Another month, another bag of Ipsy goodies. This month’s theme was “Beauty Rocks” or something to that extent. Aside from the record on the front of the bag (an object I’m not sure the generation after me has even had physical contact with) the theme is slightly debatable.
Urban Decay 24/7 Velvet Glide-on eye pencil in Black Velvet (travel size)
First up, and the item everyone got in their bag, is Urban Decay‘s new 24/7 eye liner pencil in Black Velvet. I’m one of few people who doesn’t actually own an UD liner so I was really happy to receive this. Urban Decay says this is “an ultra velvety, plush version” of their usual liners and this can create “perfectly blended-out or rich, precise lines that are blacker-than-black”. This is a hefty size sample – in fact it’s only 0.01 oz smaller than a full size product!
Testing out Black Velvet
Judging by the picture on the diagram that came with the liner, I assumed I could blur this out to a really smudgy, smoky look. Well… that didn’t actually work out. The pencil is certainly very black, but blending this sucker out was difficult – too difficult. I ended up using UD‘s Blackout eyeshadow to blend out the pencil liner in an attempt to make it smudgy. As you can see, I didn’t really succeed, but I ran out of time that morning and finished it off as quickly as I could. Despite the pencil not actually smudging like I thought it would (or like they implied), I really do like this liner. It’s super black, and it’s wonderfully smudge resistant (hah). It sets really, REALLY quickly, hence why I had problems smudging it out. The liner didn’t transfer to my upper lid throughout the work day. It also claims to be waterproof, but I didn’t test that bit out. Definitely love this one.
Big Sexy Hair – Root Pump (travel size)
I was excited to try this out as I definitely feel like I need some lift in the roots of my hair and this product looked interesting. Big Sexy Hair‘s Root Pump is a white mousse that dries clear. The instructions indicate to apply it to the roots of your hair while your hair is damp and blow dry your roots away from your scalp. Did that and I think it worked – I certainly seem to have more lift to my hair through the scalp… but now my hair feels like CHALK! Like chalk that’s been smashed into powder, had water added to it and then rubbed into the roots of my hair. I constantly run my fingers through my hair throughout the day and the texture this created in my hair to give it the extra OOMPH just totally freaked me out. (It feels similar to those powder-shaker root lifts, another product I can’t stand.) So while this product DOES work, the texture is so awful to me that there’s no way I’ll use it.
Elizabeth Mott – Pop! goes the shadow in Champagne (full size)
A lot of people are going to love this colour I’m sure, but I’m only so-so on it. Elizabeth Mott‘s Champagne eye shadow is a barely there shade that adds a little bit of shine on my lids, but not a whole lot of colour payoff. It swatches okay, but the end result on the lids isn’t spectacular even with a primer. ( In the shot above, the shadow was applied all over my lid right up to my brows.) I was happy to try it out though, and I’ll give it a shot as a cheek highlighter as well.
Starlooks Luscious Longwear Lip Pencil in Naked (full size)
Since I discovered MAC‘s Prep + Prime for lips I don’t have a massive need for lip liners (as a result, I only have two!). As a result, this item was actually pretty welcome in my bag as I didn’t have a colour like it for the times where I do want to add some extra wear time to my lip colour or even just to wear a liner under some gloss. Starlooks Naked lip liner is a peachy-pink colour that slid onto my lips without any tugging (which isn’t something I can say about MAC‘s pencils… those suckers tug at my lips!). It does have a bit of a plastic taste to it which is a bit meh, but not enough to prevent me from wearing it.
Dr. Brandt Microdermabrasion skin exfoliant (trial size)
I had to look up what the heck microdermabrasion was in comparison to a regular exfoliator and it turns out microdermabrasion utilizes smaller beads and is stronger than a regular exfoliator.Dr. Brandt‘s microdermabrasion feels really lovely on the skin and I can definitely feel the granular difference between this and the cheapo exfoliators I buy at the drug store. It also, incredibly, smells just like Sabon‘s Lemon Mint body scrub which makes this an absolute PLEASURE to use.
The full price of this product, however, is a whopping $78 USD. I love trying out this luxury brand, but let’s get real – this is a sample in a $10 a month beauty bag – most of us are not looking to spend nearly $80 on one skincare item. So it seems out of line with the clientele, but what do I know?
I used this once on my face and it felt wonderful, but I’m going to restrict the use of this to a pesky milia pearl I’ve got on one of my lower lids and see if this will work to get rid of it with prolonged use.
