Thinking of You: Ipsy, December 2014.

 Oh hello Ipsy.

This bag came about a week ago, but between the dealing with children right before the holidays, at school, and planning a wedding in March, I've just been so busy, that I barely have time to check my mail. I haven't even opened half the Christmas Cards I've gotten so far. So I do apologize for the delay. 

Anyhow, Ipsy costs ten dollars a month, and for that ten dollars, you get a makeup bag full of samples and full-size products every month. Your bag will almost always be worth more than you paid for it, and at the same time, you get to try out all sorts of products.

This months theme was "Thinking of You", which I suppose seems appropriate with it being December and holidays and such.

I will say, I did like the bag this month, it's black and simple. 

First up, a precision beauty eyelash curler, worth $5.00.

Verdict: Curious

I've always seen eyelash curlers as some sort of Medieval torture device, so I've never actually owned one. They terrify me. But now that I have one, I'm sort of curious about it and want to try to use it without worrying about pulling all my eyelashes out. I'll let you all know how that goes.

This was what was in the bag.

Beauty Without Cruelty, facial cleanser, worth approximately $3.00.

Verdict: Indifferent

I don't mind facial cleansers. I'm always looking for stuff that can help me face and my skin. So I don't really feel happy or upset about getting a product like this. I would've preferred makeup, but it's not an unwelcome product.

Nyx butter lip balm, in marshmallow, worth $4.00, full-size.

Verdict: Like

Who doesn't want chapstick in the winter?

It's a nice nude color, so it doesn't really give my lips any color, and it smells really good. It smells like Marshmallows.

Lights, Camera, Lashes Mascara, worth about $10.00.

[it's about half the size of a full-size product, which is worth $20.00]

Verdict:  LOVE

I love mascara samples. Thanks to Ipsy, I don't think I've bought mascara in over a year because I'm constantly getting samples of it :)

Pixi Fairy Dust, worth $10.00, full-size.

Verdict: Okay

 The color is so nude that you can barely see it on my skin, at all. 

If I had a choice, I would've chosen a different color because there's not much I can do with this color, and some of the other colors on the website like gold, snow, and copper appear to me more.

It's not a bad product, I used to buy stuff like this all the time, only my choices were more bright and glittery colors, I'm just not a fan of the color that I got sent.

[they used to sell these at Claire's, they were these stackable glitter pots and they were awesome! This product sort of reminds me of those, just less glittery and shimmery.]

So....

The grand total of this month's bag is: $32.00

More than three times what I paid for it.

I didn't hate this month's bag. It was much better than some of the recent bags I've gotten from them in the past few months. 

So if Ipsy appeals to you, by all means, check them out.

And:

 to all, who celebrate....

As for me, I'll be on a plane heading to NJ tomorrow to spend a week wedding planning!

See you next year ;)

 

Girl Meets Glitter: Ipsy, November 2014

Meh, that's how I've felt about my last two Ipsy bags.

For those, new to the party, Ipsy is a subscription box bag service. It's ten dollars a month, and you supposedly get a customized bag of beauty goods. You usually get at least what you paid, or more than what you paid, it's a good deal, I just haven't been wowed by it lately. 

This month's theme was "girl meets glitter."

I was really hoping that with a theme like that, I'd get some sort of sparkly makeup product... Nope. 

The only thing sparkly or glittery was this month's bag, which I did like. 

First up, some sort of Under the Eye cover.  A good product, in theory, since I have horrible under eye circles because I don't sleep well, at all, have horrible insomnia, and look it.

It was a tiny sample, it's 0.11 ounces, where as the full-size product is worth $24.00, which makes this sample worth a measly .10 cents. It's tiny. You can probably barely get one use out of it. Thanks for the crap Ipsy.

On my hand.

Blended on my hand. The shade isn't even close to my skin-tone, and my face is darker than my other skin because my face isn't covered like other parts of my body. Useless.

This is what was in the bag.

 Marc Anthony Hair Spray, worth approximately $1.40.

It's Hair Spray. I mean I like Hair Spray. I don't mind getting hairspray. But it's nothing special. I suppose it's a nice travel size for when I go home to NJ over the holidays.

SeaRX Face & Body Scrub, worth approximately $3.20.

