Enkore Makeup 5ekz Ultra Conditioning Brush Soap Review

Washing brushes is probably the worst part of applying makeup and for people who have tons and tons of brushes, it's a tedious task. There's no real way to make washing brushes fun but you can make the process a little less painful by investing in something like this brush soap.

EnkoreMakeup, one of the most innovative DIY Beauty Youtubers I've ever seen, came out with this solid brush soap a little while ago. I had been attracted to the idea of a solid brush soap after seeing one done by BECCA but $15.00 was a bit too steep of a price for me and apparently it's discontinued so seeing this by Enkore for only $6.00 was a steal.

Where to purchase: EnkoreMakeupOnline
Price: $6.00 for a 2.6 oz soap and it's about 2.5" in diameter and 1" tall.
Packaging: The soaps are shrink wrapped then wrapped in paper with a ribbon and sticker. 
Product Description: "Foaming, moisturizing, and formulated with five different conditioners, 5-ekz will render any makeup brush super clean, and super soft. Use on both Natural and Synthetic fibers."

The soaps come in fourteen scents: Unscented, French Lavender, Cantaloupe Melon, Patchouli, English Rose, Fresh Lemon, Apricot Freesia, Ylang Ylang, Gardenia (the scent I purchased), Tangerine, Mango, Jasmine, Pearberry, and Pomegranate. I love Gardenia but damn I got a smell of Apricot Freesia and that's on my list to get a soap of (which I will at The Makeup Show LA. 

(Honestly I'll have seen Enkore at IMATS LA, ISSE Long Beach, and The Makeup Show LA, I think he's going to think I'm weird for showing up in so many places that he's at >>)

The soap is embossed with a very cute and Enkore signature silhouette of him holding a brush. One side is the soap side, the other side has the loofah.

My Thoughts on the Product

This brush soap is freaking awesome. It does what it claims to do, it cleans and conditions your brushes. A few of my brushes felt better after using the brush soap on them. I was afraid that the loofah side would be too harsh and rough on my brushes but it's actually not. The first few times you use the loofah side, it'll still be pretty gentle as there's a layer of soap covering it but as you keep using it, the loofah will become exposed and be a more efficient scrub for your brushes. I haven't found that using the loofah frayed my brushes though I do use brush guards to keep them in shape. The nice thing about the brush soap is that I feel like I use much less water when washing my brushes as I only need to rinse the brushes to get the soap off and I can have a bowl of water on the side to wet the brush when needed.

Using the brush soap is easy peasy. Simply wet the brush (the bowl of water on the side for this is perfect), build up the lather on the soap side and if you have brushes that need an extra clean, scrub around a bit on the loofah side, then rinse your brushes clean. You'll be tempted to swish your brush round and round to clean your brushes quickly, but it's all too easy to push the lather up into the ferrule which you don't want to do as it can ruin your brushes in the future.  To combat this, either hold the brush stationary and swirl the soap beneath or swish the brush slowly so you can see how far up the lather builds. 

The soap works well for gel liners though I think they're best to do last when there's already some lather buildup on the soap, it is easier to break down the gel liner that way. For lipstick and similar lip products, I think it's best to use the soap after you've used an oil to breakdown the lipstick first. I didn't think it was as effective at breaking down lipsticks on its own.

As for the scent, I honestly don't think you'll notice it and if you're a makeup artist using the brushes on your makeup clients, they probably won't either. I made the mistake of testing out my Sigma F88 (one of the Sigmax ultra dense synthetic brushes) with my Graftobian foundation (one of the most difficult foundations to wash out of brushes in my experience) so I had to really lather up the brush to get the foundation out of the dense fibers which left it slightly more scented. Even then, I had to literally jam the brush right into my nose to even smell it. Luckily though they do offer an unscented soap so I think to prevent any potential issues with clients and any sensitivity to fragrance, I'd get it unscented.

You do need to keep the soap dry so definitely get some sort of soap dish so it doesn't sit in water. I tried scoping out for tins to store it in but haven't been successful so maybe Enkore will come out with a storage tin for him (slotted in the bottom so the water can drain of course)

I did notice that Enkore will be coming out with a Pro Ultra Brush soap on the 15th with an essential oil blend of lavender, rosemary, lemon, and tea tree oils for "added conditioning, repair, treatment, aromatherapy, and antiseptic/antibacterial" purposes so some people might be interested in that!

Final thoughts

Get this, I mean it. Sometimes the issue of washing brushes falls to the wayside and though you can continue to use other shampoos, I think it's a wonderful addition to a collection. $6.00 is damn dirt cheap and it's extremely convenient to have the loofah on the underside to deep clean your brushes with. There are a nice variety of scents (I personally preferred Gardenia and Apricot Freesia so take that as you will) which I think will please most everyone and an unscented option for those of you who want to play it safe.

Plus I think it's nice to support something not only made in the US, but also someone who I've been watching for eons and eons. It's really nice to see the growth and success in Enkore and his endeavors and I've gained so much knowledge from him that purchasing a $6.00 brush soap of his is the least I could do (that and the Hot Oil Brush Treatment! Review coming soon)

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What do you guys use to wash your brushes? Have you considered the convenience of a solid brush soap?

Disclaimer: I purchased this brush soap myself. I am not being compensated for this review and am not affiliated with Enkore. I'd give these brush soaps out if I could because these are fab. All opinions are my own and honest.