Ipsy: May 2016 Glam Bag Unboxing

Another month, another Ipsy, and I'm really becoming a big fan. May featured some products which I've now been able to take the time to adequately trial. There was a good mix of luxe and usable products.



Formula 10.0.6 Pores Be Pure Skin-Clarifying Mud Mask

I'm honestly not the biggest fan of mud masks, mainly because I have dry skin and rarely if ever see any noticeable results. I suppose they may help a bit with breakouts, but I've never really seen success with that, and my view is the only way to prevent breakouts is to have a thorough daily cleansing routine and not overdo your skin with too many pore-clogging moisturizers.

That said, this mask has a lovely berry smell, which is quite unexpected. It goes on smoothly and performs about par. Nothing of note, but nothing bad either.

 SLMissGlam Small Contour W07 Brush

This brush is soft, though fairly small. The brush is about the width of my thumb, and is a good size for contouring the cheeks and such.

BellaPierre Cosmetics Nude Gel Lip Liner Pencil



This product has proven to be quite a dud. The main reason is that try as I might, I can't figure out how to get the rest of the product out of the tube. Or maybe the tip is all the product that you get? I'm not sure what's going on, because otherwise I quite like the color and texture of this lip liner. It's a subtle my-lips-but-better shade of pinky nude.

The other negative is that this is manufactured in China, so who really knows what ingredients are in it.

 

Jersey Shore Cosmetics Lavendar Moisture Rich Balm

While not the most exciting of products (it's just a stick of clear balm), I quite like it. The scent is a mild lavendar, it's super rich and moisturizing on the lips, and while I wouldn't use it anywhere else (too rich), it's quite a good lip balm.

Smashbox Cosmetics X-Rated Mascara

I unfortunately haven't given this a whirl yet as my mascara stash is a bit out of control, but it certainly looks good. Will follow-up if it's worthy of a mention.

Ipsy: April 2016 Glam Bag Unboxing

April was a very good Ipsy month, with plenty of lovely, usable products and a beautiful watercolor zipped bag. Note that I forgot to include the blusher brush they gave me in the above image.

Pur~lisse Blue Lotus plus White Tea Sheet and Blue Lotus plus Seaweed Masks 

I tried one and gave the other to a friend, and while it wasn't the most amazing mask I've ever used, it was hydrating and comfortable to wear. I wasn't too impressed with the ingredients list (which features mainly glycerin with some fairly cheap herbal extracts) so would rather stick to my The Face Shop masks from Koreatown.

Swatches from left to right: Starlooks eyeliner, Trust Fund Beauty Highlighter, Tarte Lipsurgence in Wonder

Tarte LipSurgence lip creme in Wonder

This was probably my favorite item of the whole bag. I love how pigmented the Tarte Lipsurgence products are, and also needed a bright red (see swatch from earlier). It's a gorgeous color that applies easily and with a slightly minty taste and feel.

Trust Fund Beauty That Glo Tho Face Highlighter



This is a total wannabe copy of Benefit's Watts Up (which I also own), and unfortunately isn't nearly as good as the latter. It's disappointing as I love the packaging, which looks high-end and features a beautiful design on the outer box. Seriously, this product barely shows up when you apply it (just look at the swatch above, which took several coats to get), and what does show up are chunky pieces of glitter. It's ok, and at least usable, but I wouldn't go out and buy it.

Starlooks Luxe Longwear Eye Pencil in Jet

I love how smoothly this applies, but unfortunately it smudges like crazy (see how easily it smudges in swatch below) - even if I don't touch my eyes, it becomes a smudgy mess after a couple hours. Use this to get a smoked eye look, not for a sharp line. I stick to my Tarte eyeliner for that.

Crown Brush C427 Duo Fiber Blush Brush

Finally a brush from Ipsy that's actually soft and usable! This is one of those brushes with an uneven cut, meaning that there are fewer bristles up top so you won't be at risk of picking up too much product when you dab it on a pan. This makes it perfect for picking up and applying blusher. It's super soft, and I absolutely love it.

As mentioned, I was pretty impressed with all of my Ipsy picks for April, as for $10 it really can't be beat.

Ipsy: March 2016 Glam Bag Unboxing

March was a great month for me on Ipsy, as I wound up with a batch of good, useful products. 

Beau Gachis Eyeshadow Brush

This was the one dud in the bag. I needed an eyeshadow brush, but the bristles on this one were just so rough that they feel like they're scratching my lids, and thus makes it pretty much unusable. My recommendation for soft brushes are The Body Shop, and I'm still using that one.

Manna Kadar Eye Shadow in Fantasy

This is a beautiful shadow, and is absolutely perfect to sweep all over the lids. I mean, just look at the swatch above - so rich and shimmery and with a slight deep shade that's flattering for most skintones. 

NYX Liquid Suede Cream Lipstick in color 04, Soft-Spoken 



I've only used this a handful of times, but was surprised by how flattering this deep shade is (I normally go for brighter lip colors). True to NYX's reputation, this product is incredibly long-wearing, even after drinking and eating. The only thing is I prefer more natural ingredients in my lip products, and this definitely isn't it.

Pixi by Petra Beauty Blush Duo in Rose Gold

While the packaging for this is beautiful, the pigmentation is pretty weak and the texture is rather chalky. You can barely see the pink upon application (as above). It works well though for a subtle highlighter.

Marc Anthony Nourishing Argan Oil of Morocco 3 Day Smooth Perfect Blow Dry Cream
Heat protectants are always useful for me as I regularly blowdry and heat style my hair, so this was certainly a useful product addition at the very least. I can't say it works any better than any of the other heat products I've tried. It comes out a light white cream and has a subtle scent. Not bad

Overall, March was a solid Ipsy month and I was very happy with the products I received.

