Canadian myGlam Bag December 2012 by IPSY - Open Bag Time!

Time for another Open Bag session with the myGlam bag for December 2012 by IPSY! This month's theme is "Haute Holiday" and the contents in the bag should be able to help create a holiday party-ready look! I try to list as many prices in Canadian currency, but for those I cannot find online I will list in US dollars.

Of course it has to come in the usual hot pink protective parcel bag:

This month's bag is a silvery-grey fabric with a glossy finish. The shape is roughly that of a rectangle, flat at the bottom so it is very roomy. The inside is lined with hot pink material with "ipsy imprinted all over. The zipper has a silver dangling charm. Overall, a sturdy and useful make up case, or it will definitely work as a pencil case if you wish.

Also in the packaging is the usual greeting card and another card with coupon codes for the brands included in the bag this month.

First item out of the bag also happens to be the tiniest of the bunch: NYX Ultra Pearl Mania in LP13 Sky Pink Pearl. This is a full size item at 0.06 oz. (Sorry the lighting of my picture is making it appear more yellow than it really is.) This is basically a loose powder eyeshadow that is very finely milled and has a pearly sheen finish.

"It’s not hard to sparkle with one of our ultra-shimmering loose shadow powders that can be used on eyes, cheeks, even lips. These finely-milled mineral eye shadows are high-impact, long-lasting—and a little addictive." - NYX $3.99CAD

Next is Be A Bombshell Lip Gloss in Hot Mess (love the name!), another full-size 3gm product! The gloss is a bright, pigmented, blue-based red that has no sparkle or shimmer in it. The finish is semi-see through, thus giving a jelly-like appearance and is very glossy. It is smooth on the lips and not very sticky, which I really prefer! It has a doe foot applicator that is very easy to control. The packaging is reminiscent of MAC CreamsheenGlass glosses.This lipgloss is a great "starter" colour for those who are looking to venture into the red lips but are still intimidated by lipsticks, since the gloss is pigmented enough to give colour on its own, yet still buildable so you can control the intensity of the colour. What better time than holiday dinners and New Year Eve parties to rock the red lip? :)

"No Bombshell look is complete without luscious, shiny lips! The Bombshell Lipgloss formula is longlasting and will send whistles your way all day long." - beabombshellcosmetics.com - $14.00US

Next up we have a package of Highligher Paper (shade: St. Barts) by Mai Couture. This brand was first featured in the inaugural myGlam bag back when it first lauched in the US and was only available to US residents. At that time they had given the brand's blush paper and this time around, at the 1-year anniversary, we get to try the highlighter papers too! This is a half-size product with 25 sheets, with the full-size having 50 sheets per pack. The idea of these paper is that you can touch up on-the-go, as well as being super easy to use when you are first applying your makeup. Instead of using a powder product with a brush, tear off one of these sheets and dab/swipe it across the area of the face you which to use the highligher, and the product comes off the sheet onto the skin! Interesting concept, and I agree this will make touch-ups much easier!

"Baby, you were born to shine…with just a bit of help from Mai Couture Highlighter Papier. Wherever your day takes you – home, the office, 40,000 feet – just one sheet of Mai Couture Highlighter Papier will turn up the wattage on lackluster skin in seconds flat. Perfect for both the face and body and great on all skin tones, Mai Couture Highlighter Papier adds beautiful flawless luminosity hygienically and easily while letting you travel light. It’s time to say goodbye to messy brushes or things shattering in your bag. " - Mai Couture  - $28 for full-size.

Fourth product is the Mirabella Primer For Face and Eyes, full-size, 12.85gm of product. Mirabella is a mineral makeup product company. This primer is quite runny in consistency, and comes out clear. The product is very thin on the skin and provides a very smooth surface on your skin that becomes nicely prepped for foundation. I find that it does indeed prolong the wear of my foundation, allowing it to last nicely throughout an 8-hour work shift and a 2 hour dinner after that. I haven't tried it out on my eyes as I am very content with my Urban Decay Primer Potion and Too Faced Shadow Insurance, but perhaps one day I will try it out! The squeeze tube is quite handy and I prefer this type of packaging as I feel I'm able to keep the product inside more sanitary. 

"Silky, smooth, clear formula primer slides on the skin creating the perfect base for any mirabella foundation. Avoid lash-line. Use sparingly. Paraben-free, Dye-free." - Mirabella - $29.00US

Fifth and final product this month's myGlam bag is the Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil in Zero. We receive the travel size at 0.8g (full-size = 1.2g). This size of the 24/7 pencil is usually only found in the pencil sets that Urban Decay holiday value sets, but with 75% of the full-size amount, this is a very generous deluxe sample :)  This eye pencil is a personal favourite of mine for some time, as the formula is super creamy so it doesn't tug at the lashline, yet still delivers amazing staying power for me, including at the waterline and tightline. This is no longer the "blackest" eye pencil that Urban Decay offers (that would be the shade "Perversion") but Zero is more than black enough for daily use and appropriate for most special outings/evening parties. I'm really happy to have another back-up of this pencil. The pencil is quite pricey if you are to purchase at regular price from Sephora, so if you would like to check out something that is more budget-friendly, I highly recommend the NYX Slide-On Pencil range, as the quality is nearly identical (to me) and the colours offered are awesome too.