Ipsy April 2014 Breakdown
(all prices in USD)
Urban Decay 24/7 Velvet Glide-on eye pencil in Black Velvet (0.03 oz @ $15, full size is $20 for 0.04 oz)
Big Sexy Hair Root Pump Volumizing Spray Mousse (50 ml @ $3, full size is $17.95 for 300 ml)
Elizabeth Mott Pop! goes the shadow – Champagne ($12.99 USD, full size)
Starlooks Luscious Longwear Lip Pencil in Naked ($14, full size)
Dr. Brandt Microdermabrasion skin exfoliant (7.5 g @ $9.75, full size is $78 for 60 g)
BAG TOTAL = $54.74
My Thoughts
Yet another good bag put together by Ipsy! I loved trying everything out even if some of them didn’t work out for me (I’m looking at you specifically Root Pump). Double pencils (eye and lip) was a bit of a let down at first but once I used them I was really happy with them. The Urban Decay one definitely lived up to the brand’s reputation and I love the microdermabrasion product – I just wish the full size wasn’t so expensive because I could never bring myself to spend that much on an exfoliator. Definitely staying subbed!
This is a massive haul. Epic even. I went to the U.S. for two weeks and it was basically a “no holds barred” kind of deal. I mean… when everything is just naturally cheaper, even when you factor in the exchange rate, what the heck else are you supposed to do? Dive right in, throw money at things and have a damn good time doing it!
And to start us off… the boring stuff. I haven’t seen my usual Marcelle makeup remover on sale in a while so I decided to pick up the NeutrogenaOil-Free Eye Make-up Remover since it was on sale instead. I’m a bit confused how this is oil free and yet there is two distinctly differently liquids inside that need to be shaken up. I’ve not used it yet as I have a minuscule amount left in my Marcelle bottle.
Nivea Milk & Honey ($2.99 CAD)
I bought Nivea‘s Milk & Honey balm specifically for my vacation in March as I didn’t have a lip balm in a tube anymore; they’re all in pots which are really just too messy for travel. It’s okay… nothing overly special though. I’m not over the moon about the scent like a lot of people are, but it’s a serviceable lip balm and that’s all I needed.
Too Faced La Creme Lipsticks – Jelly Bean, Bon Bon and Coral Fire ($22 USD each)
My first stop in the U.S. was to Sephora. And I dove right for the Too Faced display. I had heard many good things about their La Creme lipsticks but (like a lot of things in this post) the Canadian price tag had made me go “NOPE”. I picked up Coral Fire from their original line and from their spring collection I picked up Jelly Bean and Bon Bon. They are unbelievably creamy and they have a smell/taste unlike any other makeup product I have ever sniffed – it’s lemon-y! I love it! Totally unique and completely unexpected.
Too Faced – Chocolate Bar palette ($49 USD)
I hemmed and hawed over Too Faced‘s Chocolate Bar palette for a few months. For one, it’s yet another neutral palette and I prefer brights. For two, I have a lot of eyeshadows to begin with. And then the buts started. But it smells like chocolate. But it’s so pretty. But it’s cheaper in the US. But it’s got a matte brow bone shade. But it has more than just neutrals (*cough*notreally*cough*). In reality, I didn’t need it, but I wanted it. I tend to skip over palettes because they’re “expensive” and I could usually buy more items with that money (even if it is less bang for your buck). But I really do like palettes and I want to have more of them and less single eyeshadows. I’m really enjoying this palette so far and probably the most boring shade (Salted Caramel) has been really lovely.
Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush in Diffused Heat ($35 USD)
The Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blushes are just too pretty to pass up. I’ve heard nothing but good things so I picked up the one that suited my tastes the most – Diffused Heat. On first swatch I was not impressed at all: The blush is way less coral than anticipated and actually looks mostly pink, a light pink in fact. I was a little incensed, even though I knew that this was supposed to be pretty paled-out considering it’s mixed with a face powder. In the end, the colour is beautiful on me and is an incredibly easy colour to wear. It must be because of the swirled in face powder, but I dare say this blush is idiot proof. I restrained myself to only one in this line… although I really would like more of them…
Bobbi Brown – Apricot blush ($25 USD)
Bobbi Brown‘s Apricot blush was what I was expecting Diffused Heat to look like on the skin. I picked this up as it’s been mentioned a few times in Essie Button‘s videos. This is my first Bobbi Brown product and so far I’m impressed. I thought this would be similar to my Illamasqua blushes, but it’s (thankfully) not the same. I *never* get compliments on my blush, but this one garnered instant compliments at work when I wore this.
