Mini ELF Haul: The Saturday Cosmetics Review.

Good afternoon everyone! As it is a Saturday and I usually do cosmetic reviews on Saturdays, I decided today will finally be the day I give you... The ELF HAUL.
For those of you who don't know ELF it is a make-up store mostly based online (especially in the UK) which sell a wide range of make-up for unbeatable prices. The best thing about ELF or eyes lips face, is that you can get a heck of a lot of goods for your money, this is great because you can be more daring and purchase products that you wouldn't necessarily buy but as they are so darn cheap it's not as much a loss when you discover it looks horrible on you. I made a purchase just over a month ago and so after using these products for just over five weeks, I feel like I am finally eligible to share with you my thoughts. This review is not particularly in depth, if you see a product and you'd like a more vigorous review just comment below and I will happily re-visit some of the items next Saturday.
SO this is my haul altogether:

(Photos from myself)

SO I just dove straight in and begin this haul with the ELF Studio Tinted Moisturizer.  Buy here...

SO appearance wise it's    a simple little squeezy bottle which looks very similar to the Max Factor foundation that came out a couple of years ago, almost like a SPOOF of it, but instead of being a full coverage foundation like Max Factor, it is a simple tinted moisturizer. I bought this   in the shade  "Beige" and unfortunately I was disappointed as I bough a shade that was for too dark for my skin (mostly my own fault). I have found with ELF that everything is much darker in real life than on the website. You'll understand this as I continue through the haul...

As you can see the packaging is very sleek and after removing the lid the nozzle is nice and small, perfect because there is nothing worse when you squeeze out too much product and end up either wasting and wiping it, or smothering it all over your face turning yourself into a tangerine!

Applying the Moisturizer.

 The flash on this image makes the moisturizer look lighter than it really is in natural daylight, it is in fact EVEN darker so you can imagine how silly this looks on my skin. The consistency of the product is very apply able and isn't too thick which is great because it doesn't have that heavy foundation feeling. Coverage wise, it is relatively good as I was not expecting full coverage for a tinted moisturizer, it gives your skin a nice skin glow without that weighty foundation feeling.

Blended in...

Overall I did like this product, and I would love it even more if it was in my SHADE! But otherwise I rate this a nifty 4/5 for it's lightweight feeling but being significantly darker than described on the website.
Buy this product for £3.75 at ELF.COM


The next product for me to chose was the ELF Studio Flawless Finish Foundation. Buy here...

 I was all out of my regular foundation and so I thought I would give this a go as there were mixed feelings when it came to the reviews I read online. The packaging though, was to die for, it looks to professorial and sleek and not the slightest cheap, the bottle really looks smart and the pump is also. Once again the shade I chose online was "Sand" and this was again too dark for my skin!:( (See what I mean when I say the products are much darker than advertised). But never the less it's only a shade darker and so I think once the summer comes the colour will match my tanned skin much better.

Swatch of foundation straight from pot.

The product does not disappoint and to all you ELF Flawless Finish Foundation haters out there, I truly don't understand what's the problem, I LOVE this product  and if it was a shade lighter it would be a dream come true. The pump does release a LOT of product (I learnt this the hard way) and I recommend taking great caution when pumping this foundation. But besides that the foundation is very impressive!

Swatch of the foundation blended into skin.

When it comes to coverage, this foundation does feel heavy on the skin, but in a way this is good as you know you're going to get good coverage, and you do. It isn't particularly oily, but if you do have relatively oily skin perhaps a primer would really help with this product as it does sink in to the skin. It does conceal everything very well and if you set with a powder afterwards, your skin will truly looks flawless! So I rate this 4.5/5  due to website advertising it too dark, but the coverage being in credible and the casing being very impressive!

Buy this foundation for £6.75 at ELF.com

After this product I moved on to was the ELF Studio Blush. Buy here...

Initially, I wanted to purchase the baked blush, but the shade I wanted went out of stock!:( So i  bought this one instead, and honestly it wasn't a complete and utter disaster. This blush is much smaller than I thought it would be as on the website the image is rather large. This isn't a problem of course, just it was s surprise. It doesn't come with any kind of applicator (like some of the other studio items) but that's fine. The casing is really sleek and opens quite easily. It even has a nifty little mirror inside which is always handy! I bought this in the shade "Tickled Pink".

Swatch of the blush.

This blush is very easy to apply and is super pigmented  I was glad to see that it wasn't glittery as I really do hate it when blushes are like that! The colour I chose was nice and gentle and gives the face a nice sunny glow. I had noticed though that the product doesn't last very long so longevity wise it was slightly disappointing  but still was a good buy and I do not regret buying this at all!

The blush blended into skin.

As you can see it gives my skin a nice summer glow which is beautiful and it isn't too shimmery which is also great. I would rate this blush 3/5 for it's nice shade but it's lack of size and the lack of longevity.
Buy this blush for £3.75 ELF.COM

The next item for me to review was the ELF eyelash curlers. Buy here...

I was always interested in eyelash curlers but I never really fancied forking out for some, so for £1.50 you can't go wrong! These curlers are perfect as they are lovely and small for your fingers. They come with extra silicone rubber pad just in case and they curl your eyelashes perfectly. Word of caution though readers, be careful not to pinch your skin, as it does hurt!

The curlers fit nicely into your make-up bag and have been described on YouTube as being just as good as any £30 pair, so you can't loose really! I rate these curlers 5/5 for their usability, size and niftyness!

Buy this product for £1.50 at ELF.com







The next product for me to review is ELF Studio Bronzer. Buy it here...

The casing and that incredible mirror!

