Wednesday, July 22, 2015

First Impressions: ipsy Glam Bag July 2015

**If you are receiving this post via email, you may want to check out the actual site as the email throws off the formatting**

ipsy is a monthly subscription box company created by Michelle Phan and is $10 a month. You get a mix of makeup, skincare and hair care items, usually 4-5 full- or deluxe sample size products in a makeup bag. When you sign up for ipsy, you take a quiz in order for the bag to be customized to your skin type/tone and your general preferences. You can retake the quiz as many times as you like. You can also review each product in your bag to help ipsy further customize future bags and earn points to purchase products. You also receive points when people sign up for ipsy through your referral link.

This month’s theme is “Summer Lovin’” and I think the products definitely reflect that theme. The bag this month is an abstract colorful chevron pattern, with the usual vinyl lining inside.


Product #1: City Color HD Powder (0.141 oz.)
This is a loose finishing powder and is a little over half of the normal product size. The powder is white but goes on colorless (on me). The powder doesn’t seem super finely milled so that could cause issues with blending/caking. I used this once to try it out and it was okay. I feel like my foundation actually broke down faster where I had the powder, but I will give it a few more tries. City Color is PETA-certified cruelty-free.
Value: $3.50

Product #2: be a…bombshell Lip Balm in French Kiss (0.16 oz.; Full-Size)
This is definitely a lip balm and not a tinted lip balm. The color is a very, very light pink with some shimmer, but nothing that is really noticeable. If you put it on top of a darker lipstick you can notice the color/shimmer. The texture is nice and isn’t drying. The blog Kitty Approved Beauty wrote be a bombshell to ascertain if they are cruelty-free and they are. You can read her post here.
Value: $14

Product #3: Octavio La Playa Sea Salt Spray Infused with Algae Extract (2 oz.)
This product is supposed to create texture in damp or dry hair, I’m assuming to give you a beachy wave look. Ironically, is smells slightly of sunscreen. This is a really good size sample for not being full-size (full-size is 4 oz.). The bottle is labeled “No Animal Testing” and the ipsy website says that this is a 100% cruelty-free product.
Value: $7.75

Product #4: Vasanti Brighten Up! Enzymatic Face Rejuvenator (20 g)
I received this product in my April 2015 Birchbox so I was not excited to see it again. I haven’t tried it yet. It is supposed to exfoliate your skin to smooth and brighten all skin types. This post by blogger Hotashi outlines the response received when Vasanti was emailed about their cruelty-free policy. The Vasanti website also says that they do not test on animals and that they test products on human volunteers.
Value: $5.67

Product #5:. Essie Nail Lacquer in Fashion Playground (Full-Size)
This is the only product in my ipsy that isn’t cruelty-free. I’m bummed because this nail color looks gorgeous! It is a mint green with heavy iridescent glitter throughout. I think this might be a discontinued color because I couldn’t find it online anywhere (the links to this color died).
Value: $8.50


Overall Value: $39.42. I’m excited that 4/5 products are cruelty-free in some form. This isn’t my favorite ipsy because I don’t think I will use these products much. I won’t use the nail polish, and probably won’t use the hair product (I never do). The lip balm and setting powder seem okay. I’m yet to form an opinion on the exfoliator since I haven’t used it.

If you subscribe to ipsy, what did you get in your bag?

If you’re interested in signing up for ipsy, feel free to use my referral link J


Disclaimer: All products are purchased by me or my lovely husband unless otherwise noted in the post. All opinions are 100% honest and my own. I do not provide positive reviews for payment. Products that work for me may not necessarily work for you. This post is not sponsored.

Referral Links:
POPSUGAR:  http://popsu.gr/uXzQ  Save $5 off your first box with the code REFER5
                   at checkout enter the following code: M3d2Q1dTT21MR1RTNWJ0KzhRWUo0Z0lWWWtoRnVrZmk0NGNOVWY0MVBHRT0=

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