Tarte Amazonian Clay Waterproof Gel Liner in Black ($24 USD)
I picked up Tarte‘s Amazonian Clay Gel Liner in Black because they claim this is waterproof. MAC‘s Blacktrackis definitely not waterproof, and I wanted to give another gel liner a shot since I can’t seem to find a matte black pen style liner. I dare say this is darker than MAC‘s Blacktrack, but it is definitely not waterproof. At least not to the extent that MUFE‘s Aqualiner is (although that’s shiney and so disappointing in that area). I’m pretty pleased that the liner actually comes with a double ended brush that’s actually completely serviceable. Love that little extra.
Formula X for Sephora nail polish – Lightning & Turbulent ($12.50 USD each)
I’d heard amazing things about Formula X for Sephora but since I’m not a massive nail polish junkie (I wear it frequently enough, but it doesn’t get me excited like face makeup does) I hadn’t ever really considered picking it up. And at $15 CAD a pop, you had better damn well LIKE it for it to be worth it. Well, I was finishing up my rounds at Sephora and just happened to spot these.
I knew the green (Lightning) was a winner as soon as I saw it, and bought it with St. Patrick’s Day specifically in mind. It’s chockful of glitter in a green jelly base – it. is. STUNNING. The black and blue one (Turbulent) is supposed to be a top coat, but I wear it as is and it’s also amazing. I’m so stunned by how awesome these polishes are that I really, *really* want more. The price tag is a bit over the top, but the ones that I picked out are totally unique to anything I own.
Real Techniques – Silicone Eye Liner and Miracle Complexion Sponge ($5.00 USD each – BOGO 50% off)
Next up, Ulta! They were having several deals so I made sure to take advantage. Real Techniques were buy one, get one half off. I really wanted the dual fiber brushes but couldn’t seem to find them (or they’d been totally wiped out by the sale). Instead I picked up the silicone liner brush (first impression… not great, although it’s a very unique idea) and the miracle complexion sponge (first impression… this is AWESOME).
Revlon Colorstay foundation in 200 Nude and 220 Natural Beige ($11.99 USD each – BOGO 50% off)
I need to stop buying other brands of foundation because Revlon‘s Colorstay is by far my favourite. So for that reason, I picked up two shades for when I fluctuate skin colour throughout the spring. I snagged 200 Nude (Combination/Oily) and 220 Natural Beige (Dry Skin, because they were out of the Combination one). I’m curious to see what the actual difference is between the two types.
Maybelline lipsticks in Maple Kiss & Stormy Sahara ($7.49 each)
Maybelline‘s The Buffs have been out for a while now buttttttt since Ulta was also having BOGO 50% off at Ulta I waited to pick them up there. Unfortunately, all of the paler shades were sold out, so I only snatched up Maple Kiss and Stormy Sahara. Maple Kiss is really brown. Browner than I had expected. But Stormy Sahara seems to be a good neutral on me, although I’ve only swatched it on my lips once.
Rimmel Apocalips in Nude Eclipse and Luna ($5.89 each)
Next up are two Rimmel Apocalips (called Show Offs in the U.S.) shades that weren’t released in Canada – Nude Eclipse and Luna. I already love the formula of the three other shades I have, so I’m happy to add to my collection.
NYX Butter Lipstick in Fizzies ($5.99 USD)
NYX‘s Fizzies was the one Butter Lipstick I knew I wanted for sure from that line. Fizzies is gorgeous, although the texture is a lot less buttery and creamy than I had expected. It actually slides on a bit stiff! That being said, the lasting power is longer than I had anticipated and this particular shade is really, really pretty. I wish I had bought more shades but I tragically opted for more Milani lipsticks instead (further below).
Tree Hut – Shea Sugar Body Scrub in Brazilian Nut ($7.49 USD)
I’ve heard of this brand, but never been able to find it in Canada. Tree Hut‘s Shea Sugar Body Scrub in Brazilian Nut smells so bloody good that I actually want to eat it (funnily enough, it does say “DO NOT EAT” on the tub).
Anastasia’s Dipbrow Pomade in Blonde ($18 USD)
Anastasia‘s Dipbrow Pomade in Blonde was a challenge and a half to find. Sephora didn’t have it. Two Ultas didn’t have it (and one Ulta actually had a note on their Dipbrow display saying they were out of stock indefinitely because the product was in way too high of a demand!). As a last ditch effort, we stopped in yet another Ulta and I managed to get my greedy paws on the last Blonde Dipbrow sitting on the shelf. I’m not much of a brow person – the only brow product I have ever used is MAC‘s Omega eyeshadow to fill them in, so I’m excited to try something new out. I’ve used it once and the colour match seemed quite good.
