I meant to post about this back in August when it debuted, but am just catching up now. The Lilumia makeup brush washing machine was introduced with much fanfare earlier this year as being one of the most innovative beauty devices to date, eliminating the need to hand-wash makeup brushes. It's certainly a useful idea, especially for makeup artists whose brush-washing needs are greater than those of the average makeup consumer. The Lilumia can wash up to 12 brushes at once in 15 minutes flat.
You do have to wipe down the "cleaning surface" after each use and empty the reservoir tray, but I imagine overall it's still faster than manual washing. I definitely see the value of this machine, however, I must say I'm confused by the advertising. What exactly are they selling again?
I mean, sex sells – it's a marketing tactic as old as time – but in this case it seems weird. I'm not offended by the advertising going on here, just puzzled. Lingerie, perfume, even makeup itself – I understand the use of "sexy" advertising for these. But there's nothing remotely alluring about cleaning your makeup brushes, it's simply a necessary chore. Unless teenage boys are the majority of Lilumia's target demographic, and I don't think they are, I'm betting the sexy strategy will prove to be fairly ineffective. And the device itself…well, it resembles some kind of weird alien pod. To my eye, it's about as seductive as a toothbrush. So what's up with the ads? As it turns out, Lilumia was founded by former lingerie model Fierra Cruz, so I guess she's sticking to what she knows.
(images from lilumia.com)
Still, if she really wants your average makeup consumer/artist to buy Lilumia, maybe she should try a marketing technique that would appeal to as many of them as possible. People who use their makeup brushes regularly are going to be more interested in seeing whether the thing is worth their hard-earned cash than in scantily-clad models. I'd suggest Lilumia tone down the sexy angle and play up user reviews, demonstrations, etc. For me, seeing fellow beauty bloggers (not magazine editors) using Lilumia and giving it a positive review would make me much more likely to buy it than photos of young women in sexy underwear.
In any case, I personally like to "baby" my brushes, and since I have so many I don't necessarily have to wash them after each use – I just use a fresh brush. And I honestly don't mind hand-washing my brushes, as I find it somewhat relaxing. So I have no need for this machine. I'd also be curious to see how it stacks up next to the Brush Pearl, which received a less-than-stellar review.
Are you interested in trying Lilumia? How about a #sexyceo t-shirt? 😉