October Glossybox - Tried and Tested

Last month I was quite eager to publish my review of the products I received in my Glossybox as quickly as possible. This month I decided to test them for a little bit longer, as I'd mis-judged an item in September's box.

I said in my review that the Moa Green Balm was a high contender for Elizabeth Arden's 8 Hour Cream, but I'd only tried it on skin that was already healthy (and it worked great then). A week or so later I got a sore patch of skin under my wrist splint, so I applied some of this product hoping it would heal my skin - and that was a painful mistake to make! It burnt like fire, became post box red and then on top of that my skin dried out so much it started flaking away. So, back to 8 Hour Cream it is.

A few words about Glossybox while we're here: I only noticed now that there was only one discount code with the box this month which was very disappointing, as there are two products that I seriously consider repurchasing.
Those two products are something that I probably wouldn't have picked up in a shop, which I'm very happy about. A lot of people complain about Glossybox and other beauty boxes for not tailoring to their needs, when the whole point is to discover new things that you wouldn't have bought if you were in a store. No one's going to magically pop into your head and find out that what you really want is a bright purple eye shadow, or that you've run out of body scrub.

Rant over. Let's get on with the reviews!

Dermalogica AGE Smart MultiVitamin Thermafoliant

First off, apologies to the Glossybox team: I complained about being sent lots of anti ageing products when I'm 22 years old without doing my research first. The AGE Smart range is sort of an anti ageing range for young people. Rather than claim to erase wrinkles and signs of ageing, it promises to prevent them if used in advance, which is something I'm actually really keen on!
This scrub is one of my two favourite products from the whole box. If it wasn't for the fact that I bought a new tube of exfoliator the weekend before my box came I would instantly buy this again.
It's got an orange, quite grainy, "sandy" texture and can be used on dry or damp skin. Personally I prefer using it on dry skin, but with wet hands, as it's a bit too rough otherwise. It warms up as you rub it into your face, but it's a pleasant sensation and doesn't burn or sting one bit. It genuinely feels like I'm scrubbing away every last trace of rubbish from my skin.
Afterwards my skin glows and just feels very fresh and gorgeous.

Dermalogica AGE Smart Power Recovery Masque

This is a bright orange liquid which goes on quite smoothly. You're supposed to leave it on for about 10-15 minutes and then rinse it off. I found that my skin actually absorbed quite a lot of this product while I let it sink in, so maybe it's in need of a bit of moisture?

What I dislike the most about this product is its scent - it's like a vicious, flesh eating flower. At first it pulls you in, as it smells quite fruity and nice and then you get a second whiff and it's just disgusting. It smells like the stuff your dentist puts on your teeth to seal them. That horrible, orange, sticky stuff. Anyone know what I'm on about? No? Let's move on then.

When I do rinse this off it leaves my skin feeling quite taut (which I like), but also a little bit sticky (which I don't like). I'm unsure about it, maybe someone with drier skin would benefit more from this.

Leighton Denny Nail Polish in Babydoll

I'm really a fan of nail polishes with a creamy and glossy finish, so out of all the shades that were sent out in last month's boxes this one was bang on! It applied easily enough and was opaque enough to just go with one coat. It lasted through a busy morning working at the restaurant without a single chip, which is impressive! 

Then at my well-deserved soak in the hot tub afterwards it came off in gigantic flakes. I'm not too bothered about that though, as I've yet to come across a nail polish that survives swimming pools, bath tubs or jacuzzis. If you know of one then please let me know!

All in all this is a great polish, but no better than a lot of other brands that I know.

Stila Smudge Stick in Moray

I'm in love with this. I would have never, ever picked up a dark green shade if I had the choice, but this eye liner is absolutely gorgeous. It has loads of little golden specks in it, which you'll only notice once you swatch it. It goes on buttery soft, but once it dries it will stay put. I can get a good 9-10 hours' wear out of this before it starts melting into the crease.

The only downside is that you have to twist it up, but can't twist it back down again. At first I thought I had a faulty product as it wouldn't come out any further, so I kept twisting it and twisting it... until it went too far and then I couldn't get it back in again. So that was annoying.

Other than that this is absolutely amazing and I want one in every single shade!

Robert Piguet Perfume Samples

As I already said in my contents post I was happy to have three perfume samples rather than just one (though I still would have preferred something else entirely), because it meant that surely there'd be one that I really like. Right? Wrong. I hated every single one of these. Don't get me wrong, I get why these are expensive perfumes, as they're very rich and multi-faceted, but they're just not for me.

Let's start with Fracas. This is an extremely floral scent. I mean, dipping-your-face-in-a-flower-floral. Now, I like floral, but not to such an extreme extent. This one didn't change much on my skin either and I can't say it lasted particularly long.

Visa is by far the worst for me. It's over-powering, musky, sweet and just plain nauseating. My boyfriend thought it made me smell of freshly washed car - not something I tend to go for when choosing a perfume to be quite honest with you.

When I first smelt Calypso I thought "Eurgh, great, this smells just like Visa", but it actually softens a little bit on the skin and somehow lightens up a little. I'd say that this is the lightest of all the scents and it's also the one I like the most dislike the least.

All in all these are all just way too old-fashioned for me. I'm sure that if you're a perfume connoisseur you'd be able to appreciate these scents, or even if you're into heavy, vintage perfumes, but I just don't like these at all.

Dermalogica AGE Smart Renewal Lip Complex

This was a bonus item, but I still think it deserves its own review. Now, I've been applying this to my lips religiously ever since I got it and it's just about running out now. It does make my lips smooth and soft and it also has a nice creamy, but not sticky texture once it's on the lips. I do, however, have two major problems with this product.