Well I bought into the hype of these Milani lipsticks – I just wish I hadn’t gotten so many of them.
Milani Lipstick Line-up
They smell like fake watermelon and it doesn’t go away on the lips. The colours are beautiful, but they’re actually quite stiff to apply on the lips. They’re sealed in the store so I couldn’t even get a whiff of them before I bought all six of them. Kind of kicking myself now because I would’ve preferred more of the NYX Butter Lipsticks. Ah well.
Revlon Super Lustrous lipsticks – Pink Velvet, Snow Peach and Black Cherry ($6.99 USD each)
Hands down my favourite brand/type of lipsticks. Revlon‘s Creme Super Lustrous lipsticks are better than anything I’ve ever tried, including MAC. I got the Black Cherry andPink Velvet at Ulta (again, BOGO 50%) and then had to HUNT for Snow Peach since it’s part of Revlon‘s re-released collection. (Honestly, took about 12 different drugstores before I finally found the display.)
JulieG nailpolish in My Private Palace & Golden Sunset ($3.99 USD each)
I love Julie G‘s YouTube videos and wanted to support her nail polish at Rite Aid. I have another shade from a previous trip to the U.S. (Mermaid’s Tale) and the quality of the polish was excellent. The new shades I picked up are My Private Palace and Golden Sunset. Golden Sunset is supposed to be textured but is definitely not (not a complaint really, I prefer smooth nail polish, but it struck me as odd that it would be advertised as textured when it’s decidedly not).
Wet n Wild Megalast Lipsticks in Just Peachy and Red Velvet ($1.99 & 0.99 USD – BOGO 50% off)
So you can actually get Wet n Wild products in Canada a lot more readily now, but I don’t tend to think about them when I’m in Rexall and I thought they’d be cheaper in the U.S.. They weren’t, but I picked some up anyway (because vacation money isn’t REAL money right?!). Just Peachy (903C) is much raved about by Tati of GlamLifeGuru so I thought I’d give it a shot, and Red Velvet (910D) is just a beautiful red all around. As a warning though, I wore the red while on my trip and it stained the everloving crap out of my lips. To the point where I woke up the next day and look like I’d been eating raspberries all night!
Wet n Wild Coloricon Blush in Mellow Wine and Pearlescent Pink ($2.99 and $1.49 USD – BOGO 50% off)
I own one of Wet n Wild‘s blushes, but wanted more, so I snatched up Mellow Wine and Pearlescent Pink. Out of all of Wet n Wild‘s products, these are the most awesome ones they have. Aside from the fact that they only have four blush colours, the pigmentation is wonderful. Highly recommended.
Wet n Wild eyeshadow in Brulee ($0.99 USD)
And lastly from Wet n Wild, I picked up a single shadow in Brulee because I often just need a single eyeshadow to pack with me on vacations if the palette I’m bringing doesn’t have a matte brow highlight shade.
Milani blush in Luminoso ($8.49 USD)
I felt like the last person alive to own this blush. Milani‘s Luminoso blush seems to be the love child of every beauty blogger and YouTuber alike. This was another item that was hard to find. It was either sold out or broken at almost every drugstore I went to. I did finally find one intact and snatched it up immediately.
Inglot – Mattes: 383, 370, 343, 317, 334 ($7 USD each, $12 for the palette)
We ended up at the Inglot in Chelsea Market in Manhattan, which meant it was completely empty and we had the run of the entire store. It was in a 5th floor loft area and it was wonderful! I put together a five pan palette of completely matte vibrant shades. With the neutral overdose of palettes lately, I needed a bright combination to make me feel alive again. I didn’t have a list of things I wanted, so I just went for colours I didn’t think I had. The one in the middle looks quite similar to MAC‘s Bitter which is the primary reason I wanted that one.
Inglot – Pearl: 393, 420 ($7 USD each, $7 for the palette)
This Inglot duo isn’t for me, but for my mom. The left shade turned out way peachier than I thought it was in the store, but ah well. She’ll love the sponge tip brush that comes with it too.
Inglot – AMC Lip Gloss 541, 544 ($8 USD each)
And these. How could I pass these up? These Inglot AMC glosses reflect crazy, crazy colours and I had to have them. The pink one is completely wearable, it’ll catch some orange reflections, but mostly it just looks pinky-red. The white/blue/purple one… I have noooo idea what I’m going to do with that one, but I’m sure I’ll figure something out!