"Creamy, forever-lasting, award-winning and waterproof, 24/7 pencils delight you with lush tropical hues, deep metallics, and unusually vibrant neutrals." - Urban Decay - $22.00CAD

I am, once again, impressed and satisfied with this month's myGlam bag. For $10.00US + $4.95US shipping fee, I received almost $78.00 worth of product, all of which I know I will be making a use of. I am eagerly awaiting for the January myGlam to arrive at my doorstep in a few weeks :)

Disclaimer: Subscription to IPSY and myGlam bag is purchased by my own money, and all mentioned in the above post are my honest opinions.

A Bright Complexion For The Holidays! - Benefit "Let There Be Bright" Holiday Value Set

Here is an exciting product from Benefit that would make a great gift for someone or a nice treat for yourself :) It is one of the several value gift sets that Benefit has released for the holidays and they are slowly but surely trickling into Sephora and Shopper Drug Mart locations! Today I found this particular one at Shoppers Drug Mart:

Such cute packaging! It's made to look like a piece of luggage to match this year's travel theme.

Opening the golden latch at the top of the box reveals the following precious goodies:

Contents:
- Deluxe sample of The POREfessional Primer (7.5mL)
- Deluxe sample of Triple Moisture Facial Cream (8.9mL)
- Full Size It's Potent! Eye Cream (15mL)
- Full Size Triple Performing Facial Emulsion (50.3mL)

 Now, the reason I purchased this particular set is not only for its awesome deal (the eye cream and facial emulsion retails for C$36 and C$34, respectively), the products are either ones that I already love or I've really want to try it for a while now.

The POREfessional Primer is one that I use every single day as part of my workday makeup routine. While I don't suffer from extremely large pores, you can not go wrong with a product that is able to blur the appearance of the pores and also create a nice smooth canvas for the foundation/tinted moisturizer/BB cream that is to come afterwards. One aspect that sets this primer apart from others that I use is the fact that POREfessional is skin-toned. I think that contributes to it being able melt nicely into the skin and looking very natural. Overall, I think this product is great and I'm always happy to have a travel size of it!

Deluxe sample comes housed in a glass jar!

The Triple Moisture Facial Cream also is another that I've been using for some time now. It is a face cream that is more on the thicker end of the spectrum. With a retail price tag of $42, it's quite a steep purchase. I didn't purchase my full sized jar until Holt Renfrew cleared out their Benefit counter and had it on sale for $25. Since then, I've used the product rather sparingly because I know it's not possible to pick another one up at even a similar price. This face cream is rich without feeling heavy, which I love. However, it is takes just a bit too long to sink in before I can apply make up so I limit its use to just as my night-time moisturizer. Having applied it just before going to bed allows my skin to slowly drink up the hydration and I wake up with nice and bright skin! The cream does have a fragrance that is on the stronger side; it is nothing florally (if that's a concern), rather it smells very fresh and refreshing, almost like fresh laundry, I think. Personally I love the scent, it's unique and makes me feel like I've just done some sort of spa treatment. However, if scents are sensitizing to your skin this may steer you away.

This It's Potent! Eye Cream is the only one of it's kind offered from Benefit and I think the name is just too cute! Now, I have to admit that which it comes to daily skin care routine, the eye cream is the one that I neglect most often. Yup, I know it's time to change that around and hopefully Benefit's It's Potent! Eye Cream can knock some sense into me. In terms of consistency, it's a bit lighter than the facial cream, also, it does not share the same "fresh laundry" scent; It is rather fragrance-free, if you don't count the typical "cream" odour. Anyway, it is nothing major, and it certainly does not smell bad. I tried a bit just now and I don't find that my eyes are irriated when the cream brought up to right under the lash line, and it does feel quite hydrating! I am having hopes for this product now.

Finally, this is the product that is the most exciting for me in the set, the Triple Performing Facial Emulsion! From my understanding, is product is sort of similar to the facial cream but with a more liquidy base AND the added benefit of sunscreen :) With SPF 15 and PA++, the sun protection that it offers is not anything to be head-over-heels for but at least there is some! I've sampled it countless times in Sephora and Shoppers Drug Mart counters but never found the heart to dish out the $34 price tag, but it's lightweight formula and pleasant scent always appealed to me so I'm so eager to try this out tomorrow in the morning! Can hardly wait! The bottle is also super cute, reminds me somewhat of bottles from old shipwrecks...haha :)

At a price tag of $52, will you be indulging? Feel free to share your thoughts and comments, I would love to hear from you!

Thanks again for reading :)
Joanne