'Ip, 'Ip, 'Ooray!: January Ipsy Unbagging

Does everybody know what time it is? IT'S TOOL TIME! Er, no...wait...no, it's actually ipsy unbagging time. First, the usual explanation:

*ahem*

ipsy (yes, it's all lowercase) is a monthly sample subscription service. Every month, for the cost of ten dollars, you'll receive 4-6 deluxe- and/or full-sized beauty-related products and a makeup bag. There's always a theme, and this month's was "19 Reasons", as in "19 Reasons" 2014 is going to be the best year ever. The 19 referred to the number of possible brands they were sending out, but a 20th was added at the last minute...whoops...

Anyhoo, that's the deal. I pay for this. They, most likely, don't know this blog exists, so I'm not shilling for them. All opinions are mine and mine alone.

*end of spiel*

Let's see what we got!

This month was really skincare heavy. Normally, ipsy is more color cosmetic-centric, and the change was a little surprising. I dig skincare, though, so bring it on!

First, let's check out the bag. This month is a bright blue (the camera is muting the color. This is a true "healthcare" kind of blue. Think: Blue Cross blue) with lind drawings of cosmetic bottles. The fabric is a thick, plastic-y material, and looks like it would be fairly water-resistant. It smelled like a beach ball, but airing out has faded that considerably. I think it's kind of cute.

The bag has a zip closure with the ipsy logo embossed on the pull. Again, I like this one. It's not the most glamorous of bags, but it'll go well with the other travel bags I have for shoes and laundry.

The first product on the block is this Alterna Caviar Anti-Aging Dry Shampoo. Retail price: $22.00. Sample value: 88 cents.

Yeah...this is a disappointment. Not the product, so much, as the size. I love dry shampoo, but I'm honestly not sure I can get a single use out of this. The bottle is small, but there's also a lot of empty space on the inside. I'm just going to call this a miss and move on.

Next up, Absolute! Make-up Cleansing Tissues with Cucumber Extract. Retail price: $2.49 for 10. Sample value: $2.49.

Okay, now we're talking. I haven't tried these yet, but face wipes are generally welcome in my house. If I can't use them, maybe Thomas can, or they can go in my kit. In any case, they're getting used.

Moving on! Pure Marula Facial Oil. Retail price: $58.00. Sample value: $3.92.

This is a small sample, but that's okay because you don't need a lot for each application. This little guy should last long enough for me to decide if I like it or not. The spray applicator is a really nice touch. I can see this coming in handy on road trips, when the combination of recycled car air-conditioning and dry hotel rooms love to wreak havoc on my skin.

On to the next! Elizabeth Mott Smooth Shadow Pencil in Penny. Retail Price: $14.99. Sample value: $7.00.

This was a pleasant surprise! I'm an eye makeup junkie, so a shadow pencil is right up my alley. This pencil is exactly the color of a penny--not just some vague shade of copper. I found that it applied smoothly and easily, and could be used as either a very sheer, glittery shadow, or as a light liner. I haven't tried it as a shadow, mainly because I'm not sure how to apply it, exactly. The pencil is the size of an eyeliner pencil, and not like the chubby pencils you think of when you think "shadow pencil". As a liner, however, it added a pretty pop of color and shimmer, and didn't budge when worn all day.

Here's a swatch of Penny sheered out, and used as a liner. You can see that neither are super dark, but that's not due to lack of pigmentation. It's just a very light color. The product has a very creamy consistency, and once set, it's set.

(Please ignore my brows. I've been letting them grow in a bit. They're getting cleaned up this weekend. My apologies.) This shows Penny on my lower lash line. There's just a hint of sparkle and color. The rest of my look is W.O.S., Naked 2, and Faint shadows from Urban Decay Naked Basics, and the Naked Basics pencil in Crave on top lash line, and the same pencil in Venus (double-ended pencil) in the inner corner. Mascara is Maybelline The Rocket. Brows are Anastasia Brow Wiz in Brunette and Brow Gel in clear. You know, in case you were interested.

Lastly, we have Mica Beauty Cosmetics Tinted Lip Balm in Natural. Retail price: $30.00. Sample value: $18.75.