Inglot – Gel liner in 79 ($12 USD)
As the cashier was collecting all my items, I asked him what their best selling products were, or what Inglot was most known for. He took me straight to their gel liners which he said were so waterproof that he used them all the time for underwater photoshoots and they don’t come off the models’ eyes. I was pretty sure I’d heard mixed reviews, but thought I’d try one out anyway. Since I’d already picked up a black gel liner on this trip, I decided to go with the red so I could try out some new things. I’ve worn it once since then, and I have to say the gel texture is totally unlike any other gel liner I’ve ever used. It’s far more liquid in texture (not a problem, just odd) and if you don’t clean your brush off after you use it, all the hairs will fuse together. I love the colour and pigmentation, but I’m unclear on the waterproofness though.
e.l.f. Daily Moisture Stick ($3 USD)
e.l.f.’s Daily Moisture Stick is a weird one. It looks like a glue stick, it applies like a glue stick, it smells vaguely like a glue stick, but… it’s a moisturizing balm. I picked it up on Emilynoel83′s recommendation and so far it has definitely helped me out with some nasty dry patches around my mouth.
e.l.f. Lip Exfoliator ($3 USD)
My friend was picking up the e.l.f.Lip Exfoliator and I decided to be a copycat. It smells so good you’d want to eat it. The product was a bit rough on my lips as the sugar granules are quite large but I’m sure I’ll get used to it after a few uses.
MAC Prep + Prime for lips ($16 USD)
My standard lip primer. I’m close to finished on my current MACPrep + Prime for lips so I needed a backup.
Duo eyelash adhesive in Clear-White ($4.49 USD)
Another replacement for a product I own. My current Duo eyelash glue is quite old and needed replacing. I prefer the white/clear version, so that’s what I bought.
Nivea – Berry Swirl, Olive Oil and Lemon & Caramel Kiss ($2.99 USD each)
More Nivea chapsticks! None of these flavours are available in Canada so in my basket they went!
Neutrogena makeup removing wipes (~$6 each)
More makeup wipes (they’re about half the cost in the U.S.) for my stockpile.
Makeup Geek shadows! Yay! I already own nine from my haul back in December and I had to have more. These are quickly replacing my MAC eyeshadows, and at the price point, you really can’t argue. These are softer, more pigmented and just work better than MAC. Highly, highly recommended – to the point where I don’t actually think I’ll be purchasing many more MAC shadows unless they’re a truly unique shade. Also grabbed a larger Z-palette to fit all my shades.
Makeup Geek pigment – Vegas Lights ($6.99 USD)
Along with the Makeup Geek eyeshadows, I ordered a pigment in Vegas Lights. On first glance, it looks very similar to MAC‘s Coppering which is a favourite shade of mine. Unfortunately I forgot to buy the new sifters for the pots, so this’ll be a bit messy whenever I use it.
Clean & Clear Deep Action Cream Cleanser (x2), Olay Fresh Effects Bead Me Up! and Olay Fresh Effects Out of this Swirled (~$6 USD each)
Various facial cleansers that are (once again) cheaper in the U.S.. The Clean & Clear cleansers are ones I’ve used for many years. The Olay ones sold me with their pretty packaging.
Rumbles is very interested….
Last up is a Fortune Cookie Soap order I put in to have shipped to my friend in Baltimore. As I’ve said before, the shipping cost to Canada for any kind of FCS order is so ridiculously high that there’s no way I’d place an order to myself in Toronto. So I took advantage of having a U.S. address for a short week and had a box full of items I wanted to try shipped to my friend.
FCS’Tick Tock Whipped Cream smells like clean laundry to me. I knew it was supposed to smell fresh, but other than that I didn’t really know how I’d like it. It’s okay, but not something I’d order again. I wish I had ordered the Make It Rain Whipped Cream (the one that came in the Spring Soap Box), but they were completely out of it when I placed my order.
FCS also sent a sample of their Trendsetter Bath Bomb with my order.
HOLY MOLY. And that’s it. That was my ginormous March haul. I’m slightly ashamed about how much I bought, but the scary thing is that’s actually my tailored down list of items I wanted to pick up (!!!!). The next few months will likely not be that interesting in terms of hauling as I’ve certainly picked up enough items to play with for a very long time!
Ipsy‘s March bag was an absolute slam dunk. There is nothing in here I didn’t like! At first I was disappointed because there were only four products but they really outdid themselves on this one.
Let’s take a look at what came for me this month.
Pixi – Flawless Beauty Primer (12 ml for $8.80, full size is 30 ml for $22)
I’m not really sold on primers to be honest. I’ve gone through a few sample sizes of various brands and none of them really did anything for me (positive or negative). That being said, Pixi‘s Flawless Beauty Primer actually *did* do something.
