July Ipsy Glam Bag Review

It's that time again, folks. It's Ipsy Glam Bag Review time! 

Yay! You know you love it.

Continuing with the vibe of summer essentials, this month's theme is Sensationally Sunkissed. 

We all know I am so down for all that.

I mean how perfect is that scalloped edge neon pink bag for summer?

Almost as perfect as the summer essentials it comes filled with.

Starting from the center you've got Befine Food Skin Care Daily Moisturizer , Hang Ten Dark Tanning Oil, Whet Refined Nail Lacquer, Pixi Tinted Brilliance Balm, and bareMinerals 5 in 1 BB Advanced Performance Cream Eyeshadow.

I'm so excited about this bag let's just jump right into it. 

Befine Food Skin Care Daily Moisturizer - I literally ran out of moisturizer, from my May Glam Bag, the night before this Glam Bag arrived on my doorstep. I call that fate, my friends. 

While I don't know much about the brand itself, the bottle seems to hold all sorts of promising promises. 

SPF 15

Made with vegetarian proteins from rosemary, pomegranate, and rice

Allergen Free

Fragrance Free

Paraben Free

No artificial coloring

"No animal testing whatsoever"

And last but not least, proven to be safe and effective for all skin types through dermatological and clinical testing.

Whew, that's a lot of good karma for a sample size to handle. I really enjoy using this product. So far it hasn't broken me out, I don't feel sticking or oily after using it, and it smells nice too! Overall, a huge win! 

Hang Ten Dark Tanning Oil - This is the only product I haven't put to the test, mostly because the weather for July has been all over the place lately and I just haven't made it out to the pool all that much. That's the South for you though. 

Overall, I can't see how you can go wrong with a tanning oil though. I mostly like using oils (sparingly) to tan with because of the fun beachy smell and this product definitely has that going for it so that's a plus.

Whet Refined Nail Lacquer - Due to some past duds, I've started to dread seeing nail polish in my Ipsy Glam Room but this one was definitely different. The first thing to catch my eye was the color, obviously. Some of my most loved nail polishes are dark colors like Essie's After School Boy Blazer or Sinful Colors Rich in Heart but those are really more reminiscent of Fall, which makes me love this take on a dark color that is also bright. Facetious, love the name, is a bright royal blue in the sun but a dark navy indoors. Right up my alley and perfect for summer.

Everything about this brand, from the packing to the name, intrigued me. I really loved the little campy take on the name in the description on the back of the box, "wHet your appetite." If you can't tell already, I'm totally sold but it gets better. Just like the moisturizer, this product has a lot of promises...

Three Free (which I had to google):  means it is free of the Big 3 Toxic Chemicals in nail polish: Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP), Formaldehyde (yikes), and Toluene. So that's a good thing.

Vegan Formula

Made in the USA 

7 Day Chip Resistant (I haven't been able to test this but I could definitely see it being true)

and limited edition (isn't everything these days?)

wHet, I might just have to check you out. Thanks, Ipsy.

 So, I may have forgotten to take a close up of these next too products but I did manage to swatch them both and there's a surprise in store if you keep reading.

I'll start with the Pixi Tinted Brilliance Balm, mostly because I have a confession to make. I didn't actually get this in my Glam Bag but before you freak out let me explain. I traded my light pink Brilliance Balm for my mom's hot pink version that came in her bag this month. Same difference. 

I really like the formulation of this balm, it's pretty moisturizing and gives a great wash of color without being patchy like I find a lot of color balms to be. I also love crayon type deals like this so this is definitely another hit. 

The big ticket item this month was billed as the bareMinerals 5 in 1 BB Advanced Performance Cream Eyeshadow with SPF 15 even though it was the smallest sample in the bag. bareMinerals promises 12-hour color that won't budge, smudge, or crease while brightening, smoothing, and protecting. Yet again, that's a lot of promises. However, I was on board as soon as I swatched this product. It is so creamy and blends like a dream, almost to the point that I would say it is cream-to-powder. It is definitely long wearing but I don't know about 12 hours, I usually don't wear my makeup for that long anyway so the coverage was good enough for me. I'm not too big on the color, Divine Wine, since it is a darker color than I normally go for and features too much shimmer to be used in the crease. Which is sad because the formula really is so good that I would use it in the crease even though it is a cream eyeshadow but the good news is that there are 9 other shades to choose from in the range with the lighter shades (most specifically Candlelit Peach and Soft Shell) looking very promising. 

To sweeten the deal Ipsy, bareMinerals, and ULTA teamed together to offer FREE Shipping at ULTA.com with any bareMinerals purchase and I've included the promo code down below just for you! xoxo

Want to check out Ipsy for yourself or subscribe to your own Glam Bag? Click the link below.

Ipsy Glam Bag

If you already subscribe to Ipsy then leave me a comment below letting me know your favorite product from this month's Glam Bag.

until next time, 

xo

Merisa

Mascara Monday: The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly!

