Frest Start - Ipsy Unboxing January 2015

 Flippity Ippity Ipsy.

I will be honest. My enjoyment with the service is kind of - not waning? - but it's not as exponential as it was before. November gave me an amazing bag, and December's was rather decent but I don't know. Even with getting nice products I have grown stale with the blogging aspect. That's really half of the excitement; the review. I had a partial post typed up for December in addition to filming myself opening it. Watching the video it was not something that exciting. Like I used a webcam and my lighting was the bad sun-already-went-down kind.

Plus, the butter lip balm I got was quickly stolen from my purse by a pair of jerk-brothers and annihilated. Though I got the boring nude color, I actually really liked it. Dallas I'm assuming was the instigator, because he is truly the nosy one. That is despite Nightshade sporting a less cute sheltie nose, and instead a long and thin collie muzzle.

Maybe I'll finish the post for december, but it was hard to get arsed about it. Even though all the products I got were indeed pretty awesome. In fact except for the hair styling produc (and of course that cute balm..) t, I have been regularly using everything. That's kind of a definition of a great bag.

So like the theme of the bag denotes, this is a fresh start. It's time to get excited about the arbitrary blogging again. Lord knows that if a lot of my favorite bloggers are starting to poof on the internet, at least I can continue.

Let's start backwards from normal. The bag. It's blue on one side and a somewhat whitish cream (or is it just my lighting?). The zipper is salmon which is very cute in terms of color theory. It's a strange material, textured woven plastic or something. This bag is just fine. It's innocuous and the zipper works, unlike my December bag.

LashFood

Phyto-Medic Eyelash Enhancer

 0.5 ml/3 ml
one month trial supply adjusted to $13.33
Buy the full four month supply here for $80

This is actually a fairly valuable sample, because the full size is a grotesque $80. It is roughly a one month sample, so hey in a month I can share what I thought. According to the envelope it came in, upwards 85% of people had results of length and 100% of people thought their lashes were fuller and denser. This is all based on independent studies, hosted by JB Cosmetics group I'm assuming. Probably no objectivity. Also that is after four months. Perhaps this sample does not have enough juice to push into that. Either way I am anxious to do this test because what could it hurt?

This product was pointless and would only give psuedo results. It was like a sugar pill. 

Probelle

Into the Blue Nail Lacquer

full size available here for $6

After nearly a year of Ipsy I finally received a nail polish! Great timing with all sarcasm intended, as I just started a job that prohibits nail polish. It's fine for today because I need not go in to work until Tuesday and here it is friday. I can wear this gorgeous bugger for the weekend. What an absolutely lovely shade of blue, which knocks on the door of my exact favorite hue. It's an amazing cream color and reminds me of my husband's eyes, so I'm pretty thrilled.

This has been on my toes and on my nails when I had consecutive days off. I love it and it's decent in two coats. Thin in formula, it really does best with three. 

Two coats. And pretty Dallas. 

Three coats and Nightshade. With a toy he is in progress of ruining. It shortly went in the garbage. 

Elizabeth Mott

All Over Shadow Brush

full size available here for $9.99

Nicely contained packaging and an eye-catching design. The brush is dense and super soft. If I were not wearing gobs of blue and black eyeshadow, I would go upstairs and test the brush. I am sure this will work quite nicely, even as a regular fluffy brush. With this I am pleased.

I have no additional comments. It works fine as a blending brush. 

Pacifica

Natural Mineral Coconut Eyeshadow in Ethereal

Sample adjusted to $3.50
Shop Pacifica's eyeshadow here

Fugging this stuff again. By far the worst eyeshadow I had ever used came to us in May's Ipsy in that god awful duo. The colors refused to apply to my lids and barely swatched. My chintsy plastic case broke immediately.

It's very hard to find their products online. I found a larger palette with the darker color, Treasure in it, but without a size listed. I have no idea where to adjust the price on this one, so I will default the price to $3.50. That is the price of a similarly sized eyeshadow pot in their four pan eyeshadow palette that was $14.

This though is housed in it's own pretty little blue box, patterned to flow directly with the Pacifica design on their palette. I receieved the lighter of the two which is a small disappointment because I need another bronze like a hole in the head (translation. I still need another bronze because bronze). So far the comments on the product page are much more welcoming than what we had last year with Pacifica eyeshadow. 

It does actually work beautiful and has made many a neutral work-eye sparkle. 

Malin + Goetz

Mojito Lip Balm

0.20 oz/0.35 oz
Sample adjusted to $8.40
full size available here for $12

This is a repeat, and somewhat defies the fresh start theme. So far we have had a number of repeat products throughout this bag. Same song and dance samples are getting smaller and the varieties getting fewer.

