It’s “that time of the year” when the quarterly boxes start arriving at our doorsteps. Just earlier this week I received my New Beauty Test Tube package filled with this season’s hottest skincare finds. In this box we got three full-sized items! Although we only got one makeup item, I am fine with it considering I just signed up for MyGlam/Ipsy and will be receiving the supposedly awesome October bag.
Considered by many to be the best quarterly beauty box subscription service out there, New Beauty magazine sends out a tube filled with products from well-known brands such as Moroccanoil, SkinCeuticals, NeoStrata, Olay, YBF and more… The items are a mix of full-sized and deluxe-sized cosmetic products tailored to your skin’s needs. You will also receive a free issue of New Beauty magazine in every tube. The box costs $29.95 + shipping, but the value of your box will always be way above. Click here to join New Beauty Test Tube.
1. CellCeuticals CellGenesis Eye Serum (0.5oz) $65.00
A challenger appears! I was just raving about Snowberry’s eye serum and now this one comes and wants to take away the spotlight. This serum instantly depuffed my eyes and made the fine lines appear smoother. I can’t wait to see the long term results, luckily I have a full-sized product here so I will have enough to properly evaluate it.
2. Moroccanoil Intense Hydrating Mask (2.53oz) $9.90
I read both positive and negative reviews about this mask, and mine is going to be very positive. I have flat/frizzy/fine/colortreated hair and usually very picky about my hair masks and conditioners because some of them made my hair look greasy and even more flat. This mask performed really well, it made my hair very soft and silky to the touch and I noticed much less frizz after my hair dried.
3. Olay Professional Pro-X Deep Wrinkle Treatment (1oz) $43.99
I’m kind of “meh” about this one. I’m only 28 so I don’t have any deep wrinkles and neither does my mom who is in her 50s so I don’t even know who to give it to. I deliberately didn’t unpack it just in case I can gift it to someone or trade for something else. From what other reviewers have said, this seems to be a nice product and it works for most.
4. Yon-Ka Phyto 58 (1.4oz) $66.00
On the box they recommend using this as a nighttime moisturizer, so I gave it a shot. It has a very strong medicinal-herbal smell but I got used to it quickl;y after I put it on my face. In the morning my skin looked nice and soft and appeared well-rested. I will give this creme another week but so far so good 🙂
5. dr. brandt dark circles away (0.085oz) $9.35
This eye serum has slight concealing properties and contains a small amount of light-reflecting particles to instantly brighten up the under-eye area. I’ve always had dark circles because my skin is just too thin in those areas, so I doubt any miracle cream can completely improve that. But I heard that skin thickening collagen-rich serums like this one might make them less visible, so we’ll see.
6. IT Cosmetics Bye Bye Under Eye in Neutral Medium (0.11oz) $9.44
Very nice concealer! At first I thought medium would be too dark for me but it spreads well without losing its concealing properties so I managed to get the perfect color match without losing any coverage. This concealer goes on thick and creamy and doesn’t seem to smudge at all. After 3 hours it still looks the same as when I just applied it! A little goes a long way and this tiny sample will last me forever, then I will quite possibly buy a full size because this thing is awesome 😉
7. philosophy hope in a jar (0.4oz) $7.80
[Corny pun alert!] I wouldnt get your hopes up about this one! I thought that this moisturizer has more Cons than Pros and here’s why. This moisturizer has a VERY strong lavender smell, it’s so strong I can see it giving people headaches. The cream doesn’t sink in easily, you have to sit there and pat it in for several minutes. After it finally absorbed into my skin I felt tingling along my jawline, I figured it must be the active ingredients at work so I didn’t do anything about it. A couple minutes later the tingling stopped and I went on with my day. In the evening the spots that were tingling were covered with nasty red bumps… Yep, this cream totally broke me out and I’m not the one with super sensitive skin so it came as a total shock to me. So yeah, I don’t know who would want to take a risk with this moisturizer, but I’d advise anyone reading this to stay away from it. It might work well for some but it’s been known to do more harm than good to many others. I doubt any of us here are die-hard philosophy fans that we can’t find a safer moisturizer for $40.
8. Kneipp Pure Bliss Bath Salt (60g) $2.28
I got bath salts although I would have preferred a bubble bath sample instead. I ended up testing them the same day. The scent was very nice and relaxing and the salts colored my water brownish red which I thought was kind of neat. You have to make sure to wash off the residue afterward because the color is a bit intense and might stain your tub.
| Product | Retail Value |
|---|---|
| CellCeuticals CellGenesis Eye Serum (0.5oz) | $65.00 |
| Moroccanoil Intense Hydrating Mask (2.53oz) | $9.90 |
| Olay Professional Pro-X Deep Wrinkle Treatment (1oz) | $43.99 |
| Yon-Ka Phyto 58 (1.4oz) | $66.00 |
| dr. brandt dark circles away (0.085oz) | $9.35 |
| IT Cosmetics Bye Bye Under Eye in Neutral Medium (0.11oz) | $9.44 |
| philosophy hope in a jar (0.4oz) | $7.80 |
| Kneipp Pure Bliss Bath Salt (60g) | $2.28 |
| Box Retail Value | $213.76 |
