Tag: beauty boxes

beauty, beauty boxes, make up, reviews

Little Known Box – Face Firsts

ramblingmads

This month’s box is all about trying new things as it’s a new season (autumn!)

Peeks Cosmetics Matte Lipstick in shade Quick Sand. This is a matte brown-y colour which to be quite honest is not really my thing. It would probably be good on someone with a darker skin tone but not on my ridiculously pale face. 

Lash Unlimited Strip Lashes – another dud for me, I have naturally long, very pale lashes, so I’ve never bothered with falsies, but I do think they can look amazing.  

Nanshy 4-in-1 Marvel Blender – this is more my speed, I’ve really got into using a sponge blender so a spare is always welcome. 

Siskyn Skincare Oils Frankincense & Jasmine Night Facial Oil – this scented oil is a blend of 18 botanical oils to soothe, replenish and rejuvenate skin while you sleep. I am starting to get quite into oils – especially the new generation that neither dry you out or leave you looking like an oil slick. 

Epic Blend Vegan Lip Balm in Wild Berry – petroleum and gluten free lip balm. Added to my stash already. 

beauty, beauty boxes, glossybox, reviews

Red x Glossybox 

ramblingmads

I honestly think I’m done with Glossybox. This month’s collaboration with Red Magazine just isn’t good enough. 

Also where is my bonus MUA palette?? Last month Glossybox sent out an email saying that people had received the wrong palettes so a replacement would be included in this box. But nope. 

Too Faced Better than Sex mascara.  You know my feelings about mascara in beauty boxes. I am not going to repeat them. 

Revlon Gel Envy Diamond Top Coat – eh. Not feeling particularly thrilled by this. 

Radial Smokey Eye Pen – what is the point of filling out a beauty profile if almost every month they send another eye liner. 

The Organic Pharmacy Antioxidant Lip Balm – this may be the only thing in the box I get much use of. Even though I have 9 million lip balms. 

Just completely underwhelmed. 

beauty, beauty boxes, birchbox, make up, reviews, skincare

Birchbox Heroes

ramblingmads

It’s a Birch-drawer this month, which I prefer to the boxes – they’re really reusable too. The top is decorated with a pastel geometric design which I like. 

Inside is possibly my favourite Birchbox collection ever. 

Starskin Eye Catcher mask – a bio-cellulose mask with coconut juice and liquorice root to brighten, smooth and de-puff. My eyes often need a little love by the end of the evening so these little pads will come in a treat. 

Nuxe Prodigieux Shower Oil – this is very nice, I’ve had it before, it’s fab on freshly shaved legs in the shower. 
Nailtiques Protein Formula 2 – keratin, protein and calcium to bond the layers of nails to stop them splitting and peeling. Which is something that happens to my stressed out nails desperately need. 

Model Co Highlighting Trio – slightly sparkly, this cream highlighter gives you a glittery glow on cheekbones, brow bones and eyelids. 
Amika Bombshell Blowout Spray – volumizing, smoothing and texturising in one, with sea Buckthorn Berry oil antioxidants to strengthen and repair. My hair is a law unto itself – but maybe this can tame it. I’d like some volume and less madness please. 

As a bonus for introducing a friend to Birchbox  (not 100% sure who) I got a dinky little bracelet, embossed with ‘Imagine’ 

There was also a voucher for a photo box from Lalabox – a photo printing app which sends out your snaps in a gift box.  

The drawer/box will be reused too, like previous ones, to store various bits and pieces, and I wish they did it every month, they’re much nicer than the boxes. 

After a few slightly lacking months which have seriously had me thinking of cancelling the box, this was a really good selection of bits. So Birchbox is on notice – next month’s will make or break it. 

beauty, beauty boxes, look fantastic, make up, reviews

Happy #LFBday #LFBeautyBox 

ramblingmads

Look Fantastic is celebrating its second birthday, conveniently in the same month as I celebrate my 30th. 

Inside the box are six mini treats to celebrate. 

Argan Liquid Gold BB Cream – infused with argan oil and 24 carat gold this has a clever formula designed to adapt to your skin tone for a healthy glow. 
BareMinerals Mini Moxie Lipstick – packed with Vitamins A, C and E, Omega Fatty Acids and Abyssinian Oil to nourish your lips while delivering a hint of colour.  

Lord & Berry Mini Luminizer Stick – doubling as a concealer, this super silky formula blends into skin to leave a radiant look. 
Bliss Lemon and Sage Maximum Moisture Cream – Coconut oil and Vitamin E improve skin tone and Sodium Hyaluronate locks in moisture. Plus it smells nice. 