This is just a shame. Let me preface this by saying that the Mica lip balm and the Cailyn lip balm that I received in an earlier bag are the exact same product. Seriously. Compare the websites, if you don't believe me. They have the same product names and numbers, same packaging (save for this sample version), different prices. This same product from Cailyn is only $19.00. Now, let me also say that I really liked my Cailyn lip balm in Big Apple, but only for the color. Big Apple is a pin-up red, but viewed through a soft focus lens. The balm's texture keeps the color from looking too harsh. Also, the red stains your lips a bit, so you can go over the color with an actual lip balm, if you so choose.

Okay, now that that's out of the way...I don't like this. The texture is strange. It feels like it would be creamy, until you put it on your lips. Then, it's matte and dry and kind of gritty. It also only lasted about thirty minutes before fading in patches. The color, however, is gorgeous, and that's what makes this a shame. ipsy nailed finding a flattering color for me, though, which gives me hope that maybe ipsymatch is beginning to kind of, sort of, maybe work? Maybe? Please?

When the color started to fade away, I grabbed my go-to lippie from my purse to touch it up. This is the Em Cosmetics Creamy Color Sheer Lipstick in Nude, and also from an ipsy bag. The two looked so similar, I had to compare.

The top swatch is Mica, and the bottom swatch is Em. They're not identical, of course. The Mica is much more opaque, and the Em is sheer and shiny. Also, the Mica is pinker, where the Em leans more toward orange. Still, they are very similar. Of the two, I'd recommend the Em, and it's only $16.50, compared to either $30.00, even $19.00 for the Cailyn. Of course, E.L.F. also has a tinted lip balm in Nude, that is far superior to the Mica/Cailyn in creaminess, longevity, and moisturization, and you can get it for a whole two bucks. I don't have a swatch of it, but it's, again, very similar, but not quite identical. The only difference in packaging (from the sample) is that the E.L.F. has a white lid. There is nothing to justify a $30.00 price tag. Nothing.

Total value of the bag: $33.04

Price paid: $10.00

The shadow pencil, wipes, and Marula oil made this bag worth the money. I'm really looking forward to using those items. The way I look at it, three out of five ain't bad.

Do any of you get ipsy? What'd you think this month? Please share with the rest of the class in the comments.

Frugal Friday: Urban Decay Rollergirl Palette Review

Seriously, this is all I could find this week. How sad is that?:

E.L.F.: $1.99 shipping on any order $15 or over with code 199SHIP. Exp. 3/26.
Too Faced: Free deluxe Chocolate Soleil Bronzer with any purchase from the new Summer Royalty collection. No code necessary. Exp. 3/31.

Today's Frugal Friday tip/trick is very simple: Don't forget about brand websites.

You see, I have gotten so dependent upon Sephora and Ulta for all my cosmetic needs, that I sometimes forget that my favorite brands have websites, as well. If there's something I want, I check either Sephora or Ulta, and if they don't have it...well, I guess I didn't need it. Except that sometimes I really do need it, like when my favorite foundation was discontinued. Or, I didn't realize I needed it at the time it was available, and now that I've seen umpteen-thousand reviews on it, my life will not be complete without it, like the Urban Decay Rollergirl Palette. When I checked the specialty stores, I was completely out of luck. However, when I surfed on down to the brand sites, and clicked on their pretty, shiny, SALE icons, I found exactly what I needed, and for much lower prices than I normally would have found. In fact, I saved so much on the Rollergirl Palette, that I was able to pick up a set of insanely-reduced 24/7 Shadow Pencils, too, so...SCORE!

(Actually, in all honesty, the foundation was still a no-go. The brand site did still carry it, though, just not in my shade. That said, the shades that hadn't sold out were marked down to a third of their original price. That's crazy.)

The moral of the story is: Always check the brand websites sale sections. You never know what you're going to find, or how cheap it'll be.

Photo Credit: Urban Decay

Now, with that, how 'bout a review of the Rollergirl Palette? I know, I'm a little (okay, a lot) late to the party on this one, since it's been around for a year; but the pricing hasn't been this good up until now, and I'm not made of money. If you're like me, you've held off on purchasing this, and now that it's only (*gasp*) $13.00 (reg. $32), you're seriously considering it. This review is for you. Personally. I hope you feel all nice and special now.

