Hello everyone! I'm so sorry this blog blacked out over the weekend. The second half of August was majorly hectic and I couldn't properly finish a post once things piled up. I'm getting a bit worried since my laptop goes super noisy whenever it's not in an air-conditinoed room- what a fucking 1 percenter this laptop is. I may have to do a quick shutdown later tonight and hopefully, that fixes things
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| September 2014 Glamourbox: Flawless Beauty Curation Card |
I'm majorly, extremely exhausted today but thank God I got a box! They're like my vitamins, honestly. This month's theme is Flawless Beauty, which I feel is strongly in line with how Glamourbox normally positions itself. Glamourbox is very much about enhancing natural beauty so it tends to sample off a lot of organic, pro-sensitive skincare items. I'm totally not against that but it can get quite boring if that's not a particular concern of yours. That's why, I'm SOSOSO GLAD to see cosmetic samples in this box- HURRAAAARGHAHAHAHAYEHEY!
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| September 2014 Glamourbox: Flawless Beauty Impressions |
Forgive the enthusiasm, I guess I just missed Glamourbox's cosmetic samples. I believe the last cosmetic I tried from them was the V&M Smooch Lip Detox from the April Perfectly Pristine box (post here. The previous box is July's Beauties and Babies, post here) and that isn't color cosmetics so it's not enough to satiate my hunger. They don't release cosmetic samples often, but when they do, they're totally amazing! Cases in point: Eye of Horus mascara, Eye of Horus eyeliner, Benefit They're Real! Mascara and Ofra Lipstick just right off the top of my head.
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| September 2014 Glamourbox: Flawless Beauty Unboxing |
Read on to find out why I'm so excited about this box:
Here's What's Inside (Sorted by Favorites):
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| Ofra Cosmetics Long Lasting Liquid Lipstick in Laguna Beach, Php 950 / 8g |
I'm so, so, so excited for this Ofra liquid lipstick! This is the main reason I'm going crazy over this box. Aside from the general awesome track record with cosmetics, the regular Ofra brand is pretty trust-worthy in my books. It's not super cheap at Php 650 for the regular lipstick but for the level it performed, it's at par with trendy Php 800-900 lip crayons- I should do a review soon.
Anyway, I was looking at the Ofra Long Lasting Liquid Lipstick in Bondi Beach, which is this lovely, deep, electric blue hue. If Laguna Beach turns up awesome, I'm definitely getting Bondi Beach with a few other items just so I can participate in the promos. Glamourbox has monthly shop promos which you simply cannot miss. I purchased a few items last week and forced myself to reach Php 2500 (I was at Php 2300 originally) just so I could get a HeyNature BB Cream Sample and some Nippon Face sponges. Totally worth it!
Here's a quick swatch of Laguna Beach. It's a very wearable dusty rose that goes opaque in one swish. Verrrry promising. This alone makes the box a huge win for me!
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| Ellana Minerals Lip Scrub in Strawberry Vanilla, Php 165 / 10g |
This lip scrub was a GWP a while back but my shopping list wouldn't total to Php 1000 because most of the quads were out of stock. I guess it's good for the brand that they're so affordable but having just one or two items taken out of my list is a big hit since I already have a lot of stuff from them. I really, really wanted to wait for everything to be in stock before I buy from Ellana so thankfully, I get to try the scrub through Glamourbox, *snaps all around*
This sample looks pretty chunky and not too goopy- which I like. It's sooo exciting I'm gonna use it up tonight! My chappy lips seem to peel more when I slough a lot of petroleum jelly on my lips before brushing my teeth. The skin just separates right after and I spend maybe ten minutes rolling the skin off. There's just too much lip skin! It's taking over my face! Hopefully, this chunky scrub cuts that rolling time down to 2 minutes.
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| Ellana Minerals Multi-Purpose Mineral Powder in Brilliance, Php 160 / 1g |
This is another GWP I regretted missing because I foresaw a great future using it on Transformation Collaboration posts. I had so many plans huhuhu. I mostly love that it can be used on anything; eyes body, cheeks, lips, lids so it really is a very versatile product. It's almost like a mini jar of pigment that you can combine with anything and use anywhere.
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| Belo AcnePro Pimple Gel, Php 149.75 / 10g |
I'm prone to getting a few isolated cases of acne so I am a huge fan of spot treatments. The Belo Face sunblock was an unexpected hit but I've been seeing mixed reviews of the AcnePro line though I could be mistaken. Memory, where have thy gone?!
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Beauty Republic Original Dramatic BB Tinted Cream and Dramatic Green Touch BB Tinted Cream, Php 695 / 30ml each, ~5ml blister packet provided.
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This blister pack should be enough for at least one face but I do hate sachet makeup samples. I'm a bit more excited for the Green Touch sample as I've never tried a green-tinted face base before. I've a bit of redness, which is neutralized by green, but I'm mostly sallow, which is neutralized by yellow.
I'd like to see if going green over the whole face considering all of my complexion issues is a good idea.
Other Stuff in Here:
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| TRESemme Smooth and Shine Shampoo and Conditioner, Php 275 / 440ml each, 90ml trial kit provided. |
I got this from the May Saladbox already though honestly, I don't mind bathroom samples. I'm not really picky and there's always a use for them. TRESemme Smooth and Shine isn't a bad product so I don't really mind all that much.
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Belo AcnePro Pimple-Fighting Gel Wash, Php 99.75 / 50ml
Belo AcnePro Treatment Toner, Php 79.75 / 60ml
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I so, so, so hated putting this duo at the OSIH category because they're full-size, an almost complete line-trial and are being aggressively marketed so I would like to know what all the fuss is all about. Sadly, and let's be real here, my dry skin will never accommodate such a thing. You all know this is going up on the Offline Blog Sale.
RECAP:
Box Value: Php 1604.25, or 2.7x the Php 590 subscription, considering only full-size samples.
*Full Value: Php 1948.42, considering fractional values for sample sizes. I may be off since I only eye-balled the volume of the BB cream blisters.
Though this month is a little less packed than the Babies and Beauties box, I love it way, way more. There are super promising cosmetics samples from Ofra and Ellana, while the rest of the box is technically awesome. I say technically because it's such a shame that the haircare trial is an accidental repeat from another subscription brand, and the mega-hyped Belo AcnePro is totally not for me. Teensy qualm is that I wish there was an alternative for people with dry skin, but I strangely feel very understanding this month.
Overall, I liked last month; love this month. It's very reminiscent of Glamourbox's first run of amazing boxes which had a good balance of skincare AND fantastic cosmetics while giving you amazing value on your subscription. See the almost threefold return on investment as listed in the Box Value above.
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| Glamourbox September 2014 Flawless Beauty: Curation Card |
I've been noticing this for a few months now and I can't believe I never pointed it out: I find it very noble how Glamourbox doesn't try to create the illusion of abundance by enumerating every single sample. They group everything from the same line like for example, the TRESemme trial kit is listed as one item, though technically there's two items inside (a shampoo and a conditioner.)
I was pretty shocked though to see them list the Belo AcnePro line under just one bullet. Even I expected that to be separately listed since it's all full-size. See, I love when a business conducts itself with dignity and honor. Glamourbox doesn't need to put on airs and kid around with the customers. They're very confident with their service and the quality of their samples, as they rightly should. They even listed the BB blisters as just a bonus and not a regular sample, probably because it was pretty tiny and might not be a sufficient sample for some people.
Full props to Glamourbox for this classy move.
You may visit their site, Glamourbox.ph, for more information.
You may read more of my Glamourbox unboxings here.