Hello beauties!
This comparison blog post has been highly requested on my Instagram (@icxbeauty – if you’re not following already) and as promised – here it is! As most of you know, the old Daiso sponge cleaner was holy grail; it was cheap, easily accessed and cleaned your brushes and sponges like a dream.
In 2017, Daiso Australia discontinued the original cleaner, and brought out a new one. There are an abundance of differences between the old one and the new one.
The difference between the old and the new Daiso Puff and Sponge Cleaner:
Size
We can already see that the old bottle sits at 80ml, and the new bottle sits at 200ml
Packaging
This is an easy one to see as the old bottle was a compact, pink bottle. The new one is in a slim, green bottle.
The front of the old bottle has more writing on it and seems somewhat ‘clouded’ with information, whereas the new one is simple and straight to the point, with very little writing, except for the necessities (name of the product, amount, claims [no colour additive, fragrance free], country of production and of course the Daiso logo).
Lids
The lids have changed as well. The lid on the old bottle is a very simple click opening, with a hole to dispense the liquid. The lid on the new bottle seems more…intricate – refer to the images below for further clarification.
Old bottle New bottle
Directions
The directions on the old bottle reads:“Apply an appropriate amount of the product onto a dry sponge, hand wash and rinse thoroughly under running water.”
Whereas the new bottle reads:
“Put a suitable amount onto a dry puff sponge and rub it in with fingers to clean. Rinse thoroughly with plenty of running water.”
Consistency
The consistency seems more fluid in the new bottle – it’s more watery.
Ingredients
There is a difference in the ingredients too. I’m sure this can tell us why the formula is different.
The old bottle – I’ve typed it out how it is exactly on the bottle:
“Components: Surface active agent (34% Polyoxyethylene alkyl ether, Fattyacid alkanolamide) Alkyl betaine: Water softener, (Alkaline chemicals)”
The new bottle – I’ve typed it out how it is exactly on the bottle:
“Ingredients: Surfactant (11% Polyoxyethylene Glyceryl Ether fatty acid ester), Stabilizer”
The new bottle only has 2 ingredients, AND they’re completely different ingredients from the old bottle.
The back of the old bottle The back of the new bottle
The similarities:
The only similarity between the two is that they’re still fragrance free and have no colour additive/contains no pigment.
Testing it out:
Round 1 – Oval Brushes:
Before cleaning:
I use these two brushes for applying foundation and blending out contour powders.
After makeup use:
Left – You can see the dark areas and compare it to the ‘before cleaning’ photo to see the difference in colour.
Right – You can see it’s more ‘ruffled’ than in the ‘before cleaning’ photo.
Both brushes are noticeably dirty.
After cleaning:
Left – Cleaned using the old bottle.
You can see how much cleaner it is now. Washing thick oval brushes like these are never an easy job, as their bristles are more dense, compared to fluffy brushes or flat brushes.
I had to use the detergent twice, before getting this completely clean – which is how much I normally use as the brush is harder to clean than normal brushes.
I am pleased with the results with the old bottle.
Right – Cleaned using the new bottle.
Note: The picture is taken right after I washed it with the new bottle, but as it was still dirty, I went back in with the old bottle to clean it (not pictured).
You can see that it’s still dirty – it’s not as ‘orange’ as the the brush on the left, there is still foundation on the brush.
I was so disappointed in the new cleaner. It took me about 3 uses of detergent and constant running water to get this clean and it still wasn’t clean. I gave up after the third go and just resorted to using the old bottle.
As I ran my finger through the brush to see if it was clean foundation came off and onto my fingers. It felt so greasy and unclean.
Side by side comparison: left – clean, right – still has foundation stains
Winner:
The old bottle is an obvious winner between these two brushes. I wouldn’t recommend the new bottle for cleaning dense brushes like these.
Round 2 – Fluffy brushes:
Before cleaning:
Left – ELF Total Face Brush
Right – Miniso – I bought a set of 3 brushes at an overseas Miniso store last year, and as a result, I can’t find the link to them.
I use the brush on the left for:
- blush
- setting powder
- blending the face in general
I use the brush on the right for:
- blush
- blending the face in general
After makeup use:
Left – You can see that it’t a bit dirty, I had used it to blend out some blush and not much else.
