Saturday, 24 January 2015

Elf Makeup Haul&Reviews!

Okay, so about a week ago I decided to purchase some elf things because i'd saved a lot of money, i'd never bought from elf before but I'd heard lots of good things about it so I was excited to give it a try. All the products seemed reasonably priced so I ordered things online and they came within 4 days.

'Long Lasting Lustrous Eyeshadow'- In the shade 'Toast'


This cost me £3.95, which I thought was quite cheap, the picture on the website made the product look lovely as it was really glittery and I don't own any glitters. When this came the packaging looked really nice however it felt really cheap, this isn't necessarily bad as it is quite a cheap product. The colour was similar to the half baked by urban decay except it's less champagne and more gold.
This shade is called 'toast'
Although it looks really pretty and pigmented in the tub, when applied it disperses and becomes weak glitter, a lot needs to be packed on to get the gold intensity that is desired, I haven't worn this for long enough to rate its staying power, plus I wear all my eyemakeup over my MAC paintpot so I don't know how long this would last on it's own.
The product swatched
Overall, if you buy this product for a glitter then it's quite good, but not at all good enough to be an eyeshadow, you need to wear a gold underneath.
Product Rate- 5/10

Lipsticks in the shades- Nostalgic and Fantasy


Both lipsticks have the same packagung, which looks quite cheap as I am not a fan of silver containers (excluding the benefit watts up and they're real mascara) The plastic feels cheap but what can you expect for £1.95 a piece.

The first shade I tried (which is pictured) is Nostalgic. This is the worst i've ever tried, barely any colour came out and it felt as if I was rubbing wax on my lip. It completely dried my lips out and made them appear chapped (which is not the case as I apply burts bee's lip balm every single day)  This product is actually waxier than the Burt's Bee's Lip Balm (Pink Grapefruit one is amazing) Which is actually made of bee's wax. The colour appears to be a really pretty light pink toned nude but you can barely see it on the skin. 


I wouldn't even wear this product if somebody paid me to, overall this is a terrible product and I don't reccomend at all for £1.95 you can get really good MUA lipsticks, this is just cheap and dreadful.
Overall- 0/10.

The over shade 'Fantasy' wasn't as waxy, it actually applied a colour (not very strong but decent for £1.95) The colour is a mid-brown toned nude and it's quite nice. It lasts a long time aswell, but both lipsticks have an absolutely appalling stench, It's actually disgusting and because of this I'm never going to purchase another elf lipstick again.
shade fantasy on the lips


Overall- 7/10


Bronzer With Brush (Sun Kissed)


This colour looked so nice on the website, so I decided to order it even though I already had a bronzer, when this arrived I was really disappointed the colour was nothing like it was on the website, it was so orange (on the website it's more brown). On the first day I tried this it looked decent, it wasn't too orange and it doesn't come out too strong, however on the second day it looked like mud in the hollows of my cheeks. It doesn't last all day and it doesn't apply evenly. 
 
Shade Sun Kissed
This looks similar to the MUA bronzer in shade 1 but it isn't the same, the colour isn't as strong, although this is only £2.50 I paid £1 for my MUA one and I find it a lot better.
This shade should be re-named to 'Oompa Loompa' 
Overall- 4/10


Lip stain- Mysterious


This colour looks prettier in person, it's like a mix of pink and brown. It comes with a stain and a gloss and both have dofer applicators
Dofer Applicator
As this is a 'stain' I was very disappointed with the colour pay off and it's staying power, this adds a tint of colour to your lips and the colour barely shows up
Colour - Mysterious

The texture is horrible and it's a weird liquid that feels like a solid, it's difficult to describe, I don't think this product works very well without the gloss (and i'm not a fan of glossy lips) Which is quite disappointing, however if you like them then this product is quite good as it's only £3.95. Saying this you can get much better Rimmel lipglosses for only a little bit more. I won't be re-purchasing.
Lip stain and Gloss together.

Overall- 5/10.


Zit Eraser


I usually use specialist brands for spot treatments (e.g freederm) however I liked the look of this product a lot. It's got a cool twist applicator so there isn't any spillage and you can control the amount you use. I tried this on a few spots and it felt as if it burned, which I expected as all the good spot treatments do, the next day my spots appeared worse, however this product may take a few more days to work, I will continue this product for a week and then do a proper review of it next Sunday.
Applicator 

It's hard to give an overall score as I haven't given it a chance yet really, I forgot to mention, this costs £3.95


Makeup remover pen




I purchased this as I wear eyeliner every weekend (MAC fluidline) which is really hard to remove if wrong and when you mess it up you have to take all of your eyemakeup off. I bought this as it's always the wing part which goes wrong and I have to say I quite like it. I used it today when my wing went wonky and although after you've removed the wing you have to wipe the pen with a tissue and then pat on your eye where it's just been, it does do a good job at removing it accurately. I'd probably buy this product again.

Overall- 9/10


Overall E.L.F products- I wasn't too happy with most products so I will probably not purchase from elf again, although the products seem cheap, they all add up and if you're not happy with them there's no point buying them.


