Beauty Boxes : Lust Have It June 2013

I was so excited when my Lust Have It Box arrived two weeks earlier than normal! They sent an email advising that payments and postal arrangements would be occurring earlier in the month, so no-one would have to wait til the end of the month for their box. My May box came so late, it was already June, and I was too demoralised to even write a review at all. So I think it's a wonderful change. This month's box is again in the signature 'L' box. So far I've found uses for the other lidded boxes I've received, and I'm sure this one will be no different. The theme for this month is The Great Gatsby, so appropriate with the film having come out only a couple of weeks ago. I love the glamour and sophistication of the Jazz Age, so let's see what I got!:

❀ Batiste Dry Shampoo in Cherry Scent, travel size 50ml.
I like to have dry shampoo in the house for times when I'm really busy. It's not really a luxury product, but the cherry smell is appealing. The cherry more evocative of the 1950s than the 1920s I think! But it still has a touch of glamour to it.

❀ Pure Fiji Hydrating Body Lotion in Coconut, sample size {estimate 50ml}.
I was excited to see this one. I haven't forgotten the Pure Fiji Body Butter I received last year, so when I saw the logo again, I squeed! Pure Fiji products are on my wishlist of things I'd like if I want to splurge a little, and getting this little reminder pushed them up to the top again. I'm looking forward to using this luxurious lotion.

❀ Real Purity Natural Lipstick in Romantic Red, sample size {estimate 2g}.
The amazing blood red colour of this lipstick sample just screams 1920s! Unfortunately I don't have much occasion to wear bright red lipstick, but I do admire women who can rock a red lip. I want to step out of my comfort zone and try it one day. The disposable lipstick brush that was supplied will come in handy, too. It came with a 10% off coupon code for the Real Purity online store.

❀ Aromatherapy Associates Signature Bath and Shower Oil, sample vial 3ml.
The name Aromatherapy Associates sounded familiar to me, so I checked back through my tags and, yes, LHI provided a moisturiser and face mask from this brand last August. I have a good memory for beauty products, obviously! To be honest, I haven't used those products yet - they aren't suitable for my skin type so I put them near the bottom of the queue. The Bath and Shower Oil is much more appealing to me though. I opened the vial and, oh it smells divine! I'm planning on using it ASAP. I imagine if the moisturiser and face mask had come in resealable packaging instead of sachets, and I'd had a chance to smell them, I probably would have used them sooner. The smell of a product is half of its appeal to me. That's why I want to get cracking on this Bath and Shower Oil as soon as possible!

❀ Doctor Babor Biogen Cellular Ultimate Repair Gel-Cream, sample size {estimate 5g}.
I've never heard of this brand from Germany before, so I'll be interested to give it a try. Facial moisturisers are one of my weaknesses, and I'm curious as to what a gel-cream is! It came with an offer for a free cleanser with purchase from the Doctor Babor online store.

Summary: Overall I have to say this box was a little ho-hum. I was excited by the Great Gatsby theme, but I don't think the products themselves lived up to that expectation. None of the products were full-sized, and there were only 5, no bonuses. I know the guarantee is for a minimum of 5 products, so I'm not complaining. To have received a couple of full-sized products and/or some nice bonus products would have been much more consistent with the luxurious, glamorous feel of the 1920s. Having said that, there were some products that I really liked and will definitely use soon. There was a good mix of hair, makeup, body and face products.

Rating: 6/10
Gunna Use It Right Now Rating: 40%

Beauty Boxes: Bella Box February 2013

Welcome to Bella Box February 2013! As always, my postman delivered it to me way after everyone else. I had to avoid reading beauty blogs since about last Wednesday so as not to accidentally see any reviews and ruin my surprise. Grrr Australia Post! Anyway, on to the box!:

Here we see:
❝ Nuixe Huile Prodigieuse - sample size 10ml.
According to the card, this is a non-greasy, multi-purpose oil that can be used on the face, body and hair. I'm intrigued and I'm looking forward to using it. It smells lovely too, like gardenias.

❝ Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in Mermaid's Tale - full-size 14.7ml.
On first glance, this looked sadly similar to the Blue Lagoon colourway I purchased from Glitzology recently. I had to whip this on straight away just to be sure though. Plus I took a photo, see below!

