ELF Haul

Hey everyone, got lots of things to talk about today so I'm going to split into two posts - an ELF haul and also a very late July Favourites!

ELF had a 50% sale off on all products on their website around a month or so ago, I missed out on it last time but kept checking their twitter page to see if they had a similar offer on - and lo and behold, they had another 50% off code which clearly is too good a deal to resist!

You had to spend £30.00 to qualify for the voucher so I got a few things that I've wanted for a long time, such as the stipple and powder brushes! I received my order last week so have had a good opportunity to test out these products and make my mind up on what I think of them.

From left to right on the photo, I'm just going to mention what the product is and my first week thoughts :)

1. Waterproof Lengthening and Volumising Mascara in Black. I wanted a waterproof mascara for work really, cause it can get really warm at my work and sometimes my mascara kind of melts off a bit so thought a waterproof one may do the trick! It certainly doesn't melt off, but I only really found it lengthened my lashes rather than add volume too. The wand is really long too, which helps to apply the mascara as you can get close enough to coat every lash. For £3.50, or £1.75 that I paid, it is a good mascara but I don't think it's one I'd go for again, as I prefer more dramatic lashes than this particular mascara creates. 

2. Studio conditioning lip balm SPF 15 in Mellow Melon. This lip balm is so different to what I thought it would be, the consistency is much creamier and more pigmented and opaque than I had thought! It's a lovely glossy finish, and it also contains an SPF to protect lips from the sun, and natural ingredients that help to repair dry lips and leave them in a lovely condition.

3. Studio Blush in Pink Passion. I love this blush!! In the picture below, I've really heavily swatched the blush on the right and blended it out to the left - you can see how pigmented these blushes are they're incredible! You do have to have a light hand when applying it but it blends out like a dream, it's a really lovely true pink colour that and really brightens up my make up routine!

4. Mineral Lipstick in Natural Nymph. I have completely ruined this lipstick already :( it has snapped off so I've not been able to use it much. I'm gonna try and find a little tub to put it into and just use a lip brush. With the few days I had with this lipstick, I was starting to really like it! Its a really creamy formula but with a matte finish, its a peachy toned nude so it doesn't leave you looking really pale which is always a win :) Definitely would look into picking up more of the lipsticks from ELFs mineral range.

Top: Gypsy
Bottom: Natural Nymph

 

 

 

 

5 and 6. Studio Powder Brush and Studio Stipple Brush. Since buying the Powder Brush, I have used it every day to apply liquid foundation or tinted moisturiser. It makes applying these products so quick and hassle free, not having to worry about the streaks that a traditional foundation brush can leave. It leaves skin looking really polished, and on someone who has better skin than mine probably quite perfect. It's a flat top brush that is so dense, ELF recommend using this for liquid or powder products and also suggest that it is perfect for contouring. Definitely a new favourite of mine :)

Sorry it's so dirty - you can see its already so well loved :)

 

Now onto the Stipple Brush... I'm just not 100% sure what to do with it really it isn't particularly dense, so for me its no good for applying liquid foundation. I've also tried it with a cream blusher and it seems okay, but yeah I'm not really sure about this brush I may just need a bit more time to play around with it.

7. Matte Finisher Clear Nail Polish. I've tried this out twice now, once with a dark navy and then another time with a red and I really like the effect! It was a bit of a quick and messy application both times, so I didn't really do it properly but I like what I've seen so far!

8 and 9. Eyelash and Brow Wand and Blending Eye Brush. The eyebrow wand is pretty basic really but does its job nicely! The blending eye brush is really good, I've had the eye shadow brushes from ELF before and was pretty impressed so thought I'd pick the blending brush up as well.

10. Lipstick in Gypsy. This lipstick is from the basic £1.50 range and the website says that it's a 'deep cool pink sheer' and has a rather different looking swatch to my lipstick that has been delivered - it's more of a raspberry colour and I wouldn't say its sheer its quite a strong opaque finish, as you can see in the swatch above with Natural Nymph. In fairness though, it's a really lovely lipstick - a pretty colour and a nice formula.

That's everything that I ordered from ELF - all for £15 with the 50% offer on! Anyway, I hope everyone is doing well and I'll probably be doing my Favourites post after this one so keep an eye out for that :)

Hannah Elizabeth xx