ipsy Review - August 2013

Look what I got in the mail yesterday! My ipsy bag showed up. I never got any tracking info, and I usually don't get it this early in the month, so it was a complete surprise.

For those that didn't see my last blog post. Here's the deets on ipsy.



Company: ipsy
Price: $10 a month (no option to skip, but you can cancel anytime)
Description: ipsy is a subscription service that sends you premium samples (and usually at least one full size product) each month. They tend to lean more towards make up although they’ve started moving more into hair/body care. They send all the items in a cute little make up bag each month. As of now, ipsy doesn’t have a points system, but they do have a special gift if you get 2 referrals that month.



On to the review! We'll start with the good.



The bag itself is super cute. The theme this month is "ipsy glamour academy" and the bag goes along well with that. I love the color, too.



Noya Cherry Lip Balm (full size)

I am VERY particular about my lip balm. I'm normally an exclusive Burt's Bees user. I'm even picky about that. I only use their original formula. Anything else dries out my lips pretty quickly and I have to reapply often. This stuff surprised me. It works on par with my Burt's Bees, and I didn't hate the cherry smell as much as I thought I would. It's definitely worth a try.



Pixi Lash Booster Mascara in Blackest Black (sample size)

I tried this mascara this morning, and I do like it. It's a very light formula so your lashes don't look heavy or clumpy. It stayed on all day and didn't have any flaking so it's good in my book. Only downside is it didn't come off when I washed my face so I'll have to use make up remover. I'll stick this sample in my gym bag and use it after my work outs.

The bad:



Michael Todd Pumpkin Nutrient Rich Facial Mask (Sample size)

I'd never used a mask before and thought this would be fun to use after my shower last night. I love pumpkin scented stuff so I figured this would be great.  I was wrong! Fun did not describe my experience. It doesn't really smell pumpkin-scented per se. It was more like rubbing pumpkin guts on your face. Then almost immediately it started BURNING. Not like the glycolic acid was working the impurities from my face, but an unbearable MY FACE IS ON FIRE burning. I immediately washed it off. At the bottom of the bottle it says "All skin types except sensitive". Well I guess my skin is more sensitive than I thought. That was awful.



Pacifica Multi-Mineral BB Cream (sample size)

I mentioned in my last post that I loved BB Cream, so I was excited to see this. For those that don't know, BB (blemish balm or beauty balm) creams are supposed to act as a moisturizer and a foundation all in one. It's a light layer that's supposed to blend with your skin to even out your skin tone. My problem with this one is that it blended TOO well. I couldn't tell I was wearing it. What's the problem, you ask? My skin tone was still uneven. My red spots from a recent breakout were still very visible. As a moisturizer I guess it worked fine, but it didn't cover anything up. Also, I prefer my moisturizers to have SPF in them (since I'm VERY prone to burning) and this one doesn't. I don't think I'll be using this again.

The meh:



MICA Beauty Cosmetics Shimmer Powder in Bronze (full size)

This single product is worth more than the price of the bag (it's $14.95). Originally I thought it was bronzer since I've had a sample that looked similar to this before and with the color listed as "bronze," I guess that's a reasonable assumption (or I'm just making myself feel better for being dumb and trying to use it as a bronzer). But no, after doing some internet research, it's definitely an eye shadow.  So why is it in the "meh" list? Since I'm kind of a makeup novice, I feel like most eye shadows are the same. I'll probably use this in the future (maybe), but nothing about this screamed "I'm amazing and totally worth $14.95." The color was pretty though so that's a thing.

So do you think ipsy is worth the $10? I do. If you're not already a member and you're interested, be sure to get yourself on the waitlist here.