I’m almost proud of myself for slowly creeping up to where I
should have been all alone with posting. At this rate, I may have April reviews
posted before the end of the month Mother’s Day. I was so excited to
finally make it to March because believe it or not I’ve been looking forward to
writing about my March Sephora box. Play!
by Sephora is a $10 monthly subscription that provides members with 5
samples from the beauty, skincare or hair care categories and a 6th
bonus item that usually consists of a fragrance sample but can sometimes be a
foil packet. Sephora isn’t as customizable as Birchbox or Ipsy because they
only curate approximately 4-11 boxes for subscribers and one has to hope one
hits enough “key” points to score a box that’s the right fit. Sephora is a
great subscription in other regards though: it’s perfect for anybody who cares
about brand names, values and product availability (everything shipped to
subscribers can be located in store or online at Sephora.com).
March samples included:
·
Bobbi
Brown Extra Illuminating Moisture Balm - $11.33
·
Korres
Greek Yoghurt Foaming Cream Cleanser - $3.73, Cruelty Free
·
IGK
Mistress Hydrating Hair Balm - $2.90, Cruelty Free, Vegan
·
SUPERGOOP!’s
Defense Refresh Setting Mist Broad Spectrum SPF 50 - $6.00, Cruelty Free
·
Amika
Soulfood Nourishing Mask - $1.68, Cruelty Free
I finally got around to using the Bobbi
Brown Extra Illuminating Moisture Balm and the consistency of this
moisturizer caught me off guard. I expected an illuminating, lightweight
moisturizer but this was an outright cream. It has a very light golden pearlescent
sheen to it which caught my attention and affection but once I started rubbing
it in it just kept going. It was so thick and overwhelming that I felt like a
giant greaseball and had to follow it up with a mattifying primer. I will
continue to give this a shot in smaller quantities and hopefully I can get it
to work out for me. One thing I’ve noticed in my couple of Bobbi Brown products
I’ve tried is that the brand seems to be very all or nothing about formulas and
applicators (remember the mascara of yesteryear?)
The dark horse of March’s Sephora box was the Stila
Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner. I’m so over black liners, I’m so
over black liquid liners, and unless it resembles Kat Von D’s brush topped
Trooper eyeliner, I’m not interested. But man, Stila applied surprisingly
smoothly and dramatically. The final look was stunning really, even if my
application game is pretty poor. This liner was very easy to control, even with
its traditional felt tip. It is super black, waterproof might be an
overstatement, and it was amazingly precise. And the available shades at
Sephora, amazing! I wish I were bold enough to even wear some of them. Overall
I’m happy with this eyeliner.
Korres
Greek Yoghurt Foaming Cream Cleanser had the type of foaming power that was
hydrating, not stripping, and I love it. The cleanser itself smells reminiscent
of toasted almonds and I felt like it cleaned wonderfully (uncommon for me with
cream cleansers) without stripping my skin of oils as if I were to use a bar or
dish soap (it happens occasionally with foaming cleansers).
IGK
Mistress Hydrating Hair Balm was... interesting. Balm is the correct word
on this case. A little goes a long way and the product was a clear, thick,
non-greasy feeling paste. I cannot attest to how hydrating this balm is as a
leave in conditioner but it did definitely smooth out Lizzie’s hair when I
combed it out last night (photographic evidence below).
 |
| Lizzie's hair after using IGK Hair Balm |
SUPERGOOP!’s
Defense Refresh Setting Mist Broad Spectrum SPF 50 made an enemy out of me.
I was most excited to see this in the box. But holy shit, I was attacked. In no
way does the word “mist” apply to this product. I took a Super Soaker to the
face and priming the pump does nothing, it’s the sprayer itself. You know that
feeling of getting sun screen in the eyes? Yeah... it’s kind of like that, even
without it being a direct shot into the eyeball. I had hoped mine was defective
but I doubt that and the aggressive spray has turned me off from ever wanting
to buy a full size of this. A quick browse through buyer reviews showed that a
lot of people had issues with clogged spray nozzles unfortunately. I tried the
method of spraying my hands and patting it in and they seemed to work but I’m
only comfortable doing that on a bare face. I like the product, I just wish the
application would have gone better.
Amika
Soulfood Nourishing Mask was pretty awesome. This might actually mark the
first time I’ve actually enjoyed a Sephora bonus foil packet. It actually
worked as a decent conditioner on my hair, and we’re talking a foil
packet here. The formula was super thick which might weigh down fine hair and
it smelled mildly of Play-Dough but small beans.
 |
| Dry skin arm swatch of the Stila Stay All Day Liquid Eyeliner |
I didn’t expect this kind of excitement but almost everything was
well executed this month. The brands were great, the sample sizes varied from
on the smaller side of standard to functional, and most importantly, I can use
everything! Albeit, this is with some tweaking in application here and there. The
value of this box was insane (for Sephora) at $36.64. It seems so high because
for once, the personal value was high too since I can actually use everything.
Thank you, Sephora, you made my month with this. Yes, I’m aware that I have a
very low bar for material pleasures.
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