April | 2016 | Ask Me About My Makeup

Ipsy sends everything in a cute bag each month!

If you are not familiar, Ipsy is a monthly beauty sample subscription service. Unlike the Allure box, this one is much more customized; with ipsy, you can compare bags with friends, and its possible that you all got different items! I always look forward to discussing the items with other subscribers.

You take a quiz when you sign up, and you select preferences on the types of items you like (for example, if you’re more into nail polish than lip gloss), they select your samples based on that. Another way you inform them of your preferences is by reviewing your samples every month.

Something else I enjoy about Ipsy is that each month you get your samples in a new makeup bag. The styles are always different, if one isn’t your taste, it’s likely you’ll get one you love in another month. I do like this one, but there have been a few major favorites in past months.

The products this month are pretty awesome too!

I’ve had tarte Lipsurgence products before, and this one is a very pretty warm pink. I’ve always found that while these lip colors don’t have a lot of staying power, they are very comfortable on the lips and easy to apply quickly.

I’ve never tried Pretty Woman nail polish before, but this purpley-pink (almost orchid?) color is really fun and I will definitely use it- possibly for a pedicure.

I’ve gotten products from City Color before, in fact, I got those from Ipsy too! This highlighter set is very nicely made, and the powders are nice and smooth. I don’t use a ton of highlighter, but these make me want to play around with highlighting more!

This bag feels very well put together, receiving a highlight palette and a highlight brush in the same bag is very handy! The brush is full and soft, and I think will work quite well for its intended use.

This last item kind of surprised me, I don’t often get fancy skincare items from Ipsy, but I certainly don’t mind- I wouldn’t subscribe if I didn’t like trying new things! “Resurfacing” pads are essentially a chemically-soaked exfoliant disc, which can seem scary but its just another way to slough away dead skin cells to make the skin smoother and more radiant. Some exfoliants can be very hard on the skin, so whether it’s primarily physical or chemical, its important to be gentle when exfoliating! When I haven’t tried a new exfoliant, I prefer to test them first. I will likely to test one of these pads on one of my arms and then wait a day to make sure there is no reaction before using it on my face.

I have been getting Ipsy for about 3 years now, and I always look forward to that puffy pink mailer arriving ; I have discovered some great products through it, but I also have learned what I don’t like in different beauty products, which is very helpful to figure out.

Do you get Ipsy? What do you think of my bag this month? Do you get an entirely different subscription? Tell me about it, I would love to hear from you!

The Allure Beauty Box comes with a handy booklet!

I have been getting the Allure Beauty Box for a while now, and I’m a fan. I get to try a lot of products I might not have tried before, some because they are pricier than I would buy untested, and some because they are so new I haven’t heard of them yet! The box also comes with a booklet or “mini-mag” each month, giving a rundown of what each product is, and often, recommendations on how best to use it, which can be quite helpful when you get something you’re unfamiliar with. Also I’ve found that even on expensive items, the samples in this box are always generous, you can really use something for a while and form an opinion.
This month I’m very excited about the L’Occitane shower oil – it smells great and I’ve heard lots of good things about this, especially that its great for shaving! I’m also quite excited to try the Fekkai glossing cream – I love a good styling cream, especially going into summer when I try to avoid heat styling at all costs.

I’ve never heard of DDF, but if the serum does as promised it I should be very happy with it. I noticed that the full size of this is fairly pricey, and the sample, especially for a serum, is quite generous!

The Mally lip pencil is nice,it seems smooth and creamy. I’m familiar with the brand (I have a great eyeshadow stick from Mally), but this pencil is a bit of an orangey red for me, so finding a way I like wearing it should be fun. (I find strange things fun…) And the L’Oreal mascara, while its not a new product, is actually one I’ve never gotten around to trying, so I’m pleased to receive a full size of it.

I don’t wear a lot of perfume, but I have to say I love that the sample of Bvgari Goldea is a tiny version of the bottle (pretty!) instead of just one of those hard-to-use vials. The scent is rather strong, but its not cloying or overly sharp or musky, so I’m going to give it a try.

Do you get this box? What do you think of this month? Do you want it? If you’re interested in getting it, you can try it for $5 off the first month! (I don’t get anything from that link, thats just their standard signup page)

I pay for this subscription myself, I have no relationship with Allure Beauty Box or any of the brands in this post.