This item is not particularly thrilling. I have been making my own lip balm for two years and I have loved how moisturizing that has been. It's based on a Burt's Bee knock-off recipe and I've honed it over every batch and it's a nice heavy lip balm that will stay with you for hours and absolutely superior when using before bed time. Still it's winter and my lips have been feeling the weather.

I have never tried a mojito. I cannot judge the flavor as a comparison, but it has little flavor. Slight mint. I kind of hate the Carmex type application tube, but it's worth it if it's an amazing product that can conquer winter lip stings. It feels like a really gel-heavy lip gloss, and may be a tad too sticky. Of course I am going to use this whole thing up, but I am not like dropping my pants over it. I just hope that the balm improves upon my lips winter weathering. The balm does feel soothing and will be nice overall.

I lost it recently, but it has been a luxury for my lips. 

Bag Value.

Out of the ten dollars invested on January first, I reaped products with a retail value of $41.22.

I would like to start something of a recap. Such as in February, I would like to add how i felt about January's bag. Kind of like my preface in the beginning of this post referencing to my (unposted) December bag. Let's see if i remember to do that.

Ipsy November 2014 Girl Meets Glitter

Son of a gun I forgot to upload this while waiting on pictures...I rock at this..

Imagine my joy when Ipsy finally sent me a shipping code earlier than it had in quite a number of months. No account errors, no shipping delays. Now double that thrill when my mom pulls into the driveway to drop me off at home, and hanging out of my mail box is the pinkest envelope on the grayest day. And this was a day earlier than it should have been, as it was scheduled for delivery Saturday the 15th, and it actually arrived on the 14th.

On my regular facebook group I follow, one individual had a legitimate complaint that the Ipsy envelope was not a metallic pink. While mine was that same “matte” type shade, it really didn't bother me. Also was written a complaint about how the glue was too hard to seperate the opening. Frankly, that's a pretty funny complaint. The envelope is sealed. I would rather my things not fall out of the bag buut okay.

Petty complaints aside, I was pretty thrilled with the bag this month. Glitter is not a theme I was super enthralled with, but it turned out okay. Not too much of the products were actually infused with glitter. You see, I do not have an affinity for glitter.

But onto the items.

Marc Anthony
Oil of Morocco Argan Oil Volume Shine Hairspray

buy the full size here for $8.29
1.5 oz/ 9.0 oz
Sample value adjusted $1.38

The dud of the bag is of course the hair product Ipsy keeps thinking that I want. Both products from the last month have been used, but they did not rock me like maybe a cleanser would have. This one was a hair spray. My little 2010 travel size Garnier has been missing it's lid since about 2011, and it is truly running low. This worked exactly as I needed it to when I added a tiny pompadour. I forgot whether or not it smells like anything but whatev. The size is actually fabulous and I am not as disappointed about this as I originally though I would be.

This barely contributes to the bag value, and that puts us off to a bad start.

Elizabeth Mott
you're so FINE Eyeliner in Glitterati

buy the full size here for $17.99
full size

The next item was the Glitterati liquid eyeliner. That is my glitter and it's actually pretty nice. It boasts waterproof and smudge proof claims. With an initial swatching on my hand, I smudged it. It yielded. BUT let me say that it was not even set. This appears to the a longer setting time despite claims of drying super fast, but then during my shower I had to rub it off. Water hitting it did not eliminate the matte black or glitter sprinkles. So plus one on that. 

When applied to my eyeballs, I did not encounter problems with the eyeliner transferring or smudging throughout the few days I have tried it out. It goes on fairly black and surprisingly, the glitter looks absolutely amazing with shimmer shadows. Pair this with my Ammo palette I felt like a rockstar. Now I have to dock the company points for the claim that the tip is precision. It's anything but, instead it's a rounded tip. You can get a fairly thick line from this because it's a blunt shape. Urban Decay's 24/7 Liquid liner has a precision tip, and you can get such a thin line. I've seen drugstore liners with precision tips. Precision tip this is not. It's alright because I may be improving my steady hand during application, and I enjoy the thick line it gives me, I just have no idea how one would achieve a cat eye with that huge tip.

This was worth the bag, and Ipsy has a 50% off code until well into january. I could see myself using that on another one of these bad boys. 

