ELF Matte Lip Colour in Natural - Review and Swatches

Today I'm a little excited as we've just got some new pets in the household, a couple of Degu's (a bit like gerbils). They're so cute and fun to watch, their still settling in at the moment, but they do have names - Buffy and Willow. Names picked by the boyfriend (they are actually his pets!).

But back to todays schedule! When ELF came out with these, I had to give them a try as I've loved their lip products in the past. I decided to just pick up one shade and went for Natural, as I was looking for something work friendly. This cost me £3.50 from the ELF website.

As always I have included a summary at the end. 

The Basics 

The ELF Studio Matte Lip Colours come in four different shades - Natural, Tea Rose, Coral and Praline all of which appear to be fairly natural shades - no brights or reds anyway! Each one has 1.8g of product, which is considerably less than a standard lipstick, but this has a very different packaging style. These are dispensed in a larger pencil form that twists up. Which I actually like, the packaging is sleek and cute - but the writings rubbed off on mine already. 

 

The Formula 

This does feel a little waxy on the lips, but not excessively. Apart from that I find it doesn't feel sticky or 'bitty' on my lips. Once applied it lasts around 4 hours with a bit of drinking/eating on me. But if you have a full blown meal - or are out on the town drinking a lot, it won't last through this. Matte lip colours generally are slightly infamous for drying the lips out but these aren't so bad. They contain Vitamins A, C and E which I find doesn't moisturize my lips, but does prevent the drying effect, mostly. 

 

Is it fully matte? 

Pretty much yes. There is a very and I mean very subtle sheen to it, but for the purpose of this it is matte. This doesn't mean you can't use a gloss or balm with it to give a shine if you like the colour. But if you do use it alone it will show up any dryness you have much more than a glossy finish. 

ELF Matte Lip Colour - Natural

Colour and Pigmentation

The pigmentation is definitely there, one swipe on the lips gives the colour in the pencil. Which is great, as it means this will last longer. The colour itself is a dusky nude pink, which for me is on the margin of being too pale for my colouring, it's just about alright though. But if your concious of wearing pale colours you might want to pick on of the other shades. 

Bare Lips

ELF Matte Lip Colour - Natural

The Good - Is matte like it says, not as drying as some matte lip products, easy to use, packaging, cheap, can last around 4 hours on me, unscented, doesn't bleed over the lip line.

The Not so Good -  1.8g product is less than most lip products, writing has rubbed of packaging already, being matte it shows up dryness in the lips more, have to buy online in UK, sinks into creases a little.

Would I buy again? I'm not sure, I like it and will probably pick it up from time to time, but I don't really see it as anything special. I'm also not convinced on the colour - but a gloss over the top can solve that one!

Who would this be suited to? Anyone looking for a cheap matte lip product, in a paler natural colour. People looking for something in a work suitable shade, without excessive shine to it. 

Bottom Line - I probably will pick this up again, but will more than likely use a darker/pink gloss over the gloss to make me look less dead when wearing it. The product as a whole - it's alright but I probably won't be buying another unless they bring out some brighter colours. 

Thanks for reading my post, I hope it was helpful, but if you have any further questions just ask :) What do you guys think of matte lipsticks? Thanks again for stopping by, H :)