Beauty – Page 2

Topbox August 2012: First Impressions

August Topbox! A little late this month.

There was another drugstore bonus this month.

I really haven’t researched this month to see if anyone got a different variety of shampoo and conditioner, I’m pretty sure I put on my Topbox profile what my hair type was? In any case, this is really useful to me…and not only that, they are GENEROUSLY sized bottles as well.

Sample-size: 10ml

Retails for: $75 (for 50ml)

I’m not aware of this brand but this product seems great, and once my current benzyl peroxide product runs out, I’ll be trying this.

Full-size

Retails for: $22

While I’d generally prefer to pick out and buy quality brushes for myself, this one isn’t half bad. It’s soft enough and I can use it as a backup at the very least!

Sample-size: 1 wipe

Retails for: $12 (for 15 wipes)

Any type of wipes are good to have on hand. I typically have baby wipes around (so much cheaper and just as good as those ‘personal wipes’ that they’ve been selling), so I’m not sure what benefit this could give that would make the price worth it but we’ll see! Though, they are paraben free. I’ve been trying to cut out products that have parabens/SLS etc in them to help out my skin, so points for Pink Wipes for that.

Chloé sample-size: 30ml

Retails for: $60 (for 200ml)

Dot sample-size: 4ml

Retails for: $105 (for 100ml)

I’m not really a perfume person. Not a “real” perfume person anyway. Give me etailer scents that are fruity or vanilla-ey etc and I’m fine, because they don’t have that perfume scent. You know, that basic alcoholy smell? Just me? Anyway, that said, these are SUPER adorable! Just look at those bottles! Of the two, I prefer the Chloé one.

Overall

I liked this month. All products included are ones that I have or will certainly try and that makes it worth it to me. If there comes a day where it doesn’t become worth it, I’ll cancel, but until then….

Also, I received a notice from Topbox saying that starting in the fall, they’re including at least 1 makeup sample per box. I think that’s awesome, as makeup is by far my fave items to get.

[rating=5]

Topbox July 2012: First Impressions

July Topbox!

We got to take a survey last month, where we were given some choice of nail polish items for July’s topbox. So I figured I’d be getting a China Glaze polish (my fave!) and we had a choice between a neutral or a neon. Not really a surprise which I picked:

Full-size: 14 ml

Retails for: $10-12 (according to Topbox, in reality I get it for $6 at Chatters or Sally’s)

The colour is Pink Voltage and it’s amazing. It’s on my toes right now and I’m pretty sure it’s so bright, my feet will glow in the dark. The tricky thing with neons though, just a warning, is that they dry matte. Which can be a cool look but it tends to chip. So adding a top coat makes it nice and glossy but you have to work fast. This is definitely my fave product of all of them this month.

Sample-size: 20 ml

Retails for: $25.25 (for 50 ml)

I don’t know this brand, apparently it is Canadian though. This mask looks good actually but I have yet to try it.

Sample-size: 4 ml

Retails for: $80 (for 50 ml)

I’m not a huge fan of high end creams. I suffer from eczema and am really wary about putting stuff on my face right now and am basically just sticking with simple, natural face creams right now. This looks interesting and maybe I’ll give it a try but something about the wee packets like this is a bit of a turn off, just reminds me of stuff I can get for free from Sephora or even Sears. Even had it been in a tiny bottle, it would have changed my perception completely.

When I saw this, along with the $100 “gift certificate” towards hair styling tools, my fave contorted into something really unpleasant. I’ve read the issues people had with crappier, not-to-be-named subscription beauty boxes with this brand (at least I think it was the same brand, it can’t be a coincidence). The problem was that it is basically a coupon since you have to spend money to get anything (because the items cost over $100 as is). Plus I hear the brands of flat irons/dryers/etc they sell you can find at Winners for super cheap. So meh. That’s not a turn off enough to not use the shampoo, but it made me take a disappointing pause at Topbox, I gotta admit.

One thing that bothers me is the tracking with Topbox. I guess Canada Post is to blame with that, but every month so far, I’ve received my box (tube) later than the expected date which is annoying. Also, because I’m on the east coast, I get the very last topbox, pretty much. It’s cool that Topbox asks everyone to not release “spoilers” of the box contents before a certain date each month…but that’s still like a week or 2 before I get mine 🙁 I get unintentionally spoiled each time because Topbox twitter and facebook will ask “how everyone liked _____ this month” and I want to say, “IDK, it’ll be at least a week or more before I get mine!”

Overall:
Well the nail polish made me super happy, it’s my favourite brand and I’ve wanted one of their neons. I didn’t like how they inflated the price though on the info card, and some of the other samples this month didn’t impress me. All in all, it’s my least favourite box so far.

[rating=4]

Topbox June 2012: First Impressions Review

So what’s in the box for this month?

You first notice the bonus card. That’s pretty neat, we get a couple extra drugstore samples. Sounds good to me.

Starting with the bonuses:

I’ve tried this already and used it. For me an eye makeup remover has to be non-stingy! Let’s just say…I’ve had a few bad experiences with some removers in my time. I’m a big fan of these liquid eye makeup removers and this one did the job. (And didn’t sting!) I bought several Simple products when I lived in London and liked them a lot, hopefully I’ll see their products in my local drugstores soon.

I’ve tried a sample of this recently when it was included in my Elle magazine. I like it well enough though I’m a bit picky when it comes to foundation-type products. I’ll use these samples for sure but as for purchasing a full sized product? Probably not. We’ll see though, Topbox was generous enough to include 3 packets (I stretched 1 packet out to 2 or 3 uses), so I’ll be able to test it out more.

