April 2016 Ipsy Bag Unboxing

Time for another Ipsy bag Unboxing/First Impressions post! This month's theme is "Dreamers".

If you're unfamiliar with Ipsy, it's a beauty subscription service that sends you a cute little "glam bag" filled with 5-6 full or deluxe-sized products each month for just $10. The bags are catered towards your preferences (through a "beauty quiz" you take when you sign up and later through how you "rate" the products you receive) so the products in the bags vary from person to person. I have been an Ipsy subscriber pretty much since it started and have been very happy with the various products I have received from them. If you would like to sign up for your own Ipsy bag, click HERE (referral link).

The month is April, spring is here - I expect the bag to be something floral-patterned or pastel-colored. Instead the design is like tie-dye, with colors that remind me more of summer. I'm not even sure how it quite goes with the "Dreamers" theme. Regardless, it's cool and interesting and the bag itself is simple. Nothing too special or different from past bags.

Inside the Bag

tarte LipSurgence lip creme in wonder

Love this! Tarte is a wonderful, cruelty-free brand, and I'm always happy to receive one of their products in my Ipsy bag! This lip creme is super creamy and pigmented and feels amazing on the lips! You can also use it on your cheeks! Use code IPSYAPR at tartecosmetics.com for 20% off any purchase.

Trust Fund Beauty That Glo Tho Face Highlighter

This was one of the highlights of this month's bag for me - haha, get it? Sorry. But no really, highlighters have become one of my favorite beauty products this year. Even when I decided to go makeup-free for the day, I'll still add a bit of highlighter to my face just to give me a little glow. This "glo" stick in it's sleek black packaging is great for when you're on the go! It goes on smooth and is really buildable so you can control your glow. Use code IPSY35 at trustfundbeauty.com for 35% off any purchase.

REN Skincare Evercalm Global Protection Day Cream

I haven't really tried this yet so I can't say much. The brand boasts 100% natural formulas for it's products. This day cream can be used on its own or blended with foundation. It has a nice, light scent and claims to be hydrating, fight signs of premature ageing and trains skin to be less sensitive. Interesting. I'll save it for my next trip. Use code IPSY20 at renskincare.com for 20% off any purchase.

Moroccanoil Treatment

Ah, the brand that started the hair oil trend. This argan oil treatment will leave your hair super soft and shiny! Unfortunately, I've gotten quite a few hair/oil treatments in past Ipsy bags and find that I rarely use them - not that I don't need them. With my super long, dry hair I'm probably just the type of person who should be doing weekly hair treatments. I guess I just forget about them. I tell myself I'll use them when I travel, but I always end up just taking the regular shampoo or conditioner deluxe sized products and never use the hair treatments so they've just been piling up. Not a bad product at all, but knowing me, I'm not sure when I'll actually use it. Use code IPSYTOTE at moroccanoil.com for a FREE tote bag with any purchase.

Luxie Beauty Dreamcatcher Tapered Highlighter Brush 522

Super soft and fluffy brush! It'll be great for highlighingt/contouring/blending! Use code IPSYDREAM at luxiebeauty.com for 30% off any Luxie product purchase.

Are you an Ipsy member? If so, what did you get in your April bag?

REVIEW: Maybelline FIT Me (Matte + Poreless) Foundation

Today I'm reviewing Maybelline's FIT Me! (Matte + Poreless) Foundation. This product was sent to me courtesy of Influenster for review. 

CLAIMS

Fit Me! Matte + Poreless from Maybelline New York goes beyond skin tone matching to fit the unique texture issues of normal to oily skin for the ultimate natural skin fit. While some foundations can exaggerate pores and oily skin, only Maybelline's pore-minimizing foundation contains their genius blurring micro-powders that erase pores and absorb oil for a naturally matte and poreless-looking finish. Dermatologist and allergy tested. Does not clog pores. Oil-free."

PACKAGING & PRICE

It comes in the traditional twist-off top container and contains 1 ounce of product. There is no pump which makes it difficult to control how much comes out so it can get a bit messy. However, I honestly don't mind the lack of pump in drugstore foundations if it lowers the overall price. Speaking of which, it's super affordable retailing for $7.99 at Ulta and $6.99 at Target.

COLOR SELECTION

The line contains 24 shades so it has a pretty good color selection. I usually have very pale skin, but had gotten a slight tan at the time of choosing my shade and decided to select something a little darker than my usual "Ivory" range especially since my current foundations were all then a bit too light for me. However, due to my health, I've been spending almost all my time indoors so that little tan I had is no more and I'm back to my pale self. As a result, my chosen shade, True Beige 222, is a bit dark for me (even if the top photo shows it as pretty light - that's just very bright lighting and high exposure - sorry!).

APPLICATION & WEAR

Diving into the main part of the review, let me just state that I have combination skin - my cheeks, forehead, and temples can get very dry while my nose, chin, and mouth area can get really oily. Also at the time of my review, I was experiencing a few breakouts already on my chin. Even when my skin is not ideal, I always prefer a natural-looking foundation that feels light - I'm not looking for something full coverage or that feels too heavy.

Before applying the foundation, I moisturized my whole face and neck and used my Urban Decay Pore Perfecting Complexion Primer Potion on the right side of my face (left in the photos). I didn't notice any huge differences between it and the left side after application but after 8 hours the side with primer did look a bit smoother while the other side seemed to have a rougher texture and had oxidized more.

It is recommended that you blend the foundation with your fingers, but since I just wanted sheer to light coverage (to make the noticeably too dark shade less noticeable when compared with the rest of my body), I used my Beauty Blender, making sure to blend it down my neck. It was very lightweight feeling, easily blendable, and evened out my skintone nicely. Also, it is fragrance-free, no chemical smells here. You do need to use a decent amount of product for your whole face, but since it is matte I would be careful building it up with too much as it can make it look a bit cakey and feel heavy. Using a brush, you could probably get it to a medium coverage, but I don't think you could get a full coverage look.

I read several reviews where people mentioned poor wear time. Maybe they had dry skin because I wore this for over 8 hours in very hot LA weather and it held up nicely. Perhaps it helped that I just applied a light layer, but I didn't notice any splotchiness or oiliness. I did notice that by the end of the day, it had oxidized around the corners of my nose and on some of the drier patches on my cheeks and chin. I definitely would not recommend this to someone who had all over dry skin. If I had just oily skin and not combo, I feel like this would've been perfect since it does seem to control oil very well even on the hottest days.

Overall, I liked this foundation well enough. I think I still prefer the Dewy + Smooth version as I just prefer a dewy finish over matte, but it's quite good for the price especially if you have dry skin.

Below is me wearing it under makeup.

PROS

Affordable

Matte finish
Easily blendable
Good for oily skin
No fragrance
No breakouts

CONS

Not full coverage
Not buildable
Oxidizes
Cakes up around the nose
Not good for dry skin

Have you tried this foundation? Comment with your thoughts!

Linking up with these lovely blogs <3

Top 5 Spring Nail Colors

I love spring nails colors! Pretty pastels, it's such a change from the dark and/or muted winter colors. Here are my top five favorite spring colors and the nail polishes that will be making an appearance on my nails this season.

1. GREEN: China Glaze's Refresh-Mint | 2. PURPLE: Essie's Lilacism | 3. PEACH: Butter London's Trout Pout | 4. YELLOW: Sally Hansen's Yellow Kitty | 5. PINK: Zoya's Dot

What are your favorite nail colors for spring?