Be a Bombshell Cosmetics
Eye Base in Submissive 

buy the full size here for $14

full size

I also received the eye base. At first I had frowny face, because I just bought a NYX shadow stick in a similar color. Upon using this, I can see that this is in fact lighter and much more shimmery. It provides a different look than just a metallic or matte shade. It's very creamy, and takes a bit of building but I have found it does well as a primer. It just cannot be worn alone, much like the original NYX shadow stick. 

I wore this with under Smog from the Ammo palette and it was awesome and held up the entire day. A second test was with a matte shade, Faint from the UD Naked Basics. Matte is what I said, but the shimmer peaks through in a pretty classy way. It also subtly brightened the darker brown shade of Faint. 

Though it's a touch redundant to a bronze Ulta cream shadow I own, I found this to be much easier to work with. It's texture let it built up and blend a lot easier than the Ulta one. The main difference is that the Ulta one can be worn alone, and is more opaque. Redundancy or not, this was very welcome and I kind of love it. So far, this bag is amazing.

An additional wearing with only a light brush of shadow yielded many creases by the end of the day. I wore this on Thanksgiving under some lightly applied UD shadow, which was hastily applied during a car ride while my dog licked the mirror on my palette. Just as a note, you absolutely need to wear this with something if you want a long day of wear. 

This represents both the liner and eyebase.

Temptu
S/B Highlighter in Pink Pearl

buy the full size here for $27.50
0.1 fl oz/ 1.0 fl oz

Sample size adjusted $2.75

Through the first hadn swatch I decided I liked this more than Benefit's High-Beam. It's very pretty and I liked how fluid it was. While I cannot boast it's application for highlighting and contouring, I did find it added a lovely shimmer to my cupid's bow, upper cheekbone, and under my eyebrows. The pink sheen picks up very nice in the light and really is between gold and pink. Somewhat a duo-chrome. All in all, I found this easy to work with and I appreciated it greatly in the bag. Size was rather small, but I doubt I will use it enough to where the size will irritate me. That is not to say I don't love it, because I rather think I do.

J. Cat Beauty
Wonder Lip Paint in Red Potion

buy the full size here for $4.99

Full size

Finally was the product I was most apprehensive about. My heart has been rather low when it comes to my Ipsy lip products as of late, but it's usually raised when I can actually try the product in question. This was no different.

This months lip options were on the cheap side, and there was a direct repeat from last month. Fairly tacky, but I really enjoyed that repeat product last month. There was two lip crayons, another gloss, and a few lip sticks. Both of the glosses were nude and everything else had various wine or berry shades.

I was saddled with the Jcat Wonder Lip Paint. The colors given were either Mad Splatter, a deep red, or Red Potion which is a burgundy cranberry type. It's insanely dark. Of course, I was given the darker Red Potion.

I made my faces at the choice and then gave it a college try. In a review I watched on YouTube, the lady had quite a few colors of the Jcat and a handful of OCC Lip Tar as she believed them to be dupes. She ruled the textures different, but some of the colors were dead on. While I have never tried the Lip Tars to compare, I found that these were rather nice. The color is super opaque and it somewhat dried down to a glossy stain. The color was actually flattering enough on me. But be advised... a little really goes a long way. I applied mine with a brush, and I believe it would be impossible to use your fingers like I saw someone on the Ipsy forum doing. These are very affordable at five bucks a pop, so I really would like to try out some other colors. It may be worth it. This was the hit of the bag.

As far as longevity goes, it does come off easily if you wipe it off and does not have much for staining power. It dries, but not completely leaving you with a non sticky gloss feeling. It's a little tough for me to describe. An example of it's lasting power is that I applied this around 10AM the morning my sisters and I took both of their little babies to the art museum. I removed it so we could eat dinner around 4. It was pristine leading up to that moment, and I drank some water and had some apple and a garlic biscuit at the museum. Like I said, this may be something I want more of. 

Wearing everything in this one.

How about the bag and value?

Overall the bag was kind of fantastic. I was even impressed with the bag itself, because it was not gritty like I thought it would be. My first impresion of the bag on the internet was disgust because I imagined touching it and glitter rubbing off on my fingers. Instead there was this awesome and festive bag that I could see myself using. Final thought on this particular bag is that, Ipsy may have converted me to being a little more open minded with glitter. As most of the products ended up being glittery. 

Nothing will beat last month's October blue puffy quilted plastic bag. I flipping loved that bag. 

$41.11/ 10.00

The value seems to be on the average side, leaning towards the upper-middle. For five items that I can actually use, this could be my favorite bag to date (product wise). I have yet to do this years Ipsy bags in actual value...That's a post I look forward to. 

And heeere is something neat. I just got an awesome follow on my instagram. 

