While browsing around sephora.com, I found a great deal. The Primping With The Stars box. It's full of sample-size Benefit products for $32. Benefit sells some of their sample sizes on their website, but they are usually about $8 a piece. So, the 6 products in this box equal about $48. I love their sets and this one had the most stuff I wanted to try. Benefit also seems to have really good sample sizes (except Fakeup, which I got in a Birchbox and it had barely a fourth of an inch of product to use. Yes, a little went a long way, but it was awkward trying to put it on. I always felt like I was going to scratch my eye with the plastic holding the product at the bottom.)
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| The box includes a mirror and tips for using each product. |
Products include:
Stay Don't Stray Eye Primer
I got this in my special Benefit Birchbox and I really like it. I've never used an eye primer before, and I like that this has a tint. As far as keeping my concealer and/or eyeshadow in place... I think it works. It hasn't been helping with the creasing under my eyes though, which is what I was really hoping.
Some Kind-A-Gorgeous Foundation in Medium
I tried this quickly to cover up a couple spots that had uncovered during the day and I really like the cream to powder formula. The color it came with was Medium, which scared me because I am definitely not a medium. But according to Benefit, I guess I am. It actually matched almost perfectly. It will be great after all the tanning I'm planning on doing this summer!
Benetint Rose-Tinted Lip and Cheek Stain
Scary product, amazing results! What? A liquid blush? I was excited and curious to try this product. It's one of the reasons I chose this kit over others. Benetint is one of Benefit's most popular items. I used it for the first time a couple days ago. I was planning on using it that day but forgot and put my powder on. I figured I'd try it and it really isn't for on top of powders :p Of course, it just took away all the powder in that area, but it left a great, natural looking tint. So I did it the right way the next day and it looks great. I'm definitely using this when I was just a little color (at the beach or something.) Warning: it does stain the finger you use to blend it. I tried blending with a brush and the brush soaked up some of the color... which could be a good thing. I also tried it on my lips, but very quickly and not using a lot of product and it just stained the inside of my lip to look like I'd been drinking cherry Kool-aid. Not the look I was going for. I will try again when I exfoliate and actually want to use the product fully.
The Porefessional Pro Balm
Also very excited to try this product since I've been seeing it everywhere. It has a nice soft feel and you don't need much product to spread around your face. It seemed to work really well with my Hello Flawless powder foundation. I was still shiny halfway through the day, but I've pretty much come to accept that. My powder didn't seem cakey or that it melted away though.
Girl Meets Pearl Liquid Pearl for Face
I haven't used this yet, because I don't need much help in the 'shine' department. But I'll figure out a time to try it. I love how these tubes have foil covers to prevent leaking.
They're Real! Beyond Mascara in Black
I got this as a sample for my birthday last year from Sephora (see below). While I did think it gave my lashes amazing length (though, for the record, my lashes are already really long), the formula almost felt clumpy after only a couple days of using it. We'll see if that happens with this sample.
I also found a sample size of Dr. Feelgood Velvety Complexion Balm. It was $9, but I figured that was ok seeing as how the full size is $31 and most reviews (the good ones anyway) have said that you don't need to use a lot.
"Mattify shine with our invisible, weightless balm that leaves skin feeling silky-soft. Fabulous for mid-day touch-ups... this makeup artist fave can be worn alone, under or on top of makeup. Contains Vitamins A, C & E to help smooth away the appearance of fine lines."
Wait. A balm to eliminate shine? That sounds a bit contradictory... but I'll try it. The people who like it LOVE it, and the people who hate it seem to either not have very oily skin, or don't understand how to use it. Smells lemony but kind of medicinal. The sponge is nice. I've read to PAT ON the product, don't rub if you're putting it on top of your makeup to soak up oil.
This stuff is magic! I have no idea how it works but it really does eliminate shine! I also put it on under my makeup as a primer one day so I swiped it a little bit. It doesn't seem to erase pores but it does make your skin smooth and it really does seem to help with the shine. I used my Hello Flawless on top (using only the brush that day) and my face really does seem less oily than usual. I really do like it as a primer. My face felt a little greasy, but it didn't LOOK too shiny, which is mostly the point. And if I want, I can just use the sponge and pat on my oily spots and bam! no more shine. For me, the sponge is essential for patting on top of makeup and soaking up the oil. The sponge it comes with can be cleaned easily, but I've also cut up some cheap sponges I bought at Target as replacements. I carry this with me everywhere.
Seriously, if you have super oily skin, give this a try. A lot of people complained that it was drying, but that's kind of the point. They must not have had as much oil as I do because it's perfect. If you're not sure, do like I did and buy the 'travel-size' from sephora.com. It's still $9 but it comes with a lot of product, and much cheaper than the full-size for $31.
I also got my free birthday present from Sephora for being a "Beauty Insider". It's free to sign up on the website and every year during your birthday month you can stop in and get whatever sample they are giving out that year, or add it to your online order. Last year I got Benefit's "They're Real" mascara and "Watt's Up" highlighter. I still use the highlighter. This year it was Make Up For Ever's Rouge Artist Natural Lipstick in N9 and Smokey Extravagant Mascara.
The lipstick is a very natural MLBB (my lips but better) color. For me, it's a little darker than my normal lip color but that's what I love about it. It's not very shiny, which is different for me. I feel like it stains a little bit too - a plus for me. It's very smooth and pretty moisturizing overall.
The mascara is ok. Nothing magical. The formula is smooth and didn't seem to flake or anything. The brush scares me a little bit. Personally, I think the fat end of the brush is too fat. It's uncomfortable. It's not particularly volumizing or anything, but it's a great travel size.
You ALSO get 3 free samples every time you order from sephora.com. They have about 9 or 12 samples to choose from, usually a lot of fragrances, to add to your order. I chose:
NARS Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer Broad Spectrum SPF 30
BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector SPF 25+
Sephora Collection Super Supreme Body Butter
I have not used any of the samples yet but I will add reviews once I do.
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