Why Pro Makeup Artists Hate Silicone Makeup Sponges

By Devon Abelman

I haven't seen people get as excited about a makeup tool since the Silisponge launched in 2016. Almost two years later, the viral silicone makeup sponge has spawned into different shapes, sizes, and colors from dozens of beauty brands. Taking this into account, I figured it was about time I started asking professional makeup artists which ones were their favorites. To my surprise, I got a hard pass from every single one I asked. Their answer was basically, "I don't have a favorite one because I don't like them."

In fact, you won't even find the Instagram-favorite makeup tool in the kit of Instagram-favorite makeup artist Patrick Ta, who works with Gigi Hadid, Olivia Munn, and Shay Mitchell. "I'm not the biggest fan of silicone makeup sponges," he tells Allure. Instead, he directs me toward the beloved Beautyblender, which he tells me he uses for "almost everything." New York-based makeup artist Yuui's exact answer was "I hate to judge things, but I'm not a fan, sorry," as though it were blasphemous for her to admit this. And Stevie Huynh, a makeup artist who splits his time between New York, Los Angeles, and London, straight-up told me, "I don’t believe in silicone makeup blenders."

My quick survey amongst makeup artists got the point where I, instead, started to ask, "Do you hate silicone sponges?" New York City-based makeup artist Katie Jane Hughes's response was "How did you know?" like she believed at that moment that I was telepathic. (The jury is still out about whether I am or not, but that's neither here nor there.)

Makeup artists on Instagram and the brands pumping them out have praised silicone sponges for various reasons. Many believe their non-porous texture allows you to not waste your precious beauty products because the sponge won't absorb it. Its slick surface also makes it quick and easy to clean without any drying time.

Professional makeup artists couldn't care less about either of those features. Cleaning nearly a hundred brushes a week is an integral part of their routines. (Brush hygiene is everything.) Sure, having a silicone sponge or two might speed up the process, but it's downsides outweigh this benefit. As London-based makeup artist and mastermind behind dipped brows Bea Sweet put it, "Silicone sponges are the antithesis of everything you want your tool to do." So why do professional makeup artists hate them so damn much?

If you ask Hughes, blending isn't even a thing for silicone makeup sponges, and they do absolutely nothing but make a mess of your makeup. "They just seem to sweep foundation around the face," she says. I don't know about you, but I'd rather not do that.

Molly R. Stern, a Los Angeles-based makeup artist who often works with Reese Witherspoon, prefers a traditional makeup sponge to blend in foundation over a silicone one any day of the week. Her reasoning is the same as every one of her peers I've asked. "I find that the silicone wipes the product off instead of actually blending it," she explains.

To put it in food-terms, Huuynh compared the blending skills of silicone sponges to making breakfast. "Silicone does not promote blending. It’s similar to using a spatula to spread butter on toast," he says. "You’re essentially spackling." No, thank you.

Unlike a silicone makeup sponge, Beautyblenders, other sponges, makeup brushes, and even fingers are porous. This is essential to seamless makeup application. "You need the porous surface to blend and absorb excess product," Huynh says. Let's say you dispense too much foundation onto your sponge, ones like Beautyblenders suck it all up before evenly distributing the foundation onto the skin. As it does so, the porous sponge helps the foundation melt into the skin and give it a more natural-looking finish. Silicone sponges, on the other hand, don't have that same buffing ability, Sweet adds.

And she doesn't mind if her tools absorb some product either. "Silicone sponges don't allow for absorption, so you just kind of keep sliding stuff over your face until you reach a happy level of excess sliding," she says. Sounds like that could take a while.

Benjamin Puckey, a New York City-based makeup artist, has similar sentiments about the lack of absorption of silicone sponges. He would rather use his hands to blend makeup into skin and follow that up with a Beautyblender. Reason being? Like a silicone makeup sponge, Beautyblenders don't necessarily waste product either. Because they are fully absorbed with water, it won't absorb your foundation, too.

Allowing the sponge to be damp is important to New York City-based makeup artist Joseph Carillo. Some foundations, like the Fenty Beauty Pro Filt'r Soft Matte Longwear Foundation, dry down quickly, so you need to be quick with your application. If you use a silicone makeup sponge with them, he says you have to "swipe like a mofo." However, with beauty sponge, like his favorite Nyx Flawless Finish Blending Sponge, you can take your time to get your foundation blended to skin-like perfection because it's moist. In turn, it keeps the foundation from drying down right away.

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All things considered, Sweet does acknowledge that silicone sponges come in cute colors and fun glitter designs. But you have to ask yourself, is that feature worth it?

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