I can’t decide how I feel about this month’s bag. It a cylindrical bag, which is a nice change, but it’s so short that I’m not sure it would really hold much. It also has that lovely shiny plastic look that combines with it’s orange and white polka dot design to make me think of chicken pox. I’m not quite sure why, but it kinda does. Don’t get me wrong; I love polka dots, but it’s not quite working for me with this bag.
Moving on. Outside of the bag, there’s an Urban Decay sample! It is a mini version of their new Perversion Mascara. As I’ve said many times before, I love mascara samples, but I’ve received so many of them lately that I’m getting a bit tired of them. I’ve also heard not such glowing reviews about this particular mascara, so I’m not super excited. It’s a nice sample to receive though.
Entering the plastic belly…. I will start with the lip balm. Whoo. A lip balm. Actually, I love lip balms, it just seems kind of cheap to include as a full-size product. This one is from Jersey Shore Sun and it is called Mongongo Nutrient Dense Anti-Aging Lip Conditioner. The flavor is Mandarin Green Orange Ginger, which is intriguing. It smells good – a bit like limes – and it’s USDA Organic, as well as PETA approved. Hmm. This is interesting – it actually is made with Mongongo oil (a new one to me!) which apparently contains calcium, magnesium, copper and zinc. I believe that would have some sun-blocking properties, but don’t quote me on that. I’ll take it. Everyone always needs lip balm in my eyes, so I’m sure this will get some good use.
Next up, we have the teeniest, tiniest little eye liner I’ve ever seen. It’s so tiny that there’s no size on it! J I should mention what it is. It is a Black Silk Mini Kajal Kohl-Liner from Lord & Berry. I’ve heard of Lord & Berry, but don’t really know anything about the company. It’s just a standard pencil liner in black, so it’s difficult to get that excited over it, but I love black pencil liners so I’m sure it will get some use. As for the size, cute as it may be, c’mon Ipsy! I’ve never seen such a mini sized liner!
Keeping with the tiny theme, we have a little tube of shimmer lotion. It is from Manna Kadar, another company I’ve never heard of, and it is the Sheer Glo Shimmer Lotion in a pink shade. It’s kind of a weird color for a highlighting liquid. It’s literally a baby pink and it’s not terribly reflective. It does leave kind of a glow, but not as much as most highlighting liquids I’ve seen. The color does blend out and creates a pink sheen, as opposed to a champagne or golden glow like many others. It’s kind of interesting and very subtle. I’ll give it a go some day I suppose. Eh. Thanks Ipsy...I think! J
Last but not least is another relatively small sample. This one I understand because the full size is expensive! It is a little squeeze tube of the GlamGlow Youthmud Tinglexfoliate Treatment Mask. Everyone who tries this seems to rave about it, so I’ve always been curious. $69 price tag aside, it’s not cruelty-free since it’s available in China so I’ve never given it a go. It smells really good. Kind of like sweet mint tea. I imagine there’s enough for maybe one to two uses in there. I’d be interested to try it, but I hope I don’t love it because I’m not shelling out a fortune for something that’s tested on animals! J
So that’s it for August’s Ipsy bag. The products seem interesting enough, but the sizes are definitely lacking. For once, I think I may have enjoyed my BirchBox more than Ipsy! That’s not to say I’m unhappy with Ipsy; the samples are just so tiny. You win some you lose some as they say. J What do you think of August’s Ipsy bag? Would you be happy with the little mini baby samples? Or would you rather have larger samples of potentially not as interesting products? I’m not sure where I’d fall on that. I suppose quality trumps quantity, but I would like to receive a large enough sample that they can actually be tested out! J Though it may not sound like it, I’m happy enough with this bag. It’s actually been a decent month in subscription box world! J
