Wednesday, 23 October 2013

ELF Haul





ELF is a brand that I've always been aware of, but never put an order in on for no reason other than laziness. At the moment they're having 50% off everything sale until tomorrow! Already the American drugstore brand is super affordable with most products at least under £10, and a lot under a fiver, but at half price it was an offer I couldn't pass up to try some products I've been eyeing up for a while.


Makeup Mist & Set - £3.75
I had splashed out and bought the Urban Decay De-Slick a week prior, but I'm stingy with my usage and decided to buy this to use for work or everyday wear. For almost a fifth of the price pre-discount I wasn't expecting much from this, and I was right. The formula does nothing but make my makeup dewy, which isn't a look I can pull off with my skin being as oily as it is. Aside from this, it doesn't make my makeup last any longer than usual, and the spray pump is uneven and absolutely awful. I wouldn't recommend it at all, but if you're new to setting sprays and don't want to splash out on a higher end brand, then maybe you'll have more luck than me.


Brush Shampoo - £3.75
I usually use the NSpa Cleansing Gel to clean my brushes, but I've been going through it so quickly, and though it gets them very clean it can leave a residue on the brushes because it's oil based. I've used this once on my Expert Face brush, some eye brushes and a contour brush and though it cleaned my contour and eyeshadow brushes amazingly it did have a little trouble with my foundation. I will continue to use it, and I would say that if you're looking for something inexpensive that will cleanse and condition your brushes this could be a good option, but I think I'm gonna give Dr. Bronner a go next time round.


Daily Brush Cleaner - £3.75
Buy. This. Now. This is probably the best thing I've bought from ELF, and is a really decent affordable alternative to Parian Spirit which can be quite hard to come by in the UK. I think I am going to try the Beauty So Clean brand next time I need to stock up, but I do find this works as well as Parian Spirit on my powder brushes, the only place it falls down is foundation brushes, and on cream blush. I have to say as well I am a sucker for the orange scent of Parian Spirit, but even at full price this is well worth it to keep your brushes clean and sanitary.


Mineral Infused Face Primer in Tone Adjusting Green £6.00
And in contrast this is the worst thing that I bought from ELF. I love primers, and I have always seen a noticeable difference in how smoothly my base applies when I use a silicone primer, as well as how long it lasts. As you well know, my skin is oily, and up until now I hadn't had a problem with primers affecting the oils of my skin. However, that all changed upon using this primer. I have quite red blotchy skin, especially around my nose, hence the appeal of this primer, but as you can see on the back of my hand, the redness I have naturally there is not diminished by this primer, and though there was a slight smoothing effect it isn't anything you couldn't achieve with a toner. Wouldn't repurchase, and I can already tell that this is not going to last a long time. Four uses and I'm already halfway gone; granted, I have a big face, but the packaging is deceiving. 


Maximum Coverage Concealer in Porcelain - £3.75
The perfect concealer is the unobtainable for me. Under my eyes every concealer I've ever tried has creased, and most to cover blemishes or redness become greasy within hours of wear. This concealer isn't like one I've ever used before; it's a liquid, for starters, but as you can see, a less than pea sized amount blends to cover massive areas. This will last me so long as you need hardly anything. I find the best way to use it is patting it in using my finger, though I have used a brush to apply it also. Coverage is super thick, but not cakey, and creasing under my eyes is minimal. It can become greasy around my nose, especially in the crease, but it's nothing blotting paper can't sort. The only downside is that this is a pretty good colour match to my skin, and this is the fairest shade, so in terms of brightening my under eyes  it does not perform, but set with a white powder it can make a fair highlight. Well worth the tiny £3.75 price tag, and not that I think I'll have to for ages, but I will probably repurchase this, unless a better alternative comes along. If anyone has any suggestions to help me find this, please let me know!


Studio Lip Stain in Birthday Suit - £3.75
I am a sucker for a matte lip and though a gloss is included, I've been wearing this blue-toned pink matte as it comes. It is drying, I will warn you, and after about 3-4 hours of wear I do find it best to completely strip my lips, apply lip balm, and then reapply the stain, as multiple applications on top of one another make it pretty cakey and flakey. I love the colour, it doesn't bleed, but I would say I prefer the formula on the Collection Cream Puff Lip Creams better, though the colour selection is rather underwhelming to me. The colour is similar to Addis Ababa by NYX, and I will be purchasing some NYX cosmetics soon for comparison. It's also been mistaken for MACs Candy Yum Yum when I wore it to work one day, so if you're looking for that sort of shade without splashing out on a limited edition shade no longer in production it's well worth the gamble.


Studio Stipple Brush - £3.75
By far the cheapest brush I've ever bought I was sceptical at how this brush would perform, but wanted to try out a stippling brush before splashing out on a more expensive option. I've used it to apply foundation: my Armani Maestro foundation, and the Seventeen On The Spot foundation that I've been trying out in hopes of reviewing. Both foundations apply smoothly and flawlessly, though I do prefer using it on the thicker creamier Seventeen incarnation. As for the Armani, I still prefer to use my Expert Face brush, but I do think it's a good option if you're looking for an alternative way to apply a base. I also like to use it to apply cream and gel blush, but find that it works best with the Pixi Sheer Cheek Gel so far. It washes well. I've cleaned it with both the spray daily cleaner, and done a full deep shampoo cleanse, and so far no shedding, and it dries a lot quicker than my Expert Face brush. 


Have you ever tried anything from ELF, or will be making an order soon? Let me know what you like below! I love getting comments.


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