Saturday, November 14, 2009

Priminition

So, I mentioned that I had picked up the regular line ELF primer during my last ELF haul. Well, it arrived so I sat down to compare it to my family of primers. First of all, I have been using the Lumene primer on a fairly regular basis since I bought it several months ago when it was on clearance at CVS. I like it and I'm (guessing) about 1/2 way done and the thought of finishing a cosmetic item is both strange and awesome so I haven't been giving my other primers much love. The comparison photographs were unfortunately taken indoors with artificial light so I've included both flash and non flash ones. The primer is not rubbed in as the swatches were done on notebook paper.


Lumene Eye Makeup Base $9.99/.34oz squeeze tube
Urban Decay Primer Potion $17.00/.34oz wand
Isododecane, Talc, Cyclopentasiloxane, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Trihydroxystearin, Triethylhexanoin, Isopropyl Lanolate, Sorbitan Sesquioleate, VP/Eicosene Copolymer, Dimethicone, PEG-40 Stearate, Propylene Carbonate, Phenoxyethanol, Cera Alba (Beeswax), Trimethylsiloxysilicate, Propylparaben, Methylparaben, Ethylparaben, Butylparaben, Methicone, Isobutylparaben.
May Contain: Mica, CI 77891 (Titanium Dioxide), CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499 (Iron Oxides), CI 77163 (Bismuth Oxychloride).

Benefit Recess Creaseless Cream shadow/liner $19.00/.16oz pot
cyclopentasiloxane, isododecane, polyethylene, polymethylmethacrylate, dimethicoe, disteardimonium hectorite, propylene carnonate, [+/-: titanium dioxide (CI 77891), tin oxide, iron oxides (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499), mica, carmine (CI 75470), bismuth oxychloride (CI 77163)].
ELF Mineral Eyeshadow Primer (flat cap) $3.00/.15oz wand
Isododecane, Cylopentasiloxane, Octyl Palmitate, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Dimethicone, Polyglyceryl-4 Isostearate, Triacontanyl PVP, Propylene Carbonate, Titanium Dioxide, Tocopherol, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Iron Oxides (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499), Mica (CI 77019), Bismuth Oxychloride (CI 77163).
ELF Eyelid Primer (curved cap) $1.00/.17oz wand
Cyclopentasiloxane, Octyl Palmitate, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Dimethicone, Kaolin, Triacontanyl PVP, Propylene Carbonate, Titanium Dioxide, Barium Sulfate , Iron Oxides (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499), Mica (CI 77019).

Primers with a pink(er) undertone: ELF regular, ELF studio, UDPP
Primers with a yellow(er) undertone: Lumene, Benefit Recess
All of them are matte except for the Benefit. It has a very subtle pearly sheen.

These are all basically clear when rubbed into the eye and that's partially why I did not swatch on my skin. Honestly, I haven't personally had any problems with these creasing so if you are looking for a primer, I think either of the ELF ones would do the job at a much lower price point!

And finally, an up close and personal picture of Studio Gear crystal taupe eyeshadow. Love this. Looks boring and brown in the pot but it gets a beautiful silver sheen when applied.

13 comments:

Jasmine said...

Thanks so much for this post. I have been wanting to pick up a primer, but I don't like the shape of UDPP and i think it is overpriced. I will be trying the ELF primer shortly!

Jeweled Thumb said...

@Jasmine: Anytime! You can barely tell the difference between the 2 ELF primers (a few differences with ingredients but nothing mind blowing) so you might as well go with $1 from the regular line!

Unknown said...

Wow, this was really useful, thank you so much!
Maybe i'll get an ELF primer with my next order from them :)

Jasmine said...

I feel so silly. I thought I purchased the ELF primer during the 60% studio line sale and I just received my package today. lol, I ended up purchasing the Eyeliner and Shadow Stick for some strange reason.

Jeweled Thumb said...

@ Jasmine: Probably because technically the studio line doesn't have a liquid primer. It's from the regular or mineral lines. Don't fret, there will always be another ELF code. =)

Jeweled Thumb said...

@Lillian: For $1 or $3 why not? =)

All said...

How does Benefit Recess compare to UDPP in terms of quality? Thanks!

Jeweled Thumb said...

@All The Pretty Thing: I've found the quality is high on both UDPP and the Benefit creaseless creams. The MAJOR difference is that UDPP drys clear while the Benefit ones keep their color. The Benefit also has the pearl sheen while UDPP is fairly matte.

As far as creasing, etc. I found the quality of both high... I think the only thing going for the Benefit (and not UDPP) is that it's a great "no makeup" look. Just a nice beige sheen. So, it's dual-purpose. You can see in the photos that the color is 'true' after applying shadow to both. Hope that helps!

Fiona M said...

This is a great post. I use MAC Paint in Bare Canvas as my primer and it is fantastic for keeping my shadow in place for 18hrs or more. I think it works better than UDPP. I have 2 of those in trial sizes though so I'll work through all that before trying ELF. I am waiting for an order from them to arrive today though with a bunch of other stuff I'm excited about trying!

Lisa Kate said...

Totally amazing post! I've been using the ELF studio primer and I like it so far. I actually don't care for using cream shadows as they dull the colors on me. I think its cause I'm computer paper white!

Jeweled Thumb said...

@scarlettholly: I have to admit that the ELF stuff is pretty good. I'm surprised at how much I like from the line to tell you honestly. One item even reached HG status... for $3 I'm not complaining!

@Lisa Kate: Aw, you're sweet. Welcome to the club! I'm sure you've seen my hand in natural light. I'm like the white lined paper without the lines!

ndoodles said...

I think eyeshadow primers are important but they all are kinda the same - like UDPP and TFSI. I'm glad that ELF has come out w/ amazing affordable ones.

Jeweled Thumb said...

@ndoodles: Me too! Why spend $18+ when you can spend $1 or $3? More money for other pretty things.

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