7 Months of Ipsy

Ipsy, created by Michelle Phan, is a monthly subscription beauty bag. It's ten dollars a month and comes with 4 to 5 deluxe size samples of beauty products. Everything from nail polish, to lip products, to facial moisturizers.  Everything comes in pink bubble wrap and all the products are inside a reusable zipper pouch. I love it!  Some months you may get a bag with products that you don't like, but most of the time all of the products are great!  It's only 10 dollars, so it's a fun and inexpensive way to try out new products even if you don't care for some. I have really liked almost everything I've gotten.  You rarely ever get products that you can get at the drugstore.  Most of the products are high end brands.  It's a great way to try some of these more expensive products rather than buying the full size and not liking it.  I look forward to seeing that pink bubble wrap inside my mailbox every month.  It's so exciting! 

All of my bags. January - July.

When you sign up for Ipsy, there is a questionnaire to fill out.  It asks questions like eye color, hair color, your style preference, etc., and this helps them match what goes into your bag each month.  If you don't like a product you receive, or if you really like it, you can review it and it will help determine what goes into your future bags.

There are different ways to earn points on Ipsy's website.  Sometimes it will ask you to share something on Facebook for points and you can also review each of your products each month to earn points as well.  Once you've accumulated some points you can redeem them for products!

Ipsy's big competitor is Birch Box. I've never gotten it before but my mom and sister have. Seeing what they have gotten in their Birch Box in the past, I can easily say that Ipsy is the better monthly subscription!  The products are bigger sizes and better brands. Plus with Ipsy you get a cute bag that you can reuse.  Ipsy all the way!

Below are pictures and reviews of all of the products in all 7 of my bags I've received so far!

January:

Briogeo Don't Despair, Repair! Deep Conditioning Hair Mask

Hair masks are always useful.  I got about 2 uses out of this sample.  I enjoyed it.  Hair masks aren't really something I use often but it was fun to try out.  It definitely made my hair soft but I wouldn't purchase this product simply because I don't use hair masks.

Epice Purifying Exfoliant

I loved this!  Really loved it.  It had tiny tiny tiny beads in it that felt so good on my face.  It barely had an odor, which I think is a good thing because that means it's not packed full of ingredients that make it smell good.  I would definitely buy this scrub.  The only reason I haven't is because I was waiting to see if I got more scrubs in future bags but also because I had a scrub I was trying to use up.  This was a 1 oz. sample and it lasted me a long time.

MicaBeauty Tinted Lip Balm

I enjoyed this.  I didn't use the whole thing but I did use it on days where I wanted a little color on my lips.  It didn't have a bad odor and felt really nice on the lips.

Proactive Mark Fading Pads

I saved these for a while, then threw them away without using them.  I was kind of annoyed by these, especially since this was my first bag.  I don't like packets of things.  I like for a product to be in a tube or a similar container that will open and close.  I don't know why, I just do.  The main reason I didn't like these is because I don't have dark spots on my face, so I simply didn't need them.

Yaby Liquid Foundation

I've heard good things about Yaby but I had never tried any products.  This foundation didn't match my skin, but it had a nice consistency to it.  I wore it around the house for a while and it seemed to stay on pretty well.  I would be willing to try this foundation in a color that matches my skin.

February:

POP Beauty Plump Pout Mini

I liked this.  Very pretty color and a very nice consistency.  No bad smell either.  I used this for a while until I got tired of it.  I just kept it in my purse.

Zoya Nail Polish

Great nail polish.  These retail at 9 dollars which is almost the price of the bag itself!  The color is really pretty.  It's a pale pink.  It stayed on my toes for so long!  I judge nail polishes by how long they stay on my toes because I work on my feet and wear close toed shoes all day.  So if it stays on me for a while, it's pretty good!

First Aid Beauty Skin Rescue Deep Cleanser with Red Clay

This is probably my favorite thing that I've gotten in my Ipsy bags so far.  I absolutely loved it.  I'm really picky about face wash and this was perfect.  I ordered a big bottle of it from Sephora after my sample ran out and I'm still using this to this day.  It's great after a long day at work and I desperately need to wash my face.  It makes your face feel so clean afterwards.  It gets off all of the oil and dirt on your face AND all of your makeup!  Definitely recommend trying this!

J. Cat Beauty Eyelashes and Eyelash Glue

Negative.  I don't wear false eyelashes and have no idea how to put them on!

Jesse's Girl 9 Pan Eye Shadow Compact

This was a reject too.  The colors were gross!  That's all I have to say.

March:

bareMinerals Marvelous Moxie Lipstick

Great lipstick!  Very creamy and such a pretty color.  I'm trying to make this sample last.  I've bought bareMinerals products in the past and I've liked everything I've ever tried from them.

NYX Love in Rio Eye Shadow

I really like NYX products.  I love their butter gloss.  This eyeshadow was really pretty, but I have so many other colors like these.  I traded with my sister for her Be a Bombshell eyeshadow quad!

Chella Indigo Blue Eyeliner 

This is a really expensive brand, but sorry, blue eyeliner is not my thing!  The formula was nice though and it stayed on really really well.  It was hard to get the swatch of it off the back of my hand.  This same product in black would be great.