Like woah you know how I mentioned that I wanted to do embalming or something closely related since I was 12? Yeah. You know what sparked me revisiting that idea when I was 21? I was watching Oddities and there was a pratron who had been (is still?) a mortician, and she was lovely, and she made lovely clothing. That moment sitting my bed with a puppy Dallas, I remembered my the first childhood aspiration that I actually wanted to do. You know how a lot of kids want to be things? I never had a clue even when I was in elemantary school. There were no dream jobs that popped out at me. Not until I heard of this wondrous place called Ancient Egypt and that there was this Jackal that embalmed people and sent them off to judgement. It was around then I developed an unsatiable curiosity for psuedosciences and quack medicine that gave way to our modern medicine. Heck, I somehow convinced my husband that we should go to the Mütter Museum for our honeymoon...

MORTICIAN FANGIRL MOMENT!!!

tl;dr

OH MY GOSH GUYS. SHE'S LIKE THE REASON I REVISTED MY CHILDHOOD DREAM AND THEN EVENTUALLY WAS OFFERED AN INTERNSHIP AT A FUNERAL HOME. (which I am still holding my breath on.)

Easy Peasy Look pictorial.

I kind of want to try something a smudge different. The kids call these types of posts "pictorials"? It's recently became apparent how appealing these posts are. Informative and it's a great window into different folks processes. 

With October being an awesome month, let's be awesome together!!

To start, I wanted to test the It Cosmetivs CC+ cream I received in a sampler a while back. For measure, I will post my face. It's horribly broke out (again!). For the first time I cleansed it with Freeman's purifying scrub and wow. So warm and lovely. My face feels clean and awesome. 

Onto the face. 

I needed to wash off my black eyeshadow. I know, I know. Don't sleep with it on. Every other day I do good, but considering before this year I never washed my makeup off it's leaps. 

Seriously though. 

After CC. 

It's medium. A tad too dark  fair or light would be better, but I am home all day today. Good for a test. Far more fluid than the other creams I have used, but it reminded me of paint. At the very least, it canceled redness pretty decent. Maybe of it wasn't $38 I would purchase full size. We'll see. 

Concealer time. 

Well-Rested liquid pen is just okay. It certainly brightens my under eyes. 

And today I used the pop bronzer from the July Ipsy bag. Blush was Ulta's cheek tint in Tickled. I have to use it every time I use a cream foundation, I just love it! It's one of my favorites. 

Also, I took off my deer shirt. In the above pics, the blush isn't strong enough. I intensified a bit later. 

Brows! It Cosmetics brow power and a little dark brow palette from Meijer. 

Instead of bothering with primer I throw on Laura Gellar's Cool Lids shadow in Rose Gold Goddess. The next choice of eye color was easy choice. 

This guy in Revealed 2 palette from Coastal Scents. 

Patted this in the inner and middle lid. 

Easy look, like I said. 

Crease and outer V. I should mention that I am using the Crown brush from the Sept. Ipsy. 

Lined my eyes with Pacifica's Fringe liner, also from Sept Ipsy. 

They're Real mascara from Benefit. It was too wet and clumpy when I started using it through September but now it's growing on me! It's not as black as Perversion though, so that docks a point. 

Also Hikari Lipstick in Cabernet from Ipsy again. It's a really nice matte lip, and it does feel nice to wear. 

This shade makes teeth look white. 

Also. It should be noted that I do not have any contacts and I am wearing glasses anyways. The look translates well. 

So that's a wrap. Just phone pictures because that's what I have to work with right now. 

Ipsy Septiembre Unboxing - Street Style

Dangit guys. My bag came super timely this month, but I have been lagging on the updates. 

Overall it was a nice bag and the bag itself is lovely. Idk what street style is supposed to mean. I thought street style is everyday wear, opposed to dress up. Maybe I am uncultured. 

Crown Brush

Infinity Shadow/Crease Duet

Full size here http://crownbrush.us/deluxe-infinity-shadowcrease-duet-p-904.html

$6.99

<a href="https://imgflip.com/gif/c9hc0"><img src="https://i.imgflip.com/c9hc0.gif" title="made at imgflip.com"/></a>

It first this brush just swept product around like a broom. What. Then I tried it using something other than a NYX shadow. It works beautiful with Urban Decay and Lorac Pro formulas and made foiling a breeze. It's soft and I absolutely love this! Great brush, even though it does not provide a ton of color build. 

Hikari Cosmetics

Lipstick in Cabernet

Full size here

http://www.hikaricosmetics.com/shop/lipstick/

3.8g/ 13 oz

$13

Cabernet. Fact: I hate most wine. I absolutely loved the Spumante Andrew and I were given at the resort for our honeymoon, and I have had done good ones in past. But generally, no. 

