Archive for the ‘samples’ Category

Review: Starlooks Starbox March

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

I just love Starlooks Starbox and March’s box is no exception! This month we received 3 items (always full sizes) and a sample of soon to be launched product! The “theme” for March is Blue and so we of course received one blue product. But blue is not very specific and could mean a million shades so without further ado, the March edition of Starlooks Starbox.

First item listed on the card is one of their ultra moisturizing lipsticks this time in the shade Flutter which is a reddish-copper shade with golden shimmer. When I first pulled it out and saw the color in the tube I was disappointed because I thought that in the tube it looked a bit like Masquerade that we received in October’s Starbox.

Once I actually swatched it, I completely made a reversal in thinking and now LOVE it. I don’t own any other lipstick that is anything close to this shade and honestly, I wouldn’t have picked it up for myself on my own. I saw other reviews saying that this shade is too similar to other shades we’ve received in the past and so I will be posting a follow up review with swatches of ALL the shades of lipstick and tendergloss lippies very soon. Unlike the other lipsticks I have from Starlooks, Flutter has an almost matte feel to the base with a golden sheen for sparkle on top. But it isn’t shiny per se, if that makes any sense.

The next item is the Blue item, but it is a very dark navy blue eyeshadow called Disarray. The first thing I noticed is the difference in packaging from the single shadows in boxes last summer. On the one hand I liked the older packaging better because of the hidden mini-applicator and mirror for touch ups on the go. BUT the new packaging is most definitely more sleek looking with the entire case being clear (instead of black), but no applicator or mirror of any kind are included. The casing matches the blush case we received in January’s box.

The color of the shadow itself is very pretty. I’ve read several reviews of what people have thought of this box and heard all sorts of descriptions for this shade, but not one that I came across mentioned that there is a purple sheen to this shadow giving it another layer of depth that changes based on the light. I don’t think I’ve ever owned a navy blue eyeshadow before and if I’d had received this a year ago or even last fall I’m pretty sure I would have been more intimidated by it. Below you can see swatches of both the lipstick and eyeshadow. It doesn’t look like the camera picked up the purple sheen that this shadow has, but I did my best to try to capture it.

Now I highly doubt I’d use this as an all over lid color, but I am envisioning a beautiful purple smokey eye with this as the crease color because of the purple notes in it. This shade, like the lipstick has a matte base with sparkle added. At least in my pot, I do not see any larger pieces, but more of a subtle shimmery sheen.

The third item is the long awaited mascara as no cosmetics line can be complete without (at least) one! This jet black legthening mascara comes beautifully packaged in a massive (and heavy) sleek black tube with a huge ‘tree’ like brush at the end. This fantastic formula applies easily without clumps and easily lasts all day without flaking off. It is so smooth and it dries very quickly.

By the time you finish applying to your second eye the first one is dry! And you can just layer coats of it until you get your desired look. I have to say that Starlooks’ very first mascara is definitely a success and I can wait to see what they come out with next!

The last item included is a little sample of their sugar lip scrub. The little container is so cute and I can easily see reusing it (once I use up the scrub) for my travel/purse makeup kit. This scrub smells amazing! Lip scrubs are perfect for exfoilating lips before applying lip product and especially helpful to use before applying a stain which (at least on me) tends to show every dry chapped spot on my lips. I look forward to seeing when this product actually launches! For now you can ONLY try it out with a purchase of the March Starbox which you can find on the Past Starbox page or by clicking (HERE).

As always a little quartz crystal is included in the box. I do like the idea of collecting them in a jar to use for a makeup brush holder, but don’t like just how long that will take with the teeny tiny sized ones I’ve been getting lately. Another idea is to wire wrap them, I’ve played around with wire wrapping a little bit, but may just have to experiment a bit more in the not too distant future.

I gave this Starbox 4.5 out of 5 stars because I’m just not sure how much use the lovely navy blue eyeshadow will get. I’ve already worn the lipstick a bunch of times and wear mascara quite frequently. I wish they would include a look guide in each box, like what was included in February’s special Lauren Clark box.

If you would like to subscribe to Starlooks Starbox you can do so by clicking (HERE). IF you do decide to join PLEASE consider mentioning me, Jaclyn Cotton, or my blog Jaclyn’s Musings as your referral. I would so greatly appreciate it. While it is too late to subscribe for the April box, you CAN subscribe anytime from now until May 1st for the May box. And you can always choose to purcahse a past box for $25 (only $10 more than originally and you’ll know exactly what is in it!).

What do you think of this March’s box?