I bought this bronzer after hearing everyone rave about it on YouTube. I was not disappointed  This has got to be hands down, my favorite product from ELF. I bought this palette in the shades "warm" and it was perfect. I cannot express my love for this palette with enough words. The packaging is similar to the blush but is much much lager, which is excellent as this is the perfect size to take on the go. The big mirror is excellent also perfect for travelling.

The shades.

The Paelette consists of four colours which are great to use separately  or blended (how I use it), I apply with a bronzing brush as this palette does not come with an applicator, (no problem). The bronzer is super pigmented and has just the right amount of shimmer for my skin, it's wonderful.

Swatches of the shades on skin.

This gives my skin a beautiful summer glow and isn't the slightest orange (what I feared). I rate this product a full 5/5 for its excellency, it's size, the mirror, and the perfection of the product.

Buy this product for £3.75 at ELF.COM

The next thing I reviewed in my haul was the vast collection of ELF Nail Polishes. BUY HERE...

 I have always been into nail polishes and so I bought a eight from ELF. I bought them in the following shades starting from the top left:
Nude, Innocent, Matte Finisher,
Smoky Brown, Plum, Bubble Gum Pink,
Fire Coral, Mint.
One thing you will immediately notice about these nail varnishes is that they are nice and large which is excellent as you get a nice bit of product inside, but be warned: THE COLOURS ARE FAR DARKER THAN ADVERTISED.

The packaging is pretty standard but is still sleek and easy to use. The glass 'look' bottle really looks good and I can't fault the packaging at all. The product is really good but I will say this, the lighter varnishes, (e.g nude, innocent, mint) seem to take ages to dry, literally like HOURS. They don't seem to set too well and so if you don't have a good top coat product than it's very difficult to get a flawless paint as they smudge so easily during the day!:( The colours are excellent though (DESPITE BEING FAR DARKER WHICH MAKES ME ANGRY!) but still the colours that I wasn't disappointed with were really nice and vibrant.                                      

Overall the colours do take a couple of coats to reach full vibrancy, but once they are coated on they are impressive! My favourites have to be the inncoent and the matte finisher, that matte finisher is outsatnding for it's price and you will absolutely be seeing more of that.    I was dissapointed with the Plum I have to say, it's a horrible colour on my nails, but perhaps you guys enjoyed it? Overall I rate this product in general 4/5 for it's size, choice of colours and it's Matte Finisher.
Buy this product for £2.50 at ELF.COM

The next things for me to review are three brushes, the Eye Shadow Brush, Total Face Brush, and Powder Brush. Buy here...

 I have just scattered these images around to give you an idea, but overall I was severely impressed with these brushes! The reviews online were slating the powder brush but honestly, I don't see why! My only fault with these brushes is that the hairs to malt off from time to time, and for some reason on the eye-shadow brush, the eyeshadow staings the brush, but besides that I was very impressed and I would buy these again. SO I rate these brushed 4/5 for their cheapness and usablility, but the fact that they malt/stain lets them down. Buy these brushes for £1.50 at ELF.com

The next product I revirewed were the ELF Tone Correcting Concelar. Buy here...

The product

 I bought these concealers in the shades "Ivory" and "Light Beige" and I was impressed. Most conceal very well for £1.50 and are part of my daily routine. You will notice though, that they are extremely small, like travel small, but I was expecting this for the price. They are packaged exactly like lip glosses, which I like as it makes them easy to carry around.

Birds eye view of the product.

The applicator.

Swatches of the concealers.

 The liquid covers well and after setting with some powder your spots and under eye bags are totally vanished. I use this daily instead of a full face of foundation just to stay minimal, and this is perfect as if I have a couple of blemishes or dark under eyes, this does the trick. They aren't too oily which is perfect for dealing with spots, and they are really easily to apply because of their wand.

The Concealers blended into skin.

 I was once again very impressed with ELF for this product and would rate it 4.5/5 for it's coverage and easiness, but lack of size lets it down. Buy this product for £1.50 from ELF.COM.

Finally I'm down to my last product! And I leave you with the cherry on top which is the marvelous ELF 100PC Marble Eye Shadow Palette. I couldn't find this product on their website any more which is seriously not good, but perhaps you'll find it.

The Palette.

I can describe this product as INCREDIBLE. There are such a huge choice of colours and all impress me to a T. There are a combination of bases, shimmers, marbled eye shadows and brights which all take a bit of experimenting with, but once you do your love for this palette (as of mine) will grow. The palette is humongous and the casing is rather plastically, the eye shadows are not safe if the palette was dropped so be warned.

The lid + Mirror of the Palette.

All 100 colours.

Swatches of the marble shades.

 Some shadows are more pigmented than others, but the marbled eye shadows are by far my favorites  Here are some swatches of the marbled shadows and you can see that the use of two colours is incredible and gives the eye shadow something really extravagant and excellent about them. The shimmers really impressed me too, and are great as a finishing touch. You can even use an eyeliner brush and apply to the under eye - perfect! They are easy to layer on but I do recommend some kind of primer.

Swatch of a shimmer tone.

I'm glad I saved this until last because it's a great thing to end on, overall I am in love with this palette and so should you be! I rate this pallet 4.5/5 for it's incredible colours and pigmentation but the flimsy packaging is a slight let down I'm afraid!:(
Hopefully ELF will stock this palette soon.




And that's it readers! I really hope you enjoy this haul as it took me at least two hours to complete, but it was totally worth it. Like I said in the beginning  if there are some products you are interested in you feel free to ask questions by commenting below, if you would like a more in-depth review on something, also please let me know. I would love to hear your opinions so please let me know what you think, and don't forget to subscribe! Love Annie :)