Ipsy - March 2014

This month's ipsy theme is Destination Beauty. 

The insert card actually welcomes subscribers to Palette Island. I like the theme, but I'm a bit underwhelmed by the bag itself and products I received. We only received four products too :(

The bag's bold print is a selection from artist, and ipsy subscriber, Klari Reis. It's based on the geography of her hometown of San Francisco. It's an interesting pattern, but the thick plastic feel is odd, and it had a ridiculously strong smell when I first took it out of the pink mailer. I had to air it out for a couple of weeks, before the silly putty-like smell went away. The bag feels like it would do well being thrown in a beach bag though; so that's probably what I'll end up doing.

My bag contained:

An eyeshadow quad from Be a Bombshell, I the shade Bora Bora: The colors (Starlet/a gorgeous bronze, Bora Bora/a very beachy turquoise, Risky Business/a gold tone, and Rock Bottom/a perfect sunset-on-the horizon copper) all have a bit of shimmer, are very pigmented and blend well. I really like this quad;

Nicole by OPI's Roughles textured nail polish in the shade On What Grounds?: I'm not a fan of this textured polish. I looks like a robin's egg, asphalt hybrid. I usually love the polishes that I receive from ipsy, bit this one is no bueno;

An adorable mini Marvelous Moxie lipstick from Bare Minerals in the shade Get Ready: The packaging is adorable, the sample size is decent, and the lipstick goes smoothly, but the shade is simply too pink for me. I wish I had received the gloss instead; and

Indian Coconut Nectar Body Butter from Pacifica: This is easily my favorite item this month. I adore a good body butter. This one smells divine, and I don't even like coconut! It works well as a moisturizer without being greasy. I'll definitely be purchasing more of this, and checking out the other available scents.

What did all you other ipsters think of the March bag and selection of products? As I said, I was less than impressed. Hopefully next month is better... and we get back to receiving 5 product bags.

If you don't yet subscribe but would like to, I'd appreciate it if you used my referral link at http://bit.ly/154vUAf :).

Later gators,
M

Stunner of the Month - March 2014

I really like this month's Stunners. In addition to providing a pop of color, they feel sturdy and well made.

Seriously, this subscription just gets better and better with each passing month :)

These lovelies are The Santa Fe stunners.

The Santa Fe

The capitol of Western art and culture is where
we found these colorful Stunners.  They're
prefect for enjoying the wildlife or hanging out
on the porch of your Adobe mesa house waiting
for that mountain man to ride in on the sunset
Collection: Southwest; Level: Fly

Keep sending me these great selections StunMo.

Later gators,

M

Three months of Starlooks

Let's jump right in, shall we?

December

This past December was my first holiday as a Starlooks Starbox subscriber; and if that was how they celebrate every December, then it won't be my last :)

A brief reminder, Starbox is the subscription box offered by the makeup line Starlooks. Each box generally includes 3-4 full-sized products from their makeup line, and costs $15 a month (plus shipping).

In addition to sending out only full-sized products, Starlooks sends subscribers a special birthday Starbox during their birthday month (love that!). In the December box, they included an insert staying that the Company would now also be rewarding subscribers with a new loyalty program. Very nice :)

December's box contained a gorgeous 15 shade eyeshadow palette called "New Years Eve 2014". These types of palettes retail on their site for a whopping $99! I must admit that that is exceptional value for the purchase price.

The palette itself is well made; and the included colors are stunning. Most of the shades have some summer, but there are also 5 matte shades - a little something for everyone. This was a great Starbox month.

January

January's box was all about versatility, and finding new uses for different makeup products.

One of the glosses was labeled Satin. I don't remember the other. Both broken items have been tossed. The lipstick was a color that I would never wear, and was instantly given away. I, unfortunately, don't even remember the shade. The Obsidian eyeliner is a nice, if not exciting, product; and the lash comb was a useful bonus. 

That's all well and good, but both lip glosses in my box arrived damaged. There were no stoppers in the vials, so when opened them, it was just a big mess. I have contacted Starlooks multiple times since receiving the box. Each time, I have been assured that replacement items will be sent to me, but nothing has been received.

Since, Starlooks prides themselves on customer service, this is especially disappointing.

February

I love how the two models are throwing so much shade at each other on this insert card.

February's theme was Futurism, and featured a whole host of sparkly metallic products.

I received a creamy, long-lasting lipstick (in the shade Lilu), a cream shadow in Hologram , and a buildable pigment in the shade Tungsten.

I also received a grey, nylon headband. Starlooks included this bonus as an aid to keep hair off your face when doing makeup; and this, plus the pigment are my favorite box items this month. I could take or leave the shimmery gloss and pinkish-creamish-gold shadow.

Hopefully next month will be better.

This box also included the loyalty reward for being a steady 3 month box subscriber. When Starlooks first announced that they would be providing loyalty rewards, I assumed that they would send out a random extra product, or two, to subscribers. They did much better.

They gave us $35 off of any order! Very nice :) I have yet to use my code, but I'll probably pick up a couple of lipsticks in colors that are more my style.

If you're interested in subscribing to Starbox, I would appreciate it if you used my referral link. Thanks in advance :)

Later gators,
M