When I first squeezed a drop out of the tube I was a little skeptical. The product isn’t clear, it’s actually quite pink with a sheen to it. So I’m thinking “well this is going to end in tears…” as I was blending it into my skin. It definitely tinted my skin and I looked like I had a bit of a pinky tan. I blended some foundation over top of it and it seemed to add a healthy glow even through the matte foundation (MUA matte). As a note, less is more with this product. I used too much and it balled up a little in certain areas – user error though, I don’t think it was the fault of the product.
bareMinerals Marvelous Moxie in Get Ready (No size anywhere, best guess it’s 1/4 the size of a normal lipstick, so… $4.50, full size is $18)
I don’t own anything from bareMinerals so I was really happy to get this lipstick. It’s a really tiny tube, maybe 1/4 the size of a full size of lipstick and the colour is beautiful.Get Ready is a pretty generic medium pink – which makes it easy to market to a lot of people. It has quite a bit of slip to it on the lips, so you may find it slides around a lot. I wore it with a lip primer and found it wore off within two hours or so, but it’s such an easy shade to wear and re-apply that you won’t find yourself with really awkward fade marks as the product wears away from your lips.
NYX Love In Rio – Segredos de Giselle ($6 USD, full size)
NYX changed up their eyeshadow trios relatively recently (I’ve seen them being phased out of Rexall over the last year or so) but I’ve never gotten around to trying out the old ones or the new ones. This trio, Segredos de Giselle, is a pretty failsafe colour combination (reminds me of Wet n Wild‘s Walking On Eggshells).
NYX Love In Rio – Segredos de Giselle
The swatches look rather sheer, but they apply really nicely on the lids. NYX having quality products is shocking to no one as they’ve proven themselves multiple times over the years with their products. One things that especially pleased me is how similar the beige shade is to Urban Decay‘s Virgin (closer than MAC‘s Shroom, in my opinion) and the brown is pretty close to Urban Decay‘s Smog.
Chella – Indigo eyeliner ($24 USD, full size)
The final item in my bag was this Indigo liner from Chella. I was expecting this to be a pencil liner (boo) so I was extremely pleased when I found out it was actually a liquid liner (yay!). The colour is absolutely beautiful and incredibly vibrant. It doesn’t apply quite as easily to the eyelid as it does to the hand – getting the product to flow right out of the very tip can be a bit annoying. Although it can be a bit of a nuisance with application, it does stay on all day and didn’t smudge or move around at all. I also really love that this liner is completely matte. Definite winner.
Eye look using NYX trio and the Chella linerIpsy’s March 2014 Glam Bag
Ipsy March 2014 Breakdown
Pixi Flawless Beauty Primer (12 ml @ $8.80 USD, full size is 30 ml for $22 USD)
bareMinerals Marvelous Moxie in Get Ready (no size anywhere – best guess it’s 1/4 the size of a normal lipstick, so about $4.50 USD, full size is $18 USD)
NYX Love In Rio – Segredos de Giselle ($6 USD, full size)
Chella Indigo liner ($24 USD, full size)
BAG TOTAL: $~43.30 USD
My Thoughts
I said it right at the top of this post – I loved this month! I’ll use every item and that’s really exciting! The colours are on the safe side (pinks, beige, brown, etc.) because I think that for the most part people who subscribe to Ipsy are looking for something that’s pretty generic… which is why the indigo liner was such a surprise. It’s beautifully vibrant and while it’s not an easy safe colour like black or brown, it’s still useable by loads of people.
I was more than a little excited to get this package in the mail. I’ve spent the last two years drooling over everyone else’s soap boxes from Fortune Cookie Soap so I finally took the plunge a few months ago and signed up for their quarterly boxes. Once again, being in Canada means that it costs a little bit more than if I just lived in the US. For Canadians, this will run you $28 USD, which is 8 bucks more than US-based buyers. Still, it’s quarterly, so you pay less frequently. And I justified it to myself, somehow.
One thing that surprised me though, was the size of the box. I actually thought the products were going to be a lot larger. I was completely aware they were sample sizes, but I guess pictures online kind of made them seem a lot larger. The box itself is the size of my outstretched palm + fingers, so you know the bottles aren’t going to be THAT big.
Lens flares everywhere, be still my heart
So this is Fortune Cookie Soap‘s Spring Box for 2014. Their theme for spring is the Garden of Good and Evil, with a heavier emphasis on “evil” products. In general, I love their marketing as I’m a sucker for anything with supersaturated colours with a neon tinge… plus there’s lens flares everywhere. You can’t go wrong with lens flares. (I know you think I’m kidding, but I’m not. Lens flares are Photoshop’s sparkly fairy dust as far as I’m concerned!)
