Birchbox: May 2013 - Beauty Diaries

Birchbox went with a theme of "Beauty Diaries" this month. I'll admit, I don't really "get" the theme, but hey, no big deal. I generally find the themes of these boxes to be kind of arbitrary, anyway!

I received six products this month - five beauty products and a lifestyle extra!

First is a Color Contrast eyeliner mini by Sumita. I have to admit, I was a little bummed by this - Birchbox had said in their preview video that they were sending out fun colored liners, which I was super excited about, and of course I ended up getting black. Boring! However, the liner feels soft and smooth and I think it will be great, so I'll just enjoy the travel size to put in my makeup bag. If it is long lasting, I might go ahead and buy myself some of the colors!

This is Marvis Classic Mint toothpaste. I have been curious about this for a long time! It is imported from Italy and promises a strong peppermint flavor. I know fancy toothpaste seems like a weird thing to get excited about, but I've heard great things. Plus, the packaging is super cute!

This is Coola Classic Face SPF 30 Cucumber Moisturizer. It is what it sounds like - a moisturizing sunscreen with the scent of cucumber. This has organic anti-aging ingredients, and it is a mineral sunblock (a physical one, not chemical!)  I am super white and burn incredibly easily so I am super happy to get this. I hate the way most sunscreens smell and this one smells pretty amazing and refreshing. I can't wait to try it out.

This is the Obliphica Nourishing Mask by amika. It is a super conditioning hair mask that promises to boost shine and repair damage. I love hair masks - my hair is thick and I abuse it with color and the flat iron, so this is very welcome in my box. It smells pretty amazing!

Isaac Mizrahi's FABULOUS is a blen

Ipsy Glam Bag: May 2013

This month, Ipsy did something different - they had bag variations (outside of the usual color products and possibly one either/or product)! This is the first month they attempted to use their "IpsyMatch" system to personalize bags. As we've seen with Birchbox, sometimes box variations can be good or bad. I'm interested to see how they implement this!

This month's bag had a theme of "Spring Fling" and it was full of fitting products for the theme.

I got a really great bag this month! There is only one item I am not satisfied with, I also received a bonus item this month for being an active community member. Score!

Urban Decay Moondust Eyeshadow in Moonspoon - This is my extra item. It is a mega glittery silver shadow. It's so pretty! The glitters are super fine and it manages to look sophisticated while still being insanely sparkly. Love it.

Yaby Concealer in Pecan - This is the item I am dissatisfied with. Not because I don't think it's a good product, but because I am very fair and they sent me the darkest shade, so I can't even try it. I contacted them and asked about the possibility of getting a fitting shade, but got only a "sorry you're not satisfied" email, which is kind of lame. I definitely think their IpsyMatch system needs to be tweaked, because things like concealers and foundations are pretty specific and it's just a waste of product to send someone a shade they could never use. But, at least it's a small part of the bag.

Juice Beauty Reflecting Gloss - This is an organic gloss with a sheer pinky shade. I have used and loved Juice Beauty's skincare items, so I was happy to get this gloss. It smells great - kind of like a chocolate orange, and it is not at all thick and sticky. I'm enjoying it!

Pacifica Perfume Rollerball in Island Vanilla - This is a great scent....I love vanilla! It describes itself as a blend of sweet vanilla, honey-jasmine, a bit of fruitiness, with a tea base. To me, it smells like warm, grown up vanilla. I definitely want to try some more of Pacifica's scents.

Zoya Nail Polish in Blu - I already have and love many Zoya polishes - it is by far my favorite brand. Blu is a very pale blue creme. It's a super pretty color, great for summer...and while I don't usually like cremes much, preferring shimmers, the formula is great and I'm happy with it.

Pacifica Luminizing Body Butter - This is a coconut scented body butter with crushed pearls for shimmer! I am fussy about coconut scents, but this one is great! It doesn't smell like tanning lotion, as I feared...it smells warm and sweet and vanilla-like. The shimmer is nice and subtle. I'm really loving this!

Here's the yaby concealer - it is very dark and yellow while I am pale and pink. Sadly, not useable for me even for contouring. 

Top is the Juice Beauty lipgloss - it looks very natural on. 

Bottom is the Urban Decay in Moonspoon - you can't tell in photos just how pretty and sparkly this is!

Overall, I think this is an amazing bag, and if they can work out the skin matching issues, I think the system might be really nice.

If you want to try out Ipsy's new system, feel free to use my referral link!

What did you get this month?

Starlooks Birthday Box - 2013

I just had a birthday in April, so I received a surprise from Starlooks! On the month of your birthday, they send you an extra box of goodies, for free!  They change up the goodies each year, so you won't receive the same birthday box twice.

I received mine a few days ago!

It comes with a cute little birthday card and three items.

The first item is an eye pencil in Onyx. It's a basic black pencil liner, and it's a really nice one! It's nice and soft and creamy, I'd say it rivals my UD one that I have been using. Pigmentation is great, and it lasted all day. I can now throw out a few of the other black liners I have lying around. Awesome!

