Hey guys! Today I have a fun little dupe for you! Like many beauty lovers on the Internet, I am a huge fan of the Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Flawless Filter. Last year, ELF released its own version of the product, the Halo Glow Liquid Filter. It took me forever to get my hands on it. It wasn’t available in Canada for quite a while. Once it was released, the ELF dupe was always sold out. But I have it and now I’m happy to share my thoughts on the products. Let’s get into it!
The Charlotte Tilbury filter is a ‘complexion booster’ meant to blur, smooth, and illuminate the face for a ‘real-life filter effect’. Charlotte Tilbury says you can wear it four different ways: alone all over the face, under foundation, mixed with foundation and on top of foundation like a highlighter. The filter comes with 1 oz (or 30 ml) and retails for $62 CAD. For quite a while there were only a few shades but they now offer 12 different shades.
The ELF dupe is described as a multi-purpose, liquid glow booster to give your complexion a ‘soft-focus social filter effect IRL’. ELF recommends the same four ways as Charlotte Tilbury to apply the product. It comes with 1.06 oz (or 31.5 ml) and retails for $18 CAD. ELF has eight different shades available.
I want to note that the two shades I got are not exactly the same. For Charlotte Tilbury, I have shade 3 Fair which they describe as a warm peach for light to medium skin tones. With ELF, I have shade 2 Fair/Light. There isn’t a shade description available but I would say it leans more yellow. I can see a slight difference when I wear them but when I asked my brother his opinion, didn’t notice a difference between the two shades.
Now onto comparing how the two perform on my face. This is such a good dupe. I like to wear this product both under foundation and on top like a highlight. I tested both methods and I noticed no difference in the performance between the two filters. As I mentioned, I asked my brother he if noticed a difference at all and he couldn’t tell I was wearing two different products.
My only issue with the ELF dupe is quite a minor one. Both come with a duo foot applicator which I find very convenient to apply the product. I find the ELF applicator is bigger so it dispenses a little too much product for my liking. But I don’t wear this all over my face like other people do so this is more of a personal preference.
I would say this is a very very good dupe. I would recommend the ELF product because it’s cheaper and performs the same. I will say that both come with a lot of product. I’ve had the Charlotte Tilbury Flawless Filter for years and have a lot left. Charlotte Tilbury does sell a mini version in a limited number of shades for $22. So if you think that 1 oz is too much product, the Charlotte Tilbury mini could be a good option that is only four dollars more than the ELF product. But otherwise, I would recommend the ELF product.
Let me know if you guys have tried either of these products and what your thoughts were! If you have any other dupes that you would like me to test let me know in the comments!
Hey guys! It’s time for another product empties post. I love writing product empties because I’ve finished a product so I usually have formed my opinion on a product. I feel like I can give you guys the best review after using up a product. I had a bunch of empties but decided to break up my collection into two posts, so expect to see another product empties post in the future. Let’s get into it.
The first empty is a hair mask. I’ve mentioned before I’m on the hunt for the best hair mask that doesn’t count sulphates or silicones, which is proving to be difficult. The latest one I’ve tried is Shea Moisture Raw Shea Butter Deep Treatment Masque. This is the second Shea Moisture mask I’ve tried and I’m a little underwhelmed once again. I want to love this brand’s masks because they’re available at the drugstore. I found the other mask I tried from this brand to be too heavy. With this Deep Treatment Masque, I don’t find much of a difference. Maybe I need to let it sit longer than five to ten minutes? I just find that hair masks with silicone always make my hair feel soft and smooth and I can’t seem to find a similar effect with silicone-free masks. Maybe if you have dry hair you’d like this, but for me, it’s a pass.
Next, I finally finished the Kylie Skin Foaming Face Wash. You know I’ve had this for a while when the packaging has changed since I got this haha. I got this in my June 2020 Boxycharm. This cleanser is very gentle so I only use it as a second cleanser after I use a cleansing balm. It took me forever to go through this cleanser because it’s a foaming face wash. I only need about one pump to wash my face so it just took a long time to go through it. Overall it’s not a bad cleanser, if anything it would be great if you had sensitive skin. But I wouldn’t go out of my way to order it and ship it to Canada for such a gentle cleanser.