❝ John Frieda Friz-Ease Dream Curls Perfecting Spray - sample size 30ml.
I love John Frieda products and I already have a few things from the Frizz-Ease range. I don't often rock out with my curls out, especially in the hot weather! But I'll definitely use it later on, I think.

❝ Batiste Dry Shampoo in Blush - travel size 50ml.
I just ran out of this last week! Yay, now I have more!

❝ U Skin Solutions Clean and Go Exfoliating Gel Cleanser - sample size {estimate 5ml}.
I've raved about my love of cleansers before, so I don't need to tell you that I'm looking forward to using this soon! It has a refreshing citrus scent. It also apparently has calendula, tea-tree oil and microfine bamboo beads for exfoliation.

❝ Banana Boat Sport SPF 30+, sample sachet 30ml.
BONUS PRODUCT - You can never have too much sunscreen, I believe, so I welcome this.

Summary: This is a well-rounded box with some nice products. There's a mix of everyday and luxe, things I needed and things I've never even heard of. I'll definitely use all of the products, and I've even used one already. So yeah, this is a good box.
Rating: 8/10
Gunna Use It Right Now Percentage: 85%

Now for the nails! This is one coat of Sally Hansen Mermaid's Tale, no topcoat. I probably would apply a second coat for better glitter payoff, but I was feeling lazy tonight. The glitter consists of sparkly greenish-blue hexagonal pieces and small dots in a medium blue jelly base. Yum!

Collective Haul!

I bought all these products last year ... yes, I'm way behind on everything! I'll start with the less interesting and move to the more interesting:

These are things I bought from Priceline and Daiso. I bought a new bottle of nail polish remover, even though I haven't finished the old one yet. I figured that having plenty on hand would mean that I'd feel free to use plenty when removing my nail polish, and would make it easier. The Cetaphil is for washing my hands. My eczema has been worrying my again recently, and I wanted to take better care of it. I also got the Batiste Dry Shampoo for Dark Hair ("with a hint of colour"). I was hoping that it might cover up my roots a bit in between dye jobs.
The cotton pads come from Daiso. Another good quality product that I didn't spend very much on! I love Daiso.

Now for the more interesting:

These are products I got in a YesStyle haul last November!

♡ SkinFood Red Orange Makeup Finish Spray - I've been using this a couple of times a week, and I love it! I might review it soon.

♡ The Face Shop Konjac Puff - Konjac is all the rage at the moment! I haven't used this yet, though.

♡ Majolica Majorca Jewelling Pencil in White - I bought this on a whim after reading that applying white pencil to the inner corners of your eyes will make them appear bigger. I've tried it once so far, but didn't really have time to give it a proper go.

♡ Sample sachets: SkinFood Honey Black Tea Jelly Foam AND Missha Signature BB Cream - I've received a sample of the BB Cream before, and it wasn't too bad. I'm looking forward to trying the SkinFood cleanser.

Beauty Boxes: Lust Have It June 2012 and Blogging Fail

Lust Have It sent out an email a couple of weeks ago detailing some changes they're making: mainly, not using tracked postage, and giving different items to different subscribers (though not according to our profiles because, with all the ex-GlossyBox subscribers they have now, it's just too much effort). I was left feeling a little miffed, and vowed to cancel my subscription at the first sign of trouble. Apparently now they also charge your card about 2 weeks before they send out the box, as I found out. So without the tracking, I had no idea when my box was coming. I was starting to see reviews from beauty bloggers popping up early in the week, and my box still hadn't arrived! I was starting to get quite worried. But then I found it in my letterbox on Thursday. Again, the items came in a LustHaveIt-branded makeup bag, this time a lovely purple colour. The package has come in a makeup bag the last 3 months, and I've gotten a different colour each time. I don't know if this is deliberate or not, but if it is, it's a Good Thing. I actually prefer getting the makeup bags to the box I get with the other packages; they're more practical.