Happy Monday, lovelies!

It most definitely is a very happy Monday, mostly because it is almost over but also because it's time for a new beauty review from your favorite duo! 

While going through our makeup bags, Danielle and I decided that we were both dying to do a review on the many mascaras we had acquired over the past few weeks so we wanted to turn today into Mascara Monday for the time being! What a better way to celebrate this day than with a review on not one, not two, but a whopping 7 mascaras! 

Danielle's picks!

Merisa's picks!

I'm doing this totally out of whack but I'm the type of person to take my bad news first so let's just get right to it, shall we?

The Ugly

About a month ago I ran out of my L'Oreal Telescopic Original Mascara and instead of going with the same brand, like I really should have, I went for a brand I had never tried but had heard amazing things about. Well, I let my adventurous side get the best of me because I went against the reviews I had heard and tried something within the same line but not the same thing, it's complicated. Anyway, I picked up Maybelline The Falsies Big Eyes Waterproof Mascara and have regretted it ever since!

This mascara is probably the worst mascara I've ever tried! 

First of all, I hate the brush! I liked the idea of having a wand with two brushes in one, for both upper and lower lashes, but I ended up using the lower lash wand for my upper lashes and just not even worrying about the lower lashline. I found that the big brush actually hurt my eyes when using it and the formula drys hard and chunky. I didn't even like the color of this product, I felt like it dried a grayish color even though it was suppose to be Very Black. Definitely not picking up this product again but I still want to try out the original The Falsies so there is still hope to redeem yourself, Maybelline. 

-aFm-

Maybelline The Falsies Colossal Cat Eyes Mascara

I really thought that this mascara would be great because of the pretty leopard print bottle, needless to say since it is in the ugly category it wasn't too pretty. 

It didn't volumize my eyelashes at all like the bottle and the commercial advertised. I have tried the regular colossal mascara and loved it but the volume express was not worth my money. I like the curved wands the best but it seems that the actual mascara in the bottle wasn't very good quality. It had a funny smell and tended to be a bit runny. It also clumped my eyelashes up, which is a BIG no no!

-dSl-

The Bad

I have tried nearly all of the bareMinerals mascaras and the Flawless Definition Mascara is definitely my least favorite. It was okay, but it wasn't worth what I paid for it. It didn't separate my lashes as well as I wanted it to nor did it lengthen my lashes like mascaras I've tried in the past. It is comparable to a cheaper mascara but didn't do the job I had excepted from one of my favorite brands. Definitely a disappointment.

-dSl-

While I was shopping in Sephora for my birthday a couple of weeks ago, I suddenly remembered that they have this great program for Beauty Insiders where you get a free gift on your birthday! Score! 

I was so excited when I learned the gift package was from Benefit Cosmetics and even more excited when I saw that it featured two of their most talked about products, Watt's Up! and They're Real! Mascara!

I have heard so much about this mascara online and couldn't wait to try it out. Well, now that I have tried it, I just don't get it. I didn't really see a dramatic difference in my lashes and found that the "custom-domed tip" that was suppose to separate this mascara from all the rest actually hurt my eyes. I found that I would end up stabbing myself with the bristles on the end, definitely not worth it. So while I was comparing this mascara to other brands I had tried I got to thinking, 'What if I'm dissatisfied with these mascaras because my other mascaras are just really good?!' Hmm, that brings us to our next category...

-aFm-

The Good

I actually have two mascaras that I'm incredibly happy with at the moment. I am absolutely in love with the Buxom Sculpted Lash Mascara and even more in love with the fact that I got it for free by using my Sephora Beauty Insider Rewards Points from my birthday shopping spree! This product is amazing and features an 'S' shaped brush that really does what the product description says. I definitely recommend this product if you are looking for great higher-end mascara that really creates that false eyelash look. I didn't see a clump in sight when using this mascara and loved how easy it was to put on, the special brush really did grab onto my lashes. 

My next favorite is a more affordable drugstore brand that brought close to the same results, which is always a good thing! Like I mentioned before, I really like the L'Oreal Telescopic Mascara and after the failed attempt with Big Eyes, I decided to stick with old faithful but with a twist. The L'Oreal Telescopic Shocking Extensions Mascara has quickly become one of my favorite drugstore mascara simply because I can see instant results from this mascara. I'm not a big fan of multiple coats of mascara and this products works with just one! I love that I can just glide this formula on my lashes and have bold, voluminous lashes. 

-aFm-

This has to be my all time favorite mascara. the Eyeko London Black Magic Mascara has it all, it helps lengthen your lashes and curls them up with it's slightly curved wand! It's also excellent for an all day wear because it holds up until you wash it off. This is an item I was able to try in my Birchbox and I am definitely going to be buying a full size version very soon. 

-dSl-

till next time, lovelies

xo

Merisa & Danielle