Showing posts with label hair. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hair. Show all posts

Thursday, March 22, 2012

TOPBOX: March 2012

This is long overdue but better late than never, right?





The March topbox came in the same packaging as before. Can I just say...the packaging is getting a little boring? I love the tube mailer but they need to make the outside wrapping a little more exciting!

As for the inside, it's always packaged with purple crinkle confetti and tissue paper to keep the products from jostling around. A card describes each product and indicates their full size and price. An extra note was included this time in celebration of their semi-anniversary.





In this month's box:

1) Two duopacks of Redken Color Extend Shampoo & Conditioner - 10ml each
2) Make Up Forever Smoky Lash Mascara in Extra Black - 3ml
3) simple Face Cleansing Cloths - 7 cloths
4) mark. by Avon Gloss Gorgeous Stay On Lip Stain - 1.5g (FULL SIZE)
5) mark. by Avon Nailed It Trend Mini Nail Lacquers - 2 x 2.7ml (FULL SIZE)

The full sized mark. gloss and nail polish set are $12 and $8. Based on a unit price calculation, 7 pieces of cleansing cloth is worth $3.08, 3ml of mascara is worth $10.29, 20ml of shampoo is worth $1, 20ml of conditioner is worth $1.36.

$12+$8+$3.08+$10.29+$1+$1.36=$35.71 Not as good as last time based on this calculation BUT this is actually one of my favourite boxes!

This month wasn't high on the "premium" brands which is a tad disappointing as that's one of the main reasons to offer a beauty box, right? Give subscribers an opportunity to not only try new brands but products that are too pricey for most to purchase without sampling.

However, I'm still a super happy camper because each item in this month's box actually interests me and is something I'll use (save for the MUFE mascara as I already have a sample size of).











FULL SIZE mark. by Avon Gloss Gorgeous Stay On Lip Stain - Full size 1.5g for $12
LOVE this! I'll have to take some time and look into selling this mark. line. A few ladies at work sell Avon but it's never really interested me. Based on this and the nail polish though? I wouldn't mind tooting the horn of products that I will actually use myself. This is a really new interesting product on the market. Yves Saint Lauren's version -Rouge Pur Couture - goes for $34!! It goes on as a gloss and dries down as a stain. The best of both worlds!

The product is dispensed via click pen top, which I like a lot better than the twist style (think Stila and ELF lip glazes) as those often shoot out way too much product. The click seems to dispense less product each time although it takes quite a number of clicks to get product out initially - I thought was empty at first.

Bella Bella is beautiful and such a wearable color. I'm medium-yellow toned but I think it'll be gorgeous on a variety of skintones. I'm definitely interesting in purchasing other colors now.

3ml Make Up Forever Smoky Lash Mascara in Extra Black - Full size 7ml for $24
I didn't test this as I already have a sample but this is a great mascara. It really does create a very soot black thick lashed look. I only ever use waterproof mascara as it holds a curl better but sample sizes only come up every once in a blue moon. For that reason, I personally wouldn't repurchase the full size but I wouldn't be surprised it others do after trying this!





7-piece simple Face Cleansing Cloths - Full size 25-piece for $10.99
I saw these at Walmart recently and had my eye on the cleansing clothes. I'm always up for trying new ones as I use them pretty much every day. They are an absolute godsend for airplane rides, camping, and post motorcycle rides. This one claims to remove waterproof mascara and it does, completely! Granted, it's not as fast or gentle as makeup remover but it's more than I can say for other clothes I've used including Pond's, Garnier, Olay, etc. The cloth is also thicker than most which means it doesn't stretch or rip, nor do you feel like your finger tips are doing the actual cleaning. This is a 100% definite repurchase for me.

FULL SIZE mark. by Avon Nailed It Trend Mini Nail Lacquers - Full size 2 x 2.7ml for $8
I LOVE these! After purchasing a few Essence nail polishes recently, I've really gotten into the smaller sizes. It's hard to finish nail polish when you have so many and I hate traveling with several full sized bottles. These little duos in complimentary colors are perfect for fingers and toes!

I tried the colors on my fingers and they're just beautiful. A stunning metallic violet and a pretty pale lilac. The wear is quite good on these, too. I didn't notice a difference between it and some of my salon-brand polishes.



2 x 2 10ml packs of Redken Color Extend Shampoo & Conditioner - Full size shampoo 300ml for $15, conditioner 250ml for $17
I've used every version of Redken shampoo by now - All Soft, Extreme, Smoothdown, Color Extend, etc. and haven't had an issue with any of them. My favourites are All Soft and Extreme. Color Extend didn't wow me anymore than drugstore versions so I wouldn't buy it at full price. However, I'm really glad to receive these as it's hard to find travel-sized products for color treated hair.

Overall, March was a really good month. In the past few months Topbox's facebook page had received requests to stop sending out lotions and cheap peel-aways samples and start sending out nail polishes and other product types they haven't offered before.