I'm just doing a shortened review today; I can't be bothered searching for all that extra information. Here's what was inside:


✔ Lon Vitalite 24K Active Golden Yulan Oil Facial Mask
✔ Lon Vitalite 24K Active Gold Full Eye Mask
✔ Batiste Dry Shampoo in Blush
✔ Bloom Shade & Line 3-in-1 in Times Square
✔ Marc Jacobs Lola
✔ Chloe L'Eau de Chloe

Summary: Most of the reviews I read expressed disappointment in this months' box, and I can see why. Only one of the products (the Bloom eyeliner) is full-sized; having 2 perfume samples is a bit repetitive and boring; the masks are treated as separate items when I really think they should be treated as one, which is a bit cheeky; the dry shampoo is a bit of a bottom-shelf everyday item.

On the other hand -
There were some things that saved this box for me, though I have to say they were purely coincidental:
* I tried my first cloth face mask just the other day (don't worry, pictures are coming soon!) and I really like them. I can't afford to buy the really fancy ones like this brand (RRP $59.00 for a pack of 5 face masks), so getting one in my box gave me a little thrill.
* I like perfumes, and both the Marc Jacobs and the Chloe were ones I'd been wanting to sniff for some time. I could always go to Perfume Connection or one of those places, bug the saleslady for a while, and then walk out cheekily empty-handed; but I'm too shy for that! The only time I get to try testers of the really top-end perfumes is at the duty-free shops at the airport - and that's not very often! ツ Even when I do get to try them out, I'm never sure if I'll like them in the longer-term and if it's really worth shelling out the crippling amounts they cost. So when I get a tester vial in a beauty box, I'm always very happy, because then I can see if I still like it over time. So I have to admit ... I'm not really annoyed at all to get two perfumes.
* I've always had a soft spot for Bloom, though for some strange reason I don't have many of their products. It was the first non-chemist brand that I was really interested in. The eyeliner is actually a shade that I would wear, too. Other subscribers received a glittery gold eyeliner, which is definitely not me! I was glad to receive it. I was so excited that I did a swatch of it - my first swatch for the blog! - and here comes my beauty blogger fail ....


So above is my swatch. I tried taking pictures in various places around the house - even under my brand new daylight lamp that I got for my birthday - and this was the best I could come up with. I was moderately proud of it, until I was looking at my products again later, and wondering why it's called a 3-in-1 stick. I realised ... there are actually 2 products in the stick! When I screw off the coloured section, there's a gunmetal grey eyeshadow as well as the eyeliner in the stick! Arrgghh! It's actually even better than I thought. ツ

Total Value: $50.15. Cost of Box: $14.95. Benefit: $35.20
Rating: 7/10

Mini Review: Batiste Dry Shampoo

From Pinterest.

THE PRODUCT & ME
I bought the Batiste Dry Shampoo ages ago when it first came out, thinking it might come in handy one day. I never had much occasion to use it - until now. Husband had surgery about a week ago, and he's been in the hospital since then (he comes out on Monday, yay!!). I was only able to take one day off work, so the rest of the time it's been: work, hospital, home, dinner, bed. I haven't had time for much else, including washing my hair. So I broke out the Batiste Dry Shampoo to see what it could do.

PROPERTIES & PERFORMANCE
I used the Batiste Dry Shampoo every morning this week after my shower. The Blush scent is a very sweet floral scent (the pink can in the photo). I found it a little too over-the-top sweet, but the scent faded quickly, so it wasn't too much of an issue. I lifted up sections of my hair and sprayed the Dry Shampoo directly onto my scalp in areas that felt particularly manky. The spray contains a fine powder which absorbs the oils in your hair. I also found that it instantly made my scalp feel cool and it was soothing. After spraying, I used my fingers to shake the powder through my hair. Then I styled my hair into a bun to keep it nicely tucked away.

The Batiste Dry Shampoo definitely improved my hair and allowed me to go longer between washes. My hair didn't smell at all and my scalp didn't itch after using.
I would never go so long between washing my hair under normal circumstances, but if you're really not able to wash your hair for whatever reason, then I think the Batiste Dry Shampoo definitely helps. It also comes in a travel size can, which I might get for when I'm on holidays.

WOULD I RE-PURCHASE? Yes. I might try a different scent though.