Christophe Robin Purifying Shampoo – chemical free with Jujube Bark and Cherry Flower Extracts to remove dry skin and flaking. 

Gatineau Collagene Expert Eye Pads – designed to refresh and revive tired eyes with Collagen, Glycerin and Allantoin.

Not a bad bunch really.  A bit of everything in a box. And after the week I’ve had this is a real treat. Now I’m off to pamper myself. 

beauty, beauty boxes, make up, reviews

Little Known Box – Summer Nights 

ramblingmads

Five new products this month and I’ve only seen one before. 

Glittereyes Pressed Glitter – new to the UK Glitter Eyes is a range of glitter in 30 colours, nontoxic, waterproof and easily removed even though it’s designed to stay put once applied. I am a glitter fiend and must have gone through a hundred pots of the old school Barry M Dazzle Dusts so this is right up my street. 

Amygdala Beauty have a range of single note solid perfumes which can be blended together or worn alone. Solid perfume is such a brilliant idea and I have a dozen kicking around. 

Fairypants Vegan Lip Balm in Peach Bellini bring on the lipbalms! This one is yummy. 

Bardou Immaculate Spray Dry Shampoo. Right confession time, I am on the hunt for the perfect dry shampoo – one that isn’t too scented, doesn’t leave a weird dust and actually makes my hair matte and not in need of a wash. So I will try this and then throw it across a room in fury if it’s not the one. 

PHB Ethical Beauty Natural & Organic Black Eyeliner. I must be in a confessing mood today – I can’t line my eyes to match to save my life. One always looks great and the other just a sad mess. But I persevere. 

Quite happy with the range of items this month, a little bit of everything, and all of it that will get at least one use (I’m looking at you dry shampoo). 

Do you subscribe to Little Known Box? Would you like to? Tell me about your beauty confessions.  

 

beauty boxes, look fantastic, reviews, skincare

#LFBestofBritish

ramblingmads

This month’s Look Fantastic box is all about celebrating British brands, pretty timely with the Olympics going on. 

There are samples from a range of brands, all for face and hair. 

Ren Flash Defence Anti-Pollution Mist – formulated with zinc and amino acids to protect skin from the stress caused by pollution in cities. Chucking this in my bag for commuting – it’s definitely starting to wear my skin out. 
Renu Lip and Eye Active Lift – the thin skin around your eyes and lips can be the first places to show signs of aging. It also apprently helps get rid of dark circles – which sometimes resemble black eyes if you’re me. 

Bloom and Blossom Rejuvenating Facial Spritz – I don’t know why they went with two facial sprays but there you go. This one is designed to refresh tired skin. So pretty much the same as the other one.

 
Percy & Reed Wonder Balm – I’ve tried this before, it’s essentially a flyaway tamer and product primer. 

Balance Me Congested Skin Serum – with various natural ingredients to target pesky spots without harsh chemicals. Non-greasy and suitable for all skin types – hope it’s tough on hormonal lumps and bumps. 

Bee Good Vanilla and Honey Lip Balm – with beeswax from British bees, this rather yummy lip balm softens and moisturises dry and damaged lips. 
Also included is a copy of September’s Elle magazine and the box booklet which has a recipe for strawberry and rose creme fraiche ice cream and recommendations for afternoon tea. 

beauty boxes, glossybox, make up, reviews, skincare

Glossybox Fifth Birthday Box 

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This month Glossybox turns five and they pushed the boat out…actually no they didn’t. 

 

This box is a pretty mixed bag, with some impressive items and one particularly shit item. 

MUA Eyeshadow Palette Starry Night – this is quite nice but at only £4 in the shops it’s not exactly a luxury brand item. 

 
Mudmasky Facial Detox Purifying Recovery Mask – face masks are nice but this stingy sample won’t get the most use – it also smells a bit funny to me. 

Wild Cow Invigorating Body Lotion – this is possibly the smallest bottle of body lotion ever. But at least it smells nice. 

Finally, this should have been a bonus item not one of the five – a Rae Feather make up pouch (which they have irritatingly called a pochette – pretentious much). Apparently this brand is huge with bloggers, but not only have I never heard of it but neither have many of the bloggers I follow – some of whom are quite well known. 

To be very honest this doesn’t feel like a special birthday edition box, it’s rather mixed in terms of brands and quality. 

beauty, beauty boxes, make up, reviews, skincare

Powder Beauty Drawer Season Three

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When you order this box (£29.99 with free P&P) you fill out a questionnaire so the 13 products are tailored to your colouring, skin type and hair colour. This means every box is slightly different – as a blonde with pale, sensitive skin, this is what the Powder team selected for me. 

💄Gold Collagen Pure Gold Collagen Mini – this supplement is designed to boost collagen levels – plumping out skin and strengthening nails. 

