Entry tags:
Review: Ipsy 2014-08 and 2014-09
Yeah, I thought I'd do pictures for these and I never did, so here's the brief written description of what I got from Ipsy from the last couple months. The internet has been really down on the bags lately, but I think it's just the bloggers feeding off each other and making it seem worse than it is - I've actually been quite happy with what I received.
August
The bag was a pencil case esque one that felt like an inflatable pool toy and was white with orange spots. I haven't found a use for it yet.
Dr. Brandt - Pores No More Pore Refiner: This product does work to make your pores less visible. It feels a bit siliconey on. I don't really have a purpose for it, but it worked as advertised and it amused me for the 2 minutes I played with it.
Urban Decay - Perversion Mascara: This is the best mascara I have ever used. Okay, so I've only used a couple types of mascara, but this one is way nicer - the brush is well-bristled so my lashes don't end up all stuck together, and it only takes a brief swipe to get the effect that I hope for. It wasn't clumpy and doesn't look unnatural. It did have a bit of a smudging problem, though, where my eyelashes tend to touch my face.
J. Cat Beauty - Flying Solo Eye Shadow: This was sent to me in another meaningless skin colour, so all I could tell was that it was a bit shimmery. Meh. "Natural" is not something I look for in eyeshadows, because what the hell, if I'm going to take the time to smear powder on my eyelids I think it should look different than normal.
Jersey Shore Sun - Mongongo Lip Conditioner: It's lip balm, it works fine. I now will not need to buy another chapstick this winter, so that's nice.
Klorane - Dry Shampoo with Oat Milk: WHAT. This is actually the best thing in the bag... I didn't have high hopes since T didn't care for the dry shampoo she tried, but oh my god. This has saved me on a number of mornings when I woke up and realized my hair looked awful, but couldn't deal with the idea of having wet hair all day from morning shower. Spraying this at my head is frightening, but it makes my greasy roots look so much better. It's hilariously gray when you spray it on, but after I tousle it into my hair it looks just fine. Unlike T, I found it also decreased my itchy-scalp-itis, so bonus.
September
The bag was a shiny gray square one with four studs along the top. It is okay and will be used for something.
Crown Brush - Infinity Shadow/Crease Duet Brush: <3 This was the winner of the September bag. I was always sad that I didn't get brushes when they were an option, so I was extremely pleased with this. I've mostly been using the shadow side of it... I find the crease brush a little too solid, and I prefer to use even smaller brushes if I'm doing some edging. But yeah, a bigger shadow brush was exactly what I needed and I'm pleased to not have to buy my own.
Hikari - Lipstick: This brand is packaged exactly like Be a Bombshell. I am betting they are the same products from the same factory in China. This lipstick looked like a somewhat dark red in the tube, but applied to being a brighter shade of matte red-pink... I feel like it looks weird on me, but I haven't tried it more than once yet. The strangest part, though, was that it's a super dry lipstick... powdery feeling and really pulls on the lips when you try to apply it. Not what I'd look for in a lipstick.
NYX - Hot Singles Eye Shadow: Geez, another skin coloured eyeshadow. This time there were tons of other options too, but I continue on my boring beige streak. The quality of the eyeshadow was fine, but as usual, I could barely see it other than shine.
Pacifica - Natural Water-Proof Eye Pencil: I thought I would hate this like all the other eye pencils, but I don't. This is the best eye pencil I've received from Ipsy - it's soft enough that it's actually possible to apply to my eye, and the fact that I received a brown-ish colour matches very nicely to me. Good on you, brand, you're not bad.
Briogeo - Don’t Despair, Repair! Deep Conditioning Mask: It smells okay, but left my hair feeling a bit greasy when I did a quick test on the ends. I'm a bit burned out on hair masks, since we all know they can't really repair anything... just coat it for a while.
August
The bag was a pencil case esque one that felt like an inflatable pool toy and was white with orange spots. I haven't found a use for it yet.
Dr. Brandt - Pores No More Pore Refiner: This product does work to make your pores less visible. It feels a bit siliconey on. I don't really have a purpose for it, but it worked as advertised and it amused me for the 2 minutes I played with it.
Urban Decay - Perversion Mascara: This is the best mascara I have ever used. Okay, so I've only used a couple types of mascara, but this one is way nicer - the brush is well-bristled so my lashes don't end up all stuck together, and it only takes a brief swipe to get the effect that I hope for. It wasn't clumpy and doesn't look unnatural. It did have a bit of a smudging problem, though, where my eyelashes tend to touch my face.
J. Cat Beauty - Flying Solo Eye Shadow: This was sent to me in another meaningless skin colour, so all I could tell was that it was a bit shimmery. Meh. "Natural" is not something I look for in eyeshadows, because what the hell, if I'm going to take the time to smear powder on my eyelids I think it should look different than normal.
Jersey Shore Sun - Mongongo Lip Conditioner: It's lip balm, it works fine. I now will not need to buy another chapstick this winter, so that's nice.
Klorane - Dry Shampoo with Oat Milk: WHAT. This is actually the best thing in the bag... I didn't have high hopes since T didn't care for the dry shampoo she tried, but oh my god. This has saved me on a number of mornings when I woke up and realized my hair looked awful, but couldn't deal with the idea of having wet hair all day from morning shower. Spraying this at my head is frightening, but it makes my greasy roots look so much better. It's hilariously gray when you spray it on, but after I tousle it into my hair it looks just fine. Unlike T, I found it also decreased my itchy-scalp-itis, so bonus.
September
The bag was a shiny gray square one with four studs along the top. It is okay and will be used for something.
Crown Brush - Infinity Shadow/Crease Duet Brush: <3 This was the winner of the September bag. I was always sad that I didn't get brushes when they were an option, so I was extremely pleased with this. I've mostly been using the shadow side of it... I find the crease brush a little too solid, and I prefer to use even smaller brushes if I'm doing some edging. But yeah, a bigger shadow brush was exactly what I needed and I'm pleased to not have to buy my own.
Hikari - Lipstick: This brand is packaged exactly like Be a Bombshell. I am betting they are the same products from the same factory in China. This lipstick looked like a somewhat dark red in the tube, but applied to being a brighter shade of matte red-pink... I feel like it looks weird on me, but I haven't tried it more than once yet. The strangest part, though, was that it's a super dry lipstick... powdery feeling and really pulls on the lips when you try to apply it. Not what I'd look for in a lipstick.
NYX - Hot Singles Eye Shadow: Geez, another skin coloured eyeshadow. This time there were tons of other options too, but I continue on my boring beige streak. The quality of the eyeshadow was fine, but as usual, I could barely see it other than shine.
Pacifica - Natural Water-Proof Eye Pencil: I thought I would hate this like all the other eye pencils, but I don't. This is the best eye pencil I've received from Ipsy - it's soft enough that it's actually possible to apply to my eye, and the fact that I received a brown-ish colour matches very nicely to me. Good on you, brand, you're not bad.
Briogeo - Don’t Despair, Repair! Deep Conditioning Mask: It smells okay, but left my hair feeling a bit greasy when I did a quick test on the ends. I'm a bit burned out on hair masks, since we all know they can't really repair anything... just coat it for a while.