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Saturday, 10 January 2015

Drugstore&High End Foundations

Hello! Today i'm going to compare drugstore, to highend foundations:] Unfortuantely I do not have pictures of every foundation that i'm talking about but i'm sure you'll understand what I mean.



Rimmel Lasting Finish 25 Hour Foundation


The first drugstore foundation i'm going to talk about is the Rimmel Lasting Finish 25 Hour Foundation, I used to use this everyday until it started oxydising on my skin:[ (going grey in patches) this made it extremely difficult to use, also they didn't have a light enough colour for my skin (as i'm like rlly rlly pale) so it went rlly orange. (Here's a swatch of the product on my hand)
Left; Foundation 'blended' Middle; Foundation just pumped (3/4 a pump) Right; Foundation lightly swatched





The product has a natural finish- not too dry, not too matte, however I find it very difficult to blend and the texture makes it show up every last crease and crinkle in your skin, I find despite the name '24 hour' that it does not infact last 24 hours and it is a let down. It gives very good coverage however, and paired with a good primer, and application (a sponge) this could probably be worth the money, and of course if you're naturally tanned or have orangey tones in your skin. I don't dislike this foundation as a foundation, it just didn't suit me due to the colour and my skin type (which is mostly dry) This product retails at £8

Coverage- 10/10
Blendability- 4/10
Colour Range- 2/10
Lasting Power- 7/10
Overall Foundation- 6/10

MAC Studio Sculpt Foundation


This Foundation I purchased for Summer as people were saying that it is Waterproof and heat proof, which I found not to be true, It doesn't come off in water, but no matter how much powder you apply it comes off when in contact with any type of heat, I find it goes all watery around the lines under my nose connecting to mouth, and the forehead, however this foundation does give really good coverage and blends extremely well, with a completely natural finish, this means that you can barely see your pores and it eliminates redness completely, but also feels light and looks light on the skin. A very good foundation if you're not bothered about it lasting very long (or you pair with a primer which I do not do) This product has an SPF of 15, which is good in the summer for protection against UV rays, this comes in a tube so you can control how much you squeeze out, the smell reminds me of suncream which doesn't bother me that much.

Left; Blended with my fingers, Middle; Just Pumped, Right; Swatched


As this foundation is gel based that's why I think it blends amazingly, as you can see above blended lightly with just my fingers and it looks really natural, It's even better with a brush! I deffinately reccommend this product! This retails at £25

Coverage- 10/10
Blendability- 10/10
Colour Range- 10/10
Lasting Power- 6/10
Overall Foundation 8/10



Maybelline dream satin liquid

This foundation was really rated when I first purchased this, it claims that you can't see pores through it which is slightly true, the foundation applies well and blends quite easily, the coverage is decent but nothing special, also it doesn't last very long (even paired with a primer) I found it to feel quite heavy even though the word 'satin' suggests it should be quite light.

Left- Foundation blended, Middle- Foundation just pumped, Right- Foundation swatched

As you can see the foundation appears quite light to the eye, although it feels heavy on the skin,which you can put up with, it blends so easily which is really good. This retails at £8

Coverage- 8/10
Blendability- 10/10
Colour Range- 6/10
Lasting Power- 5/10
Overall Foundation- 7/10



MAC Studio Fix Fluid

This was the first ever foundation that I purchased from MAC, In Concealer I was matched to an NW20 So I wrongly assumed that would be my colour for everything, however this was not the case, the colour was way to dark for my skin and appeared orange, The coverage was good however it didn't distract from the pugent paint smell. This product really hurt my skin, as I have really sensitive skin and suffer with allergies to things such as suncreams and some moisturizers, This foundation felt as if it was physically burning my skin and it felt so thick, as if I had a mask on. I couldn't wait to get this off at the end of the day. I ended up using a tiny amount and I dispersed it into pots to let others try it. I hated this foundation and not just because of the colour.
Left- Foundation swatched, Middle- Foundation just pumped, Right- Foundation blended


As you can see, the formulae is quite runny even though it's a thick and heavy foundation, this is good as it means you only need a little bit, The foundation is very difficult to blend and it highlights pores, wrinkles and other lines. This foundation is available in all different shades which is really good if you're a fan, they provide 2 different types, each suiting different undertones of your skin. This foundation doesn't come with a pump so if you want one you have to pay £5 however MAC never have any in-store and they're not available to order online so it's very tricky. Overall I do not reccommend. This Retails at £21.50

Coverage- 9/10
Blendability- 3/10
Colour Range- 7/10
Lasting Power- 7/10
Overall Foundation- 4/10

Collection Lasting Perfection

This Foundation is one of the cheapest, but you can tell. Although it leaves the desired 'dewy' finish, it can dry your face out and make you look like a prune if you apply the slightest bit of powder. The coverage is good however it doesn't last a long time without turning orange (no matter what it looks like at the start)
Left Blended- Middle Pumped- Right Swatched
As you can see it doesn't blend too badly and you need the tiniest amount to value-wise it's not a bad product, if you're looking for something to make you look flawless then this isn't it but if you want something just to cover uneven skin and you're on a budget then this is quite a good product. This Retails at £5.99