A product that is slowly becoming a reoccurring empty is the Peace Out Salicylic Acid Acne Healing Dots. I finished this pack back in January and I’m almost finished my current pack. To be fair my skin has been freaking out lately so I’ve been using a lot of these dots. They are by far the best acne patches I’ve tried and the patches make a difference with how quickly my breakouts heal. The key is to use these when the whitehead has appeared to suck all the gunk out. I will say the only thing that breaks my heart is that they’re not the cheapest at $25 for a 20 pack so I only use them on my had breakouts. Sometimes I’ll also cut them in half if I had a small breakout. Overall if you suffer from acne you have to check these out!
Another product that I’ve received from my Boxycharm is the Farmacy Honey Grail Ultra-Hydrating Face Oil. I’m just gonna put it out there that this oil is no joke. As someone with oilier skin, I generally don’t reach for face oil. I used this oil as my moisturizer found that it gave me more than enough moisture. It claims to be fast-absorbing and I would have to disagree. I found that it took a while for the oil to sink into my skin. Maybe if you had super dry skin you would love this. As an oily skin girl, this just wasn’t meant for me so I will not be repurchasing this oil.
An oil that I do love is the Biossance Squalane + Vitamin C Rose Oil. This is one of my favourite vitamin C serums I’ve tried. I find this vitamin C is potent enough to make a difference in my acne scars. The squalane and rose oil also had a visible brightness and glow to my skin that I haven’t found in other vitamin C serums. My only complaint is that it’s quite expensive, which is why I recently go the Glow Recipe vitamin C serum, you can check out my review of it here!
The next two empties are mascaras! I’m trying to be better about throwing out expired makeup and I’ve had both of these for over a year so it’s time for them to go in the garage. The first mascara is the Tarte Maneater Voluptuous Mascara. I got this one in a Boxycharm. I generally like Tarte mascara and this one is no exception. The shape of the wand means that I don’t get mascara all over my lids. I do prefer the Tarte Tarteist Lash Paint Mascara over this one because I prefer length over volume. My second mascara empty is the Hourglass Unlocked Instant Extensions Lengthening Mascara. I thought I was going to love this mascara and I was disappointed. It’s supposed to be a lengthening mascara and I find it didn’t give me that much length. I also found that so much product got on the wand and it became very goopy very quickly so it would get all over my eyelids. The only pro was that it was easy to remove since it’s a tubing mascara. But I will not be repurchasing this mascara.
A drugstore empty! I decided to pick up the ELF Holy Hydration Face Cream because I wanted to test out some affordable skincare and this was a winner baby! This is a little on the thicker side for my oily side so this is more of a winter/nighttime moisturizer for me. But if you have dry skin you would love this. At $16 this is such an affordable moisturizer and shows you don’t always have to pay a ton of money for good skincare. I have purchased other moisturizers but this is one that I would instantly recommend to people in the future.
If you read my Body Lotion Round-Up post, you might recognize that I mentioned the Bath & Body Works Body Lotion. I had finally finished this Pumpkin Pecan Waffles scent back in January. I had bought this back in August so it took me five months to finish this! I have learned my lesson and won’t be buying seasonal scents anymore because I was sick of smelling like fall in early January haha. But the actual body lotion is great. It’s thick but absorbs quickly into the skin. The scents are strong and do linger so just keep that in mind if you are sensitive to scents. I have already repurchased another one, I like the B&BW lotions!
The final empty for today is the Youth to the People Superfood Antioxidant Cleanser. This is an amazing cleanser if you have acne-prone skin. I didn’t realize how effective it was until I stopped using it. It’s gentle enough that my skin doesn’t feel stripped when using it. But it did a great job at reducing the number of breakouts I had. It comes in a glass bottle with a pump, which is great for the vanity but not good for travelling haha. I have purchased a different cleanser since but I am considering getting it again in the future.
And those are my product empties! Let me know if you’ve tried any of these products and what your thoughts were!
Hey guys! A couple of weeks ago I posted a haul and first impression video of a bunch of Elf Cosmetics products I ordered. It’s been a couple of weeks so I wanted to give you a follow-up review of the products. There are some hits and there are some misses, so let’s get into it.