Right – It’s definitely dirty. I used it to apply and blend out some blush. Then later, I used it to blend out highlighter – which explains the strange colour.
After cleaning:
Left – Cleaned using the old bottle.
It looks the same as the ‘before cleaning’ picture.
It took about 2 goes to clean this, but that is the standard for me .
Right – Cleaned using the new bottle.
Surprisingly, the new cleaner cleaned this quite well – compared the train wreck job it did to the oval brush.
It also took 2 goes trying to clean this, there was a lot more elbow grease involved, as the makeup did not come off as easily.
Winner:
It was almost a tie, but I’d have to go with the old bottle. It cleaned it more efficiently and I didn’t have the exert more force in trying to get the makeup off the brush. However, the new bottle didn’t do too bad this round. In my opinion, the new bottle would suit cleaning fluffy brushes.
So far it’s 2 for the old bottle, and 0 for the new bottle hmm.
Round 3 – Flat brushes:
Before cleaning:
These brushes were already dirty, so I didn’t have a chance to take before pictures of them.
After makeup use:
Left – Zoeva 318 Soft Paint Liner
Right – Revlon Eyeliner Brush – I bought this at Chemist Warehouse 3 years ago, I’m pretty sure it’s discontinued, therefore I can’t provide a link.
I use the brush on the left for:
- concealer
I use the brush on the right for:
- concealer
- brow powder
After cleaning:
Left – Cleaned using the old bottle.
As I use this for concealer and it’s a small brush, it’s never easy to clean no matter what method or cleaner I’m using.
It always takes me a few goes before it’s clean.
The old bottle does a decent job at cleaning this brush, but I always have to press my thumb nail on it and against my index finger in an attempt to ‘squeeze’ out any excess makeup that didn’t come out in the first wash.
Right – Cleaned using the new bottle.
The new bottle cleaned this about the same as the old bottle.
Winner:
I found this one to be a tie. Both the new and the old bottle are decent at cleaning flat brushes.
Bonus round – Miscellaneous:
These brushes were already dirty so I decided to put them to the test with the cleaners, since I needed them cleaned anyways haha.
During makeup use:
Left – Miniso – I bought a set of 3 brushes at an overseas Miniso store last year, and as a result, I can’t find the link to them.
Right – Zoeva 227 Soft Definer
I use the brush on the left for:
- highlighter
I use the brush on the right for:
- eyeshadow
- highlighter
- blending powders on the face
After cleaning:
Left – Cleaned using the old bottle.
The old bottle cleaned this with ease. All the highlighter just melted off when mixed with the cleaner and I didn’t even need to use a lot.
Right – Cleaned using the new bottle.
I had trouble with the new bottle for this eyeshadow brush. Previously it was pink/purple as I had used pink and purple eyeshadow shades. I used the new bottle about 4 times to try and get rid of the pink and purple. It was a bit of a struggle, as it did not come off easily. What is pictured is right after using the old bottle about 4 times. It looks clean, but it still had traces of the pink and purple, so I went in again with the old bottle and it cleaned it completely (not pictured).
Winner:
It isn’t easy to pick a winner for this round, as the brushes are different. But from what I have gathered, the new bottle cleans flatter brushes with ease, and denser brushes with a struggle.
Overall:
The old bottle won 2/4 rounds, and if you count the tie that makes it 3/4 rounds.
I have to say that the old bottle definitely trumps the new bottle by far. The old bottle cleans all my brushes with ease, even if I have to use more cleaner, I always got a clean result. With the new cleaner, I have to use more effort in cleaning my brushes and ensuring it is fully clean.
I’m pretty disappointed that Daiso changed the formula and switched to this new bottle and formula, it doesn’t even begin to compare to the old bottle. Such a bad move on Daiso’s behalf, but what can we do besides find a new brush and sponge cleaner.
If you have any suggestions for good and affordable brush cleaners, leave a comment to let me know!
I’ve seen people use bar soap, but I’m scared of the bacteria transferring back and forth, especially since I have acne prone skin, so I want to steer clear of anything that would cause my face to break out etc.
Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this post. It’s probably the longest blog post I’ve ever written. I’ve never done a comparison post before, but I hope this was clear and helpful for those who wanted to know what the difference between the old and new cleaner was.
Until next time,
xxx
*Those marked with an asterisk were gifted. However, all my opinions are honest
VQP. usu BEAUTY
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