💄Nude Skincare Rescue Oil – packed with antioxidants, this oil soothes and perfects skin, blurring imperfections, plumping and purifying, ridding you of toxins. (Too good to be true??)

💄Shiseido Ibuki Gentle Cleanser – lathers into a foam, removes impurities without stripping skin of the good stuff. 

💄Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure (fullsize) – with built in base coat this polish is apparently almost impossible to chip – if only it wasn’t such a baby pink shade I’d put it to the test. 

💄Mii Cosmetics Heavenly Bronzing Gel – with SPF15, this gel bronzer blends easily onto skin for a summery glow. 

💄Marc Jacobs Divine Decadence Eau de Parfum – this contains champagne as an ingredient – making quite (to my nose) an alcohol strong smell. 

💄MUA Undress Your Skin Highlighting Powder in Iredescent Gold (fullsize) – I keep meaning to pick one of these up, so thanks Powder. 

💄Eucerin Hyaluron-Filler Day Cream for Normal to Combination Skin (fullsize) – with SPF and hylauronic acid to replenish moisture and protect skin. 

💄Caudalie Vinoperfect Radiance Serum – oil-free and non-greasy, this brightens skin while soothing and blurring imperfections. 

💄bareMinerals Skinlongevity Vital Power Infusion – made with superfood ingredients to improve skin’s elasticity and bounce.

💄Moroccanoil Treatment Light – formulated for blondes the argan oil nourishes hair and makes it easier to brush (oh and from personal experience means no more split ends) 

💄Paul Mitchell Awapuhi Mirrorsmooth High Gloss Primer – controls flyaways, protects from heat styling and strengthens hair to prevent breakage. For greasy hair – just apply to the ends.

💄Schwarzkopf Live Colour Refresh (fullsize) – apply like a conditioner, let it soak in for a few minutes then rinse to revive coloured hair or boost your natural colour. 

There are discounts and offers included for every brand included in the box  and beauty tips in the booklet. 
Quite a good selection of products – for me the best is the MUA highlighter and the worst the pink nail polish. If the last beauty drawers are anything to go by everything in this box will get used. 

Bring on season 4 in October. 

beauty boxes, lifestyle boxes, my little box, reviews

My Little Friends Box 

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This month’s My Little Box is all about hanging with your pals. 

Inside the box is a copy of the My Little World magazine and a packet of Sweet & Salty Propercorn popcorn, so that’s tomorrow’s commute sorted. 

Lifestyle items in this month’s box are pretty random – there’s a manicure kit, which seems a bit odd and unconnected to the clip-on fish eye lens – attach to your phone for a different way to see things. 

Beauty-wise, inside the cute printed bag are three treats. Caudalie Banana and Mango moisturiser, My Little Beauty Summer Lips balm with SPF 15, Batiste Hold Me Hairspray. 

Although I don’t really get how all these things fit in a ‘Friends are the best’ box, they’re quite nice. None of this is stuff you might share with a pal – maybe the hairspray and lens for selfies, but even the popcorn’s too small to share. 

Thoughts? Got something wildly different? Let me know below. 

beauty, beauty boxes, birchbox, reviews

Birchbox – Dive In

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This month’s Birchbox is actually a bag, a little grey scuba bag to be precise – not exactly as jazzy as Birchbox’s usual standard to be frank. 

Luckily what’s inside is better. 

Marcelle Waterproof Eyeliner in Mulberry – this month’s choice was one of these dinky pencils – I went for this black with a tiny hint of purple number. 

Voya Silky by Nature Shampoo – I really hate getting shampoo or conditioner in beauty boxes, it seems a bit of a cheat to me. Still this one claims claims to leave hair healthy and shiny with its organic oils and other super ingredients. 

Amie Morning Clear Purifying Facial Wash – this is a really nice face wash, gentle but thorough. Shame the sample is so tiny, but it fits neatly into my washbag for the next weekend away. 
Anatomicals The Buff Stuff Citrus Body Scrub – grapefruit based for a citrus burst with little pumice granules to scrub away dead skin. 

Merci Handy Antibacterial Hand Cleansing Gel – I had a different scent in last month’s My Little Box, and while this is a handy thing to have, especially when commuting, it feels a bit out of place here – and there could have been a better item here. 

There’s an extra sample this month, a teeny pod of Nude Perfect Cleanse Omega Cleansing Jelly – it turns from a gel to a milk on contact with water and clears away impurities. 

This month wasn’t the most exciting offering from Birchbox, it seems to fluctuate a fair bit. I will be cashing in some points this month to buy a few favourites in the shop, but it won’t be any of these.