Ipsy Bag May 2014

It's Ipsy time again. One of my favorite times of the month, because I love mail. This month was very polarizing. Some folks were stoked beyond words (there was a sample of Too Faced Chocolate Soleil in some bags) and some people were rather...unimpressed. I definitely was not blown away by the contents this month, but I wasn't exceedingly disappointed either.

The Goodies:

Nailtini Straight Up Color Nail Lacquer in Adios

Hang Ten Classic Sport SPF50 sunscreen

Pacifica Mineral Eyeshadow Duo #2

Barefoot Spa Professional Exfoliating Polish

Pur-lisse Pur-Moist Hydra Balance Moisturizer

This month seems to be mostly skincare focused. A lot of folks got scrubs, lotions, sunscreens, and peels. Some other got brushes and bronzers...so I'm not certain if there was an actual theme, or if they tried a theme and then filled in with leftovers. I actually would have enjoyed a skincare-centric bag. It's getting near summer, and finding a good regimen this time of year is always fun. Instead, they tossed me a bottle of suspiciously familiar* nail polish and an eyeshadow duo.

Anyway, on to the swatches!

Pacifica Mineral Eyeshadow Duo #2

Pacifica shadow duo over
Too Faced Shadow Insurance

ok, before I show the polish...when I checked my glam room, I saw I was getting a bright cheery blue pearl color. Awesome. I don't really buy that color, so it's not gonna be a dupe of something I already have. Like a fool, I didn't search for swatches. I should have. Let's take a look at the image on Ipsy's website versus what I actually got:

left: my bottle in artificial light
right: what I saw on the Ipsy website

Nailtini Straight Up Color Nail Lacquer in Adios

three coats + top coat

 I added a sponged layer to hide the brush strokes

three coats + top coat + sponged coat + top coat

My Thoughts

Hang Ten Sunscreen

This stuff isn't bad. It's billed as a non-greasy, lightweight, and naturally scented sunscreen product that is good for use in water. Well...I disagree about the non-greasy. I used it on my face, and I was shiny...and slightly oily feeling. Several hours later, my face still felt a bit...gooey? (not the right word, but kinda slick and tacky) The smell is a bit weird. It reminds me of boozy cake batter, though no one else smelled the booze. It's not an unpleasant scent, and it dissipated within an hour. I don't think I'll be using it for my face, but I wouldn't be against using it on the rest of me. At $13, it isn't that much differently priced than any other tube of sunscreen I buy. If I see it, I might grab it.

Pur-lisse Moisturizer

I really like this stuff. I've got combo/sensitive skin, and this felt soothing and happy. It smells a bit like perfume, and I worried the scent would irritate my skin and eyes...but it didn't. Even after a hotter-than-safe shower, this stuff made my skin happy. I would definitely recommend this stuff...if it weren't $55 for 50ml. It's nice, but my Cerave is nice too...and cheaper.

Pacifica Mineral Eyeshadow Duo

This. Ugh. Guys. A dusty plum and a frosty white with a yellow-gold shift. Really? I actually wouldn't hate this if the shadows had any manner of pigmentation. Maybe I need to scrape the top layer off? I'll have to try that, because trying to swatch these was a pain. Even over Shadow Insurance, these were muted. Maybe I've been scarred by all the hyper-pigmented indie stuff lately? I dunno, but I won't be buying their cosmetics. Which is a shame, because their lotions are great.

Nailtini polish

This isn't the first Nailtini I've received from Ipsy. It is, in fact, the third. (I've also received three Zoyas for the record) This might be my least favorite of the three. It's a perfectly serviceable silvery metallic blue. Very timely, with all the Frozen hysteria. But, like the pictures above show, it was not what I was expecting at all. My opinion of this color is tainted by my disappointment. Like thinking you were getting a red dress, and planning your whole outfit around the red dress down to the lipstick...only to find you are instead getting a mint green dress.

Foot Scrub

I'm a long-time fan of Freeman products. I even used the coupon code (enter BUFFBABE for 55% off this set) to buy the set. I can't complain about anything of theirs. The prices are super affordable, and their peppermint & poppies foot lotion from way-back was my favorite thing ever. Even if I hated this stuff, I'm still glad to have got it.

*Remember when I said suspicious? Well, when I opened the box and saw this silvery frosted slate blue, I thought maybe it was the same polish that was given out in the November Ipsy bag. (my friend gave me her bottle. I got the Champagne) Blessedly, they aren't identical. But damn, are they close. C'mon, Michelle Phan. You've started EM Cosmetics now. It'd be nice to see a few samples of those a little more often.

Left: Caviar Cocktail
Right: Adios

Left: Caviar Cocktail
Right: Adios

As always, if you are interested in checking out Ipsy for yourself, please consider using my referral link. I really appreciate it.