Let me start off by saying that I was going to write a pretty angry post about this month's box. The December box featured two Lord & Berry products once again, as did two previous boxes and each and every time those products were completely useless, effectively leaving me with three products for £12.95. The third product that was consistent through all three options was a Headline Colors nail polish - again, Headline Colors is a brand that has featured in Love Me Beauty before and I still haven't even touched the Models Own polish that came in last month's box. Fortunately, I was positively surprised by a few of the products, so my initial frustration has passed.
1) Lord & Berry | Intensity Lipstick in Glazed Pink
Full size: £12
There was a Lord & Berry lipstick in the August Love Me Beauty box (back then known as Beauteco) and I think I've used it twice and then abandoned it in the back of my make-up stash. There wasn't necessarily anything wrong with the lipstick, but the colour made me look as if I'd drowned in a river several days ago. That's why I'm not such a fan of receiving make-up in beauty boxes - I know which shades suit me and which ones don't, so I'd rather pick my own products.
But this made me change my mind about this month's whole box. When I saw it in the bullet and swatched it on my hand it looked horrendous - a frosted pale pink, like something straight out of the 80s. But on the lips, this is a whole different story. It's a colour I've been looking for forever, but could never find. The perfect shade to blot out the natural colour of your lips, but with enough pink undertones to stop it from looking like "concealer lips". I would imagine it to be stunning with a smokey eye or graphic 60s style eye liner. I can actually imagine this becoming my favourite lipstick ever!
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| Left: Lord & Berry Lipstick in Glazzed Pink | Right: Lord & Berry Lip liner in Romantica |
2) Lord & Berry Kiss Proof Lip Liner in Romantica
Full size: £7.50
Again, this is another repeat product, just in a different shade. Romantica is what I'd describe as "Barbie pink" with some very apparent blue undertones. While the shade suits me a lot more than the one I received in August, I don't have any lipsticks that match this liner, so I'm going to struggle to find a use for it. It does say on the card that this can be used all over the lips and I've used it in that way before and found that while it stayed on for ages, the pencil is just a tad too hard, meaning it drags the skin and really emphasises any existing dryness.
3) Headline Colors | Nail Polish in Quicksand
Full size: £9
Aaaaaaand guess what? Another repeat product. I got a golden Headline Colors polish in my first ever Beauteco box and now I've got another one in this murky nude shade. I don't mind that much as my nail polish collection consists predominantly of reds and neon brights, so it's nice to have a colour that's a little more muted for a change. The golden shade I received before applied pretty streaky, but that could be due to the fact that it was a metallic, so I'm hoping that this one will apply a little better.
4) S5 | Vitality Mask
Full size: £42 for 100ml (??) / Sample value: £6.30
Now, this is an interesting one. On the card it says that this mask is an exclusive to Love Me Beauty and while I did find press releases online discussing a launch for March 2013, but it's not available to buy anywhere. I found the pricing information on a blog after a quick Google search, but I don't know how accurate it is. I've had an S5 product in another Love Me Beauty box before (no surprises there, again), but I quite liked it, so I'm happy to try this one. It's a bit annoying that I got two face masks with this box option, as I would have much preferred two different skincare products, but as it was still the option that suited me most, I'm in no position to complain.
5) Rodial | 5 Minute Facial
Full size: £35 for 50ml / Sample value: £7
This is another fairly interesting one. I've never owned or used any Rodial products before, but they've popped onto my radar with their rather questionable marketing (Diet powders, anyone? Or how about size zero cream?). Now, I've actually already had a chance to play with this a little bit and slathered it on when I got home from work and I'm loving the results so far. I suppose you shouldn't knock something until you've tried it - and I'm quite glad I got introduced to this product through a beauty box, as I would have never picked it up in a store!
Total value: £41.80
As mentioned before, I actually like this box a lot more upon better inspection than I thought I would. This is mainly due to the absolutely gorgeous colour of the lipstick. Nevertheless I have a few negative points that I feel need mentioning. Most importantly, what drew me into Love Me Beauty, or Beauteco box, was that they weren't so full of marketing speak and empty promises as other beauty boxes and right now they've fallen into that exact same pattern again. The Rodial sample this month was meant to be a deluxe sample - it contains 10ml, which is anything but deluxe. All boxes were meant to have a value of at least £50 - they didn't. And apparently there was meant to be "a little something extra" in my box as well according to my card, but once again, nothing. I don't mind the value of my box, I don't mind the Rodial sample being the size it is and I don't mind not having an extra - but don't promise things you're not going to keep.
I also feel that the repeat products are really starting to become an issue now. If I see any more Lord & Berry I don't think I'm going to keep up with my subscription. It's a shame, really. A beauty box that started out so strong and had me completely swooning over it and praising it to anyone who would listen is starting to become "just another subscription service". I would hate to see that happen.
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