BeautyFix Review | May 2019

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BeautyFix is a monthly skincare, makeup, and haircare subscription box created by Dermstore. A monthly subscription is $24.95 per box and a one-time box purchase is $34.95. Most items in the box are either full or deluxe sample size products. 

Smashbox: Photo Finish Primerizer | Full-Size $15

Tocca: Giulietta | Full-Size $76

Klairs: Sheet Mask | Retail $3

SkinMedica: Total Defense Repair SPF 34 | Full-Size $68

SkinCeuticals: Glycolic 10 Renew Overnight | Full-Size $80

NeoStrata: Intensive Eye Therapy | Full-Size $84

Skyn Iceland: Firming Eye Gels | Full-Size $30 for 8 pairs

Ahava: Mineral Hand Cream | Full-Size $24

Dermalogica: Sound Sleep Cocoon | Full-Size $80

Deremelect: Microfacial Exfoliating Masque | Full-Size $38

Dermstore: Spa Headband | Retail $10

Alterna: Leave In Conditioner | Full-Size $30

Oribe: Gold Lust Dry Shampoo | Full-Size $46

Box Faves:

• Skyn Iceland Eye Gels: BeautyFix sent this in a previous box and I loved these eye gels - they’re so cooling and so comfortable - even more so than other similar eye gels! They do run a little on the expensive side so I especially like receiving them in subscription boxes since this makes them a little more affordable!

• Dermologica Sleep Cocoon: I absolutely loved this sleep cocoon because it goes on like a cooling gel but lasts all night long! Usually anything that moisturizers throughout the night tends to be a little on the heavier side but this product feels really light and feels like it still has some moisture left in the morning, so I’ve been enjoying it a lot!

Box Flops:

• Tocca Perfume: If you’ve read my reviews before, this will be nothing new, but I am not a fan of receiving perfumes in subscription boxes! I don’t think they bring a lot of value to the boxes and since I tend to be pretty picky about scents, they’re not particularly useful for me since I rarely find a scent that I like through a subscription box. I know this works for other people but I tend to prefer finding perfumes in stores!

This month's BeautyFix was a bit of a weird one for me because although I liked most of the products, they were also mostly products I've already received in previous BeautyFix boxes. I still think the value of the box was absolutely stellar and the products in the box were great, however, I do wish that there was a little more variety in the brands and products that they included in the box so that I could've tried different things - after all, isn't that sort of the point of subscription boxes?

Customized Shampoo Review w/Formulate

Disclaimer: This blog post is in partnership with Formulate. Formulate kindly sent me a free set of customized shampoo and conditioner for review. Opinions are 100% my own. Thank you for your support!

Happy May, friends! I’m so excited to be sharing a little hair focused post in partnership with Formulate! I am a huge beauty junkie but frankly, I don’t give enough love to my hair! Only within the past year have I begun to appreciate what a good hair regimen can do for my hair but I’m still in the learning process so I enjoyed trying Formulate’s shampoo and conditioner and seeing what it might be able to do for my hair. Read on for my review and a chance to win your own customized shampoo & conditioner

Customization Process

My favorite part of the whole process by far was the customization survey. I love beauty products that are customized to your individual needs because everyone is so different that it’s hard to find products that really suit your needs. Especially as a minority in a predominantly white area, it’s hard to find beauty and hair products that work well with my hair and skin. Through Formulate’s customization survey, I indicated that I have straight, black, shoulder-length, oily-dry hair and had the following hair goals: lengthen, strengthen, anti-frizz, oil control. I was also able to pick the scent of the products (I picked freshly squeezed - citrus and floral - amazing) which was by far my favorite part since I tend to be picky about the way products smell!

Products & Packaging

The Formulate products came in minimalist bottles with screw tops on (great for if you need to bring them along for travel) and pumps for each. They also included a little card that reviewed my customizations as well as some detailed about the ingredients in my products. A shampoo and conditioner set will set you back $49 for both and $29 for just one or the other.

I’ve been testing out the Formulate products for about 6 weeks and have overall enjoyed the experience. At first, I experienced a lot of extra heaviness/oily-ness at the roots which was the opposite of what I listed as my hair goals! I decided to ease into the new shampoo by combining it with my current shampoo for a week or so before only using the Formulate shampoo and it worked like a charm. After a couple of weeks of using only the Formulate shampoo, I noticed that my second day hair didn’t feel as oily as it usually does with my normal shampoo :)

Final Thoughts

Overall, I really enjoyed the experience of trying customized hair products! Although it’s definitely a fun experience, the $49 price point is pretty high so while I likely won’t be ordering it on a regular basis, I think it’s something I’m definitely going to experiment more with to try to achieve the best formulate for my hair.

I’d highly recommend this if you’re someone who struggles with finding a good formula for your hair. My hair tends to be pretty resilient so I’m not too picky, but if you’re someone who has very specific hair needs, then Formulate is worth a try! If you’re someone who is interested in trying cleaner, gentler formulas, Formulate is also a great option because you can review and select many of the ingredients that go into your hair products!

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Giveaway!

If you’re interested in trying out your own set of customized shampoo and conditioner, I’ve partnered with Formulate to giveaway a set ($49 value) to one lucky winner! All you have to do is enter at the link below - good luck!

ENTER THE GIVEAWAY HERE!

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Ipsy Glam Bag Review | April 2019

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The Ipsy Glam Bag is a monthly beauty subscription box that gives you a personalized bag of full-size and sample size beauty and make-up products for $10 a month. All of their products also come in a cute, handy little make-up bag!

Sugar Cosmetics: Kohl of Honour Intense Kajal in Black Out

Billion Dollar Brows: Fan Brush | Retail $20

Tarte: Double Duty Beauty Base Tape Hydrating Primer | Full-Size $30

Laura Sanchez: Moods Eyeshadow in Rose Gold Woman | Full Palette $35

Huangjisoo: Plumping and Brightening Masks | Full-Size $30 for a 5-pack

Bag Fave:

Huangjisoo Masks: My favorite product of this month's bag by far were the masks! I love trying new masks and discovering new brands in this area and while I didn't love the smell of the broccoli mask, I enjoyed trying a new brand and I'll definitely re-visit this

Bag Flop:

Sugar Cosmetics Eyeliner: I've tried my hardest to indicate that I do not want to receive any eyeliners but I'm still receiving some eyeliners in my ipsy bags? I am super picky about eyeliners and either only use my favorite liquid eyeliners or no eyeliner at all so I don't really want any in my subscription boxes!!

This month's ipsy bag was just middle of the line for me :( I recently changed a lot of my preferences for what make-up I'd like to receive and while there are a lot more ways you can specify your preferences on ipsy, it seems like there might be a bit of a lag on those preferences being reflected in the actual bags themselves. What did you all think of this month's selection? Let me know in the comments!!