Saturday, August 30, 2014

Review: August Ipsy Glam Bag

The products in this post were purchased by me. All opinions are my own.

Happy Labor Day weekend! I hope you all in the US are doing something fun over the long weekend! I'll also mention quickly that there's a sale going on right now at my shop!

Today I finally got around to reviewing my Ipsy bag for the month. If you're not familiar with Ipsy, it's a monthly beauty subscription that sends you 4-5 sample and full size products. It costs $10 per month and is roughly customizable. If you're interested in signing up, here's my referral link!




This month was decent, although I wish Ipsy would stop sending me eyeliner!! I give it a low rating every time, yet it keeps showing up in my bag! Anyway, here's what I got:


1. Absolute New York You're the Balm in Grape





Since I make my own lip balm, I think I'm allowed to be extra critical of other lip balms! This one feels nice on my lips (a little thin though), but I have some problems with it: first, I hate balms that come in tins like this rather than tubes, because you either have to get lip balm/spit all over your finger or you have to carry a brush around with you. Plus I find it harder to get the application I want with my finger. I also wasn't a fan of the scent--it's very fake grapey, like a Jolly Rancher. Third, the ingredients are practically all artificial, which isn't a dealbreaker by itself, but you can get more benefits from natural oils/butters in terms of vitamins.

On the upside, I think the price is very reasonable: $6 for two tins of 12 g each.


2. Coastal Scents Forever Blush in Fresh and Elegant





I'm already a fan of Coastal Scents because of their awesome Revealed eyeshadow palettes, but I'd never tried their blush before. Elegant is a pink sparkly blush, and Fresh is a peachy-tan matte blush. Unfortunately neither of the colors looked great on me; I'm too pale for Fresh, and Elegant just made me look like I'd had a few too many glasses of wine (I'm part Irish after all). The wear time on these arm swatches wasn't terrific. I think I'll stick with the blush I use now (L'Oreal True Match Naturale in Rose Glow, in case you're curious).


3. Dr. Brandt Pores No More Pore Refiner Primer



I'm always excited to try a new primer, especially one that reduces shine and oil. Overall I was fairly happy with this one. It does seem to have a blurring effect on pores, and is definitely matte. I think it did even out my skintone a little bit too. The downsides for me were, first, application was sometimes flaky (not sure if the flakes were primer or dead skin), and second, the primer didn't do a great job at slowing down my skin's oil production. So I'd give it maybe a B- overall.


4. Urban Decay Perversion Mascara



Just when I thought I was getting tired of trying new mascara, this product really impressed me! I thought it did a great job lengthening my eyelashes, and I didn't have issues with clumping. Definitely will use again.


5. Lord & Berry Silk Kajal Kohl Eye Pencil in Black





Hey Ipsy, STOP SENDING ME EYELINER!! Seriously. Even if I was a fan of eyeliner, I don't think I'd like this one. The color payoff doesn't seem to be that good, and it wiped off my arm really easily.



Did you like your Ipsy bag this month?

The products in this post were purchased by me. All opinions are my own.

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