Pixi Beauty Flawless Beauty Primer

This is a brand that you can buy at Target and everything is usually pretty pricey.  I've only used this a couple of times but I do like it!  I've bought Pixi products in the past and have liked them a lot.

April:

Urban Decay 24/7 Velvet Glide-on Eye Pencil

LOVE Urban Decay.  I have so many products by them.  Their NAKED palettes are wonderful.  This eyeliner is awesome.  It's so smooth, it really does just glide on like a pencil, as the name suggests.  It's easy to smudge for a smokey eye but stays on straight if that's what you want it to do.  Loved it.

Dr. Brandt Microdermabrasion 

I've only recently started using this.  It's strong so they recommend only using it once a week.  I like it so far.  It has a nice lemon scent to it and doesn't dry out my face.

Elizabeth Mott Pop! Goes the Shadow

Loved this!  The one I got was a nice champagne color.  I use it all the time as a base color.  I would love to try these eyeshadows in other colors.  It's great!

Sexy Hair Root Plump Volumizing Spray Mousse

I have only used this once.  I'm a big fan of Big Sexy Hair hair spray by the same company.  I don't have much use for mousse or other products like it.  But I do love this brand!

Starlooks Luscious Longwear Lip Pencil

This is a nice lip pencil.  Mine is nude so I use it often when I'm doing a nude lip and just put a gloss over it.  I'm not much into lip pencils, but I do use them occasionally if I'm doing a full face of makeup.

  

May: 

Hang Ten Classic Sport SPF 50

Good sunscreen.  This was a small sample so I decided to use it just for my face.  It wasn't greasy and didn't have a strong coconut smell which some sunscreens have.  It didn't come off with water or sweat either.

Pacifica Mineral Eyeshadow Duo

I loved this eyeshadow too.  I'm an eyeshadow junky.  The color I got was a shimmery cream and a light purple.  The purple was nice, and brought out my green eyes.  It's a nice little duo to carry with you for touch ups or for a quick eye look when you're in a hurry.

Nailtini Straight Up Color Nail Lacquer

I love this nail polish.  The only thing that disappointed me was that the nail polish I received in a previous bag was the same color.  A very light pink.  I just don't need more than one nail polish in that color.  But it is still a great product and stays on a long time.

Pur~lisse Pur~moist Hydra Balance Moisturizer

This was another favorite product in my bags so far.  I loved the formula.  It didn't make my face feel greasy like some moisturisers do.  It didn't have much of a smell and kept my face feeling really soft.  I will most likely buy this in the future when I run out of what I'm currently using.

Crown Brush Pro Blending Fluff Brush

Blah!  This brush was scratchy!  It made me feel like my eyelids were going to bleed!

June:

Be a Bombshell Lash Out Mascara

Well, I'll never know much about this mascara.  Mine came broken.  The wand fell into the tube so I never got to try it.  I emailed Ipsy telling them I received a broken product and they got back to me and said they were sending me a new one with a bonus product.  When I received the package, they had sent me an eyeliner instead.  Apparently they ran out of product and sent me something similar.  I haven't used the eyeliner yet.  Good customer service on their part though.  The bonus gift was a can of Big Sexy Hair hair spray!

Marc Anthony Dream Waves Beach Spray

This made my hair poof out like none other.  It smells really good but it didn't do anything for my hair.  Maybe if my hair were shorter it would do something!

Nicka K New York Shimmer Eyeliner

I've never used this either.  It's green and shimmery...not my style!

NYX Butter Gloss

I was already a big fan of NYX Butter Gloss when I received this so I was really happy.  I'm not a huge gloss person, but I love these.  They aren't sticky and they come in so many different colors.  Mine was a light pink and I use it a lot!

Essence of Beauty Fine Fragrance Body Mist

This went immediately in the trash can.  It smelled cheap!

July:

bareMinerals 5-in-1 BB Advanced Performance Cream Eyeshadow

Already a big fan of bareMinerals so I was really excited to try this.  It's okay, not the best cream eyeshadow out there but it's nice if you're doing a smokey eye because it's easy to blend and looks nice with other eyeshadows.

Clear Clinic Laboratories Vanished Clear Spot Treatment 

Haven't tried this yet but next time I have a planet on my face I will!

Elizabeth Mott Tint & Sass

This was a pretty neat product.  It's a stain and you can use it on your lips and cheeks.  It doesn't stay on very long but I think the concept is neat!

Pur~lisse Pur~protect Essential Daily Moisturizer SPF 30

I was excited to get this because I was already a big fan of the regular face moisturizer that I had received before.  I use this on days I know I'm going to be outside a lot.  I haven't had any sunburn on my face when I've worn it so I guess it protects well!  It also doesn't have that yucky sunscreen smell and isn't greasy.  Huge plus.

Models Own Nail Polish

This reminded me of something I would have worn on my fingernails in the 5th grade.  It was a weird red color and had huge chunks of glitter in it.  It was really hard to get off of my nails and left them stained.  Didn't like this!

Man, this was a long post!  I'm going to do individual Ipsy posts from now on but I wanted to do a big one with all of my bags to start things off.  Ipsy is great, if you're into makeup you should definitely join!  Thanks for reading!