~Jaclyn~

Review: Starlook’s October Starbox
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Have you heard of Starlooks’ Starbox? If you haven’t and love cosmetics you might want to consider subscribing! This is the ONLY subscription service that contains a min. of 3-4 FULL size cosmetic products for only $15 (+$1.98 shipping)! At the bottom of my review you’ll find sneak peak information about their special December box!

I know I am behind and will have my review of the September box up this week. But I wanted to get this review up as quickly as possible. Since Starlooks is located not too far from where I live, I tend to receive items from them very quickly. I have to say that this is my favorite of any of the services I have seen or have the opportunity to receive. So without further ado, I’ll get started.

With Halloween quickly coming up, Starlooks choose to go with a fun Halloween theme and nicknamed each product with the old adage “Hear No Evil, See No Evil, Speak No Evil”. The first item is the “See No Evil” is is an eyeliner pencil in the shade “Gold Dust”. Previously we’d received one of their Diamondline pencils (Myth) which are all metallic shades and so very smooth and easy to apply. This one while being a gold coloring wasn’t as sharp a metallic shade or as smooth upon application as the Diamondline. Typically I shy away from ‘traditional’ eyeliner pencils as I find that most of them are too dry and tug when trying to line my eyes.

I found that I was quite surprised when I tried the Diamondline that was the creamiest pencil I had ever tried. This one I found didn’t apply as smoothly. It is still better than most pencils, but drier than the Diamondline. The shade itself is very pretty and I look forward to playing around and coming up with looks using this gold liner as I didn’t have anything close in my stash thus far.

The second item while not being something you’d ‘hear’ or wear on your ears is actually another eye product (I love eye makeup) as is the “Hear No Evil” item. This is actually the first product of its kind that I own and is a gorgeous shade of purple eye shadow luster pigment. There were two options for this one, Posh or Peddle, yet both were a shade of purple. I tried looking up both shades and found that the color resolution for the one I did receive wasn’t even close to what it looks like in person.

I ended up receiving the shade Posh and it is an incredibly vibrant and fairly bright purple. While purple is my one of my most favorite colors (with teal/turquoise being the other), I have only begun to try to incorporate it into my (eye) makeup. I actually only one one purple eyeshadow as part of a Wet N Wild trio that I bought last spring in a set with a lip gloss, blush, and quick drying teal nail polish (the reason I bought it as it was the same price as buying the polish by itself, I’ll post a review of this set soon). I can’t wait to play around with this gorgeous shimmery shade.

Next is the “Speak No Evil” item and if you hadn’t guessed, it is for the lips! This is a very bright rich blood red which the card says has a ‘hint of orange shimmer’. The orange shimmer shows itself better in certain light than in others. The formula is very cream, smooth, and unlike other lipsticks, isn’t too drying. I definitely like this shade much better than the more orange-y one sent during the summer. While I tend to gravitate more towards wine, pinkish-red, or pinkish-nude shades this one does look pretty good on. Though I would probably not wear bright eye makeup with such a vibrant lip shade.

And Starlooks more often than not includes extras in addition to the mystic quartz crystal included which each box. This time I received one large and one smaller quartz crystal which was nice since the one last month was teeny tiny.

Last, but not least on the very bottom is a pair of temporary eye tattoos called Eye Rocks. Instead of painting ones eyes with makeup, one can use water to adhere brightly colored stickers. I haven’t tried mine out yet as I am saving them for a fun occasion which may or may not be on Halloween since I’ll probably just be staying at home watching movies and handing candy out to kids.

SPOILER: One last thing included was a card mentioning a sneak peak about the December box which says that, that box will include their new 15 color pro palette which retails for a whopping $99 on their website! They are taking requests for just the December box, but are expecting to sell out quickly.

So if you have a makeup lover in your life you might want to consider signing up for at least the December box which is $15 (+$1.98 shipping) and from my understanding international orders can be accommodated IF you call in. You can Starlooks to reserve your December box at (949) 679-0679. I would be extremely appreciative if you could please mention that you heard about Starbox from Jaclyn at Jaclyn’s Musings.

Earlier this month we were all asked about our skin tone (as it has to do with the November box with my guess being one of the foundations on their site) and what month our birthdays fall into so that they can send a special surprise during that month. I haven’t heard of all other subscription service doing the same. I am so very much hoping that the amazing December box will be customized based on our color preferences. I can definitely think of a couple people who would love to receive their December box for the holidays and love that Starlooks is offering the option to purchase just the December box for just this purpose.

I’d love to hear if you’ve tried Starbox or any of Starlooks’ products? Or if you’ve tried any other subscription service and what you think of them?

