Boxycharm November 2014 Unboxing and Review

Hi everyone! This is my review for the November Boxycharm box. This is my first Boxycharm and I have to say that I’m very impressed. If you don’t know Boxycharm is a monthly beauty subscription service which gives you deluxe to full sized samples each month. The cost per month is $21.00 and if you live in Florida you have to pay taxes (I live here so I had to pay taxes). If you have not received your box and you want to be surprised please stop reading here. 

The first thing I saw and grabbed out of the box (because it was huge) is this Keven.Murphy Color.Bug. This is a full sized product and retails from $20.00 - $25.00. This is a color chalk which you wipe on and wash out easily at the end of the night. My bug is in silver and while I have not tried this yet I’m really excited to try it. 

I was so excited to see this MicaBeauty Eye Primer(who am I kidding when I opened the box I was excited – I really need to get this lighting fixed so I can video my facial reactions). This is a full sized product and it retails for $44.95. This is a waterproof primer for eye shadow. The consistency is really nice and it goes on smoothly with no creasing. I used this for some eye shadow and it worked perfectly. I’m a huge Urban Decay Primer Potion fan but this outperformed that. I think I may have found a new primer. 

I smeared this bellapierre Shimmer Powder on my hand as soon as I opened it. This is a full sized product and retails for $14.99. This is a mineral powder and adds a really nice shimmer to your eyes (or like me wherever you want to be shimmery). 

I continued my boxgasm with this TARINA TARANTINO Eyelicity Glitter Liner. This liner is full sized and retails for $16.00. I almost bought a similar product at The Makeup Show this past weekend and I am so glad I did not. I love this shimmery eyeliner. You can use a little to make your eyes look larger or completely glam your eyes up to the high heavens. 

I saved this one for last on purpose. This is the OFRA Cosmetics Pressed Blush in paradise pink. This OFRA Blush is full sized with a retail value of $24.95. This color looks a bit dark in the pan and if you’re very light skinned it won’t work for you (or maybe it will depends on the look you like). I however, love the tint and again, almost bought a blush in the same tone this weekend. Boxycharm was psychic for me this month! 

Here is a swatch off all the colors blush, eye liner, and the shimmer in that order from bottom to top.

I am in love with this box. If this is the type of product’s I can expect from Boxycharm then I am going to be having a boxgasm every month. They hit this one out of the park for me and I can’t wait until December's box. 

November 2014 Ipsy Bag Unboxing (bagging?) and Review Spoilers

Hi everyone! This is my review of the Ipsy November 2014 subscription bag. There will be spoilers. So if you want to be surprised please stop reading – smile. For those who do not know Ipsy is a monthly beauty subscription service that sends 4 – 5 sample to deluxe sample size products. I did receive a full sized product this month but from what I’ve been seeing full sized products are not the norm. The bag is only $10.00 per month. This price includes shipping and a cute accessories bag that holds the products. I’ve done something a little different with this bag. Usually, I do an unboxing (bagging – I’m going to keep doing this I think) and do a quick review and/or first take. This time I’ve actually used the products in the bag. 

Please excuse the horrible lighting for the photos. I'm rectifying the situation as we speak and I promise they'll be better next month. Let’s get to it!

November is my first Ipsy bag and I like it. The theme this month is glitter EVERYWHERE (actually it’s called Girl Meets Glitter but I like my title)! What I like about this bag is that the glitter is not actually on the bag. Glitter and I have a problem with each other. It seems to hate my eyeballs and I hate it in my eyes. The problem is if there is glitter on it, it’s going to find a way into my eyeball. Since we know I already have needles jabbed into my eyes, I’d like to avoid the glitter. So, the fact that the glitter was not glued on the bag was a plus for me. 

The glitter bag is not really something I’m going to keep. It seems good for a tween or teen and I’ll be giving it to my God daughter the next time I see her (I say that but look at my matching nail polish). 

I was excited to receive the ITcosmetics Bye Bye Under eye. I wasn’t sure how I felt about this but I used it this past weekend. I attended The Makeup Show in Orlando and I decided to see how the concealer held up to hours of wear and walking through a convention floor. It worked really well. I’m actually going to buy this concealer I was that impressed. For me this sample was worth the bag itself. 

