November brings about fall and all things related to apple cider, scarves and pumpkin spiced latte (obviously, autumn is very related to warm drinks in my mental association). However, to IPSY, the $10/month beauty subscription, November means glitz, glam and glitter! I'm surprised this theme didn't make it to December for the holidays but hey, I'll take the festivities a little early.
This was probably one of the best bags I have received in months, but it's coupled with the sadness that I couldn't bring you last month's bag since my neighbor ripped it open and stole its contents (IPSY was nice enough to send me a new one but it's still in transit for at least a week).
If you don't already have your own Glam Bag, go git you one ASAP! This also makes a wonderful gift for the holidays!
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| Be a Bombshell Eye Base in Submissive |
This Be a Bombshell Eye Base claims to be a concealer and base in one but I would consider it more of a cream eyeshadow in a pot, similar to the Maybelline Color Tattoos but it feels more jelly-like to the touch. This product isn't opaque enough to be a concealer or to cover up the appearance of discoloration and pigmentation on the lids. I received the color Submissive (which was sent to all Ipsters) which is an intense creamy bronze with gold shimmer. I enjoyed that this was a full size item but did not particularly love the slightly chemical scent. I do not enjoy the products by Be a Bombshell but this is the best one Ipsy has sent out even though I really wish they would stop working with this brand.
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| Elizabeth Mott - You're So FINE Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner in Glitterati |
Elizabeth Mott is a fairly expensive indie brand that I've heard very little about outside of the IPSY subscription, but I'm so glad they have introduced me to them since I have loved their eyeliner pencils and eyeshadows so much thus far! This month, I received the You're SO Fine Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner and it is full sized and in the shade Glitterati (black with shimmer in it). The brush tip allows you to achieve a precise and very fine line but you need steady hands, I always find that liquid eyeliners in brush form are a lot less forgiving during application than sponge-tipped pen eyeliners. That being said the color is very opaque and the glitter is not gaudy, this is a good product that is well suited for the holidays!
Retail Price: $17.99 (Full size)
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| J. Cat Beauty Wonder Lip Paint in Red Potion |
J. Cat Beauty is another brand that I'm not thrilled about receiving since it's a drugstore brand with more misses than hits but I was intrigued about their Wonder Lip Paint since it seems to be an OCC Lip Tar dupe (specifically of Black Dahlia). I love the intense color of the shade Red Potion but it is best applied with a lip brush and rather slowly so you don't stain your skin. a little bit goes a very long way. This shade also has smile-enhancing properties as it makes your teeth appear brighter and whiter. Now we have to keep it real here on my blog so I have to admit that there is a strong chemical/burnt rubber scent to this product that should not be overlooked, if you are sensitive to smells like I am, I can't recommend it.
Retail Price: $4.99 (Full size)
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| Temptu S/B Highlighter in Pink Pearl |
I'm a long-time fan of the Temptu brand because I own one of their Pro Airbrushes with a ton of their products (thanks to my hubby for getting me that for Valentine's day years ago!) and I was so excited to see one of their products this month! This is a Temptu S/B Highlighter in the shade Pink Pearl but we received a very small sample size which is 1/10th of the size of the product. This can be applied by airbrush or by gently dabbing it onto your cheekbones with your finger (just as you would apply any of the Benetint products).
As a sidenote, if you were interested, S/B means silicone-based which refers to the base that is used to make the product. Silicone based products tend to have dimethicone which is a substance found in primers that creates the nice slip to the product which allows it to slide on to your face while being a pore filler. Typically if silicone-based products are listed near the beginning of the products used in your foundation, you should try to use "like" products and not mix them with water-based formulas since they will tend to separate.
Retail Price: $2.75 (Sample size)
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| Marc Anthony Oil of Morocco Argan Oil Hairspray |
This is a fruity smelling Oil of Morocco Argan Oil Hairspray by Marc Anthony and it is a decent sized item that can be useful for traveling. I liked the hold on this and the fact that it didn't smell the way generic hair products can smell like a mixture of aerosol chemicals. I'm pleased with this addition to my bag since it doesn't leave my hair stiff, sticky but rather soft and clean.
Retail Price: $1.38 (Sample size)
The bag this month was a very flexible vinyl finished bag with a glitter which was deep set inside of the vinyl-like finish so there was no glitter fall-out or catastrophes. It also had a pink zipper, I think this bag is very cute and it was designed by Forever 21 in conjunction with Ipsy (it says so on the tag, sorry I forgot to take a photo of it).
The total value of my bag this month was $41.11 (over 4x what I pay for this subscription)! I was happy with the way the products were curated for me except for brand preferences (I would rather not receive J. Cat Beauty or Be a Bombshell Cosmetics in the future). I hope that I will get lots of use out of some of these items and that IPSY continues to get better at their IPSY Match algorithm which matches individuals to products each month based on a preference quiz.
