elf Cosmetics UK Review & Launch

Elf Makeup UK

Yes finally, elf Make-up has launched here in the UK! And if you're not familiar with the brand, then here's a bit of background first...

ELF stands for Eyes, Lips, Face, which in my opinion is very simple yet genius! The company launched in 2004 and strives to inspire people, educate and deliver quality, all at affordable prices. The brand became a massive success within the US and in 2007 Elf was available in the UK online only. Now 2017 brings the release of the brand into Superdrug stores within the UK with a wide variety of makeup products, skincare and brushes to choose from, that are also cruelty-free, so here's my thoughts...

I picked up five products to test out for you guys including a couple of new launches and best sellers. I recommend watching the video also, so you can see a live demo of each.

Price
Ok let's start with price, everything is very affordable starting from £3 for a brow pencil, right up to the most expensive item coming in at £14.50. Either way you'll find most items hovering around the £5 mark, although having looked at the US website, it is still slightly cheaper to buy there overall.

Here's an example of a few best selling make-up items pricing compared to the US.
e.l.f Studio Baked Highlighter
UK £5 - US $4

e.l.f Eyeshadow Palette
UK £12.50 - US $10

e.l.f Studio High Definition Powder
UK £7.50 - US $6

e.l.f Studio Cream Eyeliner
UK £4.50 - US $3

Packaging 
The packaging is very simple and for me the thing that stands out the most is actually the name, however I do love how everything comes individually boxed, as it gives it more of a luxury feel.

Products
Here's a little overview and review on each of the products I picked up...

elf Aqua Beauty Molten Liquid Eyeshadow Rose Gold

elf Molten Liquid Eyeshadow - £5 2.6g
The Molten Liquid eyeshadow's are from the new Aqua Beauty line. They come in 6 stunning shades including, Brushed Copper, Rose Gold, Molten Bronze, Liquid Gold, Cool Steel and Mocha Metal.

Upon application these claim to have a cooling effect which is certainly true, however I did experience a mild stinging sensation which did go away after a few minutes. I picked up rose gold, which was a lovely wearable shade, but for me this did crease when worn alone.

Overall I love the shade selection and the concept, but if you do have sensitive eyes, then these may not be for you. The best way to wear these is as a coloured eyeshadow base. I applied a similar eyeshadow shade on top and this lasted much longer without the worry of creasing.

I award the elf Aqua Beauty Molten Liquid Eyeshadow a 3 out of 5

elf Cream Eyeliner

elf Cream Eyeliner - £4.50 4.7g

The cream eyeliner's come in four shades including, Black, Coffee, Teal Tease and Punk Purple. Each liner also comes with a handy travel-sized brush too. These claim to be both waterproof and smudge-proof.

Upon application I applied the black shade to my waterline first and then I used the brush included to draw a fine line onto my lash line. The colour was lovely and pigmented, but for my waterline I did have to build up the colour as it wasn't gripping as well as I had hoped. Overall I adored the brush as it was super fine and perfect for getting right into the lash line with ease.

This is a great affordable gel liner for the lash line, but compared to other drugstore gel liner's I've used, this isn't the best one I've tested.

I award the elf Cream Eyeliner a 3.9 out of 5

elf HD Lifting Concealer Light

elf HD Lifting Concealer - £4.50 6.5ml

The lifting concealer comes in four shades including, Fair, Light, Medium and Brightening. This concealer reminds me of the Nars Creamy Concealer to look at, however the packaging is a little deceiving as the concealer is a lot smaller compared to the Nars one.

This concealer is designed to minimise fine lines, hide imperfections and even out the skin tone. I picked this up in light, which actually turned out to be quite yellow, so if your after this for lightening under the eyes, then I would go for either the fair or brightening.

Upon application this has more of a thick consistency that blends out well to leave a flawless finish. I actually like the fact that this has a slight yellow undertone, as it covered my redness well. Overall these have pretty good staying power, despite a tiny bit of creasing.

I award the elf HD Lifting Concealer 4.2 out of 5

elf Blush & Bronzing Powder

elf Blush & Bronzing Powder - £5 8.4g

The Blush & Bronzing duo's are another product that's very similar to the cult Nars palettes, except these come in at an insanely affordable £5 each! There is also three shades to choose from in this format including, Fiji (Matte), St Lucia. and Turks & Caicos.

If you only buy one thing from Elf, then I definitely recommend picking up one of these as you get a lovely big mirror as well as two decent sized pans. 

I grabbed this in Fiji which is the only matte palette of the three. Upon application both the bronzer and blush are pigmented, blendable and give you the most beautiful natural glow. Longevity wise both shades wore off towards the end of the night, however I did test them out again with a setting spray and this did the trick at locking them in for the day.

I award the elf Blush & Bronzing Powder a 4.5 out of 5

elf Gotta Glow Lip Tint

elf Gotta Glow Lip Tint Perfect Pink - £7.50 3.4g

As soon as I saw this lip tint, I instantly thought 'Dior Lip Glow Dupe Alert!!' This pretty lip tint reacts with the lips to give you a personalised and unique colour match. I have the shade Perfect Pink, but there is two other colours including Perfect Peach and Perfect Berry. 