Firstly, it grosses me out. There's the smell that reminds me of rotting fruit - I don't know if anyone else's smells like this as well, but it's not pleasant and I can't escape it as I'm applying it on my lips which happen to be just below my nose. Then - and I'm really sorry about this, as it's disgusting, but I can't help but write about it - there's the way it comes out of the tube. A pale yellow semi-hard blob. It looks just like popping a blackhead. It's the first thing that came to my mind and I just can't get this image out of my head. Again, sorry for the gross imagery.

Secondly, the price. Yes, it made my lips lovely and soft, but so would a lot of other lip balms if I applied them as much as I applied this. Cheaper ones and nicer smelling ones. Perhaps it's doing what it says and keeping lines and wrinkles around my mouth away, but there's no proving that as of now, is there?

Overall I'm still satisfied with this month's contents - everything was at least worth trying and I found a few products that I really liked, so I'm happy. Just lose the perfume samples, pretty please?

October Glossybox Contents

As I woke up today there was a lovely parcel waiting for me: My Glossybox had arrived! I know there's a lot of people who don't want to hear about beauty boxes anymore, but personally I still love them. I really like surprises and trying things that I would have never usually picked up.

There's quite a bit of competition going on between different beauty box schemes at the moment. There's Boudoir Prive, which to me seems to be a little bit too high end. It's nice to try expensive samples, but if I do fall in love with a product then I want to be able to purchase it without going into overdraft.
Amarya has a scheme that provides natural and organic beauty products and you're guaranteed to have one full sized product every month. Whereas I'm all for organic when it comes to food, I am yet to be wowed by organic cosmetics, especially make-up. I'd rather read a few more reviews of the products before signing up to this one.
Feel Unique is another online retailer that has launched its own beauty box scheme and by the looks of it, Glossybox' closest contender. Their products aren't overly high end or niche, so lots of people will be able to incorporate them into their beauty regime. This month's boxes are already sold out and I'm considering myself to sign up for next month.
Latest In Beauty is a bit of a different one - it only costs £1 which you pay by text and you get to choose your samples yourself. However, you get what you pay for and you essentially get a box of sachets and seeing as I absolutely HATE sachets I think I'll give this one a miss. There's also a themed one out at the moment for £4.95, but the products just don't appeal to me.
A new launch this month is Carmine, again at a similar price point to all the other boxes. They're trying very hard to be different, both with the design of their boxes and the general tone of the website. These are not (yet) personalised, so everyone gets the same products and you can look them up on the website. The samples included in their first box haven't particularly wowed me which is a shame for a new launch, though I will be keeping an eye on this one.

So at the moment there's quite a bit of competition for GlossyBox, but a bit of healthy competition is surely good for us customers, as brands try to spoil us with products! I'm going to stop rambling now and get on with this month's contents. The box was themed "Six Pack - The Glossybox to end any beauty drought!" which got me a little bit excited thinking there'd be an extra product this month and at first sight it didn't disappoint. (I even let out a little shriek when I opened it)

The first sample on my card is the Dermalogica Age Smart MultiVitamin Thermafoliant.

At 15ml it's a decent sample, though not overwhelmingly big. Then again it's not a product you'd use every day anyway, so it's an acceptable size. I love Dermalogica, but I'm a bit disappointed that I received a sample from their Age Smart range when I'm 22 years old. I'll still give it a go, as I have tried anti ageing products in the past which did miracles for my skin, so you never know!

Sample Value: £8.10

Another Dermalogica product to go with the first one, the MultiVitamin Power Recover Masque, again in a 15ml tube. My comments are the same as with the above again: Decent sized sample, but not really relevant to my skin type.
Sample Value: £7.07

On to the first full sized product, a 12ml nail polish by Leighton Denny from the Colour & Care range in the shade "Babydoll". I've never tried any of this brand's nail polishes, so I'm excited that I received this one. It's going on my nails straight away this afternoon!

Sample Value: £11.00

Next is another full sized product, the Smudge Stick Waterproof eyeliner in Moray by Stila. Stila is an extremely hot brand at the moment, so again I'm very happy to have received something from their range, especially when it's not just a sample. I'll always find a use for an eyeliner and I like that it's not in black, as I've already got more than enough black eye pencils. This should be a lot of fun to try out.

Sample Value: £13.00

On to the inevitable perfume sample. I can't help but feel ripped off by perfume samples in beauty boxes. For one, you can get these for free with magazines or just by visiting a department store and secondly, if you don't like the scent there's absolutely nothing you can do with a perfume sample. This is a bag of three samples, "Visa", "Fracas" and "Calypso" by Robert Piguet. Having three different ones is quite a good solution, as you're more likely to find one that you fancy, but I'd still rather not see these again in my Glossybox.

Sample Value: £3.12

This one's not on the card, so it's a bit of an extra treat this month: a little beauty bag by Dermalogica! Personally, I think it's a great little extra and it's going straight into my handbag replacing my old beauty case. I know it's got a brand name printed on it, but it's of good quality and the perfect size, so I'm happy. And inside I found this:

Another Dermalogica product! This is the Age Smart Renewal Lip Complex. Okay, so this is probably the smallest sample I have ever seen in my life. Then again, it's a serum, so you don't need a lot and it's for your lips, so you really, really don't need much. The full product is only 1.75ml big, so you get more than half of the original size anyway.

Sample Value: £12.86

This month's box value comes to £55.15 and that's not including the little make-up pouch, so I definitely feel like I've got my money's worth. The selection of brands is excellent and I love the extras I received this month. It's just a bit of a shame about the anti-ageing products, as they're not targeted towards my skin type, but I'm happy to give them a go and there'll be a follow-up post to this one at the end of the month where I'll be reviewing how I got on with all the products.