It's supposedly anti-aging, but again, a really tiny sample, probably good for maybe one use... How can you even get an opinion of a product if you only get one use out of it?'

Not impressed.

Starlooks lip gloss in "Guilty Pleasure", worth $3.25.

 This is on my hand.

I do like Starlooks makeup products. I used to get their Starbox, I miss their Starbox, but haven't bothered to resubscribe yet :x and I've used their lip gloss before. It's a quality product and it lasts. I do like this color, as well. It's a nice pink, a little above a neutral color, but a nice shade of pink.

Be a Bombshell, eye base, in submissive, full-size, worth $14.00.

It's a very light and neutral brown with a slight shimmer. I like it because it's a neutral color, and I tend to wear neutrals to work. 

Total Value:  $21.95

Probably one of my lowest value Ipsy bags ever.

Looking at the rest of this month's products.. They didn't really go with the theme. There isn't an overall glitter theme or anything. I would've preferred a Starlooks Gem Eye Pencil or the Nicole by OPI glitter nailpolish to almost everything I've gotten.

Oh well... You win some... You lose some..

Here's hoping December's bag is a hell of a lot better.

Julep: Trick or Treat Mystery Box

Before I get into the brink of this entry, I'd just like to take some time to write about how awesome Julep's customer service is. I was expecting this box on Friday, and when I when to check on the delivery status of the package, it said that the package was being returned to sender because no such address existed. I was confused, I've gotten millions of packages here from Julep and other places... Maybe Fed Ex was fed up with me because my apartment accepted a package addressed to me, the other day, where I totally put the wrong apartment address, and they didn't want to delivery it, but the office people recognized my name, and made them leave it here... who knew...

So anyways, I called Julep up on the phone, told them what happened, and they had no problem resending my package to me, no questions asked, and told me to expect it sometime this week. They were so nice and sweet to me.

Then this showed up in the mail today:

 I'm not quite sure if my picture accurately portrays how beat up that box is. It's re-taped back together, bent in, and my address was wrong... I don't know what happened, the last number was left out, and hand-written in, and I got it today. No wonder they wanted to return it to the senders...

But in the end, the vanishing box, still got here. I think my replacement box got sent out yesterday, so we'll see if I get another box. If I do, it'll be interesting to compare the contents of the two boxes. If I get repeats, no biggie, I promised our landlord that I'd give her some of my doubles, which I have several of, as it is because she's interested in sampling their polish since she sees how many packages from them I get a month. 

The first look at the Trick or Treat Mystery Box.

Now, tons of people were PISSED OFF [me included] about the lack of "jewels" in the September Jewel Heist Mystery Box, and were quite vocal about to Julep on their facebook.

Julep  said they learned from the feedback, and were eager to make a more pleasing Mystery Box, so even though the Trick or Treat Mystery Boxes would be recycled colors, they would be more theme related. So I was eager to see what it would contain. I was expecting a lot of oranges, yellows, greens, and blacks.

Ajani took a liking to the box it came in.. He's still in there, and doesn't seem to be leaving any time soon.

from l to r: Payton, Leah, Roc Solid, and Millie.

They were my "Trick or Treat" add on and mystery color. 

Payton, Bombshell, is a bright mint green. I feel like my nailpolish collection lacks some good green color polishes, and green is my favorite color, and I'm very happy with this color.

Leah, IT GIRL, is a shimmery green. It's a different shade of green than Payton, as you can see in the picture, and it has a greenish silver shimmer. I like it.

Roc Solid, IT GIRL, is sort of a teal colored gray. It's very much a me color. 

Millie, Boho Glam, is a cross between gray, blue, and purple. It's also very much a me color.

Love these four colors, they're the sort of colors I tended to buy in bulk when I used to get my cheap drugstore nail polish back in the day. 

Verdict: LOVE THESE COLORS

Four colors, each worth $11.20, at maven prices, total value, $44.80, definitely way more than I paid.

The inside of the big box.

Nail mask, worth $2.o0

I have never used one of these and never plan to use one of these. I'm sure they're great, they're just not really my thing. 

Verdict: FAIL, only because it isn't a "me" product.

Julep's Blank Canvas Eye Primer and Candy Corn, worth $17.60.

I have nothing against eye primer. I've used it before, although I tend to use strictly Urban Decay's eye primer, but I think I now have a total of three of these Blank Canvas Eye Primers... so maybe it's time to switch loyalties? 

