Elf (aka Eyes Lips Face) are a company which has crossed the pond from the States offering very affordable, but often really great, makeup products. The fun thing about Elf is that everything is just £1.50, which makes me feel better about buying one of everything!

I have only placed one Elf order so far, and purchased three of their brushes. So far it is 1-1 in the Good vs Bad stakes, the eyeshadow brush being brilliant, and the lip brush being a huge flop. So this is the decider, Elf's foundation brush.

The brush, like the rest of the range, is plain to look at - a white handle stating which type of brush it is and bristles held in place by a silver band. They definitely don't look cheap, but are rather plain and functional which is fine by me because it is just a brush after all. Brushes aren't supposed to be pretty.

The bristles on the foundation brush are about 3/4 in wide by 1 inch long, and the familiar yellow of many foundation or concealer brushes.

When I first got this brush, I wasn't actually using a foundation that needed to be applied with a brush, as it was the summer and I tended to go bare-faced or, very occasionally, use tinted moisturiser. So at the start of its life I was mostly using it to apply concealer, which I must say despite its size it did a good job of.

The bristles are springy, not too hard, not too soft, just right. I was using Elf's All Over Cover Stick concealer, which I still love, and it is quite a wide twist-up stick, which gets quite messy so it's easiest to apply with a brush. I can pick up a small amount and get reasonably good precision with this brush. The thing I like most about it is that it is easy to blend out foundation/concealer and make buffing motions into the skin, even though it's a flat brush which you wouldn't think would lend itself to this type of application.

I now use Dream Matte Mousse and find it works very well with this brush, I am able to pick up just the tiny amount needed and blend perfectly where needed. I like to lay the brush flat onto the product and gently press so I can brush on a nice thin layer to blend rather than having to even out dots of product dabbed onto the skin.

While I haven't used the product with a liquid foundation, I think it would probably work pretty well if the foundation was applied to the back of the hand and applied with the brush, although the bristles may have a tendency to "eat up" the product, making you use more than you would like.

I must admit I don't have the best brush hygiene, the brush never really feels dirty so I don't wash it as often as I should. It's nice that it doesn't feel gungy but I should probably adopt better practise in this regard! When I do get around to it, it is easy to clean and dries quickly.

As is true of all Elf's products, besides the new mineral makeup line, this brush costs just £1.50. It is available individually or as part of a set. It is undoubtedly fantastic value for money and I would definitely recommend it if you use a mousse/more solid foundation, especially as it works well for concealer so saves carrying around several brushes if you're travelling.

So there's the decider! 2-1 in Elf's favour, their brushes are really great. I will be furthering the experiment with my next order..

To buy the brush and check out the rest of the range, head to www.eyeslipsface.co.uk to take a peek. Delivery is SUPER fast but be warned it's very hard to leave without buying something at those prices!