May Ipsy Review: Jetsetter

May's Glam Bag theme was "Jetsetter", complete with travel essentials and an adorable bag to keep them in. 

Overall Rating: 4 stars 

Best Product: I really, really want to say Urban Decay's 24/7 Glide-on Lip Pencil in "Ozone". But I'd be lying. This month's winner is BelláPierre Cosmetic's Waterproof Miner Gel Eyeliner Pencil in "Ebony". 

Worst Product: Bare Republic Naturals SPF 30 Mineral Face Sunscreen Lotion. 

Most Expensive Product: Pixi by Petra's Beauty Bronzer in "Summertime" (although this may not be totally accurate, as the pricing on their website included a kabuki brush and my sample did not). 

Glam Bag Total Value: ~$52.00

Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-on Lip Pencil in "Ozone"; Revolution High-Color Lip Gloss in "Bittersweet" and "Failbait"

First up is this amazing pack of lip products from Urban Decay. I actually cheered out loud when I saw I would be getting this in my glam bag this month. Included in the sample was their 24/7 Glide-on Lip Pencil in "Ozone" and two samples of their Revolution High-Color Lipglosses in the colors "Failbait" and "Bittersweet". 

This translucent lip pencil is meant to be used as a lip primer. You can use it to line your lips to prevent bleeding of lip colors, you can use it all over your lips to make your lip color last longer, you can even use it to correct mistakes and fill in fine lines! It's a really cool product that goes on smooth and it doesn't feel like you have anything on your lips while wearing it. 

Revolution High-Color Lipgloss in "Bittersweet" 

The glosses were equally amazing, and I'd definitely be interested in picking up some full-sizes in the future. It is super pigmented, and really glossy. It didn't feel at all sticky. The color "Failbait" was especially beautiful and feminine, and definitely more wearable than it's edgy "Bittersweet" counterpart. 

The glosses are available in 14 shades and retail for $22. The lip pencil comes in both a thin and thick barrel option in prices ranging from $16-$20. I'd give both 5 stars. 

BelláPierre Cosmetics Gel Eye Liner in "Ebony"

As much as I wanted the UD products to be my favorite this month, this eyeliner just really hit all the right notes. Super black, it glides on buttery smooth, can be blended out for a sexy smokey eye, and does NOT budge until you decide to take it off. I was really impressed with the product, especially since it is from a brand I've never used or heard of before. I got a full-sized version, which retails for $14.99. 5 stars!

NUXE Rêve de miel Face Cleansing and Make-Up Removing Gel

I definitely had some mixed feelings about this Facial Cleansing and Make-Up Removing Gel by NUXE. On one hand, I felt like my face wasn't being cleaned while I used it. There were no suds to speak of. But when I stepped out of the shower, my eye-makeup was TOTALLY removed, which definitely impressed me. However, the smell of it made me feel like a hippie all day. I will finish the sample, but I wouldn't likely buy it again. This retails for $19, but my sample was worth $1.41. 3 stars. 

Pixi by Petra Beauty Bronzer in "Summertime"

This bronzer is just wonderful. When I first saw it, I wasn't to keen on the fact it had shimmer in it. Usually, I use bronzer just for contouring. But I decided to give bronzing my whole face a try with this product, and it was perfection! The shimmer is very subtle and adds a beautiful glow. The color of the bronzer itself isn't too dramatic or dark against my fair skin. It gave my whole face a gorgeous bronze glow, perfect for days when you don't want to fuss around with contouring or get tired of blush. This retails for $18 on pixi's website, but that price also includes a kabuki brush. 5 stars. 

This was another confusing product for me. The texture of it is... Strange. It says it doesn't leave your face oily, but the product itself feels really oily. Almost slimy, even. After putting it on, it is true that it did not make my face greasy, but I just wasn't digging the formula on this. Again, I'll probably use up the sample while poolside in the summer, but I don't anticipate using it again. A full size bottle retails for $15, but my sample was worth $4.41. 2 stars. 

I had a couple duds in my bag this month, but the winners truly made up for it. I already can hear my wallet crying from the inevitable purchase of those UD products! 

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August Ipsy Bag Review and Moe's Birthday!

The blog post is sort of a two-fer, so I'll try to make both sections brief. 

First, and most importantly, yesterday was my kitty Moe's birthday! We adopted him just five months ago and yesterday he turned three years old. As a crazy cat lady, I took this occasion very seriously. 

"It's my party, I can claw your skin off if I want to."

He got lots of awesome presents that he tried out right away:

Investigating the kitty carrier (for trips to visit his betrothed, the beautiful Tilda Swinton the cat). 

