Today, I have a review of Elate Cosmetics, an eco beauty brand from British Colombia, Canada, that I really love for it’s conscious and sustainable values. Elate is certified cruelty free with the Leaping Bunny Program, and all of their products are vegan. Elate Cosmetics is known for their sustainably produced bamboo packaging that can be re-used and refilled when you run out of a product. Elate aims to make beauty products that “don’t compromise the health of any person, animal or the planet”. 75% of their ingredients are organic, they strive to be as organic as possible, but will choose fair trade over organic if they can’t have both. It is important to them that everyone involved in the making of the products is treated ethically and fairly. Elate commits up to 2% of their sales to charitable causes each year which you can find out more about on their website. Flora and Fauna (affiliate) is the exclusive Australian stockist for Elate Cosmetics. Today I will share my thoughts with you on their foundations and concealer, and in the next blog post I’ll show you their blushes and highlighters.
Packaging
I originally found Elate when I was searching for companies with sustainable packaging. I remembered Elate because of their bamboo packaging. Bamboo is the fastest growing woody plant in the world that requires little water to survive, and new shoots can be harvested without killing the plant. This makes bamboo a great plastic alternative, especially if it is only water-treated like this packaging is. 75% of Elate Cosmetic’s packaging is currently waste free, but they are aiming to become 100% plastic free and waste free in the future. All pressed products come in an aluminium pan, as aluminium can be infinitely recycled. The bamboo compacts and palettes are made with magnets that hold the aluminium pans in place, once the product is used up, the empty pan can be replaced with a new one. The compacts are supposed to come with a small hole in the bottom so that you can stick a pin through and easily push out the pan but none of mine have that. Instead, I have used a pin to flip the pans out by wedging in between the pan and the bamboo. If for some reason, you no longer want to re-use the bamboo packaging, then you can compost it and it will go back to the earth.
Every refill pan is sent in paper envelopes that are embedded with non-invasive wildflower seeds. When you are finished with the seed paper envelope, you can soak, plant and water it to grow flowers. I haven’t done this yet as I’ve kept my seed paper envelopes for the photos for this post, but I’m keen to try it out. All seed paper used by Elate Cosmetics is made from 100% post-consumer and post-industrial fibre, so no trees are cut down to make them.
Reviews
When I first discovered Elate, they were only selling from Canada, and the shipping was expensive, but since then, Flora and Fauna (affiliate) have picked up the brand and I have been able to purchase some of their products. I was lucky enough to win a giveaway a couple of years ago where I won some products, but most are purchased with my own money. I really love base products like foundation, concealer, blush and highlight, so those are the main products that I have purchased, and therefore can review for you. Some of the items I won, have been replaced with a newer version, but I will show you swatches of them so you can see the shade anyway.
Powder Foundation
I have the Elate Cosmetics Fix Pressed Powder Foundation in Ivory which has since been replaced by the Pressed Foundation in PN1. The only difference between these two products is that the Pressed Foundation now has one extra ingredient, Vitis Vinifera, which Elate told me is a plant microzest made from grapes that gives the skin some extra pollution protection, however the products will work the same. This pressed powder comes in a 16g pan that sits in a square bamboo compact with inbuilt mirror. This compact is the most sturdy of all the bamboo compacts, so I can carry it in my bag for touch ups knowing the powder will stay protected.
The Pressed Powder is now available in 10 shades ranging from PN1 (fair) to PW8 (deep). The product shade range is labelled so that “1” is the lightest shade they make and 8 is the deepest, and the second letter of the shade name represents if it is cool (C), neutral (N) or warm (W). I have done a swatch comparison of my Ivory powder next to some mainstream powders as well as other indie mineral powders. Below you can see it compared to the Australis Cosmetics Fresh and Flawless Pressed Powder in Light Beige, Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Finish Pressed Powder in Fair, Aura Makeup Evolved Pressed Mineral Foundation in Shell, La Mav Anti-ageing Mineral Foundation in Light, Eco Minerals Perfection Mineral Foundation in Vanilla, and the Ere Perez Cosmetics Calendula Powder Foundation in Light. This shade is as light as the other lightest shades and it is actually light enough for me to use which is great as most natural makeup brands don’t make a powder foundation that is fair enough for me to use. It is definitely yellow based rather than neutral, but I can still get away with wearing it.
