Ipsy May 2014 Review

Ipsy is one of my favorite inexpensive sub boxes! For only $10 a month, you get 4-5 samples or full size makeup and beauty products plus a cute makeup bag every month! May's theme was "Fresh Picks". This month definitely seemed to lean more towards skin care, which isn't really my favorite, but most months have mostly makeup, so one skin month every once in a while isn't too bad.

May's bag - super cute!

I really like this month's bag. It's a nice fabric bag rather than the usual stiffer plastic or whatever else makeup bags are made of.

My first product is Hang Ten Classic Sport spf 50 sunscreen ($3.82). I may keep this in my bag for Chris to use, but my skin and Emily's skin are too senstive for a lot of sunscreens. We both use the mineral type baby sunscreens and even then, occasionally I'll still break out in small bumps and Emily's eczema flares us a bit if I don't get her washed off with a bath immediately upon coming inside. Also, can someone answer something for me? I know oxybenzone was determined to not be good to put on your skin (hormone disruption I think), and this product specifically points out that it's oxybenzone free, but what about avobenzone? Wouldn't that be in the same family? Is that problematic as well or is that one ok? If you want to try anything from their website, use code IPSY2014 for 25% off until 6/30/14.

Hang Ten Sunscreen

Next up, I got an Eva NYC Therapy Session Hair Mask ($12). This one I definitely will try. It's supposed to make your hair softer and more manageable by hydrating with Argan oil and strengthening with Keravis protein. Sounds good to me. If you want to try anything from their website, use code IPSY to get 65% off (until 6/15/14)! That's a pretty nice deal!

Eva NYC Therapy Session Hair Mask

My next product was a tube of Olive Natural Beauty Lip Balm ($5.95) in refreshing rosemary. I do generally prefer lip balms to lip colors (some glosses are ok, I just don't like heavy lipsticks), so I was happy to see this. I'm still a little mixed on whether I like the scent of it, but it feels really great on, so I'll use it anyway! The offer here is 20% off any order plus a free gift with code OLIVEIPSY (until 7/31/14).

Olive Natural Beauty Lip Balm

Next up was a 1 oz tub of Derma e Microdermabrasion Scrub ($16.20). This is a pretty good sized/valued item, and I'm excited to try it, but I'm not 100% sure I can while pregnant. Maybe it just sounds harsh to me? Anyone know if I can use it? I wrote to their customer service asking, so hopefully I'll find out soon enough! Anyway, they're offering 30% off any order with the code IPSY0514 through 7/31/14.

Derma e Microdermabrasion Scrub

My last item, and probably the one I was most excited to see, was a Pacifica Mineral Eyeshadow Duo ($5?). These duos were apparently made just for Ipsy and the colors they contain can be found in the Charmed ($17) and Mystical ($14) palettes. I think my version, which contains a pretty light purple and a sparkly white, is from the Charmed palette. The pigmentation was ok - I have better luck obviously with loose pigments compared to pressed shadows like this - but the colors were very pretty, so I'm sure I'll use it. The Pacifica code is ipsybeauty for 25% off any purchase through 6/30/14. I really like Pacifica stuff, so I may use that one!

Pacifica Mineral Eyeshadow Duo

Swatches of the Pacifica Mineral Eyeshadow Duo

May 2014 Ipsy bag

Overall, I thought this bag was ok. I mainly like Ipsy for the makeup, so to only get one piece of makeup was a little bit of a bummer for me. That being said, there's really only 1 thing in the bag I probably won't use at all (the sunscreen) and I'm mostly looking forward to at least trying everything else, so it's certainly not a total loss. Just a skin heavy bag, which isn't as exciting as pretty makeup.


What did you get in your bag this month? If you want to subscribe, please use my link! If you haven't tried it and you like makeup/beauty stuff, you should!

(And just a disclaimer: I bought this box myself and was not compensated for this review in any way. All opinions are my own. I have included referral links.)