This is the Starlooks eyeliner in Ultra Olive. The color is nice and I also used this. This eyeliner also has glitter. See my above comment about glitter? The eyeliner went on well and blended great. I also got great wear out of it. I’m not sure I want myself to look totally glittered out on a day-to-day basis, but it’s something fun to use for a special occasion.

The next is this J Cat Wonder Lip Paint in Red Potion. Great pigment, great color for me, looked good on my lips, and isn’t overly sticky. Not much more to say other then I liked it (smile). 

This is SeaRx Birch Sap Moisturizing Lotion. I have not used this. I’m really picky about what I use on my skin so I cannot give you a review. However, this is such a small sample I’m not sure I would even know if I did like this product before it ran out. 

The last thing is the Marc Anthony - Oil of Morocco Argan Oil Volume Shine Hairspray. Meh. It’s fine as a hairspray but I didn’t see any volume or shine when I used it. This is a great travel sized hairspray though so I’ll get some use out of it. 

That’s my bag. Overall I was happy with what I received. In my opinion the eyeliner, lip paint, and concealer sample was worth the $10.00 price tag. I can’t wait to see what I get in December. 

November 2014 Birchbox Unboxing and Review (spoilers)

First off, I have to say that this box was much better then my last. This time I did opt for the special box this one was The Happy Holiday Hacks Featured box. Now, I hope (maybe) that next month I won't be tempted to get a special box and I'll actually give you a review on the general box (but if it's to good to pass up - I'm apologizing now). Now, if you haven't opened your box and don't want to know what's in it don't continue reading (smile). 

The first product out of the box is the amkia Nourishing Mask. Full sized cost - $28. This is a paraben-free treatment that conditions and repairs your hair with see buckthorn berry. The smell is very fresh and not to over powering, and we know that’s an issue for me. At first I was not sure what this was. I thought it was a face mask and I was thinking “Oh no, something my face won’t be able to handle” but I was happy to note that the card said it was a deep treatment for your hair. THIS I need. My hair and I are at odds all the time. Now I will say I don’t treat it very well (did you see the running photo from last post?) and since I’ve been trying to be more proactive about treatment (angry face) and my hair (I have thin hair but that’s for another post) I really am looking forward to see if this helps my dry hair.

The next sample that excitedly pulled out of the box was Not Soap, Radio Joy Inducing Body Wash (seriously read the bottle). Full sized cost - $16. Not Soap, Radio is lemon-scented cleanser which will brighten your outlook while you later (according to the lovely card Birchbox includes). It is also paraben-free. I love the smell of this. It’s not to strong (so it does not smell like floor cleaner) but still gives a nice fresh smell of lemon. I love citrus smells (Dolce & Gabbana Light Blue!) and I can’t wait to use this with my Lush Ocean Scrub.

Now we come to the dr. brandt pores no more vacuum cleaner. Full sized cost - $45. I’m not opening this product because I won’t be using it. I am lucky that I do not have black heads (yay for something not on ma face). I will be gifting this to a friend and will let you know how it works for her.

I did not notice this product until after I opened the pillow box but I’m going to mention it before I talk about the pillow box. This is MAKE Silk Cream Lipstick & Lip Primer. Full-sized cost - $36. I am 100% going to try this. Since I opened this box late in the day I will put it on tomorrow and give you an update in a future post. I’m not sure about the lip primer because I’ve never used one before. So, I will look it up and see what it’s supposed to do and tell you guys if it works (yes I know the basics behind it – laugh).  I am severely lacking in the lipstick department (I will rectify this soon – Sephora is having their 20% VIB sale right now). So, this MAKE sample is perfect timing for me.

Now onto the pillow box contents which included a RUFFIAN Nail Lacquer in RUFFIAN Naked. Full sized cost - $10 and a bonus! The bonus is a Firecracker ChocoPod. First let me talk about the chocolate. This is so funny to me. I was just looking at this at World Market (a store with lots of chocolate and other things from around the world). It has pop-rocks in it people! It’s great!

The RUFFIAN Nail Lacquer is a great nude color. It’s very opaque and looks like it will be a one coat application. I just did my nails before I opened this box, so I will show you a swatch on my nail as soon as I change my color.

Overall this box, to me, is amazing. I love every product in it (even the dr. brandt). I can’t wait to try my products and to tell you all how much I liked or hated them (smile).