Another fact is berry lipsticks look horrible on me. Every lip color I have worn these past few months has been favorable, with a few exceptions like "that one looks good layered; not today for that one." Berry lipstick was welcomed with "ugh". 

This on the other hand is wiine! It's somehow different enough to have gotten a positive response from the man, and I have already wore this out a handful of times. 

Swatched, it looks sheer. In reality it applies to lips nicely and gets full color with minimal layering. Texture wise, it's not drying or moisturizing and it does lack the high end smell I notice to my favorite lipsticks. It's almost a non intrusive powder smell. 

NYX

Hot Singles Eyeshadow in Arrogance 

Full size here 

http://www.nyxcosmetics.com/p-230-hot-singles-eye-shadow.aspx

Weight: 1.5g/ 0.053 oz 

$4.50

Slight backstory, but I got the purple shade. The color choice is interesting to me because ten years ago, I built this story character named Adrian. He was arrogant and because Marilyn Manson reasons he would wear purple eyeshadow. Adrian has since evolved into a still arrogant being, but is more of a character than just a projection of my music taste. 

So my Adrian purple unfortunately does not differ from the other purples I have, like UD's tornado. Additionally NYX eyeshadows are not always pigmented as well. This one is fair with layering, and has a lovely monochromatic shimmer. It's a deep eggplant with orchid flecks. That is a touch different. 

On my eyes it does take a bit of building, but it registers as a halloween purple. It also is much tougher to blend than Lorac or Bare Minerals. It got muddy fast when used just as a crease color. I do like it and I think it's unique to my collection, but as a single I do not know how much I will reach for it. 

Pacifica

Natural Water-Proof Eye pencil in Fringe

Full size here $11

http://www.pacificabeauty.com/makeup/eyes/natural-waterproof-eye-pencil?id=434

0.026 oz/ 0.10 oz

$2.86/ 11

My color happened to be Fringe, the brown. It's boring, but I do not even own a brown liner. This pencil is fairly soft, tugging only slight. I have not found it to smudge, but I also have yet to photograph it on my eyes. 

This is a very decent eyeliner. So far I like it, but I rarely go natural with my eyes. Even nuetrals (which is most of what I am wearing lately) have black in them somewhere. 

Bottom lash line I think. I have wore it multiple times without photo, but it looks great with bright nuetrals. 

Briogeo

Don't Despair, Repair Deep Conditioning Mask

Full size here for $26

https://www.briogeohair.com/product/dont-despair-repair/

1.0 fl oz/ 5.25 oz

$4.95/ 26 

Hair products always bore me. Styling hair is just not something I care to make time for. Whenever I do, it just frustrates me and I give up after my hair is half teased, half curled and on hundred percent blah. 

Something like this is okay. Especially after dying my hair, I love to deep condition. Given my hairs textures, this will give me likely two or three uses. 

On that note, I will not test this yet. Too lazy to dye my hair. 

Total Bag Value $32.30/ 10

I am satisfied with this bag. The liner, brush, and lipstick have seen some great usuage.  

Ipsy August Glam Room Unboxing - Beauty Schooled

I should just bank on my Ipsy coming later than sooner now. Premeditating a move, after putting an offer on our house I changed my address to my parents address. My sister also gets her Ipsy there as well. Saturday after market I stopped by their mailbox at the end of a long driveway and bam. One pink envelope. Not mine at all. My friend also got hers that day.

Unfortunately mine came on Tuesday the 19th, and it's Friday and I am just now collecting it.

Even though the items I received are lovely, I am not nearly as excited. I will attribute that to the horrid bag they came in. This is one I do not even want to give away. Maybe it will just work as a pencil case for my Prismacolors, rather than the plastic freezer bag I have been using.

Giving even that yucky little bag some thought, it is actually genius. The pattern is adorbs, but it's a flat little plastic blah bag. BUT it's like a pencil case. Get it "Beauty Schooled". In fact, this fits all my Prismas nearly perfect (although, if I did not spend about ten minutes sharpening their broken tips, thus shortening them, these would not fit.)

Like all Ipsy bags, save for July which went to my nonsubscribed sister, the bag grew on me. 

Urban Decay

Perversion Mascara

Purchase the full size here for $22
0.1 fl oz/ 0.4 fl oz

3ml /12 ml

$5.50 / 22

Alright. Like many others, I took advantage of that early access to the glam room. I was elated to have received another Perversion sample. My current sample has been notably drier lately, as it's nearly two months lifespan. While I will not open this guy just yet (need to try another kind like They're Real or Lash Domination) I absolutely LOVE this mascara. To date it is the best I have ever used. The blackest and baddest, beefy lashes ever. The sizing is perfect for me as well. Top notch Ipsy. Franks.