Okay, first off, I'm a palette junkie. I love having everything neatly organized for me in something I can toss in a purse or travel case. Plus, with palettes, you generally get a lot of product for not a lot of money (comparatively speaking, of course). In this case, the combined retail price of each individual item would have been $73.85 (thank you, Temptalia, for doing all that math for me). Even at $32, that's a deep discount.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. What might those individual items be? Glad you asked! You get four full-sized shadows (okay, so a smidgen less because they're square and not round, but it's a negligible difference. It's the same as the Midnight Emergency palette.), a two-thirds-sized 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil in Whiskey, and a deluxe sample-sized tube of Lip Junkie Lip Gloss in Crush.

Packaging: The palette is economically-sized to hold just what it needs to and not take up any extra real estate. There is a small and, unfortunately, fairly useless mirror on the inside of the hinged lid. I guess it's better than nothing, but if they'd skipped it entirely, I wouldn't feel any worse off. The four shadows are lined up inside, with the liner nestled in an crevice underneath. The lip gloss is separate, and can not be enclosed in the palette. The palette, itself, is constructed of an extremely heavy cardboard, opens on a hinge, and closes magnetically. I would not feel safe carrying this in my purse, because at worst it could fall open and the contents could be damaged. At best, the dust from the eyeshadow could coat everything else floating around in my purse. I do think it would be okay in a well-organized travel case, though. The cardboard edges could get dinged up a bit, but the products, themselves, should be fine. The entire palette is decorated in disco-worth metallics, florals, and photos of some bodacious babe in a bikini. She is wearing roller skates, if that helps. 6 out of 10.

Eyeshadows: The products are where the palette pays off. Starting with the eyeshadows, you get: Darkhorse (deep chocolate brown with bronze shimmer), Suspect (bronze shimmer), palette exclusive Verve (shimmering mushroom), and Woodstock (shocking pink shimmer). That's the surprise inside, folks. One of these things is not like the others, and that's Woodstock. I thought there was no way on God's green Earth I could pull that off, but the other colors were so gorgeous that I figured I could deal with one clunker, and maybe it would come in handy on occasion. Guys, that's my new favorite color to wear. It's beyond amazing, and completely wearable, but more on that in a minute. The shadows are, as per usual for UD, wonderfully pigmented and smooth to apply. I am loving that these are shimmers and not glitters, because hot pink fallout is not a good look on anyone, and there's none of that with this. They're just darn fine shadows. Of course, if you already have the Naked Palette or Book of Shadows Vol. III, you really don't need this, as they contain Darkhorse and Suspect (respectively), and Woodstock is part of the permanent collection. If you don't, though, or just like having coordinating shades packaged together, this is fabulous. 8 out of 10.

Eyeliner: I'm in love. More often than not, I opt for brown liner over black, anyway, so I was tickled to see this shade included. Unfortunately, I've never been able to find a pencil liner that applied easily...until this one. It's like butter, y'all. Better still, after several hours of wear in uncomfortably humid weather, it hasn't budged. At all. I'm sold. 10 out of 10.

Lip Gloss: This was another product I was originally concerned about. I've been burned by hot pink lip gloss before, but figured, "what the hey?" Afterall, it was the shadows I was after, anyway. This was just bonus, and I supposed I could let Mom give it a shot if it didn't work out on me.

Sorry, Mom.

In the tube, the gloss is a scarily bright pink. To quote Temptalia, "It’s almost like magenta met bubblegum pink, and then they had a lovechild." When you apply it, though, it's so sheer that you just get a wash of color. It's not a natural flush, but it's not too far off. This is part of the permanent Lip Junkie collection, so you can grab it without getting the rest of the palette. What's funny, though, is it'll cost more that way. Not too sticky, minty, feels smooth and moisturizing, and it plumps lips. This is a really nice gloss. 9 out of 10.

Final Verdict: 8.2 out of 10. Well worth the $13, even if you just want one item out of the group.

Now, I promised that the pink was wearable, didn't I? Well, here's how I did it:

1. Apply Woodstock from lash to crease.

2. Sweep Verve on browbone to highlight.

3. Shade crease and outer corner with Darkhorse for definition.
4. Layer Suspect over Darkhorse and blend outward.
5. Line lower lashes with Darkhorse, and upper lashline with Whiskey.
6. Brush mascara onto upper and lower lashes.

Behold, the cruddiest snapshot ever!!!

Closer for detail:

Please forgive my brows. They have a shaping coming, I promise!

Hope this helps! Have a great weekend!