Tuesday 28 February 2012

E.L.F Haul

So I got this elf order when they were having their sale after Christmas (I know it's really REALLY late), but it some how ended up with school textbooks on the top and was left un-remembered (poor little elf haul) till now! Before we start a little warning this may be text and picture heavy!


I know your all waiting to see what I got instead of me rambling on! I'll post some pictures, swatches and first impressions of everything possible! The main reason I ordered was because they had some of their studio products on sale, luckily they were some of the ones I really wanted to try!
First off I got the studio matte lip colour in Tea Rose which I am in love with, normally I'll leave everything in the box/bag till I've hauled it but as soon as I got this it was straight into use. I find it the perfect pink for me, when swatched it's a lovely mauvey pink. I usually wear it with either my Rose Co Sweet Vanilla lip savle or my Rimmel Vinyl lip gloss in Take A Secret. I've also found a great colour combination with it which I shall do a seperate post on! I tend to wear this for work and it lasts me an 8 hour shift and by the end it has faded out really nicely. I paid £2.45 for this but it originally costs £3.50. I love the idea on the lip colour pens, as they are thicker than a lip liner pencil but thinner than a lipstick which I find easier and quicker!
I only bought one other lip colour, the Luscious Liquid Lipstick in Perfect Pink. This is one of those twist up type of lip gloss. Although this has a thicker consistency making it more like a lipstick albeit a really glossy lipstick but it still has that really nice different almost unique consistency. It's a lovely mid toned pink, perfect for the summer. Let's take a minute to discuss the packaging shall we?! It comes in a plastic applicator with the twist up function at the bottom and a soft doe foot applicator at the top, this lip gloss is also super light meaning you can throw it in your bag, beach bag or even clutch and barely feel it there! The applicator also makes it a must have for the summer with it being easy to apply without the need for a mirror! I do tend to wear this one solely on its own as to me this is literally a 'perfect pink' without the need for another shade of lipstick or lip gloss. The only problem I found was that I had to twist the tube a fair few times before I started to see any product come through the applicator, not uncommon with these type of applicators. These babies retail for £1.50 so you can get a selection of different shades without breaking the bank or your budget!
These are the two studio cream eyeliners I got. I decided to pick up the plum purple and the gunmetal colour. One of the main reasons I picked up the gunmetal was because I loved he colour but I thought I could always use them both as bases as well as eyeshadows! Unfortunately when I received my gunmetal one it had came away from the packaging but I've heard if you heat it slightly with a hairdryer then it's all good again. I really am starting to go for cream eyeliners more than pencil or liquid, because I find I can get more use out of them plus I find it strangely easier! The gunmetal shade is a typical gunmetal silver, although this is the only gunmetal eyeliner I seem to be pulled to! I really can't wait to try his with my naked palette. The plum purple shade is a stunning purple with understated gold shimmer running through it, which I feel will make it perfect for a base or even in the summer on the lower lash line with a neutral eye. The eyeliners come in a square pot roughly the side of a 50p, with a black plastic screw off lid and a clear see through bottom. They also put the sticker with the shade on on the side of the packaging rather than the bottom which I love because then you can see the product without the need to open it or memorise it. In each pot you get 4.7g or 0.17oz depending on how you look at it, you also get a little mini eyeliner brush with it. I find them useful if I'm washing my eyeliner brush I can use this instead and they're also perfect for beginners! Both of these were in the sale which was a bonus and they were £2.45 each, although they originally cost £3.50 can anyone say bargain?!
Next is one of the new additions to their eyelid primers on their basics range. I have yet to try this one besides a swatch on the back of my hand, so all I can fairly give it is a first impression although I will do a review on it if you guys so wish! These retail on the site for £1.50, which I believe is extremely cheap compared to say urban decay or too faced shadow insurance so if it turns out to be a good product I might try the other shades. I got it in the shade Champagne, hoping it could be a cheaper alternative to my MAC Paint Pot in  The only downside is that the product is a lot pinkier than the tube suggests, from the tube you get the impression that its more of taupey pink/brown. The applicator is similar to that of the UDPP's, with it having a soft doe foot applicator. When swatched this shade is very glittery with a subtle wash of colour. I hope this will be a great cheap alternative to my MAC paint pots and my UDPP.
This product I love, it's my favourite highlighter which I actually use every time I apply my make-up. E.L.F sells these for £1.50 which is really cheap yet really great quality. It's a pale, champagne colour with more goldish tones in it. I find that this actually makes it perfect for everyone and for £1.50 it's hardly gonna break your budget or your bank to try it out! This is one of the few products that I have repurchased but I also love using this as a eyeshadow in the inner corner or for a sweep across my lid, I also use it as a highlighter under my eyebrow when I'm travelling or when I'm just being lazy with my make-up. I'm not gonna say too much about it as I might be doing a full review on it!


