Glossybox January 2012 Contents

I was just about to head out for a run (I'm being good again despite the fact that I get out of breath after about 30 seconds), when the doorbell rang and the postman handed me a familiar looking package. It's Glossybox time again!
I filmed a video of me unpacking the box again with completely honest reactions, which is particularly clear when it comes to the last product of this month's box. Watch the January 2012 Glossybox Unboxing video here.

This month's box took forever to come, considering this is supposed to be the January box and we've only got two days of January left! In all fairness, though, anyone who's been subscribed to Glossybox before got a warning on last month's card that it would take a little longer, as this box was supposed to be "extra special". Needless to mention, my hopes were high, also taking into consideration that this is yet another limited edition box and the last limited edition one was pretty amazing!

As usual I can't fault Glossybox for its packaging. The box is a hot pink to keep in line with its Valentine's Day theme, with pretty pink ribbon paper inside cushioning all the samples, a heart sticker on the tissue paper and even a little Glossybox sweet! But on to the products.

There's one full sized product in this month's box and it's the Eyeko Skinny Eyeliner in the shade Midnight Blue (though I first thought it was a dark green, whoops!). I don't really get the weird pointy handle. After a bit of reading up I found out that it's there to make application easier when it's sharpened down to the bottom, but I can just see myself taking someone's eye out with this and if you ignore the long silver pointy bit, it's actually a lot shorter than standard eye liners.
Having said that I'm very glad I didn't get a black eye liner, which I've certainly got enough of already. I'm also very much in love with the make-up models were wearing at Chanel's last couture show, so this will come in very handy to recreate that look!
Sample value: £9.50

Moving on to sample sized products I got this 15ml tube of Clarins Extra Firming Night Cream. I like Clarins and even though I've only tried a few of their products I've been impressed with every single one so far. I was a bit disappointed to get more skin care, just because I've got loads of samples to get through at the moment, so it's going to take a while until I'll be able to use this, but generally speaking, I think skin care samples are brilliant in beauty boxes, as they're exactly the type of product that you want to try out before committing to a full sized product.
This is aimed at every skin type, so my skin should get along fine with it. At age 23 I doubt my skin needs a lot of firming, though I've been positively surprised by anti ageing products before, so I wouldn't write it off from the start.
Sample value: £14.40

To go with the night cream the Glossybox team have also included the Clarins Extra Firming Day Cream. While I can see some people getting annoyed that two of the samples are of the same brand, I actually think this is a brilliant idea! This tube also contains 15ml, so should last as long as the night cream which means I can try both products in conjunction to see what they really do to my skin.
Sample value: £13.95

The card I got with my box claimed that I got the FAB Gentle Body Wash, though what I actually received was the Body Moisturizer. The texture of this seems to be very thick which is a plus for me, as I just can't do with runny lotions that just sit on top of your skin. It says on the packaging that this is fragrance free and boy do they mean it! This really doesn't smell of anything, which is fantastic for people who don't like strong scents.
Sample value: £2.50

Lastly I got a sample of the Murad Hybrids Skin Perfecting primer with Dewy finish (as opposed to the matte one). I wanted to try something from this brand for ages, but for this product I only have one word: Eww. Ewwww eww eww. I recommend watching the video if you want to see my face drop as I swatch this product.
The website claims that this "Restore[s] smoothness while a universal shade provides the perfect skin tone match" - maybe if you're an Oompa Loompa. Just swatched this made my hand a patchy orange colour and I'm a bit frightened to put this anywhere near my face. It's very rare that I have no use for a product, as I'm willing to try pretty much anything, but this is seriously testing my limits.
Sample value: £4.83

And let's not forget the little Glossybox sweetie they packed in as a cute little bonus!


This month's overall value comes to £45.18, so even though I'm not overly impressed with its contents you certainly get your money's worth! Calling it a "Limited Edition" box is a clever marketing ploy which in my honest opinion has completely backfired. December's box was fantastic and telling us this edition would be particularly special and also limited edition only got my hopes up very high. In reality, all they did was change the packaging whereas the contents are very, very average.


As usual I shall put these to the test (yes, even the Murad primer, even though I'm very reluctant with this one) and let you know what I think of all the products in another post towards the end of next month.

