Ipsy January 2015 Review

It's only February 1 - totally reasonable time for an Ipsy review! It was a little later arriving this month than usual (by like 2-3 days but still, that's totally my excuse!).

Ipsy, is a monthly subscription service which sends you 5 make-up, skin care or hair care items per month packaged in a make-up bag.  The products are often deluxe sample sizes but there are usually a few full-size items as well.  The cost is $10 per month with free shipping if you happen to live in the states but for those of us in Canada, add $4.95 shipping as well as exchange.  There are savings to be had if you subscribe to a longer period, though.  I paid for a year up front which worked out to $184.33 Canadian funds, or $15.36 per month.

If this review piques your interest in Ipsy, please consider using my referral link :)  I'd appreciate it!  There is usually a waiting list but they often offer ways to skip the line.

Here is what came in my Ipsy bag this month:

The theme this month was "A fresh start" which feels appropriate for January. . . although I always find the actual products' connection to the theme to be tenuous at best.  The bag is two-toned this month:  blue on one side, white on the other with an orangey-pink zipper and tab.  It is not my favourite and feels a little plasticky.

Two skincare products to start!

LA Fresh Eco-Beauty Be Good. Good Day. Day Moisturizer ($12 value - LA Fresh sells 50g for $40 on their website)

This is actually a pretty neat little sample package.  I like that it is resealable and that I don't have to tear it apart like most cream samples.  I am currently a little picky about what I use on my face and don't want to mess with my k-beauty routine right now so I'm not using this as a day cream.  I did try it out as a hand and body lotion and am happy with it for that purpose.  It is light, non-greasy and has a light scent (kind of like cucumbers?).  If I weren't so happy with my current face products, I could see myself using this as a day cream.  I am pleasantly surprised by this and would try more LA Fresh products based on what I see on their website.

Malin + Goetz Mojito Lip Balm (FULL SIZE! $12 value)

My favourite thing this month :) The scent and flavour of this is really nice and despite being a squeezy-jelly type of lip balm, this isn't sticky or messy.  This is another company I hadn't heard of but that has some nice-looking products on their website.

And now, three make-up products:

Hikari Mechanical Eye Liner in Storm (FULL SIZE! $13 value)

For those who have issues with the brand Be a Bombshell, apparently Hikari is pretty much the same company.  That said, I don't have issues with BaB and I don't hate this product.  I'm surprised at the alleged value since it doesn't seem like a really high-end brand or high-quality liner but it is serviceable.  Storm is a slate grey which used to be my go-to liner shade and which I haven't worn in a long time so that makes me pretty happy.  I also like that it's a twist up liner so I don't have to sharpen it :) There were some complaints that this was hard and difficult to apply but mine doesn't seem to have that problem so I'm okay with this.  I do feel like I've been getting a lot of eyeliner from Ipsy but at least it's in a variety of shades!

Manna Kadar Sheer Glo ($7.83 value for this 0.27oz sample - 1oz is $29 on their website)

Not my favourite.  I don't really use bronzers or highlighters or anything like that.  I usually get enough glow from my sometimes-oily skin! I'm sure this would make somebody happy but I'm just not a huge fan.  I'll use it, when I think of it, maybe. . .

Pacifica Natural Mineral Coconut Eye Shadow in Treasure ($3.18 value for this 2.5g sample - a trio with a total weight of 11g is $14 on their website)

Some Ipsters got a lighter shade of this.  I wish I did.  This is the second time that Ipsy has sent me a bronzey-brown eye shadow / eye base and it's still not my colour.  I will try this one out since I actually do like the formulation of it - it feels very smooth and is not highly pigmented so it might work for a little shimmer or highlight.  I also like this company but I would rather have received another of their products.  The value on this is questionable since all I could find on their website was a trio of these and then I had to do some math.  Judging by other blogs, this has been assigned an array of values - who knows what's accurate?

Overall Verdict:

The value of my Ipsy products this month is about $48 which is, I think, one of my highest value bags to date :) While I don't love everything, I do feel that I will get my money's worth out of these products - especially the lip balm and eye liner.  I will use the moisturizer as the most expensive hand cream I own :) I'm still not sold on highlighters or bronze eye shadow but thankfully these were not the bulk of the value of the bag this month.  I will not be happy if I receive more of these next month, though.