First, let’s start with the brushes. I got the Mint Melt Eyeshadow Brush Set and the Putty & Cream Blush Brush. The brushes are good but you kinda get what you pay for. The handles are plastic and are very lightweight. The brush quality is nice but I find all the brushes to be a bit small. I would say if you’re to makeup and need to get some brushes then Elf is a great brand to buy from. If you love makeup and want to invest in some good quality brushes then I would pass on these.
By far the most disappointing product is the Liquid Glitter Eyeshadow. I thought this was going to be a dupe for the Stila Magnificent Metals but they just don’t compare. The Stila shadows are full of glitter but still have a base shimmer to the shadow. Whereas the Elf eyeshadow is just straight glitter. So I could apply the Stila eyeshadow to my bare eye but I need to put the Elf eyeshadow overtop another eyeshadow. The glitter is pretty, don’t get me wrong. It’s just glitter in a clear gel. I would recommend the Stila eyeshadows over the Elf ones.
The second eye product I got is the Bite-Size Eyeshadow. There are eight different palettes but I got the Cream & Sugar palette. I think the eyeshadows in the palette are amazing. The mattes blend well and the shimmers are easy to use and look great on the eye. I’m just not sure if I like the colour selection. I find when there are only a few shades in a palette it’s important which ones are included. This palette has only four shades so I would want to be able to do a full eyeshadow look. I personally find that I’m missing a good crease shade. The beige is too light and the brown is too dark to use in the crease. I need to use another eyeshadow to be able to do a full look. I almost always use a crease shade for my eyeshadow looks, so since this palette is missing one I don’t see myself using it very often. That being said, I’d be interested in getting other palettes if the colour story piques my interest.
One of Elf’s most popular products right now is the Poreless Putty Primer. This is a dupe of some more expensive primers such as the Tatcha Silk Canvas Primer. I haven’t tried that one so I can’t compare. I got the regular Putty Primer but almost wish I got the Matte Primer. I feel like the primer does a great some of making my skin feel smooth but doesn’t do much for helping my makeup longer. I think the Matte one would just work better with my skin type. It’s a fine primer but I’m not blown away.
The next product I tried is the Flawless Finish Foundation. I LOVE the way my face looks when I first apply this foundation. It’s medium coverage and has a semi-matte finish. It just makes my face look flawless – just like the name suggests! It comes with a pump which is handy. I was able to shade match myself quite easily. I would say that it looks great for around five hours, but after that I look super oily. The excess oil means it’s also easy to rub off the foundation. So if you need a foundation to last all day and can’t powder then maybe pass on this one. But if you’re fine powdering or don’t have oily skin then this is a great foundation.
While I did a great match with my foundation, I didn’t do a good job picking the correct shade in the Hydrating Camo Concealer. So I haven’t worn it much under the eyes since it’s the wrong shade. I’ve worn it on my face and it’s great for spot concealing. It doesn’t look cakey and stays in place. Sorry, this isn’t the best review. It’s such a great price that I might get another shade for under my eyes.
I decided to pick up their new Putty Bronzer and Putty Blush. In the bronzer I got the shade Tan Lines and in the blush I got the shade Tahiti. If you are new to creams these are the products for you. These are very lightweight and very easy to blend. I find I have to build it up to get the blush and bronzer to the intensity that I like. But what I also like is that they dry down to a semi-matte finish so my face doesn’t feel sticky. The fact that it dries down means that it lasts quite a long time on the skin. If you are looking for drugstore cream products then you HAVE to check these out.
The final product is the Sheer Slick Lipstick. I got the shade Golden Pear. I expected the lipstick to be sheerer but despite that I like this lipstick. It’s very nourishing and feels very nice on the lips. While it’s not the most long-lasting it fades nicely from the lips. I’ve been using this a couple of times a week and I can see myself continuing to use it in the future.
And that is my round-up of all the products that I purchased from Elf Cosmetics. Let me know in the comments if you tried any of these products. And also let me know what your favourite product is from Elf!
Leave it to Lea 