Rather than focusing on a particular product this week I thought I would focus on one of my favourite bargain beauty brands, Elf. Often underrated and unknown in the UK, Elf, (which stands for Eyes, Lips and Face) is a universal make-up brand based in New York that sells quality beauty products at a very appealing price.

When you’re on a restricted budget like typical students, it isn’t always possible to hoard high end products; so looking for alternatives and ‘dupes’ is always a good idea. There a few Elf products that spring to mind that are very similar to more expensive products that we swoon over. So, I am here to tell all.

Elf’s blushers and general face products are often compared to NARS, one of the most well regarded high end brands. In particular, the Gotta Glow highlighting powder is a pretty spectacular dupe of NARS Albatross that is used by the highlighting queen herself, Kim K. Albatross is priced at £22.50, whereas the Elf powder is a much more friendly price of £3.95 – an exact match for effect and a product that won’t break the bank!

We are all slaves to make-up brushes, and they are certainly not cheap. Elf does a wide range of brushes to fit all purposes and for the price – they aren’t half bad. They do not malt, or leave a trail of black hairs left stuck on your face, and they wash up a treat.

Cream products are all the range these days, and Elf are no exception to that trend. Their wide variety of cream eye shadows really stand up to par. They even do 2-in-1 shadows that complement each other and offer a helping hand along the way.

So, step out of Boots or your local drugstore and search the web to find other alternative make up brands. They are often underrated yet offer great results at a much cheaper price and Elf is a rather good place to start.