I'm constantly seeing e.l.f. products on my Pinterest feed as great replacements for pricier makeup. I decided to put certain products to the test to see if they are as great as people claim to be. The nice thing about e.l.f. is that everything is priced awesomely with most products ranging between $1-$5.
So without further ado, here is the list of products I tried and whether or not I feel they are worth it, and if you scroll all the way to the bottom of this post, I'm offering a giveaway on a few select e.l.f. products and a $25 Target gift card!
Essential Holiday 3 piece Plumping Lip Gloss Set - $3
Pros- I liked 2 of the 3 colors (the light pink (middle color in the picture)was a bit too pink for me) but I loved the other two colors and the color itself showed up very nicely on my lips once I was able to get it applied properly.
Cons- I seem to have a problem with e.l.f.'s applicators, they are constantly fighting me when it comes to applying this stuff on me, and these glosses were no exception. I had to dip the applicator in the tube 5 or 6 times to get it evenly coated on my lips. After the gloss dried, it became sticky and didn't stay on very well.
Get it or Forget it? Forget it. The price is awesome but if you can't get it on your lips and then it won't stay, then what's the point? I will, however, be looking for these colors in other brands because I loved the choices!
Mineral 2 Piece Blemish Set - $5
Pros- It's supposed to help clear up blemishes. I didn't use it long enough to test that claim out.
Cons- It's meant to hide and disguise blemishes. It didn't.
Get it or Forget it? Forget it. There are plenty of better concealers and blemish treatments out there, this one didn't do anything it claimed to do for me.
Mineral 2 Piece Booster Set - $5
Pros- It provides a "finishing touch" on your makeup, almost like a setter. I noticed my face was not as shiny towards the end of the day when the oil on my face would normally work its way out. I definitely feel like it pushed the longevity of my makeup out even further. Also, it did a good job of reducing the size of my pores and softening up my face a little.
Cons- I was not a big fan of the brush. It looks fluffy in the picture, but it's not. It's a bit larger than a concealer brush and since I use this all over my face, I need something that's going to cover more ground in less brush strokes.
Get it or Forget it? Get it, but invest in a different face brush, like this one from e.l.f.
Pros- It works just as well as any other primer I've tried. It helps keep eye shadow on, although I personally feel like certain other primers help colors pop better, like Too Faced's.
Cons- I don't know what it is about e.l.f. products and their wands but I am forever having trouble with it and this is no exception. The wand deposits very little of the product onto my eye which means I have to dip it into the tube several times to get my whole eyelid covered. Quite frankly, I prefer the tube style of the more popular eyelid primers, however for the price difference I think this con is something I could easily overlook.
Get it or Forget it? Get it, it works just as well as the more expensive brands for a third of the price.
Pros- Does exactly what it promises, it exfoliates and leaves my lips nice and soft (as long as I use chap stick afterwards, of course).
Cons- The smell. Sometimes it has a very nice vanilla-y smell which is pleasant. Other times it smells like mothballs in my Grandmother's coat closet, which isn't so great.
Get it or Forget it?- Get it, the smell isn't too bad and it definitely has lessened the amount of peeling, chapped lips that I normally get this time of year.
Pros- It definitely does what it says it is going to do, which is correct the color tone on your face. I use it after I prime my face but before I apply my mineral foundation and it helps to lessen the redness in my face. It, however is not a miracle worker. There are still parts of my face (like blemishes) that are a bit too red for this to completely correct, but it does a good job of reducing redness.
Cons- It dries my face out quite a bit. There are a few parts on my face (like my cheeks and chin) that this seems to pull out the dryness even more and causes flakiness to the skin in these areas. I add more moisturizer to those areas and it does help, although there are still some dry patches every once in a while.
Get it or Forget it?- Toss up. If you have uneven skin tone and are on a budget, get it. It does what you'll need it to do. If you can afford a pricier tone corrector, you may want to find something that will be a bit kinder on dry spots on your face. That being said, I do use this every morning, regardless of the flakiness that it causes.
Pros- I'm going to be honest here. I used this stuff one time and that was it. It wasn't that it was a bad product or anything, I just HATE cream blush, foundations, bronzer, anything. I have no idea why I chose to purchase this to test. It was easy to apply, so that's always a plus.
Cons- If you don't like cream stuff like me, it would be best to avoid this. Also, I've read on a few sites this color is supposed to be flattering for everyone, but I felt like it was a bit too dark on my fair skin, but that is also personal taste, I'm not a huge fan of drastic colors.
Get it or Forget it?- Toss up. If you like cream blushes and have been lusting after the NARS version of this, get it. Otherwise, forget it.
Studio Bronzer - $3
Pros- Good color, easy to apply. I purchased it in Golden Bronzer and it was a great color for my fact
Cons- It's a bit light, I would think that it wouldn't show up very well on anyone with darker skin. Also, you have to swirl the colors to get the one tone, so it's hard for me to contour my nose with a smaller brush that isn't mean to swirl.
Get it or Forget it?- Get it, great price for a great product!
And now for a giveaway!!! I'm throwing this out there now, this is my first giveaway ever so please be patient with me. One lucky winner will get e.l.f. 32 piece geometric eyeshadow set, the lip exfoliator I reviewed above, a 12 piece brush set, and a $25 Target gift card!
