As someone who loves traveling, I was excited to see that our Ipsy may 2015 bag was themed “Jetsetter”; after all, few things get me as excited as experiencing new cultures and visiting new places. Later this year my husband and I will be going to UAE to celebrate our anniversary, and I was hoping there would be something in the bag that I could bring with me to this hot country. Let’s see if I found anything!
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Briogeo Rosarco Milk Reparative Leave-In Conditioning Spray – I have definitely accumulated too many hair care samples from my subscription boxes, but that gives me an opportunity to find the best products for my fine and flat hair. I liked this particular leave-in spray, because unlike most treatments of this type, it doesn’t contain silicones in the formula. Instead, it conditions, strengthens, and smooths the strands with a mix of coconut, argan, and rosehip oils, but since it’s so rich and concentrated, it’s very easy to use too much and end up with that dirty hair look instead.
Urban Decay 24/7 Glide on Lip Pencil – I just tried this pencil at Ulta the other day, and I didn’t think it was anything special, certainly not better than a similar one from Milani. It helps protect the contour for a while, but my lipsticks and glosses slide off my lips no matter what I do. The pencil came with two lip gloss samples, which were both very pretty, and if I didn’t already have too much lip gloss, I’d probably grab the purple one, because it looks gorgeous on the lips.
BelláPierre Cosmetics Waterproof Mineral Gel Eyeliner Pencil – Black eyeliners rarely excite me, even though this one is full-sized. I lightly swatched it on my wrist, and it did in fact stay put throughout the day pretty well. It even survived the shower, so the claims about its waterproof qualities are well-justified. Overall, I think it’s a pretty nice basic eyeliner, and $14.99 is not that bad of a price for a decent waterproof formula.
AMIE Morning Dew Matte-Finish Moisturizer – An oil-free moisturizer with matte finish is just what I need for hot weather! Unfortunately, it doesn’t contain any SPF, but at least it can be used as a lightweight base for makeup. Really excited to give it a try!
Luxie Beauty Tapered Blending Eye Brush 205 – This is a fairly nice basic blending brush, certainly not the best there is, but better than many other cheapies I’ve tried. the design is very cute and girly, and the bristles are well-shaped. It also didn’t seem to lose bristles after the very first wash, which usually happens to me with cheap brushes. Overall, a pretty useful product to receive, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to buy it.
THE VERDICT: And now the moment of truth! So which of these samples did I decide to bring to UAE? Can you guess, before you read the answer? First of all, I will bring the eyeliner [unless I find something better], because of its resilient formula that could potentially withstand the heat from the desert. And of course I’m going to bring the moisturizer sample, since my combination skin will need all the mattifying help it can get 🙂 I was thinking about also taking Briogeo leave-in conditioner, but I think I’ll use it up this Summer, and take something else instead – maybe one of those Alterna Bamboo Beach hair treatments with SPF.
Do you pack full-sized or sample-sized products for traveling? Let me know in the comments below!
| Product | Retail value |
|---|---|
| Briogeo Rosarco Milk Reparative Leave-In Conditioning Spray | $3.92 |
| Urban Decay 24/7 Glide on Lip Pencil | $15.03 |
| BelláPierre Cosmetics Waterproof Mineral Gel Eyeliner Pencil | $14.99 |
| AMIE Morning Dew Matte-Finish Moisturizer | $0.76 |
| Luxie Beauty Tapered Blending Eye Brush 205 | $12.00 |
| Box Retail Value | $46.70 |
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