The lipstick itself is infused with moisturising properties and is essentially just like a lip balm, but with a unique twist. 

Application wise I can't vouch fairly for what shade of pink this will go on everyone else, but for me this turned a bright shade of fuchsia, which I use say I wasn't keen on to start with, however this did grow on me.

Longevity wise these last for a few hours, before re-application is needed. And by the end of the day all that was left was a subtle stain on my lips.  

Overall I do think these lip tints are slightly more expensive compared to some of the other products in the range, but nonetheless the pink one is a fantastic dupe for the Dior Lip Glow. 

I award the elf Gotta Glow Lip Tint a 4 out of 5

Revolution Golden Sugar 2 Rose Gold Review & Photos

Revolution Golden Sugar 2 Rose Gold Blush Palette

Blusher and highlighter is something I've always found hard to find on the high street, not because it wasn't available, but purely for the fact I don't think the drugstore do it as well as the high end brands. The quality was usually average and the colour selection minimal, but with the likes of Sleek, Freedom and Revolution now available, the drugstore has defiantly stepped up their blusher and highlight game in recent years. Revolution blusher palette's have been on my list to try for a while now, but with so much choice I didn't know where to start until I spotted my favourite words 'Rose Gold' on one of their newest palettes. The original Golden Sugar Palette already has a cult following and this Rose Gold version is the 2nd edition within the Golden Sugar family, so here's my thoughts.

Price
This retails for an amazing £6 for eight multi-tasking bronzer, blusher and highlighting shades.

Packaging
As with all Revolution palette's, this comes boxed with clear information on the front and a picture on the back, so you know exactly what your getting inside. I also love the fact that most of the large sized compacts come with a decent mirror too.

Application
Each colour is super pigmented, especially the shimmery shades and all of them apply and blend out beautifully too. Personally I preferred using these as blushers and blush toppers as the matte shades made for a lovely cheek base and the shimmery ones as a stunning highlight topper. The two far right shades can also be used to contour to add dimension to the face.

Longevity
These wore surprisingly well considering blush is always the first thing to disappear on me. They lasted most of the day, especially with one of the highlighters shades on top, although I would recommend re-applying these if your going out of an evening and you don't have time to re-do your make-up.

Overall Thoughts
I honestly can't say enough good things about this brand. This palette is not only amazing value for money for eight versatile shades, but the colours are stunning, the pigmentation impressive and the longevity is pretty good too. So if your already a big fan of the original Golden Sugar Palette or you love a good highlight or blusher, then this could be right up your street and a must for your collection!

I award the Revolution Golden Sugar 2 Rose Gold 4.9 out of 5

Benefit Dandelion Dew Review and Photos

Benefit Dandelion Dew Liquid Blush

Theses days I lean more towards a powder blush as they just seem to work and blend better on my cheeks and I'm a total fan of the Benefit boxed blushers, although I have never tried the original Dandelion powder blush. (I know, I know again!) Liquid blush is also something I've never delved into either, but luckily Benefit recently released Dandelion in a Liquid formula, sweetly named Dandelion Dew, so I thought now would be a perfect opportunity to not only try the Dandelion Blush but in the new liquid formulation!

Price
This retails for £22.50 for 30ml of product, which again is pricey, but as I mentioned in my Dew the Hoola review, this is a premium branded product.

Packaging

This yet again is another beautifully packaged product from Benefit. The box and name sells the blush alone for me, but inside the actual blush is prettily packaged in a stunning mint green unusually shaped bottle. It also has a pump dispenser and hygienic cap too.

Application

To apply the product initially I used a Real Techniques Pointed Foundation Brush, I then used my fingertips to blend this out completely. Upon application half a pump was all that is needed as a little goes along way, this also blends out beautifully and is buildable if desired. The leaflet included also suggests applying Dandelion powder blush on top to further enhance the dandelion dew. The overall finish and look is a super pretty pink/peach flush to the cheeks, that looks gorgeously subtle and would also look perfect on Brides too!

Longevity

This lasts reasonably well right into the evening, but as I mentioned above, if you have the Dandelion powder blush, you could always set this further with a tiny bit on top of the liquid.

Overall Thoughts

Overall this was another super pretty product release from Benefit and having never tried Dandelion blush before, I thought the colour and overall look was gorgeous on the cheeks. I absolutely adored the packaging as well as the formula of the product and I think if I had to choose between a cream or a liquid, I would choose liquid as I much prefer the overall finish and how easily this blends into the skin.

 

Longevity was pretty good, but if you are wearing this well into the evening and you do have the original Dandelion boxed blush, I would set this with a little of the powder for longevity re-assurance. So if your after a blush for Summer that gives you the perfect soft pink/peach pop of colour to the cheeks, or your a bride who prefers a more subtle look for your big day, then this may be just the ticket!

 

I award the Benefit Dandelion Dew 4.5 out of 5