The Elate Cosmetics Powder Foundation is the only natural mineral powder foundation that I have come across that is pressed, all other mineral powders I have tried have all been loose. The pressed formula makes it easier and less messy to use, as well as easier to travel with. The powder has a light coverage and has a slightly powdery texture on application but this is completely taken away with a small amount of makeup fixing spray, or even a skincare spray. I have used it over liquid foundations which it works fine for, but I usually use it when I want to put something on my face really quickly before I run out the door, just to even out my skin tone.
Cream Foundation
I also have the Elate Cosmetics Full Tint Foundation in Ivory, which has been renamed the Uplift Foundation UN1. The product is exactly the same, the packaging has just been changed to have a bamboo lid rather than a plastic one. This is a cream foundation that is described as being lightweight and radiant by Elate. It is the thickest foundation I have used, it’s almost a mousse. That said, it is still easy to apply with either a brush or fingers. It can look streaky if just wiped over the skin, so it really does need to be patted on. For me it gives light coverage and it is very lightweight, it doesn’t feel like I’m wearing anything on my face. The Elate website says it can be used in various ways to get sheer coverage or full coverage. For me, I haven’t found a way to build it up to make it fuller coverage as when I try to layer it, it removed the layer underneath. The shade I have is too dark for me so that could be why it doesn’t look quite right layered on my skin but I’m not sure. This foundation isn’t long-wearing but it comes off very evenly, so it doesn’t look patchy at any point.
This foundation is the only Elate Cosmetics face product that I have tried that has a strong smell. It’s certainly not an artificial, it’s a natural scent, and it is probably just the mix of the oils within the product. The Uplift Foundation has organic jojoba seed oil, virgin organic coconut oil, castor seed oil, argan oil and sea buckthorn oil. Elate highlights the sea buckthorn oil as a key ingredient that can help soften the appearance of scars and blemishes. I’m not a fan of this scent but I don’t tend to like many natural oil scents, I still however use oils because they work well on my skin.
The shade Ivory, now UN1, is too dark for me, so I have tried to mix all of my different foundation lightening products into it, but none have worked as the Elate foundation has an almost mousse like consistency that just doesn’t mix with any liquid product. If you sit between two shades, then you can mix them together to get your right shade, and that will work. My mum is able to mix my Ivory with her shade Ecru/UN2 to get the right colour for her. She normally wears the shades Light in the La Mav Certified Organic BB Creme, Ivory in the Hourglass Cosmetics Illusion Hyaluronic Skin Tint and Light in the Chi Chi Cosmetics Super CC Cream. I borrowed hers so I could do a swatch comparison for you.
The Full Tint/Uplift foundation range seems to be running darker than that of the other Elate Cosmetics products, which is a shame as I love the powder and concealer colours. I have a swatch photo of the Full Tint Foundation in Ivory/Uplift Foundation in UN1 from my Ere Perez review, of it compared to Josie Maran Cosmetics Vibrancy Argan Oil Foundation Fluid in RG5 Dynamic, Urban Decay Naked Skin Weightless Ultra Definition Liquid Makeup 0.5, Too Faced Born This Way Foundation in Snow, Colourpop Cosmetics No Filter Natural Matte Foundation in 20, Hourglass Vanish Seamless Finish Foundation Stick in Blanc, and La Mav Certified Organic BB Creme in Light. I usually wear Hourglass Blanc with a tiny bit of Hourglass Cream mixed in, which ends up being quite a few shades lighter than this Elate foundation. Because the foundation is way too dark for me, I haven’t been able to use it. If there was a shade match for me, I would love to test it to see if it could be my go to base for a natural makeup look. Elate also makes the Refresh Foundation (originally known as Fresh Tint) which is a sheer coverage liquid foundation but I haven’t tried it yet. The Refresh is slightly different from the original Fresh Tint as it has vegan hyaluronic acid, and lycii berry extract to help hydrate and protect the skin.
Concealer
One of my all time favourite Elate Cosmetics products is the Creme Revealer in Porcelain. This concealer is packaged in a little glass jar that has a very small opening at the top, making it hard to get the product out. To make it easier to use, and to make it zero waste, Elate has replaced this with the Creme Concealer which comes in a 3g aluminium pan in a small bamboo compact. The bamboo compact has a sliding lid with a small mirror on the reverse side. You can purchase replacement concealer pans when the product runs out, so that you can re-use the bamboo compact. I picked up the Creme Concealer in shade CC1 so that I could do a comparison of these two Elate concealers for you.
