vegan beauty

Hey lovelies, today I have a review!

Alright, so can we just talk about how amazing Elf (eyes lips face) Cosmetics is for a second? They are so affordable, cruelty free (many products are vegan friendly as well), and many things are incredible! I say many because I have tried some dud products from them, but I also have some forever holy grail items by their brand.

One of my favorite things being their Studio Line brushes. I own quite a few from face to eye brushes…most of them are so amazing and are about $3-6 each. I’m not a “sigma” or “mac 217” kind of gal, I like my brushes to be great quality, yet affordable. Personally, I can spend $25 on way cooler things than a brush. However, brushes are important and nessecary in my collection, so I don’t like to skimp on quality.

You all can probably imagine my excitement when Elf not only released their new ultimate kabuki brush, but also announced the release of 3 new studio brushes, including a contour brush!
That’s right, a true contour brush at a wallet busting $6.

And yes, I bought all 3 of the new brushes and the ultimate kabuki brush. Judge me if you wish, but I will admit that I’m still trying to build up my brush collection. I just started adding brushes to my routine possibly 2 years ago, and I started out with 2 no name drugstore brushes that I used for everything.

The 3 new brushes that came out a few weeks ago include a contour brush, a brow duo brush, and a blending brush. My overview today is about all 3 of the new brushes and the ultimate kabuki brush, which I’ve had for a few months now. It should be noted that the studio line from elf is vegan friendly, but the essentials line is not as far as I know. Also, I am not sponsored by elf, and these are my honest opinions. I purchased these brushes myself with my money.

Prices: Duo Brow Brush: $3
Blending Brush: $6
Contour Brush: $6
Ultimate Kabuki: $10

Brow Duo Brush This handy little guy comes with an angled brush side and a small spoolie side to brush and shape brows. I really like this duo! The spoolie is small so it really gets into the brow hairs and brushes them out, and the small angled brush is soft, yet stiff enough to give a natural look to the brows while filling them in. If you have sparse brows like myself and need a bit of “help” creating what looks like hair, this does the job well. I’m still blown away that this only costs $3!

Blending Brush If I’m completely honest for a second, this is probably my favorite brush in this post. I adore this brush. It’s so soft, and the angle in it allows for a precise contour if you want a light contour that day, or you can use it to blend out the contour you’ve already laid down. I’ve used it to blend cream and powder contours, blushes, liquid highlighters…this brush is awesome. Even if you read this post and decide you have enough brushes, you may need to add this one. I am head over heels in love with it.

Contour Brush This brush surprised me. I was convinced I couldn’t like any contour brush more than my Crown Deluxe Contour brush, but this brush comes close to my love for it. This brush is soft, but not too soft. It will also give you an extreme contour, so beware because it does pick up a lot of product because the hairs are so close together and short. On days when I want a darker contour I reach for this brush, but I still find myself reaching for my Crown brush more often because I don’t like a stark contour except for date night when I know I’m going to be somewhere with a weird lighting.

Ultimate Kabuki Brush I’m not gonna lie, I had no idea what the heck I was going to use this brush for at first when I got it. I’ve had to play around with it a bit, but it’s actually a pretty awesome brush and can be used multiple ways. This brush is really dense. I’ve used it to pat on blush, to apply highlight (use the flat sides), and to clean up my face if I’ve had fallout from shadows or anything. This can probably be used as a neat body bronzing brush as well, but I’m not about that bronzing life. For the ways it can be used compared to the price, I think this brush is fantastic!

My thoughts on elf studio brushes in general are that they are amazing given the low price point. These are some to definetely consider adding to your cart if you’re placing an order with them anytime soon, or if you’re in the market for some new brushes and on a budget. I haven’t had any shedding problems with any of these brushes yet, but I’ve also only had them for a month or so.

Today I want to talk about my favorite thing…lipstick! I’m always down to talk about lipstick, but more specificially, liquid lipsticks. They seem to be talked about everywhere at the moment. I own quite a few different brands myself. Honestly, I’m addicted to liquid lipsticks. I love trying out new brands and seeing their color ranges. Is it a problem? Maybe. Am I gonna stop? Never.

I like liquid lipsticks because they are just easier to me. If they’re long lasting and easy to apply, I can put them on and still look glamorous without having to worry about lipstick being all over my teeth 5 minutes later.

Jeffree Star has released his own line of liquid lipsticks, and they are blowing up instagram! When I saw that he was releasing a bundle that included a true red, a deep red, and a nude…I almost died. I knew they would sell out quickly (less than an hour later, to be precise) so I stayed up and painlessly snagged my bundle at 3 am est. Honestly, that was the least painful makeup release I have ever endured. The site didn’t crash, I didn’t get my shit stolen out of my cart…or my bank account *COUGH LIME CRIME* So, thumbs up for that.

I wanted to do this review mainly because these shades will be available again next month. So, if you’re on the fence about whether or not to buy these and need a bit more insight, you’re in the right place.

Jeffree Star’s Velour Liquid Lipsticks are vegan and cruelty free. They are also $18 a piece, but the bundle I purchased was $46, so it was discounted a bit.

Packaging: Lush. It’s so cute. I love the fat tubes, honestly. They’re so bold, yet sleek in their own way. Different than many other lipstick packages I’ve seen lately.

Application: These come with a doe foot applicator, but I did notice that the brush has a bit of movement to it. I like that. I like that I can easily maneuver the brush in tight spots and get the most crisp line possible.

Formula: This formula is incredible. It’s probably my new all time favorite liquid lipstick formula. It’s so light on the lips, it feels like I’m wearing nothing. It’s not too drying, yet this formula is super matte. It’s rare to find a liquid lipstick that’s super matte, yet not super drying at the same time. It almost feels like velvet.

Color Payoff: Freakin’ intense. These are very opaque. Even the nude “Celebrity Skin” is very opaque, which is different for me considering my natural lip color tends to throw most nude shades off a bit.

Longevity: Ya may want to sit down for this, but these are truly everything proof. I have said with LaSplash’s lipsticks that they can get crumbly after a bit, and most do, but Jeffree Star’s do not. They are truly kiss proof. Yes, I used my boyfriend for lipstick research. Kiss your boos in this lipstick it won’t budge.

Overall Thoughts: It’s probably obvious at this point that I’m legitimately #obsessed with this line of liquid lipsticks. I didn’t order the two newest pastel shades, because pastel shades on pasty skin just isn’t my thing. I love my nudes and reds, which is why I ordered this bundle back in February. I believe this bundle (or at least the colors in the bundle) will be restocked in April! So, if you missed out on these, you will get another chance to order these soon. I really do love this line, and I hope that Jeffree Star’s cosmetic line continues to soar and expand, especially if everything will be this high quality.

Here are some photos and swatches of the bundle:

This is the shade “unicorn blood” by far my favorite of the bundle. A warm burgundy red. Aka perfection.

“Celebrity Skin” a very beige nude color. Doesn’t flatter my pale skin the best, but it pairs well with lip liners to change the color a bit.

“Redrum” an extremely true red shade with more orange undertones than blue, but it’s a good in between. I adore this bright red.

from left to right: Redrum, Unicorn Blood, Celebrity Skin

As always, thank you for reading! I hope you all found this review helpful in some way.
If you’re new to my blog, please stick around! I post reviews and other makeup fun topics often!

Instagram: @lunafayebeauty