Coastal Scents

Forever Blush Sample Duo in Fresh (Left) and Elegant (Right)

Purchase the full sizes here and here for $7.95 each
2.4g/ 20g (both)
0.08oz / 0.70oz (both)
$1.82/ 15.90

Very hard to price this one, but I do really like how they are packaged. Both of these come from Coastal Scents' individual bluse compacts. Each pot in the sampler represents about a quarter size of the actual product. Fairly, that seems about right as far as samples go, just the diminutive packaging on it's own seems skimpy. A quick look at these would suggest they are of similar size to what one might receive in a travel sized palette. In fact width is a near match for my Too Faced Candy Bar.  

One shade is a lovely candy pink, while the other is a dusty peach rose. I have been fond of using the dusty color Fresh over my whole cheek bone, and plopping some Elegant on my apples. The colors blend fairly well together and they are pogmented nicely. As with other CS products I have used, it's longevity is a hair shorter than say Bare Minerals or something a little fancier. Even with a fading near the end of the day, I loved this blush and the compacts go on sale fairly often to where this would be a great purchase. Pssh. They're cheap enough anyways. 

Don't mind the 3AM market-getting-ready photo. Eye makeup really makes you look awake. 

Jersey Shore Sun

Mongongo Lip Conditioner

This product is full size. Purchase here for $5.50
Weight: 0.15 oz
$5.50

A quick glaze over on the ingredients is fairly simple. While I do think the "Organic" label is a little off putting, as my background is from a conventional small time farm. Much of our pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides are in fact organic. We still spray, but take Copper. It's organic and an effective fertilizer and fungicide. In the public eye, we are spraying. Many organic farmers will still spray. This is a different can of worms, but I only point it out to say that labeling something organic does not automatically add "wholesome" to the list of qualities. Large corporate farms that spray often don't grow the produce with love, and likewise there are probably organic farms that do not employ the same love either.

ALRIGHT REBECCA. AS I WAS SAYING... the ingredient list is fairly simple, with Beeswax, Sunflower oil, cocoa butter and essential oils. This resembles the ingredient list to the lip balms I make. The only difference, save for different oils themselves is the addition of Vitamin E. I am so game for this.

Going into actual usage oh my GOSH. I can easily proclaim the most excitement about this lip balm. This is the smoothest balm I have ever used, and as the website gushed how juicy this tastes and smells I wholeheartedly agree. Beautifully smooth and I can definitely pick up on the Ginger flavor, and lime blends to give this an exquisite fruity flavor.

If this ever goes through my washing machine I will cry for hours.

Lord & Berry

Silk Kajal Kohl Eye Pencil

Purchase the full size here for $16
0.02 oz
0.6g
I could not find a size for the full version, so I guesstimate this is about a third of a full size.
$5.33/ 16

This is one small son of a gun. It bears the esteemed title of being smaller than my pinky finger. It also does not look too horribly exciting. I have one automatic black liner from Bare Minerals, and an Urban Decay pencil liner. At least this does not over-encumber me with liners.

It applies on my arm incredibly smooth, but does not quite make a super dark black. Very little tug if any, but this bugger smudges rather easily.  

For the past week, I have solidly used this booger with the instructions on Lord & Berry's site. Put in lower lash line and blink. For my eyes anyways, this works awesome. Super black and lasting. I have not tested it on my upper lid, and may not. I do love it, and it's fab for my water line.  

Paula's Choice Skincare

Clear Ultra-Light Daily Mattifying Fluid SPF 30+

Purchase the full size here for $8
15 ml/ 0.5 fl oz 
This travel size is available on Paula's Choice website.
$8

This one is kind of just okay. The high SPF rating is favorable, but as a moisturizer I mostly just feels like sunscreen. The consistency matches that of a sunscreen, paired with a distinct sunscreen smell. With absolute certainty this will be used, but as the highest value item in the bag all I can muster is an unenthusiastic wow.

After using it a few days, this is definitely more runny. Still it gets the job done. I have not suffered any breakouts from this either. 

Total Bag Value
$26.15/10

Well the look I cobbled together with my products. 

Face: Pür Minerals 4-in-1 pressed foundation, Too Faced Chocolate Soliel bronzer, Coastal Scents blush (both colors with Elegant on the apples), bare Minerals Mineral Veil. 