This is a lip pencil in Kinky! It's a pretty red, nice and vibrant. The liner is also smooth and creamy and long lasting. I didn't have a red liner, so I'm pretty excited to get this!

And, they sent the matching lipstick! This isn't quite as orange as it photographs, it's a beautiful color. Super creamy and it was long lasting for me, as well. Makes me want to wear red lips more often!

Here are the three products swatched on my arm.

And here is the liner and lipstick being worn. Ignore my bare face and ghost skin.

Loving these items! I think it's pretty amazing of Starlooks to send out a free birthday box, even more so that it is three full sized items. My love affair with this company continues! 

Glossybox: April 2013

April's Glossybox has a theme of "Work That Beauty".  It is all about feel-good products to help you work your natural beauty for spring and summer.  I do think a lot of the time, Glossybox's themes are kind of arbitrary, and the products don't have much to do with them. But, it sounds good, anyway!

I got my box yesterday...and I am pretty happy with it!

I always love Glossybox's packaging. Always so cute and feels like opening a present.

The first thing I noticed when opening my box was the strong minty coffee smell. Sadly, my Wash With Joe bodywash had leaked out all over the box. I was able to clean everything up, but unfortunately, there was not enough left in the bottle to try. They are supposed to be sending me a replacement, so I'm excited to try that. I love the scent of this! It seems like it would be great at waking you up in the morning...and the first ingredient is real coffee! Awesome.

This is a bath tea bag by Bvlgari. Honestly, I'm not that enthused about this, because I rarely take baths in my tiny apartment bath tub. However, I will save it to use after a particularly stressful day. This is the same scent as the Bvlgari soap they sent out a while back, and I actually enjoyed the scent, so maybe I'll love it!

This is a little bonus - and we got it in the January box as well. I loved it, so I am happy to get another packet. It's the Replenishing Daily Solution by Le Metier De Beaute. It's an amazing moisturizer, basically. But, it costs $225, so frankly these little samples are the closest I will be getting to it!

This is a texture spray by Alterna. It is meant to give you beachy waves. I have never had luck with these products before, as they just tend to make my thick, mostly straight hair look messy and kind of dirty, but I am certainly willing to try this one out! 

This is Tigi Glow blush in the shade Awaken. It is hard to photograph! It is actually a tangerine-ish color! Definitely on the orange side of pink. It is super pretty, and different than any blushes I currently have. They sent out 4 different colors this month, and while I initially wanted one of the others, I am now happy with having gotten this one!

Here it is swatched. Again, it is a bit more orangey in real life! 

This is an organic lip balm by The Honest Company. I got the sweet orange vanilla flavor and it's great! It smells just like a dreamsicle, and it feels nice and light. A great basic balm.

I used a code to get a bonus item, as well - a Zoya polish. This shade is Tracie, an avocado green with a pearly finish! I love it...so pretty!

In all, I think this is a pretty good box, especially with the Zoya bonus! 

Here is 2 quick coats of Tracie. Seriously pretty and perfect for spring! I love Zoya so much.

Have you tried any of these items? What do you think of them?

Wantable: April makeup box

Wantable is a service that offers truly customizable boxes of full sized cosmetics. (They also have jewelry option, but I have not tried that one!) They allow you to choose categories of makeup that interest you (eyeshadow, eyeliner, mascara, lip color, highlighter, blush, bronzer, nail color brows) and then within those categories, specific types (shimmer, matte, bright, neutral, powder, cream, etc). They then select items for you (around 4 full sized items). You can subscribe for $36 a box, or buy a single box for $40.

I have gotten one box in the past, and I was happy with what I received, so I decided to try another one. This month, I chose to receive all categories but brows and bronzer, and within the categories, I chose color options over neutral. Here's what I got!

I think their packaging is so cute. It's small and just put together well.

They included a little bonus this month - two La Fresh makeup remover wipes. I love these and am always happy to receive them.

This is eyeshadow by Be a Bombshell. The shade is Divine. It is a super shimmery baby blue! So pretty! It is nice and pigmented, soft and smooth. I love this color!

Be a Bombshell eyeliner in Amethyst! This is a marker style liner in a deep purple. I have the black one and it is great! I actually don't have a purple liquid liner and I am so excited for this one. I'm loving this brand.

Cailyn Cosmetics Dramatic Impact mascara in blue. It's a lengthening, thickening mascara in a pretty blue color. I don't have any colored mascaras and I am happy to try one! I have a Cailyn gel liner that I really enjoy, so I'm pretty excited to try the mascara.

This is a cream blush by 29 Cosmetics. The shade is Napa Rouge, and it is a nice, highlighting pink. It feels nice and creamy and the color is subtle. The packaging is gorgeous! This blush alone retails for $39.

In all, I am excited to try these products! I love blues and purples, so they chose perfect shades for me. This box has a value of $85, which is a great deal.

Here is what everything looks like swatched. From left to right, here is the blush, shadow, liner, and mascara. Everything seems to be of really great quality!

I am still impressed with Wantable's products and service. I'll probably get another box in the future!