(The reviews are up now, you can find them here.)

ELF High Definition Powder Review

I never thought I'd be doing a review on a face powder, after all powder is just powder, right? Well, while doing a bit of online shopping I ended up on the e.l.f. website and this just sort of "fell" into my shopping basket and now I have to admit that my once ever so trusty Rimmel Stay Matte has been banished into my handbag for on-the-go touch-ups, whereas this has become my go-to face powder.

Let's start with the packaging, shall we?

The powder costs £6.00 for which you get a generous 28oz of product. The packaging is black and sleek and belies the low price tag, as it looks a lot more high end. The thing I love the most about the casing is that it has a screw top lid, which means no accidental product spillage if you want to transport it in a bag or case.

Inside you get a powder puff which I personally don't use, but it's great if you want to carry this powder around with you and touch up on the go. Underneath is a classic plastic grid that prevents too much powder from spilling out at once.
The one issue I have with the packaging is that it is the kind of rubbery matte material that seems to attract dirt and fluff like a magnet, as you can probably see on the above pictures!

You can apply the powder with the powder puff included, but I prefer to use a kabuki brush. It applies very, very evenly and gives a wonderful matte, almost air-brushed look. It doesn't clog pores or highlight dry patches or that peachy fuzz you get on your face like some powders do.

It lasts for ages and ages and I only need to touch up after about 6-7 hours, which beats the shit out of having to powder up every 1-2 hours like I used to! I do recommend using a highlighter with this, as skin can look a little too airbrushed sometimes and a bit flat. Either dust a powder highlighter over the top on places such as cheekbones, cupid's bow and brow bones, or apply a cream product underneath. However, if you opt for the second option be prepared to be generous with the glow - when I say this product is mattifying I really mean it!

The powder is a clear white, which is meant to be translucent, though I can see it giving off a bit of a white sheen, so I'm not sure if this would work as well on dark complexions without making them look ashy.

I've heard a lot about people having trouble with HD powders showing up as white patches in flash photography, but I had no issues with that whatsoever. On the contrary, it seems to be a lot more forgiving than other powders which seem to disappear as soon as a flash goes off.

My only bugbear is that this is only available online from the ELF website (you can find it here) and though I'm sure I will repurchase this powder once I run out, chances are it won't be the only thing I order.

EDIT: This product had a nasty little surprise in store for me right after I reviewed it. Read all about it in this post.

Collection 2000 Pump Up The Volume Mascara Review

I picked up this mascara from Superdrug a while ago, mainly because I didn't want to spend an awful lot of money and I'd also been quite impressed with a lot of Collection 2000 products, such as their infamous Lasting Perfection Concealer and their Cream Puffs.

The packaging of this mascara is actually quite nice. I like the transparent tip and the yellow on black colour scheme. It doesn't exactly look high-end, but it's not tacky either.

This retails at £4.99, though I find that there are often offers on Collection 2000 products and I got mine for a pound less. Unfortunately these do not come sealed, so it took me a while to pick a tube that hadn't already been opened by somebody else.

The brush is curved and very large. Together with the fairly wet formula of this mascara that spells disaster. Application is very tricky and you can pretty much forget about applying this on bottom lashes. I still haven't managed to use it once without getting marks under my eyes. The curve of the wand does not match the curve of my eye which can be one of the main problems with this type of mascara wands. It either fits or it doesn't and unfortunately this one is just too huge and bulky for me!

On my lashes this product gives a fair bit of volume, though it doesn't do a lot to lengthen or curl. Colour-wise it does a really great job, as my lashes are truly deep black after just one swipe. The effect overall doesn't blow me away, but it does make my make-up look more polished and pulled together.

I won't be repurchasing this mascara and the main reason for that is that it just won't stay on. As I already said the formula is quite wet and the first smudges start to appear after about two hours of wear. At the end of the day I end up with the worst panda eyes I've ever had - if I don't wipe up and reapply concealer constantly it even ends up on my nose.

I wouldn't say it's hard to remove at night, as you don't have to rub it to get it off, but be prepared to use up a lot of cotton pads or face wipes - this is something I put down to the mascara's high pigmentation.

