Ipsy (MyGlam) February 2013 Review

Hello all you beautiful, average people!  I just received my Ipsy February My Glam bag, and I just can't wait to share it with you!  IPSY is a beauty subscription service, and for just $10 a month, you receive 4-5 deluxe samples or full size products delivered to your door.  If you are in Canada, there is a $5 shipping charge, but shipping within the US is free!  Feel free to go and sign up for their waiting list, so you can open your March bag with me! (not an affiliate link)

The pink packet!  I LOVE to see my mail carrier with this! (but it's not as full looking as last month's!)

After the delay in shipping I experienced last month, I was very worried that I wouldn't get my bag before Valentine's Day, and I was pleasantly surprised that my bag was in my mailbox before I even got my shipping confirmation email!  Awesome job, Ipsy!!!

I spy something...black.  And maybe shiny?

Red Carpet Ready!

The back of the card, with all the brands and discounts from this month's bag :)

I love how nice and shiny the bag is!  I know JUST who to give it to :)

Love the red liner- It's like a little secret surprise!

The theme of this month's bag is Red Carpet Ready, and it does not disappoint!  I was kind of hoping for a pretty pattern on the bag this month, but the patent black leather look with the very red inside liner is also a nice change.  The bag is actually a pretty good size, and I will be happy to pass it on to a friend (who is a fan of Christian Gray, as the black leather bag is reminiscent of a different way to spend Valentine's day).

February Ipsy MyGlam Bag 2013- left to right: Red Carpet Ready insert, POP Beauty Smoky Lash Kapow!!! mascara, MicaBeauty Gel Eyeliner, Coastal Scents eyeshadow quad, Pixi Beauty Poreless & Flawless, Lash Cards, and the February bag in the back

Here is a first look at the February bag.  I love how it's all about the eyes this month!  Eye makeup is my absolute favorite, and I am super excited to have some new things to play with!

Lash Cards, 4 pack (exclusive deluxe sample for Ipsy), $2.80 retail value (available at Lash Card, coupon code IPSY22 will get you a buy 2 get 1 free deal until 3/6/13)  Full size product is a 10 pack for $6.99

Thie first item I pulled out of my bag is Lash Cards.  I've heard about these before, but I've never tried them.  Basically, you use these to lift out your lashes to make it easier to apply mascara, and protect your eyelids so that you don't get mascara on your already made up eyes (I do this all. the. time.).  There are two curve shapes on the card, so that you can best match up your eye shape.  To use, place the card against the top of your eyelid, as close to the lash line as possible, and lift up; making you lashes easier to access.  I tried this out, and while it was difficult for this only averagely coordinated person to do it (using two hands felt awkward), after some practice, I can see me liking these.  I will likely trace the shape onto some of my old business cards (I have a lot of them put away somewhere), and probably just use those, but this is a great idea for those who are clumsy like me!  I also LOVE how the printing on these is backwards, so that you can read it in the mirror- cute touch! 
GRADE: 4/5 (plastic reusable ones would be SO much better, for my pocket and the environment, but happy to have a template to trace!

Pixi Flawless & Poreless face primer, 15 mL/0.5 fl oz, $14.50 retail value (available at Pixi Beauty, coupon code IPSYPIXI will get you 20% off your purchase until 3/7/13)  Full size product is 30 mL for $14.50

 I also received a half size tube of Pixi Beauty's Flawless & Poreless face primer.  I'm not overly familiar with face primers (my only experience is with Mirabella's that I received in December, so I was excited to try this out.

Fresh from the tube

The product looked really light when I squeezed a bit out, and I was very nervous.  Until I blended it in.

Completely translucent.  Absolute win!

It blended away perfectly, and was absolutely translucent.  I love it when a product is good for any skin tone- I am very pale, and it's hard to color match my skin.  I tried this on my face, and wasn't overly impressed.  My skin was neither flawless nor poreless.  I have rather large pores on my nose and forehead, and I did notice a SMALL difference in the size of my pores, but not a whole lot more than what my usual BB cream does for me.  I will continue to try it, using different brushes, to see if it makes any difference, but overall, I'm sadly not impressed. The product had a slight odor to it (everything has a smell, honestly), and my youngest said; "It smells like Minnie Mouse" - so, basically, plastic.  I don't HATE this, but I'm not in love with it, yet.  This is what Ipsy is all about- finding out about new products, and trying things you wouldn't normally have considered, or always wanted to!

GRADE: 2/5 (slight odor, blends well, but didn't really do as advertised for me)

Coastal Scents eye shadow quad, in "In The Spotlight", total weight for the quad is 2g, $3.06 retail value, based on the price of individual shadow pans (available at Coastal Scents, coupon code Ipsy25 will earn you 25% off your purchase until 3/7/13)  Full size eye shadow singles are $1.99 for 1.3g pans

I also received an eye shadow quad from Coastal Scents.  I have heard of CS (who hasn't?!) but I have never tried their shadows before.  So I cracked open this quad, in the color theme In The Spotlight and decided to give them a try.