Ipsy: February 2016 Glam Bag Unboxing

I wasn't nearly as impressed with my February box as I had been with my January one to tell the truth. The products generally seemed pretty cheap or were just items I knew I wouldn't use much, not to mention I'd already received the Pink Gel Coat as a deluxe sample from a Sephora haul I had done earlier. Let's go through what I'd received:

Smashbox Photo Finish Primer Oil

This was easily the best product in the box, but pity I'm not a big primer user. I did try it a couple times and enjoyed it - the thing that impresses me the most is the quality, natural ingredients that are in this oil (no cheap mineral oil here!) I still have most of this sitting around, but I guess that's a reminder for me to start using it up. 

Pure Brazilian Deep Conditioning Hair Masque

This product I haven't even touched, mainly because hair masks are another product I rarely if ever have time for, especially when the product calls for you to leave it in for 15-20 minutes. I just don't get how you can, since these are products you have to use after shampooing. So am I meant to shampoo, then sit around in the bath for 20 mins? Or go out soaking wet and then come back into the shower after 20 mins to rinse off again? Just not practical. 

Vintage by Jessica Liebeskind, Sparkling Lipgloss in Pink Sequin 

Sorry again Ipsy, but this product looked and felt like the kind of tacky, cheap makeup you would sell to a ten-year-old. It's glittery beyond comprehension, which isn't completely bad but just isn't the type of look that I can go sporting around in my mid-20s. Similarly, the packaging is absolute cheapness defined - plain plastic white tube and a rather middling brush. I will try to somehow use it up, but right now, not impressed.

Paula Dorf Baby Eyes Enhancer

This one isn't terrible, but again is not something I would ever buy for myself as the ingredients list is again full of cheap ingredients. The texture isn't horrible, as it's soft enough for use in the undereye area (which is where I apply it). It just isn't a wow product, and again it's something I have to force myself to use up.

Perfect Formula Pink Gel Coat

This product was floating all over Sephora stores and apparently on subscription services, and I was suckered into using my insider points for it. Unfortunately, it was only after receiving it that I looked at the ingredients, and found that it features formaldehyde(!) Should have figured, and goes to show you definitely cannot trust what the big retail stores are featuring. Nice packaging that totally deceived me about the junk nature of the product inside.


Luckily as you'll see soon, my March glam bag was quite a step up. But another one of these bags and I probably would quit Ipsy - I'd rather use that $10 a month on one product I'll actually get good use from rather than a handful of essential junk. Will keep you guys posted.

Ipsy January 2016 Unboxing

I finally joined the subscription box bandwagon, but only for Ipsy as it seems to genuinely deliver value, and is almost universally ranked better than Birchbox on the comparisons I've seen. This was my first subscription bag, and honestly I'm very pleased. At $10.89 a month after tax, I think it's a fun way to try out new products, and at a very fair price point assuming you actually use everything they include. I've definitely spent more on just a single product, and here you get at least one full-size item, plus several samples and a cute little bag (one can never have enough bags in my opinion).

Since I joined while they were running promos for the free Em by Michelle Phan mascara, I also got a free full-size of the lash gallery mascara. I get that the Em brand hasn't exactly taken root and thus they're probably just giving away the old, unsold products, but I'll take it! Awesome value, and even without the mascara I would have been pleased as I got a full size The Balm eyeliner in a deep purple shade called Scott. That alone would retail for the price of the bag, so throw in the cute glasses bag plus all the other little items and I'm thrilled.

Below is a snap of all the items in my bag. I will update this review with impressions / thoughts once I actually start using all of these items.

Hanalei Sugar Lip Scrub

I was initially least excited about this item, because I'm not a lip scrub user as I generally don't think they do much except irritate the lips. Yet I had to change my mind once I actually tried this. Unlike other sugar scrubs, this one is surprisingly not gritty, and features a delicious lemony scent and sweet taste. You're meant to scrub and wipe off with a tissue rather than rinse off, and I found it to be gentle and very moisturizing. It leaves a hydrating layer afterwards, which goes away after a few moments. And my lips looked very hydrated and plump, which is always a great thing. I like!

The Balm Mr. Write (Now) Eyeliner Pencil in Scott

When I first previewed my Ipsy bag online, it looked like they had selected the yellow /gold shade of this eyeliner for me, which would have been awful as there's no way I could have used that on my Asian complexion. But it seems like Ipsy does take into account your profile details, and luckily I received this very usable, deep purple color, which is quite flattering against dark eyes and which I can't wait to start using.

The product features a pointed tip, and I'm not sure about how it sharpens but assume the cap is self-sharpening. It was incredibly easy to use and glided very smoothly on the skin in my trial-run on my arm, so we'll see how it holds up on the eyes. Generally I'm quite pleased.

(Sorry for the blurry swatch!)

Pixi by Petra eyeshadow dual in Lavendar Bloom

This was another product that I'm surprisingly pleased with. Again, the colors are perfect for my Asian-toned skin and eyes, and will go beautifully with The Balm liner. They swatch beautifully as well, especially the bronzey-champagne shade. The lavendar shade is more matte, while the champagne is a nice shimmery color that I can probably wear everyday.

Burt's Bee's cleansing oil: Interestingly, I was just about to buy this product in CVS, but luckily did not as now I can give it a trial run. I haven't tried many cleansing oils, but as I'm always on the hunt for one that will be effective at removing all of my makeup I'm excited to give this a shot. Will keep you posted!

Skone Eyeshadow smudger brush: To be honest, I don't foresee much use for this. The bristles are really short and were quite hard to work with in my quick trial run. They were also quite hard and uncomfortable. We'll see if it softens up, but for now I'm not impressed.

Thanks for reading! Let me know if you have any thoughts on subscription boxes / Ipsy!