It seems that my lucky streak with Collection 2000 products has ended here, though of course that hasn't put me off the brand forever!

FOTD: Peachy Bronze Look

I've been stuck in a bit of a make-up rut lately, so it was about time to shake things up a little bit. This is one of my favourite make-up looks, as it's so easy to do and is incredibly versatile.

Excuse the cheesy smile, I still have a lot to learn when it comes to posing for a camera!
Products used for this look are:

Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua in B10 Beige Pastel
Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer in Medium
E.L.F. High Definition Powder
Illamasqua Powder Blusher in Lover
HD Brows Kit in Foxy
Sephora Makeup Studio Blockbuster Palette
Rimmel Eyeshadow in Spicy Bronze
Collection 2000 Pump Up The Volume Mascara in Black

If you want to see me apply those products there's a video below. Unfortunately I had to cut out the bit where I apply foundation, concealer and powder, as it would have been too long otherwise.

Elizabeth Arden Lip Swatches

As mentioned in a haul post last month (click here to see it) I treated myself to a big Elizabeth Arden make-up kit while on holiday in America. I didn't even know that Elizabeth Arden did proper make-up - while being a big fan of the 8 hour cream skin protectant I wasn't really aware of much else apart from the hugely expensive Prevage skincare range and a couple of tinted lip balms. For that reason I thought it would be great to try out a few of their make-up items, which at $40 were a complete bargain!

I've worn most of those now and thought I'd bring you a run-down on the lip products I got to try.

The set contained three Exceptional Lipsticks and two High Shine Lip Glosses. From left to right, the colours are: Soft Red, Red Door Red, Smooth Mauve, Golden Pearl and Sparkling Ruby.

From top to bottom: Sparkling Ruby, Golden Pearl, Smooth Mauve, Red Door Red, Soft Red

I have to say I'm not overly impressed with the lipsticks. The packaging looks elegant, but the lids keep popping open all the time, which is anything but practical and I've also noticed a white coating on the Red Door Red shade, which is a bit off-putting. They apply very sheer, more like a tinted lipbalm and though you can build up the colour on your lips the results tend to be a bit patchy.
On the plus side they are very soft and smooth to apply, don't dry out my lips and do not feather or bleed.

Exceptional Lipstick in Red Door Red

I had high hopes for this colour seeing as the famous red door has been a symbol for Elizabeth Arden products for so long. It is a true red in bullet form, but applied on lips shows pink and blue undertones. It also has the tiniest amount of shimmer in it and dries to a velvety finish.

Exceptional Lipstick in Smooth Mauve

This shade I was very scared of, as it is a dusky purple in the tube. It applies quite patchy and has a large amount of golden shimmer in it, though it is by no means gritty. This colour looks hideous on my pale skin, though I imagine that someone with a darker skin tone would probably be able to carry it off much better.

Exceptional Lipstick in Soft Red

This colour is my favourite out of the three. In bullet form it doesn't look red at all, more of a dusky pink, though applied on lips it takes on a very flattering shade. This one can get quite patchy as well if you're not careful.

What the lipsticks lack in pigmentation the glosses more than make up for.

High Shine Lipgloss in Golden Pearl

This one is not quite as pigmented, but I find that it's just perfect for a nude gloss. It tones down the natural colour of my lips and gives them a lovely hint of shine and sparkle without making them look like "concealer lips". The formula is non-sticky and comfortable and lasts an average amount of time for a gloss.

High Shine Lip Gloss in Sparkling Ruby

Now this one simply blew me away. It is the most pigmented product out of the whole set and a gorgeous deep cherry red with golden shimmer (notice a pattern emerging here?) and pink undertones. You do have to be careful with this one though, as it's easy to smudge and get everywhere.

The Elizabeth Arden "Where Beauty Begins Colour Collection" is still available from FeelUnique for £39.95 (take a look at it here), though I wouldn't necessarily recommend getting the whole set. The lip glosses are available separately and they are the highest quality products in the kit apart from the case which is fantastic.
As for the lipsticks they are probably better suited to those who prefer a sheer wash of colour to a highly pigmented product and that's just a matter of personal taste. I do however feel that the packaging devalues the product and that you could find a better lipstick for less money.