I just rarely have a time, where I can sit down, and really work on making my eye makeup look pretty. I'm too busy. For school, I put on enough eye liner and mascara to make me NOT look like a corpse, and run out the door. 

And my friends group consist of a bunch of awesome geeky nerds, who care far more about what MtG cards they're going to get in their booster packs than what my makeup looks like, so I don't really have any social opportunities where I can really find a reason to dress my makeup up. Therefore, I just don't really have a reason to use primer.

Verdict: Like, just don't have much time or reason to take advantage of such a product.

The Candy Corn is already gone.

Verdict: LOVE[D]

 Luxe Care Hand Creme, worth $16.00

Hand Creme is useful. I swear between Julep and Ipsy, I'm never ever going to have to buy hand creme ever again. 

Verdict: Neutral, I don't love it or hate it.

Brilliance Glycolic Hand Scrub, worth $18.40.

I'm intrigued by this product. I totally prefer a hand scrub to a hand creme. As a special education teacher, everything I do is very "hands on", so it'll be a nice little treat for my hands that I can use to wash school  off of them, and I always love the way exfoliating products feel on my skin when I use them.

Verdict: Very Curious

from l to r: Beatrix, Valerie, Josephine, & Faye.

Beatrix, bombshell is awesome. It's a black polish with thick chunks of silver glitter in a pool of rainbow glitter. It's very much a me color. 

Valerie, bombshell is a turquoise with a gold shimmer in it. You can also see the gold shimmer in my picture. It's also very much a me color.

Josephine, IT GIRL, is more of a navy color than my picture shows. It may be a really good color for my wedding since my bridesmaid dresses are all navy blue.

Verdict: LOVE THESE COLORS

Faye, boho glam is a shimmery golden sand color. It's not the ugliest color I've ever gotten, but it doesn't wow me either.

Verdict: Meh

Again, four colors, worth a total of $44.80.

Total:  $98.80, with Maven Prices.

Well over what I paid for it, and I'm actually very satisfied with this box. I love basically all the nailpolish colors that I received, and I wasn't wowed with all the beauty products that I got, but there's really nothing [except maybe the nail mask] that I would call a waste of space. So Julep did redeem themselves for the Jewel Heist Fiasco with this box. Everything fit nicely, for the most part, with the Halloween theme, and I very much like the selection of products that I got in this box.

Ipsy: October 2014, Beauty Candy.

Today has been a day of many packages in my household... My new rainbow keyboard came from newegg, my Halloween costume came despite me putting the wrong address on it [thank goodness, the apartment people, who work in the office, know Justin and I by name], my new workout bathing suit came, my new work clothes from Old Navy came... Oh and Ipsy came.

 

Ipsy  is a subscription bag service. It's ten bucks a month, and you get a makeup bag sent to you every single month full of full-size and sample size beauty products. It's probably, one of the best subscription services, as getting the most bang for your buck, in my opinion. 

They supposedly some kind of Ipsy match service to pick your products for you, but I don't really believe that since I do tend to get a moderate amount of stuff, I'm just "meh" about.

This is what was in my pink envelope. This months theme is "beauty candy."

 

 The bag this month was nothing special, it's a nice color, but I'm quite disappointed that a bright teal bag has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with Halloween.

 

  Acacia, Protein BB Cream, by ECRU New York, worth $12.00, which seems quite expensive for a 1 fl oz bottle, but that's what the website claims.

My hair is a wreck. I swim every single day, except for the next five days because I sliced my finger open cutting carrots for a salad, and had to go to the E.R. yesterday, and they told me pools are off-limits for the next few days due to germs :(

 

But I digress, the point it, my hair is wrecked, thanks to the glorious chemical known as chlorine. So... If this product can somehow minimize all the damage to my hair, from swimming, it's a product, I don't mind trying. 

 

This is the contents of my bag.

 

 Noyah lipstick, Deeply in Mauve, worth probably about $8.00 because it looks like it's half the size of a regular lipstick, the picture is out of focus, purposely, to show you the glitter.

It's more purple and darker than my picture shows.

Meh. I hate lipstick, and I would never wear a color this dark. 

Rose Berry, Figs & Rogue, Hand Cream, worth $3.00.