Have you tried any of these brands?

Starlooks Starbox - April 2013

I've said it before, but Starbox is becoming my favorite sub. Every month, I enjoy pretty much everything in it! So, I was excited to wake up to my box today!

This month, they promised a neutral "No makeup look" month. As I have an abundance of color products, I was excited for something different!

Here's what I got.

We received four products this month, one being a  Starbox exclusive bonus. This bonus item was a mint lip balm! It is a clear, minty balm with SPF. I didn't photograph it separately, as it is a clear balm. I'm happy to get it, though! The box itself was adorable, too - blue and brown!

The first thing I saw was this - a Translucent/Nude Mineralized Loose Powder! This powder goes on completely invisible, and controls oil, sweat, and shine. I was just thinking that I needed to buy a powder before summer got here, so the timing is excellent! Super excited to get this.

This is a lash boost mascara base - a primer! It conditions lashes, helps prime them for growth, and acts as a thickening mascara base. You can also wear it alone on the lashes at bedtime for conditioning benefits. I tried my first lash primer last year and loved it, so I'm really happy to get this!

And finally, a Tendergloss lipstick in Trinity. Their Tenderglosses are really cool - they are essentially a hybrid between a lipstick and a lipgloss...they feel super light and moisturizing. This is a nude with golden shimmer. I'm ecstatic about it, it will be a perfect everyday lip product for me.

As always, I am super impressed with my Starbox this month. It remains my favorite sub, and I'm excited to use all of these products!

What's your favorite thing you've gotten recently?

Ipsy Glam Bag - April 2013

Yesterday was a great mail day for me, as I woke up to both my Ipsy and my Birchbox! I already shared my BB with you, so now it's Ipsy's turn.

Ipsy's theme this month is Pretty in Pink. I love pink, so I was really excited to get this! This month, they actually offered different color/product options for everything in the bag...and I got exactly what I would have chosen! Here's what I got:

• healthy sexy hair - soy renewal. This is a styling treatment that contains argan oil, and helps to tame frizz, protect hair, and enhance shine. I love products like this and use them daily, so I was really happy to get it. The other option for this product was a volumizing powder.
• Be A Bombshell blush in sweet cheeks - This is a pretty, medium rose pink blush with shimmer. It is super pretty and a great color for me! It is quite pigmented. The other option for this one was a matte, darker pink.
• micaBeauty Shimmer Powder in earth - This is a pretty mineral eyeshadow in a beautiful pink color. It is so shimmery and pretty, great for an everyday color for me! The other option here was a shadow duo by two cosmetics.
• Sation Nail Lacquer in Of Corset I'll Call You - this is a baby pink creme polish. It is very sheer, but with a few coats it is gorgeous and shiny.

Here are swatches of the blush (top) and shimmer powder (bottom)...so pretty.

This is one of my favorite bags to date! I'm happy with all the products and they will all be used often. As always, I'm impressed with the sizes of the products offered by Ipsy and the amount of makeup they send!

What do you think of this month's bag?

Birchbox - April 2013

I was so excited to wake up to my Birchbox today!

This month, they teamed up with Women's Health magazine to give us a box themed "tiny tweaks, big results", designed to help up fine-tune our lifestyle.

This is a pretty full box!

These are towelettes by Herban Essentials. They are basically little moist towelettes made with essential oils. They're good for germ killing and aromatherapy! I got peppermint and lavender. These aren't the most exciting sample, but hey, I'll use them...I currently have some sinus issues so the peppermint will be useful for me!

These are macaroons by Hail Merry. Now, I have gotten these before in a Conscious Box, so I have tried them...and I am not a fan of them. They are raw, vegan, gluten-free, and made with non GMO ingredients, which is great...they just don't taste that great. But I am not a fan of things like this. THey are coconutty and similar in texture to something like a Luna bar, which I don't enjoy.  I am glad this product exists, though!

This is SOS Morning Eye Rescue by Caudalie. It is a daily treatment for the eyes. Eye creams and products are always welcome, as I have genetic dark circles and all kinds of not-so-greatness going on in my eye area. It's a teeny little tube, but as an eye cream, a little will go a long way. Really excited to try this.

Malin + Goetz cilantro hair conditioner - This is exactly what it sounds like. A daily conditioner containing cilantro. It promises to balance PH levels and hydrate. My thirsty hair is always happy to try a new conditioner.

And finally, the Mirenesse Glossy Kiss Lipstick. This is a pencil with a glossy shiny finish and a great, hydrating formula. The shade I got is Quick Kiss, which is quite orangey. However, I found that I liked the way it looked on, and I love the finish and the feel.

The packaging is odd. It seems like a full size, though it does not twist up or anything like that, so what you get is what you see, basically.

It is very pigmented and super smooth and glossy.

Definitely a bold shade, but wearable. I would really be into trying more shades of this formula!

In all, this is a pretty decent Birchbox! I am excited about the lipstick and the eye cream, and everything else will be used. Not bad, Birchbox!

What was in your box this month?