Full-size: 1.5 g

Retails for: $12

This is supposedly a personalized shade (mine was Bella). I haven’t seen many other reviews this month yet but I’m curious as to what colour was included in others’ boxes! I’ve tried this product and I really like it. It looks dark in the swatch and on first application but it sheers out to a paler pink on my lips and it’s very pretty. I like the applicator brush too. I have read a few reviews on this gloss that say that this product is drying (it’s slightly minty, like a plumping gloss, which is why I think it’s drying for some) but I have to say I haven’t encountered this issue personally.

Swatch

Full-size: 10 ml

Retails for: $15

I love shimmer. I love eyeshadow. So a shimmery eye-shadow primer? Awesome. I wore this out today and over 8 hours later, my eyeshadow is in place and so is the sheen from the primer. Nice!

Sample-size: 5 ml

Retails for: $49 (for 45 ml)

My little card that came with the package said this product was a replacement for another so I had to hunt down information on what this was. Though pretty clearly from the name you can see it’s essentially a BB (Beauty Balm) cream. Duh, Amy. This morning I put it under makeup and was pretty impressed right away with how it evened out my complexion. Though my makeup did eventually start to disappear after several hours, I have to say it was really hot here today so I might have that to blame! I’ll keep trying this out, maybe wearing it on its own, to see more on what it’s like.

Sample-size: 3.5 ml

Retails for: $29 (for 7 ml)

Again, I tried this today already! I really liked the formulation of this, a lot. It’s definitely not clumpy or thick and I like the smaller wand (I wonder, does the big size have a wand like this or is it because it’s a sample? Hmm). While it applied nicely, it didn’t really curl much. I want to try this after using an eyelash curler to see if the results are better.

Overall
Seeing as I’ve tried and liked many of the products already says a lot. What I appreciate about Topbox is the emphasis on makeup. For me, and a lot of others too I think, when you get skincare samples they might be really awesome but it’s tricky to incorporate into your routine – much harder than makeup. It was no trouble for me to use a different eye makeup remover, or primer, or lipgloss or mascara today. It was super easy to test out the new makeup products in this month’s Topbox. My only complaint is how looooong it takes me to get the boxes (I know I’m in NL but still!) – I’m pretty sure I’m one of the last and frankly, that sucks. But overall, I was pleased this month! Looking forward to July’s. 🙂

[rating=5]

NOTD: OPI Just Spotted the Lizard

I wasn’t terribly enthused after seeing OPI’s new collection for Spiderman. I thought that it was missing a true, classic blue and red (you know, it’s Spiderman after all). Though I was really drawn to Just Spotted the Lizard.

I LOVE DUOCHROMES. So much.

The colour is a really nice duochrome too, gold and green. Apparently it’s a dupe for Chanel’s Peridot, so BONUS.

I really love this, and it applied well. In most light it appears to be mostly gold with hints of green. Pretty!

Topbox May 2012: First Impressions Review

If you’re unfamiliar with Topbox.ca, it is essentially one of the (increasingly many) beauty subscription boxes available. Luckily, this one is geared toward Canadians only and from my research it seems to be one of the best (if not the best) of the ones available to us.

I discovered Topbox through the youtube beauty community when it was introduced before Christmas and finally signed up for myself weeks later. I guess a lot of people had the same idea because I was put on the waiting list for May. May?! At least the interim would let me see how others reviewed Topbox. Was it worth it? Like so many other box subscriptions, did the quality decrease over time? In my opinion, no. But what about when I finally could try it for myself?

How Does it Work?

Pay $10 per month, plus taxes, and get a cute/pretty tube of samples delivered to your door each month. Usually 4 samples are included and often at least 1 of the products are full-sized.

May’s Topbox was super impressive. I wondered if it would be where I really loved one or two of the samples provided and was “meh” over the others. But I was genuinely very pleased with each product.

This is the super pretty (and recyclable) packaging.

Inside

What about the products included?

Full-size: 15 ml

Retails for: $20

My personal favourite. Anyone who knows me knows how much I love nail polish and I’ve been meaning to try out Deborah Lippmann for awhile. The colour is Whatever Lola Wants, a nice pale, frosty pink. I tend to be into more bold shades but this one is more universal I suppose!

Full-size

Retails for: $25

I’m also excited to try this product, I love brushes and this one feels nice and soft. I plan on washing it before using it so we’ll see how it holds up.

Sample size: 2 ml

Retails for: $75 (for 15 ml)

I’m not familiar with this brand but I’ve been all about eye creams lately. I’m trying out some Clinique but I’ll throw this in rotation too. This product promises to help with dark circles too so we’ll see!

Sample size: 7 ml

Retails for: $39 (for 30 ml)

I like CoverFX but I haven’t tried this type of product from them before. My current go to face primer is Hard Candy’s, which I do like, but CoverFX’s one promises anti shine and to help with acne which is interesting. I have the exact opposite of shine so that won’t do much for me, but if it could help with evening skin tone, I’m curious to find out!

Also included was a coupon for a free Deborah Lippmann nail file if you bring it to a Holt Renfrew store before June 15. Unfortunately there is no Holt’s in my province, oh well!

Overall

For a first box I was very impressed at what was included. I highly recommend trying out Topbox if you’re a Canadian and interested in trying out some cool beauty brands!

Rating: [rating=5]