I'm indifferent to this item. I don't like nor dislike hand cream. It's something I use, especially in winter, so it's a useful sample, just not something I would have chosen for myself.

Skyn Iceland, glacial cleaning clothes, worth $5.00

I like facial cleaning clothes, especially if they help get makeup off of my face. Very useful item. Maybe it'll help my skin in some shape or form.

NYC BIG CURL MASCARA, full-size, worth $4.99.

I love mascara, I'm excited about a full-size mascara product, especially since it seems one of my mascaras are always empty, so it's nice to have a refill. Very happy with this.

Total Value: $32.99

Not the most expensive bag I've ever gotten, but not the worst either, and still over what I paid for it.

Overall, this bag was "meh", I guess with it being October, I was hoping for more Halloween themed products. I wasn't very happy with what I received this month.

If you're interested, check Ipsy out.

Ipsy: Street Style, September 2014

I love September because my birthday is in September. 

So, this year, for my birthday, I asked fiance to get me a joint birthday/Christmas present of a fancy DSLR camera because my DSLR is way out-dated, as in I got it in 2007, and with our wedding, in exactly six months from today, and our road trip honeymoon up the west coast, I wanted a camera to capture it all.

So yesterday, he gave me this:

A Nikon DSLR, so maybe my pictures for this blog will be better now ;P

This came in the mail on Friday... Only I've been way too busy to actually open it and check it out. Gotta love the school year. Oh and then, I knew that I was getting my new camera this weekend, and wanted to wait till I had it to open it :P

Ipsy  costs a measly ten dollars a month. For that ten dollars, you get a brand-new makeup bag filled with 4-6 products based on a style profile that you make when you sign up for it.

It's a mixture of full-size and sample size products, and you always get a good value for your dollar. The bag itself is pretty useful to, I've used them to travel, for pencil and pen cases, and they have a myriad of other uses.

This month's Ipsy theme was "street style."

I like the color of the bag, I do like silver, but I would've liked it better without the silver studs near the zipper.

This is what was in my bag. Mind you, I hadn't bothered to check out spoilers or anything. So I really had no clue, nor do I know why I got two of the same product. I think it was just a lucky extra? Because when I checked my glam room, there was nothing missing from it that it claimed I was going to get but hadn't in the bag. 

Briogeo Don't Despair, Repair, deep conditioning mask, worth about $5.00, based on the prize of a full-size product, which is about 5 ounces, and this one is 1 ounce, and the full-price is about twenty-six dollars.

I've never tried a hair mask before, but my hair is dry and damaged, especially since I swim almost every day as a workout... gotta get in shape for the wedding... and chlorine is a killer to my hair. So I'd like to see if this does anything to my hair to make it healthier. 

If it does, I may consider picking up a full-size.

Nyx Hot Singles Eyeshadow, in Asphyxiation, full-size, worth $4.50.

I like eyeshadow. I like this color. 

This is the color on my hand. It's a nice matte color with the right amount of sparkle, and the color sort of reminds me of Tardis blue. Blue is a good color on me because I have blue eyes.

Pacifica Natural-Proof Eye Pencil, in fringe, worth about $6.00 because it looks like it's about half the size of a regular eye-liner pencil.

On my hand.

Eyeliner is my favorite type of makeup. I could use a good brown pencil. It isn't a color I would have chosen for myself, I prefer blacks/grays/blues, but it's a welcome addition to my eyeliner collection :)

Crown Brush, infinity Shadow/Crease duet brush, worth $7.00.

I like eyeshadow brushes. Lately I've been seeing how useful they are to apply to eyeshadow with, so I'm eager to have another one to play with.

Cailyn Art-Tinted Lip Gloss, in Basic instinct, times two, worth a total of $38.00

Like I said, I have no idea why I got two of them, the exact same product and the exact same color.

Here it is on my hand.

It's a nice nude pink, and the color looks nice on my skin tone. I don't really wear lip gloss too much, but if I do decide to wear it, I do think that's a good color for me.

So the total worth of my bag is... about $60.00

Not too shabby.

For the most part, I think this was a great bag, it had products that I may not always use, but if do chose to use, they're good for me.

Gotta love Ipsy, always a great bang for your buck :)

I'm already looking forward to the October bag, especially since I LOVE HALLOWEEN.