Coverage- 8/10
Blendability- 7/10
Colour Range- 4/10
Lasting Power- 5/10
Overall Foundation- 6/10 



MAC Pro Longwear Foundation

This is my favourite ever foundation, I absolutely adore this product and will reccommend this to anybody who asks.The finish is natural, it has a slight dwey effect but it doesn't look oily it just makes your skin glow. It's not matte at all which I love as it makes it suitable to dry skin, as it's not too dewy this product would also be good for oily skin. The shade range is outstanding and they will deffinately have your colour, the texture is also really nice as it's not too runny, The coverage this gives it described as 'sheer to medium' but I think this is actually a Medium to full. It covers spots and imperfections amazingly well and evens out skin tone outstandingly. It hides redness to a T.

Left Blended, Middle Pumped and Right Swatched
If velvet was a foundation it would be this one, this is so smooth on your skin and the formulae feels really luxurious, not only is the texture and coverage amazing, it lasts all day, it lives up to it's 'longwear' name completely. I could not reccommend this foundation more and for £25 it's brilliant.
This foundation lasts me around 5 months at a time so I end up using 2 and a bit a year which is really good.
 As said, This retails at £25

Coverage- 10/10
Blendability- 10/10
Colour Range- 10/10
Lasting Power- 10/10
Overall Foundation- 10/10

Overall....

For Blendabiliy the best one is MAC Studio Sculpt Foundation, this blends amazingly well however doesn't last very long without a primer.

For Coverage; MAC Studio Fix Fluid; If you love the really strong paint smell and the feeling of your skin sizzling and turning red under your foundation but a really good coverage then this foundation is for you! I don't reccommend this unless you need a really really full coverage and can put up with the things stated above

For Colour Range; Any of MAC's foundations, they have the best colour range available as they have 3 undertones now; W (Pink) C (Yellow) and N (Neutral) Meaning you can find the exact shade suited for your skin.

For Lasting Power; MAC Pro Longwear Foundation, This lasts all day, even in PE class when you're sweating this product doesn't budge.

For Overall Foundation- MAC Pro Longwear, you'll already know why but this is an amazing product and so it the Pro Longwear Concealer, I suggest you go and get yourself a sample of this as it's my holy grail.

The Best Drugstore foundation is Maybelline's Dream Satin Liquid, if you like to save your pennies then this is a good  buy, although its features aren't as good as the higher end products you're not paying for them to be, therefore this foundation is good value for money.


Thankyou for reading.


Friday, 2 January 2015

Hyped about Concealers review

Helloooo, today i'm going to review 2 raved about drugstore concealers, these are the Collection Lasting Perfection Concealer (I'm sure you've heard about it and/or tried it) And the Seventeen- Phwoarr Concealer

The Collection Lasting Perfection

This is probably the most hyped about drugstore concealer, and this comes in 4 different shades, (Fair, Dark, Cool Medium&Warm Medium) Warm being Yellow undertones and Cool being pink. The fact that they have seperated there tones makes it easier to find a match, it's a shame they don't do this for light&dark. As I have very very pale skin- (i'm a MAC NW15) I use the shade fair, which has neutral undertones (A balance of pink and yellow) which means it doesn't 100% match my skin tone, and can sometimes take away my natural colour, saying this it does cover redness pretty well. The price used to be £3.50 but now in superdrug I pay £5.50 which I think is a lot considering the fact there isn't a lot of product and I can get through one of these in a couple of weeks. I don't like the applicator as it picks up too much product in one go, and also it's unhygenic to use on spots, also I find that when I dot the product under the eye it puts too much there and it starts to look cakey. The problem with this product is after 2 weeks you have to store it up right, so the concealer runs to the bottom, otherwise there is no product there. Although this is a good product; value for moneywise you're actually better off getting a MAC concealer as these last so much longer, I had my studio finish concealer for 6 months, and my Pro longwear for 5 months at a time although you're paying more, in the long run it works out cheaper and the MAC is better quality.


The Seventeen Phwoarr Paint Concealer

This concealer is a total rip off and I do not reccomend this to anybody, the packaging is cute as it's a little tub like thing with a mirror inside, this is handy for travelling, however I found the product very orange based, even though I picked up the lightest shade- (Fair). They only have 2 shades to chose from which means that the selection is very limited and it's hard to find a match. This concealer claims to be 'Heavy duty under eye concealer
The One. The hard core concealer to wage war on under eye circles.' 
However this is not the case at all, this product isn't awful on spots and conceals them pretty well (under foundation as the orange is too much to bare) but I found it awful under the eye, the creasing was awful and the product didn't cover anything. Valuewise the tub contains barely anything and within a month i'd hit pan, The MAC studio finish concealer is 100% better and lasts more than 6 times as long, this concealer also has so many more shade options. I do not reccomend this at all. Stay away.