Review and Swatch: E.L.F. High Definition Powder

my new and old powders; apologies for the mess

Lately I’ve wanted to wear less powder, or at least finer powder. In the summer especially thick powders can look cakey and settle more easily into the lines of the face. My l’oreal true match powder foundation does this even after I’m sure to swipe away any excess. My Palladio rice powder is better, but over the last couple of years “HD” powders have become a hit so I decided to check one out.

The most well know HD powder is Make up Forever’s (MUFE). This powder goes for $34 for just 0.3 ounces! What exotic ingredients make it cost this much? Just one: silica. HD powder is just pure silica. Since MUFE is out of my price range I decided on a cheaper alternative: E.L.F.’s High definition powder. It’s ingredients? Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer and silica. What is Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer? Well, it’s just a fancy word for silica (at least according to google.) So, this means that ingredient wise both powders are the same, except one charges $34 for 0.3 oz. and one charges $6 for 0.28 oz.

The packaging for this product is also nice especially considering the cost. The powder comes in a sleek, black, square shaped box. This box has a secure screw top lid (don’t try to pry the lid straight off like I did!) and inside it contains a powder puff, a sifter, and a plastic seal. This seal keeps the loose powder from going all over the container. For future travel, I will tape the sifter closed. I didn’t have any trouble though, with the seal being taken off and reapplied a dozen times when traveling. The powder puff feels soft, thick, and plush. This feels higher quality than the ones I used to buy from the drugstore. It also comes with a strap so you can hold it with the tips of your fingers. I will not apply with the puff because I think it will be messier than a brush and apply a thicker layer.  I will keep it though for other applications.

The powder itself appears white, but when buffed into the skin goes translucent. I am very pale so I do not know if this will make someone with a darker skin tone appear grey tinted. The powder is extremely finely ground, finer than my rice powder and that’s not exactly coarse. When applied to the skin it makes the area feel smoother, almost velvety. It also removes any sign of oil. It doesn’t just sit on the skin though; it melts with your foundation creating a skin like texture that is able to take cream products without problems.

One problem some people have with certain HD powders is a “flashback” effect. This refers to a white cast on the face that only appears after flash photography is used. I first took a flash photo without any powder, and then one after powder. Neither showed any flashback! So, if you use this powder to set like I did, you should experience no flash back problems!

Overall, I am very happy with this product! This loose powder applies well and leaves a soft, velvety finish in its wake. It does not settle into lines even in the heat of summer and causes no white marks to show in photography. In addition it only costs $6 and yet is exactly the same as a $34 one. What more could you want? I love this powder even after months of use and have already bought a new one even though I

still have a good amount of powder.