July Glossybox: Stars and Stripes Special

 

I'm a little late on this month's Glossybox post - because my box came late, and then the postie kept it hostage for a few days in the sorting office, so by the time I could go and collect it, I had already seen the contents in other blog posts! But still, here we go....

 

This month's box was a Stars and Stripes special to celebrate the Fourth of July, and packed with US cult classics. I was quite excited by that -  the idea of a box themed by country. I'd love to try a Japanese-themed box - or perhaps they should have done a Brazilian one for the World Cup?

As a Brit, I don't really think we should be celebrating Independence Day (farewell empire!) but if it means a box of nice beauty treats I guess I can put that aside. So easily bought!

The box came in red and blue stars and stripes packaging, which was a cute touch. Here's what was inside...

 

Quite an exciting lot of products this month, and I was really pleased to see lipstick in there, as I haven't ever had lip stuff in one of these boxes before.

Bellapierre Cosmetics Mineral Lipstick

'Catwalk' 

£20

bellapierre.co.uk

 

Immediately that I opened the box, my eyes fell on this, with its 'quilted' style tubing. I actually thought it was Revlon, as their lipsticks come in the same sort of tube - how odd! Wonder who copied who?

Bellapierre isn't a brand I've tried, although I've seen their mineral eyeshadows on blogs and in a few magazines. For some reason, I totally expected this to be red - it just seemed to fit with the red,white and blue- but it wasn't!

It turned out to be a shade called Catwalk, which is a gorgeous creamy rose-nude. Very flattering and natural - its not a standout shade, so I don't know if I ever would have picked it off a shelf, but once I tried it, I loved it - that's exactly what these sample boxes are so good for.

 

It's a beautiful blush shade that would also work so well on the cheeks. The more I look at it, the more the shade grows on me, and I don't have anything similar in my collection either.

The lipstick is formulated with natural waxes, mineral pigments and antioxidants including Vitamins C and E. I love how lipsticks are never 'just' lipsticks these days - its the norm for them to be packed full of skin-lovin' goodies. Hard working make-up!

 

This feels very comfortable and moisturising on the lips. I liked it a lot but my one negative comment would be that for a £20 lipstick the packaging is so cheap looking! 

The quilted effect sides are fun, but its a very flimsy black plastic - I'd expect rather more when I can get a Chanel or YSL lipstick for around the same! The packaging lets it down a bit, although the formula and the shade are both lovely.

Absolute New York Perfecting Eyeshadow Primer

$4.99

nicka.com

 

This was a really nice product to get in the box, and very handy as the eyeshadow primer I'm using at the moment isn't the greatest and I was ready for a change.

Absolute is a brand I've never tried before . This seems like a proper American product as the price is only in dollars as well.

I like the fact that this has a doe-foot applicator, which makes it super-easy to apply.

The primer is a thick, tinted cream. Its oil-free (great news for those of us with oil-slick eyelids that drink shadow), and its designed to even out the skin tone in your eye area and neutralise any redness.

This makes any colour appear brighter and more true to what you see in the palette, and also helps shadow to stick around longer and stay crease-free.

 

First impression on this are good. It goes on lightly and is easy to blend. I think it works better than my current primer, so its made it into my 'everyday' kit. 

I used this straight away that I opened the box up and it definitely helped to keep my shadow in place, although I did notice that my liqiud eyeliner still smudged up into my crease by the end of the day.

So maybe not a 10/10, but for around £2.50 in English pennies and pounds, I think this is pretty good.

Carmex Lip Balm

£2.69

graftonsbeauty.co.uk

 

Carmex really is an all-time classic, but I've never tried it in my life. I often see the cheery yellow packaging winking at me on the shelves, but I'm pretty wedded to Vaseline (especially with the limited editions they do, which I collect), so I've never thought to pick it up.

It comes in squeezy tube and stick format now, but there's something nice about the little round pot, and I'm glad that's the version Glossybox included.

Not sure what I was expecting, but I really liked this. It has that beeswax smell - sort of reminds me of furniture polish, but not in an offputting away. It's not as greasy feeling as Vaseline, and it has a lovely sort of menthol tingle when you put it on. I'd imagine it would feel great if you had chapped lips - there's something very medicinal about it.

Color Club Glossy Seal

$8.00

shopcolorclub.com

 

Next out of the box, Color Club (I had to physically restrain myself from typing the 'u' there) nail laquer. I have tried this brand before as it came in a Birchbox, but this shade is much prettier than the one I got from them.

The flash on the photo has made it look a bit lighter, but actually this is a medium teal shade that's really unusual. I really liked it -  its not a shade I already have, despite my growing collection of nail polishes. Color Club polishes are made in New York, so this is straight from the Big Apple.

I haven't tried this out yet as I literally just got a fresh manicure on Thursday, but I am going to make it the next shade I wear. I just really like the non-shimmery, block colour and teal is such a pretty shade. The bottle is a nice, heavy glass as well, and gives a quality appearance - I hope that what's inside is just as good!

Dr Bronner's Magic Soap Baby Mild Unscented

£5.99 for 237ml

drbronner.co.uk

 

A true cult classic, you can hardly fail to have come across some kind of buzz about Dr Bronner's, but I didn't realise it was an American brand - I actually thought it was Australian for some reason. 

The Magic Soap has become legendary because it has so many uses - from washing your hair, to your face, make-up brushes, delicates, upholstery - there's no cleansing task that someone hasn't used Dr Bronner's for. 

This is made with a blend of Organic Coconut, Palm, Olive, Hemp and Jojoba Oil, as well as Vitamin E. I've been told its the ultimate thing to go on holiday with, because you can use it to cleanse your face, body and hair and also to rinse out swimwear with. Its basically a very gentle, all-natural detergent that won't irritate skin or turn hair into a fried mess, but can still get dirt out of most household items you care to name.

I know it comes in several variants, this unscented one wouldn't br my choice (I prefer a fragrance), although it would of course be good for sensitive skins. I'm planning to take this along on holiday with me as a good all-rounder.

So, that was this month's box. I was really pleased with it as everything in the box will be useful, and the nail polish and lipstick were both really nice shades. Another great box -  can't wait to see what comes next month!