The best part for me were the treats I ordered off an Etsy shop called Lainey's Pawtique & Bakery. The shop owner Judy made me these custom kitty cookies for Moe's big day, and even threw in lots of adorable personal touches and extras, like this birthday card! I highly recommend her to anybody with four-legged family members looking to do something special for their pets. 

He reads. 

Check out her shop: www.laineyspawtique.etsy.com !

One of the extras was a little "donut" topped with cat nip, which Moe devoured in 2 minutes flat. 

Overall, he had an awesome birthday with his family and friends. Mike and I are so thankful to have Moe in our lives that we wanted to make his first birthday in his forever home really special for him. 

The second part of this week's post is about my August Ipsy bag. Hurray! 

The theme this month was "Beauty Schooled" and all the products came in this cute little pencil case style makeup bag. Super clever. 

First up, I got Glam Glow's Youthmud Tinglexfoliate Treatment

Hollywood celebrities swear by this mask, which is marketed as a 10-minute professional facial in a jar. 

Eep!

The mask itself has little pieces of ivy in it, and is grainy in texture. While I wore it I could feel my skin tightening, but there was also a slight burning sensation. After 10 minutes I rinsed it off, rubbing in circular motions to reap the exfoliation benefits. My skin was definitely brighter and tighter after a single use, and while my young skin isn't really dull, it really woke my whole face up. A really nice product! A 1.7 oz jar retails for $69.00. The size of the sample they gave me was worth $20.29. 

Next up I have this Bee All Natural Organic Lip Balm in Grapefruit. The balm smells really delicious and it makes my lips smooth. Nothing overly remarkable about it. I probably wouldn't buy it again, but I will definitely use this tube. This product retails for $3.49. 

The Manna Kadar Sheer Glo Shimmer Lotion was one product I've had a bit of a roller coaster ride with. I was excited to see a highlighter in my bag, however, I've never used a liquid highlight before. I read that with this product, you can either apply it as you would a normal highlight over foundation (accenting cheek bones, Cupid's bow, etc), or you can mix it in with your foundation for an all-over glow. 

I found this a bit difficult to use on top of foundation, as blending it wasn't as easy as you'd expect, and I could see the edges of where the highlight stopped. However, when I mixed a few drops in with my liquid foundation, I loved the amazing lit-from-within look it gave my skin. Again, this isn't a product I'll likely buy again, but I will definitely make use of the rest of my sample. This product retails at $29 for 1 oz, but my sample was worth $7.83. 

My Coastal Scents Eyeshadow Quad sample was also a happy surprise. I have heard great things about Coastal Scents; their eyeshadows are supposed to be great quality and quite economical. Ipsters received different colors of this eyeshadow quad. 

Top to Bottom: Icelandic, Silver Pink, Baby Pink, Persian Pink

I was a little disappointed with all the pink hues (especially after seeing all the different color quads they had available). However, I am very pleased with the purple shade "Icelandic", and "Silver Pink" took my breath away; I think that one would actually make a beautiful highlight powder! 

The formula on these eyeshadows was so incredibly smooth and buttery. I haven't used them on my eyes yet, but I don't anticipate there being any trouble with blending or color payoff. 

Coastal Scents shadow pots retail for $1.95 per .05 oz color. My sample was worth about $2.73. 

Finally, I was most excited for my Urban Decay 24/7 Velvet Glide-On Eye Pencil! They sent me the shade "Plushie", this incredible purple color, which is perfect because I adore using purple on my eyes. 

I've heard great things about UD's Eyeliners for a long time, but couldn't justify paying the $20 per pencil they retail for. After receiving this sample, I now understand why people can justify paying for them; the formula is just incredible. 

First off, it applies so smoothly, just like warm butter. It feels like a gel liner, just in stick form. And they were NOT joking when they called it "24/7". After applying the swatch to my hand, I took a finger and lightly rubbed it. Nothing moved. I rubbed harder. It stayed put. I wet my finger and scrubbed my hand and it *just* started to come off. This stuff has serious, serious staying power, and is the kind of product eye makeup remover wipes were made for. 

 

Unfortunately, it's greatest strength is also somewhat of a downfall. Since it doesn't budge once you put it on, it's a bit difficult to blend it or smoke it out. I found the easiest way to achieve that effect is to take an eyeshadow in a similar color and apply it on top of the liner and then smoke the shadow out. That's what I ended up doing and it turned out great. 

I would definitely buy more of these liners, in every color. They are really awesome and I fully understand the hype now. The sample I got was not full size, but it was close; worth about $15 instead of the full-size price of $20. 

Overall, I found this bag to be a little more underwhelming than previous bags. The eyeliner was a big hit, but everything else had me feeling a bit lukewarm in comparison. However, I am still loving getting the opportunity to try out new beauty products, and since this month's bag was worth a grand total of $49.34, you still can't beat the value!

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