Elf Studio Cream Eyeliner (Midnight)

My first gel eyeliner is from Maybelline. It really surprised me as it was incredibly easy to use and really smooth & pigmented. However, it was priced at RM40 for a small pot so I looked around for cheaper alternatives and remembered this cream eyeliner from Elf which I have read many good reviews on. So I ordered one in Midnight which is supposed to be a really dark blue, slightly lighter than black.

Looks almost black in the pot

Close up showing a more accurate colour

It came in a really adorable little box. Unlike other gel eyeliners out there, this isn't made from glass nor is it heavy for it's size. But that doesn't mean it's fragile. The black cap looks really sleek and the product looked promising. As it didn't come with a brush at that time (it does now >.<) I used my own Elf Studio Small Smudge brush. It was soft but not like the Maybelline's. When I poked the brush into the Maybelline eyeliner, it would feel like the gel is sliding around and it's a little slippery. The Elf eyeliner just feels like Buncho paint.

Although it may have looked black in the previous photos, in this photo (above) beside Maybelline, the blue is actually quite obvious.

On to the performance. With just 1 swatch, I quickly discovered that this eyeliner is not pigmented enough. The super dark blue turned into a bluish grey. It would settle into the fine lines, where it would be darker while the areas around it would be lighter. Also, it didn't apply evenly and I had to go over it several times trying to make it look even. Other than that, I can't control the intensity of this eyeliner as they all look the same! You can see it for yourself. On the right is the swatch of the Elf eyeliner. Top was pressed down while bottom was lightly. You can also see that the colour sort of clumps together at the side.

Now the left one is the swatch of the Maybelline gel eyeliner in 01 Black. Same method was used and you can obviously see a difference here. Also, I only swiped once to get that super pigmented line while for the Elf's, I had to draw so many times. The colour was also distributed evenly. It was such a breeze to use. Maybelline wins hands down.

I also tried it on my eyes one day. Because it's uneven and poorly pigmented, it took me a longer time to apply this and since I had to redraw and redraw and redraw, my lines were sort of 'cacated'. The result was so bad that I had to try to cover up with mascara (which only helped a little since my lashes are so far from looking like falsies). In the photo above, my liner looks faded and dull although it's freshly applied.

Enlarge to see the disaster. Sorry for the oddly shaped line. Still learning how to draw my eyeliner and this eyeliner doesn't make it any easier.
**Update : I discovered that this eyeliner works so much better with an angled eyeliner brush, not anything else.

Fortunately, there are also some plus points for the Elf eyeliner. Maybelline's was known for being smudge proof. It won't budge until I remove it with an oil based makeup remover. I can happily say the same for the Elf's. I rubbed them both with water and they stayed put! Removal was only possible with the makeup remover and it didn't stain my skin.

Size : 16 oz / 4.7 g

Price : RM 7.90

Bought from : Elf (through hubby_enny of LowYat.net)

Made in China

Pros : Long lasting, smudge proof, cheap

Cons : Poorly pigmented, uneven, settles into fine lines, didn't come with brush,

My conclusion : I would rather buy the Maybelline eyeliner even though it's 4x the price of Elf's. I'll try to finish the pot but won't repurchase unless their new colours (really like the olive and purple) are better.