Eyes: Lorac Pocket Pro (Nude, Pewter, and Espresso), Urban Decay Perversion Mascara, ELF Cream liner, Lord & Beryy Silk Kajal liner. 

Brows: It Cosmetics Brow Power Universal Taupe, Studio M dark brow trio. 

Incredibly low value bag. Social media bore many complaints about the ridiculous sizes on the samples. As long as I get use from the samples, I will be alright but sheesh. This bag would not be the one to recruit newer people likely.

All the same, these are five super usable products that I have integrated into my use for a week now. Point is, bag value does not equal to how good the products actually are. As much as my early impressions were sour, I am glad to have all these. 

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Ipsy July Glam Room Unboxing - Sensationally Sunkissed

  eta. this bastage finally got here on the 21st. I repeat, the 21st of July. Little over a week past the normal arrival. Baaaah. anticipation killed, when the rest of my friends already received theirs last week.

Well fine feathered folk, it's Ipsy time again. They call this bag Sensationally Sunkissed, and by golly I actually got a product that fits in with the theme. This bag looks very promising (even if I keep seeing the bag itself referred to as pink ravioli, lol). This one ended up being the highest value bag I have received to date. 

My current qualm is that it took it's sweet time getting here. Last month I was opening my bag on the 12th, and I have been getting them before the 15th, and usually the 13th. On the 15th I finally received my shipping code a week later than normal, and it just scanned electronically at it's first port? 

The social media complaints were more filled than usual with impatience, what with the glam rooms opening a day later than they have been for the past few months. This is all outside of the usual "I just placed my order yesterday and I am still on the waitlist and do not have my bag. I am so upset. I like rockstar colors and I keep getting neutrals, even though there are not any items that fit that current taste in the current selection. Ipsy pay attention to me."

Do people not read fine print? Maybe I am an ingenue, but it took inside of a half hour of reading reviews and the actual waitlist/sign up text on Ipsy's website to deduce the entire system they work under. Yet all these folk on the facebook, instagram, and website (which has all the information they need) asking all these stupid questions. When I say stupid, it's because the information is put out there when they sign up, which they obviously have signed up. 

That's mean Rebecca, please stop the tirade. 

As another side note, and potential tirade... I hate summer culture. I hate beaches (partial lie. I mostly just hate the people at beaches and v. vulnificus). I hate the idea that I am losing the fruits of my hard studying, so I can keep in my head people's chatter about their fun supah sexy summer. I hate the thought of literally sitting around and doing nothing but texting all day because you're bored.

How the feck can anyone be bored?

It's all convoluted shit to me. 

I do not comprehend any of it. 

My upbringing was take your kid to work day, every day. My glorious summers were spent with my amazing Dad, learning about flowers and produce, teaching me to follow my passion. Picking vegetables and immersing myself in the intoxicating, flavorful world of heirloom tomatoes. It was about dressing appropriately so my shoulders would not blister from the 90-100˚ƒ work days in a greenhouse or a field, due the sun. My concerts were the sounds of sandhill cranes and the sounds of people thanking me for their beans - save for the occasional, actual concert. Family vacations were traveling to a lesser known, often less expensive park and then following up with a zoo and a cave. We trekked through the Badlands of South Dakota. Wall Drug. Yellowstone and Custers National Parks. Smoky Mountains. Wisconsin Dells. The Ohio Floriculture Short course convention.

Bitter, maybe, but I would not trade this upbringing for a thousand typical summer vacations.

Shucks I am good at trailing off into rants. I can be pretty crass.

Here's bag time, thank you for suffering my rant. And apologies if I truly do not understand. 

I tried to step up my game with the phone camera. My awesome stage of a Adipocere poster from Anatomy, and some cool halloween paper. Plus a nice lamp shining against the backdrop. I can deal with this.

Bare Minerals

5-in-1 BB Advanced Performance Cream Eyeshadow Broad Spec. SPF 15 in Divine Wine

Purchase the full size here for $18

.03 oz /.10 oz. 

1ml /2.9 ml

$6.21 /18

I am so excited about this! In anticipation, I swatched Divine Wine on my hand in Ulta and admired it the whole rest of the night.  

Now that I have this I am practically screaming about holding it in my hands, and in the color I wanted badly, which I believe this is the darkest of shades. This dries with a nice stay put finish and then magically shimmer appears, so it can totally be worn by itself. 

It has a flappy doe foot, which I believe is stiffer in the actual full size. The full size price point is a bit high, but honestly I would buy it after testing it for a full day on the lids.

