Subscription Box Sunday: Birchbox hair oil, moisturizer, and shower gel and Ipsy powder and eyeliner

Bonjour!

I wanted to get this up sooner, but for some reason, my pictures wouldn’t add to the post. I feel like these are boring without the added visuals, so I wouldn’t post this until that glitch was worked out. Sorry it’s so late.

In this week’s SBS, I’m reviewing everything that’s left in my Birchbox and Ipsy bag for September. Mostly because I got my October Birchbox really early this month and I’m dying to try out the products, but I make it a point not to use anything before posting my unboxing.

Well, let’s get to it. I did Ipsy first last time, so Birchbox it is!

First up:

This is the Macadamia Healing Oil Spray. A 2oz bottle costs $14.50 while a 4.2oz bottle costs $29.50. I love this brand. I have the Deep Repair Masque and the Nourishing Leave In Cream. I use them both every time I do my hair.

What I liked: This left my hair nice and noticeably soft after spraying.

What I didn’t: Other than leaving my hair soft, it didn’t do much else. It took the same amount of time to dry. It still tangled. Plus, the smell is not good, and the product isn’t so amazing that I could ignore the smell. I like the smell of the other products I use. This didn’t smell like those. Almost had a burnt smell to it. Not good.

Next up:

This is the Harvey Prince Ageless Liquid Loofah. A full size bottle of this is $22.

What I liked: It smelled nice. It was grapefruit and vanilla scented.

What I didn’t: It didn’t do anything but make my skin feel sticky. It didn’t exfoliate or anything really. Not even moisturizing. I could’ve easily done without.

Last up for Birchbox:

This is the Meredesso All-In-One Moisturizer. A full size bottle of this is $120.

What I liked: I like that it’s all in one. You don’t need to apply anything else after cleansing. I like to keep my skin routine simple and this would definitely fit in with that. It’s also lightweight which is necessary for me because if I can feel it sitting on my face, I’m not wearing it.

What I didn’t: The smell was just too much. I don’t like applying scented things to my face because I’d rather not have to smell it all day. This smells. Strongly. Also, I found it to be a touch sticky. Which is weird and a little uncomfortable.

Whew!

Now for Ipsy.

First up:

The Be a Bombshell Smooth Criminal Powder. A full size of this is $12.

What I liked: It’s a good translucent powder. It’s nice and fine and smooth. It goes on easily. Blends easily. Lightweight.

What I didn’t: It goes everywhere when you get your brush in it. That’s the only downside. The clean up post use.

Lastly:

The Pacifica Natural Waterproof Eyeliner pencil in Gun Metal. A full size pencil is $11.

What I liked: It’s creamy. It goes on easily. It’s very pigmented. It’s waterproof! Y’all know I have oily lids and things that aren’t waterproof just slide off. This stayed.

What I didn’t: The fact that the color I got is silver. Like, what am I supposed to do with this? This would be great for going out at night in Vegas or as part of your Halloween makeup, but otherwise, this is just a product that’s going to take up space in my collection (albeit a small amount of space but still).

Well! That’s it for today’s SBS. Next week will be the unboxing of the October Birchbox! Yay!

As always, if you’ve used these products, tell me what you think of them in the comments below!

xoxo,

Erica

Subscription Box Sunday: Birchbox lip products and Ipsy lipstick and perfume

Bonjour!

In this weeks SBS post, I’m going to review the two lip balms I got in my Birchbox and the lipstick and perfume in my Ipsy bag. I figured this would really just be a lip products review considering I’ve reviewed the perfume before.

So let’s get started!

First up, the perfume.

This is the Harvey Prince Hello perfume. Rather than go through a full review of this, click here to read the review I’ve already done. Yay!

Now to the lips!

This is the Hikari Lipstick in Cabernet. It’s a very pretty rich red wine color and retails for $13.

Here’s a close up of the color.

It does have a pinky tone to it, but it is more red in real life.

What I liked: It has great color pay off. It’s very pigmented, but can be sheer. It’s not a creamy formula so it can be layered for a richer color. It’s a great fall color. It also lasts a long time on the lips.

What I didn’t: It’s too pink to be a red. When I want a red, I want a red. Not a fuchsia. This has too much pink in it for my tastes.

Next:

This is the Pixi Shea Butter Lip Balm. It’s very affordable at $8. I got the Honey Nectar shade, which is a nude and looks like the color of the packaging.

What I liked: It’s so smooth and made my lips feel like butter! It was very moisturizing and for a balm, had great color pay off.