It really sounds like they're making the effort and I'm now excited to see what April brings! I'm keeping my subscription for now.

Did you receive any subscription beauty boxes this month? What did you get? Did you enjoy your surprises?

Monday, January 30, 2012

EMPTIES 2: December 2011




I felt such a sense of accomplishment after my first EMPTIES post in November that I immediately started looking forwards to the next month.

Then other things got in the way and now I find myself at the end of January doing my December round up. Please forgive me!

On a more positive note...I'm going to give myself a little pat on the shoulder for completing yet another handful of products. Granted, I was a little out of control with the beauty purchases in December but hey, at least I put a little (microscopic) dent in my collection, right?

DECEMBER EMPTIES LIST:
Daisy by Marc Jacobs EDT 100ml/3.4oz size
Balea Waterproof Eye Makeup Remover
Feria Conditioner (from hair-dye kit)
Nioxin 4 Conditioner for Fine/Thinning Chemically Treated Hair 500ml size
Bath and Body Works Body Lotion Preview Size
Sample spray vial of Chloe by Chloe EDP
Revlon Nail Polish in Coral Me Wild
MAC Nail Polish in Gee Whiz

TALLY:
Total Empties: 8
Full Sized Empties: 3
Sample Sized Empties: 3
Expired: 2
Others: 0



Nioxin 4 Conditioner for Fine/Thinning Chemically Treated Hair - I first came across this line when I purchased the scalp treatment. It's a foaming liquid that you apply at the roots. I noticed a difference after usage so I decided to buy the conditioner and shampoo. Unfortunately, either the shampoo/conditioner isn't as concentrated as the serum or my hair has built up an immunity to it. It took a LONG time to get through all 500ml of this (this is the bulk size) but now I can finally move on!

Sample of Chloe by Chloe EDP - I absolutely love this smell. It is so distinct and different. So feminine but with a slight kick. According to Sephora, "top notes of pink peony, freesia, and lychee embody subtle freshness. At the heart, midnotes of magnolia flower, lily of the valley, and rose rise to sublimated femininity. A base of velvety elegance comes to fruition through cedarwood, amber, and honey." Doesn't that sound amazing?! I'm definitely going to buy a larger size of this. I was delighted to see that Sephora offers a rollerball version as I've come to realize I'd never get through even a 30ml bottle of anything, with the perfume collection I've now amassed.



Daisy by Marc Jacobs - My mother-in-law purchased this for my birthday over two years ago. Perfume is a risky gift. Fortunately, she totally got me. This is my daily perfume and I may have veered off course every once in a while but I never went longer than a week without a few sprays of Daisy. It's sweet but not cloying, fresh but not green (ew grass smells!), light but not fleeing. It doesn't last as long as I would like it to but honestly, I have yet to find a perfume that lasts all day without having an overly strong initial spray. This Christmas she gave me another bottle! I don't know HOW she knew but I had literally JUST finished it a few days earlier. It's kind of crazy how I actually managed to finish an entire 100ml size bottle. HOLY MOLY!!

Balea Waterproof Eye Makeup Remover - This is by Shopper's house brand and comes in a bottle almost identical to it's L'Oreal counterpart. I've tried the L'Oreal one and find that this one works just as well. However, the price is about the same (one or the other is always on sale and ends up around $7-8). So far with eye makeup remover, I've just go with whatever is on sale when I need another bottle.

Feria Conditioner (from hair-dye kit) - I used to love this and it was one of the reasons I bought the Feria kit instead of other brands. The tube is also so generous, I could use it for quite a few washes. However, this time it didn't seem to be as moisturizing as it used it. It came out of the tube a little drier and pasty than I remember it.



Revlon Nail Polish in Coral Me Wild - I love this color. It's a bright pink coral and seriously so much fun for the summer! Love it on my fingers and toes. Looks great with silver or gold sandals and jewelry. Unfortunately, it dried up and polish thinner didn't help.

MAC Nail Polish in Gee Whiz - Again, another one of my favourites. Unfortunately it too dried up. I've given up on polish thinner....it never goes back to exact how the polish was, brand new. Not to worry, I have another brand new bottle waiting to be opened!

Bath and Body Works Preview Size Body Lotion in Into The Wild Passion Primitive - Everytime B&BW comes out with a new scent, they offer these 59ml preview bottles for just a $1! They're usually either at the front of the store as part of the new scent display or by the cash. I always pick one up as they're a wonderful size for anywhere and it's a great way to try a new scent without committing. Usually by the time I'm finished a bottle, I'm ready to try something new so this is a great deal all around.

So there you are! My round up for December 2011. January 2012's pile is quite pathetic but expect a post in the next week or so anyway. It's alright, a slow but steady start but I am confident I'll pick up speak as the months go by!

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