Thanks to Karen I've really started getting into my nails, painting them and actually taking care of them! Not quite skilled enough to do the designs but still. I bought a number of different nail products and polishes.
The first polish I got was Smokey Brown, which I actually ended up receiving two of which doesn't bother at all because then I have a 'back-up', 'second one', 'spare'. This polish only cost me £1.00 in the sale, and for being good quality I don't think I could find another polish of the same quality for the same price! The colour is pretty true to the name. It's a lovely smokey brown polish with a cream finish, I seem to find myself drawn to the these colours as I just find I can wear them with anything especially for work. With these polishes only being £1.50 you can try out loads of different colours, with a decent top coat I find these last pretty good considering I have to tap on a touch screen at work. I might try some of the brighter shades for summer. Apologies for the pictures of the nail products as I don't have any swatches, I will be buying some nail round things to paint swatches on!
The next polish I got is Red Velvet, this again I got while I was in the sale for £1.00 but these normally only cost £1.50 so not that big a bank breaker! It's a lovely mid toned red with shimmer, I love how in the sun or when being photographed the shimmer really comes out. I'm starting to get into more of the brighter colours and not just neutrals and just looking at this colour in the bottle makes me happy! I've only really swatched this polish so I can't really give a full opinion, but I will do a post on my E.L.F nail polishes at a later date!


This is the shade out of the two red colours that I've been wearing the most! It's a lovely cranberry colour with a subtle shimmer running through it. I always think of it as a very grown up colour when I wear it, although I still love it all the same. I've been wearing it with the E.L.F nail polish in Twinkle over the top. I paid £1.00 again but these retail for £1.50, gotta look out for the sales guys! 
This is the lovely polish in Twinkle. I'm not gonna lie the name was half the reason I got it cause it was such a cute name for a nail polish! This is basically a clear polish with iridescent glitter in it. I generally apply 2 coats of this polish when I use it. I got this because I wanted to try the glitter polishes and not be worried if me and it didn't get along as it's only £1.50. E.L.F do these glitter polishes in several shades, they have Golden Goddess and Glitter Glam which are gold and silver versions of this polish.
I bought this to throw in my purse in replace of LUSH's lemony flutter cuticle butter. This only costs £1.50 like most of E.L.F products. It's also unscented meaning I don't get the strange looks on the train when I pull it out, well I might get a few but not as many as rubbing a bright yellow cream on my fingers. The actual product contains vitamins A, C, E and pro-vitamin B5 as well as aloe. I'm really bad and neglect them so I'm going to try and get into taking care of them especially with summer coming up thick and fast!
I mainly got this for the 3 other sides. It has a filing side, a side that removes ridges, another side that buffs the nails and another side that polishes the nail. I got this because before I got into my nails all I would basically do is cut them with nail clippers and paint them. Please don't kill me Karen! So I am determined to take care of them and give them time to breathe and be taken care of. This only cost me £1.50, I love getting nails bits from E.L.F cause they do them really cheap for really good quality products.
I originally ordered the smudge brush (with bristles not a sponge) but I received this eye crease brush, it's not that big a deal I'll still use it and just re-order the smudge brush at a later date. These are from the basics range that cost £1.50, they come with the pearlescent white handle and the silver farrel. From the e.l.f brushes I've had, there hasn't been any tops coming loose or glue not sticking properly and I actually really like these brushes as you can't get another brand of brush for £1.50 with such great quality.This brush just has short bristles, perfect for applying colour right into the crease and creating the outer V.
I got this to try as my first on the spot brush cleaner, yes I've never used one I generally just deep clean my brushes. I thought I'd try this before delving into different types or I might just stick with this one if I really like it. It comes in a black plastic bottle that you can actually see through with just a spray pump dispenser. I paid £2.45 but it retails on the website for £3.50 which is a great price compared to places like MAC. I haven't used this yet but I will either leave an add in note or will do an actual review on it, so stay tuned for that.
I bought this to try as a possible substitute for my MAC Fix+ with it being only £3.50 compared to MAC's £12.50 for the large bottle and £7.00 for a small bottle. I've heard different ways that people apply this, after their primer before their foundation or once all the make-up is applied. E.L.F themselves say you can use it to set your make-up or the refresh your make-up throughout the day. This actual contains aloe, green tea, cucumber and vitamins A, C & E which will be good for the skin. It comes in a small black plastic spray bottle similar to that of the brush cleaner. You receive 60ml of product for the price.

See you next time

Friday 17 February 2012

New Start!

Hai guys, This is my new blog to accompany my YouTube channel www.youtube.com/makeupbyelle101. This year I want to get back into my YouTube and blogging to almost take my mind off some serious issues that happened this last year! I will be therefore actually dedicating time to it which means I will be becoming more than likely OCD about like everything that's in my planner. I hope that you guys can forgive me for takin such a long hiatus from it all but I don't think my posts and videos would be! I have now got an iPod touch, a lovely unexpected birthday present from my mother so I can know film, tweet and write blog posts on the go while I'm waiting for the train home after work :) Speak to you all soon Elle