So I opened the box and… almost threw up. The sickening smell of FLOWERS EVERYWHERE was just seriously overwhelming. My heart sank. I should’ve known better! I’m not a floral-scent lover, I don’t especially like the scent of flowery anything, so why the heck did I decide to make the Spring box my first look into Fortune Cookie Soap knowing full well that spring is when everyone seems to go flower crazy? With trepidation, I took the products out and started to sniff them individually while photographing them.
Thankfully, the paralyzing scent of flowers seemed to dissipate. None of the products smell especially like synthetic flowers, so I don’t know what the heck I smelled when I first opened the box. Maybe it was the same way in which I hate the scent of a Lush store when all the scents combine, but I love each individual product I get from them.
Anyway, let’s take a look at each product.
Fortune Cookie Soap – Forbidden Fruit
The item that turned me onto FCS in the first place were these adorable soaps. I mean just look at it – what’s not to love?! Forbidden Fruit soap is lime green with blue and is supposed to smell like verbena and blueberry with lemon zest. I’m not entirely sure what verbena smells like, but I do get the other scents in it. I’ve placed it by the bathroom sink and it does have a slightly overpowering scent the first few days. It’ll eventually even out and not fill the room as much as it did at first. The texture of the soap is pretty interesting – it feels rather rubbery, like glycerine, but slicker and almost bouncy. It’s not my favourite scent but I’ll forgive anything by just looking at the shape of it.
Cute FCS, very cute.Whipped Cream in Make it Rain
Oh man. This stuff is amazing. Make it Rain has the typical “smells like artificial rain” scent (which they say is citrus, jasmine, musk and cedarwood), it’s tinged blue and it feels like heaven. It’s thick, although not as thick as a body butter, and it sank into my skin quicker than any other lotion I own. I love this so much and I wish I could get more, but they’ve sold out of this scent on their site. I will, however, definitely be picking up another Whipped Cream in a different scent just because I love the texture of this product so much.
Steam Me Up Scotty! in Me So Thorny
I honestly thought this was a piece of chocolate and ripped it open without thinking about it. Whoops – this is NOT chocolate, it’s a bath steamer! This seemed pretty unique to me and I had to look up what the heck it actually does, or how I’m supposed to use it. FCS says to put it on the floor of your tub, away from the stream of water, in order to let it slowly dissolve over the course of your shower. I thought this was genius! Usually bath products are just that… BATH products. Aside from shower gel, there’s very few things created for enjoying a nice steamy shower.
Unfortunately, I didn’t like the scent of Me So Thorny (citrus, lavender, french vanilla with patchouli and sandalwood) as I found the patchouli was seriously overpowering. I also didn’t notice it actually steaming up my shower either, so that was a bit disappointing. Make sure you put it out of the stream of the shower, but don’t let it fall into the drain, otherwise you’ll lose it pretty quickly before it’s finished dissolving. Love the concept of it though.
Bath Fizzy in The Bloom Bloom Room
The Bloom Bloom Room (jasmine, lilac, lily of the valley, peach, citrus and sugar) smells incredible. This is FCS version of a bath bomb and it actually has a longer dissolve time than I expected given how small it is. My initial reaction to the scent was that it smells like icicles. Say what? What EXACTLY do icicles smell like you ask? Hell if I know, but it’s what it made me think of! This is my second favourite item in the box just based on scent alone.
OCD in Afternoon Delight
Afternoon Delight smells bang on like the artificial watermelon scent we’ve come to know and love. There are sparkles in the mix, but they don’t seem to last once you apply it. The scent does linger, so be aware if you’re not keen on the watermelon scent.
Sidenote: I love that they call their hand sanitizer “OCD”. Classic.
Body Wash in Native Nectar
FCS‘ Body wWash is far more liquidy than I was expecting for a body wash. It’s almost thin enough to have a milky texture. The bottle lasted about four showers and it definitely smelled like coconuts although it seemed a bit muted. It was okay, but I don’t think I’d rush out to repurchase this scent.
Cuticle Cream in Marshmallow Dreams
I was so happy to receive a cuticle cream as I don’t own a single one and didn’t know what I was possibly missing out on. Marshmallows Dreams smells like flat out marshmallow fluff to me, but FCS indicates that it has marshmallow fluff alongside lavender, sage, basil and uh.. vodka? But all I smell is marshmallow fluff and that’s good enough for me. This tub is small, but there’s a lot of product packed in there. It’s pretty solid in the jar but it heats up very quickly under the warmth of your hands and goes oily fairly quickly. Because of the oiliness of it, this would likely make a really good massaging balm for other body parts.
