car wash sponge that I have cut down to smaller pieces for little faces. I just toss them into my bucket that holds my dirty water. I clean them all with ivory soap and hot water, and sometimes I toss them in the washer. I clean every brush again with ivory soap after the gigl, and sanitize them with alcohol or mehron brush cleaner (essentially alcohol). I keep my fat max, brush and water containers clean and disinfected.

I start every face by handing the child a baby wipe and asking them or the parent to clean them off, even if I can't see anything, and at the same time, I wipe my hands, and use hand sanitizer so we both start out clean.

That is the best I can do, I think. I try not to put anything away wet too, it just seems to me that bactieria will thrive in wet conditions better than clean dry conditions.

When I worked as a MUA, we had to clean the brushes in between clients, and we had to scrape off lipstick onto a spatula, put the shadow or blush on a tissue and then pick it up with the brush, and use disposible mascara wands. I carry some of these things in my kit now too, and they come in handy.

You are probably going to find the worst germs on your hands, and kids hands, so if a kid touches my stuff, I clean it with a wet one, and I am super agressive with my own hands, so that I don't put the bad stuff on my paints myself.

I have not had to turn away a sick kid yet, but I am sure that I will cross that bridge.

Metina wrote:I am all about safety, but I just don't agree with spraying the paints with things like alcohol or vinegar. How do we "know" it all evaporates and doesn't change the paint.

Try not to be sucked into all of the marketing and scare tactics out there. Keep your kit clean, wash your brushes with soap and water and wash your sponges with hot and soapy water (I throw them in the washer in a lingerie bag) and don't paint on anyone that looks sick or has a cut or sore.

Beyond this, I think a lot of the marketing and scare tactics are to convince you to buy one paint over another or buy products you don't need.

The most cause of contagion is going to be from you. Don't freak out. I just mean all the things you touch coming and going to a gig. People out there are just nasty and rarely wash their hands. They touch it, and then you touch it. Keep your kit super clean, keep hand sanitizer and baby wipes at hand, and refuse to work when sick or paint others who are sick and you should do just fine.

PS These are all my personal opinion, not facts, marketing or tactics to get you to buy one paint over the other or buy other products. LOL

-Metina