August 2018 Sephora Play Review

Play! by Sephora is a $10 a month subscription box that provides sample sizes of skincare, hair care and makeup from brands that can be found in Sephora stores and online. It’s a great way to try out brands that are mid range to high end without breaking the bank or risking buying a full size that turns out to be a poor match. Yes, I know Sephora allows returns but I hate returning items that didn’t work out. The way I see it: I gambled, I will commit to that choice I made. I guess to a lesser extent that philosophy can also apply to subscription boxes. My gamble in August included:

August 2018 Birchbox Review

Birchbox is a subscription service that delivers 5 sample sized beauty items to your doorstep for $10 a month. Birchbox sends out a variety of items so each box is tailored to subscribers based on a profile they set up upon signing up. Brands often range from mestige to high end but it’s a great way for people like me to try products and brands they would have a hard time otherwise dropping that kind of money on. 

Too Many Target Beauty Boxes (Pt. 2): July2018

 

  

Every month Target releases at least one beauty box that ranges in cost from $5 to $10. Let’s be honest, they are usually pretty underwhelming and as a result, I'm only intrigued enough to buy one every 2 to 3 months. The good thing about these boxes is that they are stuffed with generally useful items you can find in Target stores or online (think deodorant, toothpaste, etc). The downside is that they can be entirely underwhelming because they are not innovative in the slightest.

Too Many Target Beauty Boxes (Pt. 1): April 2018

Oh my god, let’s take this all the way back to April for a bit.

Every month Target releases at least one beauty box that ranges in cost from $5 to $10. Let’s be honest, they are usually pretty underwhelming and as a result, I only buy one that piques my interest every 2 to 3 months. The good thing about these boxes is that they are stuffed with items you can find in Target stores or online. The downside is that they are usually extremely generic products (so as to reach a wider audience) or just entirely underwhelming because they are not innovative in the slightest.

This is going to be a mega post of sorts, covering two boxes I purchased back in April and two I bought in July (after writing 6 pages in Microsoft Word I had to just break this into two different posts).

August 2018 Ipsy Review

Ipsy is a $10 a month subscription that sends 5 sample (and sometimes full sized) beauty, skincare and hair care products right to your doorstep. Every month there is a possibility of 20-40ish samples that you could receive but each shipment is tailored to you based off of your profile and reviews.

I actually hated the August bag itself. It felt like a cheap, imposter canvas, not to mention my dislike for this particular shade of orange. Every now and then Ipsy will send a very cute or useful bag but this one just went straight to my kids. What was in my August bag?

• Pur-lisse Watermelon Energizing Aqua Balm
• MAC False Lashes Mascara in Extreme Black
• Crown Brush Highlighting Brush CB106
• Hey Honey Take Away the Drama Copper Peel-off Mask
• Ciaté London Glow-to Highlighter in Moondust

Pur-lisse Watermelon Energizing Aqua Balm

I’m not entirely sure how I feel about this gel moisturizer. It does a decent job of moisturizing even if it feels just the slightest bit tacky but it smells like a watermelon Jolly Rancher. I can’t say I’m committed to that scent in my skincare. On the other hand... I really want a watermelon Jolly Rancher now. And boy, do I hate watermelon flavored Jolly Ranchers; I typically either lass them on or I eat them to remind me how much I deeply enjoy the other flavors.

MAC False Lashes Mascara in Extreme Black

I’ve had the pleasure of trying this mascara from a past Birchbox. This teeny guy is nothing special; it gives my lashes some length and definition without being anything too crazy, just Avery natural, clean look. I had to retire my Marc Jacobs Velvet Noir because it got way too clumpy to use anymore so I may be breaking this guy out sooner than I expected.

Crown Brush Blush Highlighter Brush CB106

I love receiving brushes in Ipsy bags. Looking at the name, this brush doesn’t know what it wants to accomplish in life. The shape, however, is best suited for blush application. It is so soft and dense and the synthetic fibers do a great job picking up powder blush without retaining too much product.

Hey Honey Take Away the Drama Copper Peel-off Mask

So I mentioned a couple of months ago how I’ve grown to dislike peel off masks as I grow older. The sentiment holds true but at least this one had a copper tint to more easily see where I still had product on my face. Did it make much of a difference? No. It wasn’t bad but I’m glad it’s finally used up.

Ciaté London Glow-to Highlighter in Moondust

This was the surprise hit of the bag this month. I’ll be honest; I’m just not that into highlighters. They always look too extreme on me because I don’t know how to blend my makeup in general and every time I receive a highlighter it is either too extreme (think ultra-glam intensity) or just the wrong, silvery or cool peachy shade this was neither of those things. It is a very smooth, creamy powder with white a bit of shimmer that can be easily blended out and the shade is just warm enough without being too pink or gold that it works perfectly for my skin tone. It took me a while to getting around to trying it but once I did I was very pleased.

Overall it wasn’t the strongest Month for Ipsy but at least everything was functional. The shades matched, in general the samples were items that I had a use for and I even got a backup mascara out of it. And a bad case of Jolly Rancher munchies.