What I didn’t: The color just didn’t work for me. It made me look so washed out even with my eyes done up and blush on. It just made me look a bit dead. I do plan on trying other colors though.

Lastly:

This is the Chapstick Hydration Lock Day and Night. It’s even more affordable at $2.99. The day side is moisture plus SPF 12 and the night side has extra moisture to restore lips overnight.

What I liked: Both sides are very smooth and moisturizing. I also love the citrus scent of the night side. I like that the day side has SPF so that I can wear it under lipsticks for the fall because you should still be protecting your skin (including lips) in the cooler months. It also soaks in very nicely so I can put it on before I do the rest of my face and by the time I’m to lips, it’s good and soaked in.

What I didn’t: The blah scent of the day side. That’s probably all I don’t like about this chapstick. It’s definitely something I’ll repurchase and keep in my collection.

Well lovelies, that’s it for this week’s SBS. Do you use any of these products? What do you think? Comment below!

xoxo,

Erica

Subscription Box Sunday: Birchbox highlighter and Ipsy lotion

Bonjour!

In today’s SBS, I wanted to review a product from Birchbox and Ipsy. I wish I could’ve done a versus type of post, but there aren’t any similar products to compare (other than lip products).

So here’s just two random products I’ve used and want to review! Good? Great!!

Starting with Birchbox:

 

This is the TEMPTU S/B Highlighter. This is a liquid highlighter. A full size, 1oz bottle of this is $27.50.

What I like: It’s a gorgeous color. I got the Champagne Shimmer so it’s a golden beige color. It’s great if you are warm toned or in the summer when you have a tan. It blends easily and doesn’t take much at all to get a nice shimmer/glow.

What I didn’t: I can’t think of anything I don’t like about this product except the price. It’s a bit much for a brand I’ve never heard of before. Maybe I’m just behind the trend, but I won’t pay $28 for a brand I don’t know. Other than that, I like it. I like the product.

Now Ipsy:

This is the Beauty Without Cruelty Sweet Lavender body and hand lotion.  A 16oz bottle of this is $12.95.

What I liked: It was moisturizing, and I love that it’s 100% organic.

What I didn’t: THE SMELL!!! It was soooooo strong. I could only stand it for about 5 minutes before I had to wash my hands. It really did give me a headache. I was excited when I saw this because I thought it would be nice to use at night before going to sleep since lavender is calming. Nope. Couldn’t do it.

Anyhoo, that’s it for this week’s SBS. Have you used either of these products? What did you think? Comment below!

xoxo,

Erica

Subscription Box Sunday on a Monday: September 2014 Birchbox Unboxing

 

Bonjour!

I know. I know. Today is Monday and therefore either 1 day late or 6 days early for a SBS post.

But I say what the heck! I’ve been slacking in posting so might as well, right? Right.

This week’s (second) SBS will be the unboxing of my September 2014 Birchbox.

Let’s get into it:

This is their “Thank you for 4 years” box. Birchbox is 4 years old this month.

This is what I saw when I opened the box.

First up:

The Macadamia Professional Healing Oil Spray. This is a lightweight, quick absorbing oil spray that combats frizz, boosts shine, and blocks UV rays. A 2oz bottle costs $14.50 while a 4.2oz bottle costs $29.50. This was one of the samples you could choose for this month’s box. I don’t remember what the others were.

The TEMPTU S/B Highlighter in Champagne Shimmer. This is liquid shimmer that illuminates and contours your complexion or gives you an all-over glow. A full size bottle costs $27.50

The Meredesso All-In-One Moisturizer. This one-step formula is an anti aging day/night cream, serum, eye cream, toner, and primer. A full size bottle of this is…brace yourself…$120.

The ChapStick Hydration Lock Day & Night. This is a Birchbox Find product, a mass-market discovery that they think is awesome. It costs $2.99.

Where’s what came in the little pillow envelop thing.

The Harvey Prince Ageless Liquid Loofah.  Infused with a grapefruit-vanilla fragrance, this wash hydrates and softens the skin. A full size bottle of this costs $22.

Lastly, the Pixi Shea Butter Lip Balm in Honey Nectar. Dual-purpose balm that hydrates with shea butter while giving lips a pretty wash of color.  This is the full size product. This costs $8.

That’s it for this SBS. I’m a lip balm girl so I’m very excited about the lip products in here. What did you get in your Birchbox this month? Comment below!

Look out in a couple of days for a third SBS post. I’m knocking them out this week!

xoxo,

Erica