October 2014 Ipsy Bag!! :)

Ipsy is a monthly package service where you get five curated items of beauty products sent to your door for $10 a month, free shipping, inside a cute little bag, that's inside another cute pink bubblewrap parcel, inside your mailbox!!! (haha, too precious??) :)  The service sends you items in accordance to a quiz you take on the website stating your beauty product preferences.  I absolutely adore it.  So far, I've only disliked 2-3 items in the five months I have been participating in the website :)  And I've tried so many products that I thought I was going to hate, but ended up totally loving.  It truly has changed my perception of many different types of makeup products for the better and introduced me to some formulas I never would have tried out!

Without further ado, let's get into what was put in MY bag this month!!!

What I Got This Month:
Pretty teal bag
Rihanna Rogue Perfume, .5 oz
Smashbox Photo Finish Primer - Pore Minimizing Formula, .25 oz
Starlooks Lip Gloss, .3 oz
Indie Lee Brightening Cleanser, .5 oz
Mica Beauty Mineral Eye Shadow - Harlequin, .1 oz

Thoughts On Each Product:

Rihanna Rogue Perfume:  This came in it's own box, separate from the bag :)  It is a beautiful, classy looking bottle, and the lid grasps tightly onto it, but you need to give it a little push to do so, and be careful not to tilt it to the side, because you may accidentally squeeze down the perfume, but for me it's not close to being unmanageable and nothing really to complain about. The smell is WONDERFUL.  Upon initial application--those first ten seconds, you do get a bit of a mosquito spray smell mixed with somewhat of an orange oil smell.  20 seconds later, it just smells fresh and clean, with a hint of floral/sugary sweetness.  And a few minutes later, the sweetness really blooms and you're left with this wonderful, feminine, clean scent that isn't over-powering.  I adore it.  It's nothing like any of the perfumes I own and I feel as if this is a scent I could even wear to job interviews and be taken seriously with it on.  It's truly a perfect blend that isn't too much.  My favorite product of the lot.  I would absolutely consider buying the full size bottle.

Smashbox Photo Finish Primer:  This is NOTHING like the original Smashbox primer, which I'm not a big fan of.  Right after application, it completely smooths the skin, not sinking into fine lines or pores but just leaving a blank canvas.  It absorbs oil and almost feels powdery.  It ALMOST looks as if it's brinking into the appearance of looking powdery as well, but it just looks natural and lovely.  I adore it.  Because this bag is new however, I question the staying power of it.  I will update this review when I know how it performs better.

Starlooks Lip Gloss, Mica Beauty Eyeshadow - Harlequin, Smashbox Photo Finish Primer - Pore Minimizing Formula

Starlooks Lip Gloss:  This is a pretty, natural shade of pink lipgloss, bordering on a nude shade, but has just a deep enough shade of pink for it to not really be considered a nude on my skintone.  I think it would be beautiful on every skin tone.  The formula feels and appears to be just like the Hard Candy Plumping Serum Lip Glosses (of which there is no plumping action, so please ignore the name).  It just feels smooth, creamy, slightly sticky and has good pigmentation that is buildable and beautiful.  It's a pretty, simple lip gloss that I don't think will disappoint.  There is no unique quality to this that would tempt me to repurchase it, already having the Hard Candy lip glosses mentioned, which are more accessible since I wouldn't have to order them online and come in colors that are more pigmented and longer lasting.  Average staying power.

Indie Lee Brightening Cleanser:  I ADORE the smell of this.  It smells like strawberry, bubblegum, soapy heaven...but more expensive than that (in my humble opinion!).  It comes out like a watery gel, and I do recommend applying it to a dry face and RINSING it off afterward rather than applying it to a wet face--it seems to lather better on a dry face, since there's already quite a bit of moisture within the product.  It is an extremely gentle formula.  I really enjoy it and I think it is gentle enough to use every morning to get the face fresh and clean, though I wouldn't use it alone to remove makeup at the end of the day, as I don't think it'd be enough.  Some girls have mentioned using it to clean makeup brushes--I honestly don't think it would do the job thoroughly enough.  However, to clean a face that's already had it's makeup removed, it's absolutely lovely and gentle.  I enjoy it and it's just what I need.  Harsh cleansers are irritating on the skin when used too often.  Due to it's gel nature, it's also easy to rinse off.  I would consider purchasing the full size of this.  I think it's lovely.

Mica Beauty Mineral Eyeshadow - Harlequin:  This is 100% pure mica.  There are no other ingredients added.  This means, you should really use a primer under it to keep your color lasting and in tact!!  I have been dying to try pure mica, and I'm glad I got to try out this lovely eyeshadow!!  It's a beautiful sea blue-green shade that seems to fade into a lighter green shade.  I tried to emphasize this in the swatch, piling on the shade more heavily at the bottom and keeping the swatch faded at the top.  There's actually a little weight to the container...I don't see myself running out of this product for a LONG time...As LONG as I use a primer.  Would I purchase this?  No.  You can buy pure mica for MUCH cheaper in bulk if you are interested in it.  If I'm to buy an eyeshadow, I want a super unique formula that's going to have longevity and some sort of uniqueness to it, maybe texturally, that makes it superior to pure mica.  Pure mica is HARD to beat.  It's absolutely GORGEOUS.  I highly recommend it.  There is so much depth of color.  But the downside to it is that if you don't have a good eye primer, it falls off.  So buy it in bulk or stick to quality mica eyeshadows that have the unique qualities, and often that means more ingredients, that you desire.


Thoughts On Everything As A Whole:

I loved my bag this month.  When I first saw the products I'd be getting on the website, I was disenchanted and even considering canceling my subscription, but when I got them, it was a completely different story.  The perfume smells wonderful and, while small, is still a larger size than I thought it would be.  The Smashbox Primer appears to be much higher in quality than I'd anticipated.  I don't own a shade like the Starlooks Lip Gloss.  The brightening cleanser, which I really wasn't enthused about, smells WONDERFUL and is gentle as a dream but still cleanses great.  And the mica finally gave me a taste of what pure mica is like--and I personally LOVE it, but I'm weary of the staying power!!


If you're interested in subscribing to Ipsy's monthly service, you can do so by following this link :)


Just a fun little treat I get every month.  If things start looking not so good, I may unsubscribe, but so far, every month I have been cheered by these little presents I get!  Something small and fun, just for myself :)  If you subscribe, I'd love to hear if it works out for you :)  And take that beauty quiz!  It helps!!