Ipsy

I am not into makeup.  I don't wear a lot.  A little powder foundation, a little mascara, and usually a clear lip gloss.  That's it.  Frankly, I don't know what to do with makeup.

However, I still am somewhat of a product junkie.  Hair, body, skin and nail products mostly.  I love lotions, masks, gels, etc.

I used to be a member of Birchbox.  Birchbox is a 'box of the month' club basically.  You pay $10 each month, and each month they send you 4-5 full-sized samples (isn't that an oxymoron?) of different high end beauty products.  The first step is creating your beauty profile on their website and choosing the kind of products you're most interested in.  I chose hair and body products, as opposed to makeup.

So what did they send me mostly?  Makeup and granola bars.  I'm not kidding.  The first few boxes I got were great.  But then I'm not sure what happened.  It all went downhill from there.  When I started getting nothing but perfume samples (which I specifically requested NONE of) and granola bars, I cancelled my subscription.

But I missed it.  I missed that little exciting surprise each month and the fun of opening up my box and discovering what new goodies I could try.

Then I discovered Ipsy.  It's the same concept, but MUCH better.  I've been with Ipsy for about 8 months now I think, and I've loved every single bag I've received.

Each month, Ipsy sends a little (reusable) makeup bag full of products selected for you based on your profile.  And so far (with me anyways) they've been pretty right on.

I believe this was my June bag:

This was a great bag.  A full-sized lip gloss (they send full-sized products sometimes), which I love.   And I fell in love with the Pacifica Coconut Crushed Pearl lotion.  I've never smelled anything so good.

And nail polish!  Whenever they send nail polish, it's always full-sized.

Here's the July bag:

I haven't tried anything in this bag yet.  I'm most excited about the Beach Spray.  And the nail polish, of course.  I've been wanting an orange color, now I have one!

And the August bag I just received on Friday:

I will use everything in this bag except for the cheek stain, which I will send to my sister-in-law.  Whenever I get makeup products other than lip gloss and mascara, I send them to her.  She's good with makeup and actually knows what to do with it!

I like that all of the makeup bags are reusable too (and different every month!).  I don't know about you, but I carry my makeup in my purse.  That's where it lives.  There's maybe 4 things in my makeup bag, so it's nice to just switch it every couple of months with a new bag.  Makeup bags tend to get icky pretty quickly.

It's a little indulgence, but it's only $10 a month.  And it makes me happy.  I'm really liking Ipsy so far.  And the best part?  I have not received one perfume sample or granola bar.

(FYI - I believe there is a waiting list still to join Ipsy.  I waited about two months before I got to subscribe).