~Jaclyn~

Review: June Glossybox

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

While Glossybox isn’t a new monthly subscription service it IS new in the United States. Their first U.S. box was in May so the June box was only their second monthly box. I had been hearing very good things about the service in other countries and so wanted to include them in my series of articles on beauty subscription services.

The June Glossybox contained 7 items including 2 full size products. I was pretty pleased with the selection of items included especially because there was a lot of variety. Glossybox included a makeup item, bath & body item, a body creme, a facial item, a hair item, and a perfume. So without further ado, here is what my box contained.

The presentation of the box is very lovely. The items are all packaged carefully inside a pale pink box with polka dots on the inside. The box is the largest and sturdiest of any of the subscription services and will most definitely be useful for storage of various items later on. Inside there was a postcard with the details of the items on one side and a descriptions of the box along with contact info on the other.

Also included was a mini magazine called Glossy Mag for the month of July. Since their boxes deliberately ship late (compared to other services that ship at the beginning of the month) it was already July by the time I received my June Glossybox. The mini mag is cute and is something different that sets Glossybox apart from the others.

The first item I pulled out was the Perfume Organic in Urban Organic scent. I am very sensitive to perfume and nearly always prefer body mist or spray to actual perfume. My little sister on the other hand loves perfume and wears it quite often. I personally didn’t care for the scent, but I rarely like any actual perfume scents. This was the only item that I couldn’t figure out the sample size price because I couldn’t figure out how many milliliters were in the small vial. The full size bottle contains 0.41 ounces and costs $65.

The next item is the Wella Professionals Enrich Moisturizing Treatment for hair. Since I received this after my surgery I haven’t been able to use it as I can’t get in a regular shower until my leg is healed and strong enough. But I look forward to using it on my much shorter hair since I had it cut substantially before my surgery. The longest part of my hair reached my tushie and now it is just below shoulder length. The full size hair treatment contains 5.07 ounces and costs $12 making the value of this sample equal approximately $2.01.

The first full sized item was the First Aid Beauty Smooth Shave Cream which the description says is a “gentle, non-irritating formula”. I cannot wait until I am allowed to shave the leg I had surgery on and will most definitely be saving this to be able to use then.

The most expensive item included was the Kinerase Restructure Firming Cream. I don’t feel like I really need any sort of anti-aging product just yet. While I did try this, I am not at all sure it did very much for me. And even if it did this is a very cost prohibitive item. The full size one contains just 1.7 ounces for a whopping $98!

Also included was a very cute little jar containing Shea Terra Organics Ultimate Moisturizing Body Creme in Bourbon Vanilla. Oh this body creme smells sooo yummy! I also love the when I took the lid off that there was a seal on it which not only make sure to keep the lotion in the container during shipping, but also said it hadn’t been opened previously. The label on the little jar is very cute and matches the jar and lid perfectly. When I tried this delicious smelling lotion it felt so rich and creamy and not at all greasy. The full size jar is 9 ounces for $18 which makes this sample have a value of $2.

And last but not least is my favorite item in this box, BeautyAddicts Show Off Mascara. I am always on the look out for mascaras that build up ones lashes either by itself or layered over my mascara base. I have very short and sparse lashes on the top and literally a dozen on each of my bottom lashes. And the lashes on my right eye are longer than on the left which really bothers me. i don’t think anyone else would notice that, but it is very obvious to me especially when I am putting on mascara. This Show Off Mascara does a pretty good job at being build-able and doesn’t seem to clump much. This is the second full size item and it retails for $20.

If you’d like to try Glossybox for yourself you can by clicking on the link below. Glossybox costs $21 a month unless you live in CA, then you are also charged tax which makes the total approximately $23. If you purchase a multi-month package you’ll end up getting each month for a bit less. If you do sign up I’d love to hear what you think!

Also I just posted a new following widget on my sidebar for Linky followers. i would very much appreciate it if you could PLEASE follow me via Linky followers. I’ve been trying to find another following widget ever since GFC (google friend connect) was discontinued from ALL non blogger blogs.

Thanks!
~Jaclyn~

*Disclaimer The link to Glossybox is an affiliate link. Please see my disclaimer policy for more information.

Review: Itamar Makes Friends by Josh Hasten and Illustrated by S. Kim Glassman

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Itamar Makes Friends by Josh Hasten is about an 8 year old Israeli boy named Itamar. Itamar lives in a yishuv (a small village) in the mountains about an hour bus ride away from the nearest city. One day when Itamar and his older sister are about to return home from a day in the city, Itamar realizes that he’s left his soccer ball in the park. After promising his sister that he’d be back before the bus, he runs off to where he and his cousins had been playing just a little while earlier. But when he reaches that part of the park he finds that several boys are playing with his soccer ball!
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