The Creme Revealer (old) has a creamy texture that glides on to the skin and blends out seamlessly. The Creme Concealer (new) on the other hand has a waxy texture that doesn’t feel as creamy or look as luminous. When on the face, these concealers do look similar. They both provide a natural skin-like finish and have a light coverage. I prefer the original Creme Revealer as the creaminess makes it easy to layer over blemishes and it doesn’t catch as easily on dry skin. I typical use this with a eye blending brush or my finger, as I’m able to get to the product in the pot that way. I sad when I realised that the formula was different for the Creme Concealer, as the Revealer is my absolute favourite natural concealer. In saying that, the Creme Concealer is still a good product, I just have to use it slightly differently. To apply, I use my finger to first swipe it over the area I want it, and then pat it in. Because of the waxy texture, it can just continually be moved around if not patted into the skin. I haven’t been able to build this up on blemishes like I can with the Revealer, but it does apply really smoothly on the under eye area. Both concealers can get a slightly hard surface layer that will look a bit lumpy if applied directly to the skin, but this is easily fixed by swirling your finger in the product before applying it, to get it creamy again. Elate may be using the same ingredients in the Creme Concealer as they did in the Creme Revealer but something in their manufacturing process has to have changed as the concealers aren’t identical.
The Elate Cosmetics Creme Concealer in CC1 is pretty much identical to the Ivory Creme Revealer shade. It is the perfect concealer shade for my very fair pink toned skin. I compared the Creme Revealer to other concealers to give you an idea of the shade. I compared it to the Urban Decay Naked Skin Weightless Complete Coverage Concealer in Fair Neutral, Tarte Shape Tape Contour Concealer in Fair Beige, Colourpop Cosmetics No Filter Matte Concealer in Fair 06 and Ere Perez Arnica Concealer in Latte. It is a very similar colour to that of the Colourpop Cosmetics No Filter Matte Concealer in Fair 06, but obviously a very different formula.
The new Elate Cosmetics Creme Revealer is the first concealer I have ever seen that is zero waste, I think that’s a great accomplishment for this brand. I do prefer the creamy formula of the old Creme Concealer as it works so well on my dry skin, but I still think the Creme Revealer is a good product and I will continue to use it. It does have a waxy formula compared to the original, but it is still a lot less drying than the other natural concealers I’ve tried, and the CC1 shade is such a good colour for my skin tone. I really like using the Elate Cosmetics concealer and powder foundation together for a quick natural look when I’m in a hurry. I apply the Creme Concealer first, and pat it on to any blemishes and under the eyes, and then put the Pressed Powder on top. I then apply blush and my favourite highlighter, that you will see in my next Elate post, and I’m out the door.
Elate Cosmetics is leading the way to a more sustainable future for beauty. You can really see how hard this brand is trying to be ethical and environmentally friendly. I love that Elate Cosmetics is cruelty free, vegan. has eco-friendly packaging that can be zero waste, cares about their workers and gives to charities that align with their values. There are very few brands that are actually doing all the good they can like Elate is. As well as making the world a better place, they are also trying to create products that their customers really enjoy. As with any brand, I don’t love every product they make, but every product has good ingredients, and you can tell they have been put together with a lot of thought. My favourite base products are the Creme Revealer/Concealer and the Pressed Powder Foundation. The Uplift Foundation isn’t my shade and I haven’t had a any luck with building it up or layering it, so it’s not a product I use, but it could work for someone else with other preferences and skin types/shades. I really love their cheek products, but to ensure that this post wasn’t too long, I will share them with you in the next post instead, so don’t forget to check back for that. In the mean time, if you want to read more about eco beauty, you can check out my Eco Beauty Products blog post, which Elate Cosmetics was of course mentioned in. If you want to support this brand, you can buy their products from the Elate Cosmetics website, or Australians can purchase Elate from the official Australian stockist, Flora and Fauna (affiliate). Using my affiliate links helps me to keep this blog running and doesn’t cost you anything to use. If you want my new blog posts sent to your inbox, then sign up to email updates, You can also find me on social media – Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter.
What do you think of the values, products and sustainable packaging of Elate Cosmetics? Will you be picking up something from this brand?
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