In August, Ipsy decided to remind us that when it comes to beauty, you never stop learning, because there are always new tricks and techniques to be discovered. They called their August Glam Bag Beauty Schooled, and even made the cosmetic bag itself look like a pencil case.
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| Let’s take a peek inside the “pencil case”. |
HOW IT WORKS
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Nicka K Absolute Lip Balm in Grape – Oh my, that’s a very heavily scented lip balm! Although the fragrance is not unpleasant, I still found it to be strong enough to clash with my perfume.
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| Nicka K Absolute Lip Balm in Grape |
Other than the scent, this lip balm is everything I dislike about lip products – tin packaging, lots of chunky glitter, and a load of petroleum jelly. I will not be using it myself, and I’m a bit iffy about giving it away for moral reasons. I mean, a nasty oil by-product, such as petrolatum, is not a good thing to ingest [which is unavoidable with lippies], and I don’t want to contribute to someone else’s health issues. I think I’ll just toss it 🙁
dr. Brandt Pores No More Pore Refiner Primer is a cult classic product, but its effectiveness is a bit controversial, because while it works for some people, it does nothing for others. For me personally it seems to work well. I apply it on my nose, cheeks, and forehead before makeup, and it really fills up those wide pores [mine are more like craters!], making the surface of my skin look much smoother.
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| dr. Brandt Pores No More Pore Refiner Primer |
This primer works best for combination/oily skin types, because it also provides drying and anti-bacterial properties. I like that dr. Brandt included tea tree oil in the formula, that’s one ingredient I know for sure works well to balance the skin and minimize breakouts.
Urban Decay Perversion Mascara – I’m convinced that Urban Decay can do no wrong, and yet again I’m wowed by their product. This mascara looks absolutely amazing on my lashes! No, it doesn’t make them look like falsies, instead it’s all about big, voluminous, fluffy realsies!
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| Urban Decay Perversion Mascara |
Love. This. Stuff. No, seriously, this is going straight up to my wishlist/birthday haul/christmas/whatever list. It shall be mine, and no one will stop me *mwahaha* 😉
Coastal Scents Forever Blush Sample Duo – I’m okay with Coastal Scents, as cheesy as it sounds, these are some of the best choices within that price range. Their brushes are actually pretty good, and some are even comparable to MAC, I sort of wish Ipsy would just send me one already! But I digress.
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| Coastal Scents Forever Blush Sample Duo |
I received a duo of two sample-sized blushes, one of them was a shimmery raspberry [Elegant], and the other looked more like a very warm bronzer [Fresh]. Neither color really appealed to me much, so I’m probably going to give it away to someone else.
Lord & Berry Silk Kajal Kohl Eye Pencil – I’m really getting a case of “yet another black eye pencil” here. I think some newer subscribers would really enjoy this little cute sample, but those of us who have been with Ipsy for a while probably received enough black pencils and eyeliners to last us a lifetime.
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| Lord & Berry Silk Kajal Kohl Eye Pencil |
Lord & Berry products always seem to be a hit and a miss for me, but this one will remain a mystery, because as it stands, I just have way more black pencils than I can realistically use. My Mom uses them daily, so I’ll give her this one to try.
THE VERDICT
I think this bag was decent, because I found Pores No More Primer and UD Perversion Mascara, both of which I absolutely adore and will very likely purchase. The rest of the products will be given away, with the exception of lip balm which I’m planning to toss, even though it seems wasteful, and the jar is just too cute. Well, I would rather be called wasteful, than have someone ingest glitter and petroleum jelly 🙂
| Product | Retail value |
|---|---|
| Nicka K Absolute Lip Balm | $2.99 |
| dr. Brandt Pores No More Pore Refiner Primer | $11.25 |
| Urban Decay Perversion Mascara | $5.50 |
| Coastal Scents Forever Blush Sample Duo | $1.98 |
| Lord & Berry Silk Kajal Kohl Eye Pencil | $5.66 |
| Box Retail Value | $27.38 |
My first month after canceling ipsy, and I am glad I did. I would have been bummed out with this bag. Glad you had a couple of items that you did like!
I know how you feel, I was mostly disappointed, too.
You got the perversion mascara! Eeeek I want to try it!
Yes I did! *happy dance* It really is wonderful, I’ll buy the full size tube when this one runs out.
Now, I understand the comment you left on my post, lol. I didn’t check the ingredients on the lip balm but mine doesn’t have glitter in it and the scent disappears right away. Petrolatum isn’t my favorite ingred but I’ll use it from time to time. I liked the little L&B black eyeliner along with Perversion mascara since they fit in my purse MU bag but yes, I have a million full-size black liners from ipsy. And both Coastal Blushes are good for me. The only thing I couldn’t use was the Dr. Brandt!
Those sample are really purse-perfect, aren’t they? So glad to hear you liked your Perversion mascara, too! I thought it was fantastic, and will definitely add it to my next Sephora order.
This Urban Decay mascara sounds like something I have to try.
I think you’d like it, Leelo!
I LOVE the perversion mascara!
Me too, it’s currently one of my favorites, if not THE favorite!
I’m so jealous you got the mascara and the pores no more!!! I really wanted those two in my bag! But the eyeliner is such a lovely plumy color!!
Bummer that you didn’t get a chance to try those two, they were definitely the highlights of my bag this month. Ipsy often repeats samples, so there’s still hope!
We got the same back and feel the exact same way about that damn lip balm! LMAO.
Omg that’s crazy!! What can I say, great minds think alike, haha! But seriously, those huge chunks of glitter are too much.
Dr Brandt’s Pores No More is a great product, I use it a lot when I do grooming for men and makeup.
I’m not surprised that you like it, Norah, because it’s really a great primer!
I so wish I’d have gotten that balm!
I can send it to you if you want 😉
For me the bag was meh. I do like the Dr. B Pores No More but the rest is jsut so-so, even the Perversion mascara.
Oh bummer, sorry to hear that you did not enjoy your bag this month. It sure seems like all bag variations were a bit uninspiring, but at least you found a product you liked. I hope your September bag is a million times better!
Ooh, I’m dying to try the perversion mascara!
Can’t wait to hear your thoughts on it, Miranda.
A mini Perversion!! I want that bag just for that!!
I know, right? It was totally worth it!
I was bummed when I first got my bag BUR I have to admit I really like the UD Perversion mascara!
Happy to hear that you at least got to enjoy one of your samples. This month’s bags have all been lackluster.
That bag is too cute!
I really like it, too! Those polkadots are so fun!
I like Coastal Scents, too. Their brushes are made by Crown Brush, and I love most of their brushes. Their Revealed palette is awesome. I haven’t tried their blushes, yet, though. I feel ya on the balm – I really dislike tins, and with glitter? nope, nope, nope.
I wasn’t very impressed with my box this month. I’m pretty close to cancelling all together!
I kinda like the stuff in the bag this month
Even though the dollar value doesn’t seem amazing I would still be happy with this bag.
I won’t get my bag for another 15 days… super bummed it’s taking them so long.
It’s such a good month for ipsy