Perfume Oil in Venus Fly Trap
This last one is so darn tiny I actually had to go dumpster diving for it because I’d thrown out my box thinking I’d pulled all of the products out of the package. It wasn’t until I read the card that lists all the products that I realized I was missing something. Venus Fly Trap smells exactly as I would expect with a name like that (bergamot, narcisse, musk, water orchid, lemon and pink jasmine). Despite my earlier stipulation about not liking floral scents, I really do like this. It’s floral for sure, there’s no denying that, but it reminds me of something from my youth. Either a perfume my mom wore or a flower she used to grow in her garden. I honestly don’t know why I like this scent – it smells of various flowers, it has a sickly edge to it and yet it’s not nauseating. Two thumbs up!
It’s worth mentioning that their Soap Box also comes with a $10 USD redemption code for your next order with FCS. Unfortunately, aside from the Soap Box, the shipping to Canada is kind of exorbitant for even the smallest of orders. Their lowest rate is $22.45 USD and it only goes up from there. I did place an order and had it shipped to a friend in the US (~$6 shipping within the US) and I’ll be picking it up when I go visit her, but with a cost that high for Canadian shipping, there’s no way I’ll be placing an order any time soon to get products shipped up here to the Great White North.
That’s my roundup for the Spring 2014 Soap Box. My happiness with this box will definitely keep me subscribed to Fortune Cookie Soap for the foreseeable future. There are some awesome products in here that I’ve really enjoyed using. Bring on the Summer Box!
Not a whole load of items this month, but still some serious goodies in here!
MAC – Petal Power ($29 CAD)
Spending ban be damned, I was going to have this blush! This stunner (Petal Power) is from MAC‘s A Fantasy of Flowers collection for Spring 2014. It’s one of their mineralize blushes which tends to mean slightly less colour payoff in my books, so I’ll just have to pack this one on. A lot of pictures online of this blush seem to vary in shades and tons, and mine varies from everyone’s as well. I see Petal Power as a coral blush with a golden sheen – It’s not quite rose gold because it’s got too much orange in it.
The next few items were presents from a wonderful friend but I’ve looked up the prices just in case anyone is interested.
Bath Bombs: Space Girl ($5.25 USD) & Lord of Misrule ($5.95 USD)
I don’t usually buy bath bombs from Lush for myself since I find them rather expensive, so receiving them as gifts feel pretty sepcial! The one on the left is Space Girl and I’ve already used this one up – I had thought it was going to be purple, but when it hit the water, the pinky-red bit at the top exploded and turned the bath water dark pink. Lush indicates that this one smells like grapefruit but I can’t say I noticed a ton of grapefruit smell. The green one is Lord of Misrule and I think it was a Halloween special. Lush says it smells of patchouli and black pepper.
Sephora – Color Reveal Balm in Unique Pink ($13 USD)
Now this is really cool. Like one of those pseudo-mood changing rings of yester-year, this balm changes colour based on the heat of your skin. I barely own anything by Sephora‘s own brand so this was really neat to try out. Unique Pink goes on the lips slick and smooth (Sephora says it has a honey flavour, but it smelled generic “sweet” to me)and feels just like any other balm. At first it’ll look like a very pale-tinted pink lip balm (see the bottom right shot of my hand, the swatch on the left is what it looks like right after application) but eventually it turns pinker and pinker (swatch on the right was about five minutes after it had been applied). After multiple applications throughout the day, it eventually made my lips hot pink and definitely stained them which just made it look all the more natural. One thing I will say though is that this has a tendency to bleed outside the liplines over the course of multiple hours, so try not to apply it too often to minimize this.
Sephora – Full Action Extreme Effect Mascara in Purple ($15 USD)
This is AWESOME. I have always wanted to pick up a coloured mascara but could never bring myself to spend the money on something I wouldn’t wear as regularly as black. Once again, this is Sephora‘s own brand and the colour is a beautiful vibrant purple. As my eyelashes are naturally quite pale due to my blonde hair, this shows up exceptionally well on them (I took a few shots but none of them were clear unfortunately).
That’s it for the month of February. You can thank my wonderful friend for getting me a whole stash of stuff otherwise this post would’ve been only that MAC blush! As I’ll be visiting the US mid-March, next month’s haul is going to be an absolute motherload of stuff.