In The Spotlight: Top left: Dark Goldenrod; Top right: Sunbeam; Bottom left: Golden Glove; Bottom right: Dark Golden Olive

As you can see, the quad nicely has shimmer, matte and satin shadows.  Dark Goldenrod and Golden Globe are very shimmery, Sunbeam is matte, and Dark Golden Olive has a satin finish. The shadows are super pigmented, and very silky to the touch.  I experienced minimal fallout, which is awesome for shimmer shadows!  I'm really not much of a yellow person, but as I have blue eyes and love color, I love to try different looks, as I find it very hard to stay away from blues.  I am not sure this is an everyday look for me, but I think it definitely is something I will try again.  I love that these are loose pans (one actually fell out when I was taking pictures!); because now I have an excuse to get a palette and depan some shadows!  I also love how CS sells their shadows in palettes, and as individuals; plus gives the colors names-unnamed shadows drive me crazy- I can never find the same shade twice!

GRADE:5/5 (loved it!)

Pop Beauty Smoky Lash Kapow!!! mascara in smoky black, .17 oz deluxe sample/travel size, retail value $12.58 (available at Pop Beauty, coupon code IPSYPOP will get you 20% off your purchase until 3/7/13- click on the American flag at the top of the page to view the prices in US Dollars)  the full size product is .25 oz and retails for $18.50

Another awesome item in this month's bag is the Pop Beauty Smoky Lash Kapow!!! mascara.  I love the travel size/deluxe samples of mascara, because I will NEVER use a full tube in six months; let alone the three that you are supposed to switch tubes out in.  The packaging of this mascara is super cute, and I really like how it came wrapped in plastic- I really like knowing that something hasn't been tampered with.  I gave this a try today, and unfortunately, I had raccoon eye syndrome (you know what I'm talking about- your mascara winds up under your eyes instead of on your lashes), but I did use more mascara than usual because I was also testing out the Lash Cards, so perhaps that is the culprit, or the eyeliner contributed to it.  I WILL say that i experienced NO clumping or flaking with this product, which for me is saying something- I am always combing my eyelashes to separate them before the mascara dries, and I think this makes them shorter than they would be without the combing.  I will definitely throw this mascara into my rotation and keep using it, and hope that the raccoon eyes are just a one off problem.

GRADE: 3.5/5 (to be changed if the raccoon eyes go away, or don't!)

MicaBeauty Gel Eyeliner in black, no weight indicated on pot, retail value estimated at $6 (available at , coupon code IPSY will get you 30% off your purchase until 2/28/13)  Full size products come with brushes (the one shown above is mine and did not come with this Glam Bag!), and are 5g in size, priced at $30 on sale, regularly $35

The final item in this month's bag is the one I was the most excited to get: MicaBeauty gel eyeliner!  I received the black color, and I'm so happy!  I would have liked a different color, too, but black is a basic eyeliner color, and although electric blue is my go-to color, black is my second favorite.  I have NEVER used gel liner before (I know, right?  how very average of me), and I could not wait to dip by brush into this pot and give it a try!  

Playing with my brush to get different shades of black, and different size lines.

 Although it doesn't look like there is much in this pot, this is one of those products where a tiny little bit goes a LONG way.  I will need to practice with my eyeliner brush (I actually have two, but my youngest lost my super skinny one), and learn how best to apply this.  I really love how this product will not budge at all.  I had to scrub and scrub my hand to get the swatch off!  I love a product that stays where you put it, until you tell it not to!  The full size of this product comes with a brush, and while I admit fully to being a brush whore, and therefore would have loved to get another brush, I am simply thrilled just to have the gel liner here to try out for the first time, with one of my own brushes.  There is no weight on the little glass pot, but judging it against a 2g lip gloss I have, it looks to be about half the size of that, or less, so I'm calling this at about 1g in size.  I have emailed MicaBeauty's customer service to see if I can get a full weight, and if I do, I will update this with the accurate weight and retail values. 
GRADE: 4.5 (still learning how to use it!)

My February Ipsy look :) (See?  Still lots of pores!)

Awkward posing

close up of the eyes...fitting for this month's bag!  nice and golden and sparkly!

a bit easier to see my eye makeup here, darn you, hooded eyes!

Overall, I really loved this bag.  I was more excited to get my December bag than any since, but that COULD be that was my very first one, and before I found out where to look for spoilers!  This bag is a solid bag, and if you are waiting to get yours, you will not be disappointed when it gets here.  For all of you who were complaining that last month's bag was all about the skin with no makeup, this bag is the exact opposite.  I LOVED getting the bag early this month, and everything in the bag is abosulutely of high quality, and exactly what I have learned to expect from Ipsy.  Now, if we could just get Ipsy to send out false lashes again...I can't believe I missed them!  Oh, right, I AM only average.  Figures :)

Money spent: $10, including shipping
Retail value: $38.94, not including the bag, and assuming the gel eyeliner is 1/5 size 

Definitely Above Average!

So tell me, have you gotten your Glam Bag yet?  Love it?  Hate it?  Agree with me? Disagree?  Leave me a comment and let me know!  Know a product you think I would love?  Leave a comment and I'll do my best to review it!

Disclaimer:  The products listed above were purchased by me, with my own money.  I was not asked nor required to write this review, and the thoughts above are my own.  The links are NOT affiliate links, and go directly to the company's websites.  I was not compensated in any way for writing this review.