Clear Clinic Labs

Vanished Clear Spot Treatment

Purchase the full size here for $35

2 ml /7.5 ml

$9.33 /35

While I currently use my Murad Step 2 sample I received from an Ulta sample kit, I am thrilled with this one. It's not exciting, but I break out horribly during my time of the month. Instead of picking the crap out of my pimples that grace my forehead and chin, I could always just treat it with something like this. Worth a try for sure.  

Small doe foot style applicator, but I cannot test it yet. My face is fairly clear. I had a forehead pimple that cleared up with my Murad stuff. While I cannot tell of it's efficacy, my friend claimed it worked great for her sister. We will see in weeks to come. No doubt in my mind that I will have another breakout. 

Elizabeth Mott

Tints and Sass in Cherry 

Purchase the full size here for $22.99

.35 oz full size

$22.99

Reminding me of Benetint, for a decent fraction of the price I am thrilled about this. My current itsy bitsy Benetint is half gone, so awesome! This is the just about the same size as Benefit's tints, though with a different applicator 

It smells like cherries, and I like cherries. Even fake ones. Blended out it's definitely a cherry color. Yay cherries. 

Glopped on the left, blended on the right.

My big test was compared to Benetint, and it's certainly more opaque. Benetint sheers out a lot quicker, whereas this tint packs a bigger punch. More restraint must be used. Another difference is that it's a cooler color - forgive redundancies - cool cherry. This even is more effective on the lips, if not for it's sticky gel feel. I will be honest, this seems better than the Benetint formula.

It's something, but I doubt I would wear it alone.

The two red marks on the left belong to benetint, the other two belong to Sassy.

Pop Beauty

Sunkissed Bronzer

Purchase the full size here for $10

.25 oz full size

$10

Ai, I definitely own a few bronzers. Ulta minerals pressed powder. Bare Minerals Faux Tan color all over loose pigment. Too Faced Chocolate, and the little pot in the Candy Bar. I even have a Cover Girl cream bronzer. Of that listing, one is loose and darker. One is cream, for when I figure out how to use it. The remaining were all pressed powders and dangit here's another! I am thrilled by most of what I get from Ipsy though, so let's give this a try. 

HOT DANG. In hand this product is just beautiful. Very soft feel to the powder. It is incredibly shimmery though, and really it's bronze. A rosy bronze one hundred percent. I am not totally certain, but this might be too dark for me to wear on my face. It needs testing but...

I have no reservations against using this on my eyes. This is the exact rose gold bronze color I had from the Body Shop about a decade ago, and I do not even care if it's a bronzer. This bugger is going on my eyes. Or my face. We will update with a look soon. 

Pur~Lisse

Pur Protect Essential Daily Moisturizer SPF 30 

Purchase the full size here for $55

.05 oz /1.7 oz

15 ml /50ml

$16.50 /55

Based on Ipsy's normal formula, during the second preview I would have gotten either this or a tanning oil. I dodged a .50 cal bullet and received a 6 oz sirloin steak on this one (cooked medium rare.). Not only do I love my current Pur~Lisse moisturizer from May's Ipsy, but I am almost out of it. Certainly the SPF rating can be appreciated by me when my Ulta Minerals foundation does not have a rating for sun exposure. Every other foundation I use has that extra benefit, but I am thrilled to know that I at least have that covered.

My sister and I already have a trade arranged for my Pacifica eyeshadow from May for her Pur~Lisse moisturizer. She actually enjoyed her eyeshadow from May. She is few.

As for the product itself, in my hands this is rather similar to the Pur~Moist. It smells a touch more sunscreeny. It feels much the same, which I really enjoy. Almost a cooling feel? Maybe it's just how moist my face now feels. Love it, but would NEVER shell out the cash for it. At least Ipsy seems to love giving these buggers away. Here's to another two month supply.

that hideous bag.

And onto the bag itself. Finally I have acquired an Ipsy bag that smells disgusting. It's a chemical smell, exactly as others have described. Opening my hot envelope, fresh from the mail box the smell just burst out of the bag like hello.

The bag is hideous. I hate it so very much, and I am betting that is because I hate scalloped edges as an accent on shorts and other whathaveyous. Scalloped edges seem fitted to scrapbooking projects, but not in fashion. That is said by a girl who ritually wears her dad's Wyoming T-Shirts with deer, and antelopes on them. 

But I will still use this horrible bag for something. Maybe nail polish.

Total bag value

$65.03/$10

I have been forgetting to include this, but if you feel like this is something you would love to have delivered to your mailbox please feel free to use my referral link here. It's $10 monthly, and in my experience you receive a value far higher.