ELF Hydrating Primer

One makeup product that I introduced to my makeup routine in 2017 is primer. I was someone who never used primer before. With my dry skin, a primer just never really seemed like a product I would need. Until I discovered the concept of a hydrating primer. Because my skin could always do with more hydration. If it can make my makeup last longer to boot, then what a great bonus that would be. The ELF Hydrating primer is the first primer that I truly like. 

E.L.F. Hydrating Face Primer

I bought my ELF Hydrating Primer from Old Navy of all placed. I currently cannot find the product on the Dutch website, but I think this cost around $8. That is nearly twice as much as the first primer I reviewed on here that also made my makeup last longer, but didn’t necessarily do much in terms of hydration. Since it is winter, I can use a little more hydration and I was pleasantly surprised by the ELF Hydrating Face Primer.

The Packaging

The ELF Hydrating primer comes in a black cardboard box. The product is housed in a plastic bottle that definitely looks more expensive than it is. The packaging is lightweight, but if you just look at it, the cloudy, matte look of the bottle definitely adds to the overall appearance. The primer comes with a pump which is the first plus: it is easy to use and it is hygienic.

The Swatch

The primer has a thick gel type consistency. You can definitely feel the silicone in this, as is the case with many primers. I also have the ELF Mineral Primer, but I find that to feel much more like silicone. This feels a lot more lightweight.

Not only does it feel lightweight, this primer also feels moisturizing on the skin. Of course I have used my morning skincare routine before I apply this and I find that this prevents my skin from looking dry throughout the day.

When you blend this in, the product disappears into the skin quite quickly. It is easy to blend and I find the best way to apply this is with fingers. I like applying this first, then do my eye primer, brows and then move on to my foundation. This gives the primer some time to settle before applying any products over it.

The Application

This shows the before and after when the primer is first applied. As you can see, this primer ‘disappears’. While many primers will leave a glow or clearly mattify the skin, I feel this does none of those things. My skin is perhaps a little bit more matter, but mainly I don’t see much of a difference. After applying this, the skin has a little bit more slip to it, which works well with my dry skin, especially now that it is winter. In the summer time, when I tend to be a little more oily, this may not work as well.

Wear time

What is a primer review without a wear time test? Because ultimately, a primer isn’t just for hydration, but can also make makeup last longer. This primer definitely does that for me. Despite the difference in lighting, you can see a little bit of shine on my nose and forehead, but other than that, my face makeup is still on. And these pictures were taken nearly 12 hours apart! So I feel this definitely prolongs the wear time of my makeup.

The Conclusion

The ELF Hydrating Face Primer is the first primer I have truly loved. There is a reason why this primer has been popping up in my Shop My Stash blog posts for the past three months. It has been exactly what I’ve been looking for and I highly recommend if you can get your hands on this.

What face primer do you love?