Popsugar Must Have February 2014

Popsugar Must Have February 2014

First Look

This month's Popsugar Must Have box had a "pamper yourself oh and also it's Valentine's Day" theme.  This was the month that people could get for $20 using the awesome 50% off code released a few weeks ago.  That made this box an excellent deal for some people, and it caused some of those who paid full price to have a few issues with the box.

PSMH February 2014

Me? I'm indifferent.  This just confirms to me that not renewing my subscription after it expires in March is the way to go.  I already signed up for FabFitFun which is $50 quarterly.  (Get $5 off the Spring box using code ZOE or EARLY5.)

Dial Vitamin Boox Lotion Infused Body Wash

I'm just going to get this one out of the way.  This body wash polarized the internets.  It is listed as a "Special Extra" in the booklet, and is not supposed to count toward the total value of the box.  Fine.  Birchbox does this all the time- they feature drugstore items in addition to the normal content for the month.  I don't have a problem with BB or PSMH doing this.  As long as it is a bonus, great.

Some people found the inclusion of this body was to be insulting.  They felt it devalued the box as a whole, and would have been better to just omit it all together.  It inflated the box weight significantly without contributing to the value.  That's their opinion, and they are entitled to it.

I am just happy to stockpile more bodywash!  This one smells like kiwis and isn't too girly.  

$3?  Price may vary depending on stores and current sales.

Whew!  Onto the "real" stuff...

Nourish Organic Argan Face Serum

Last month Ipsy included a sample of face lotion from this brand in my bag.  It was just ok.  This is better.  Normally when I read "face serum," I think of a thinner, gel-like product.  Serum?  Right?  Something with some viscosity to it? 

No.  This is a mixture of oils and oils alone.  I wouldn't call that a "serum," and it totally squirted all over the place because I was expecting something with a little more heft to it when I pushed on the pump.  Oh well.  Nomenclature notwithstanding, this is a decent mix of oils.  It is mostly safflower, with argan, sweet orange (which contributes the most to the scent), apricot and rosehip seed oils.  It also has vitamin E.  That's it.  No additives or silicones or anything.  It was a little on the heavy side on my skin, and took a little longer than I'd like to absorb, so I won't wear it in the morning.  At night,  this is great.

20 mL is $23.99 on Nourish Organic's site.

Sugarwish Mini Red Cinnamon Hearts

Cinnamon hearts always remind me of my mom.  There were very few candies in the world that our family did not enjoy, but as far as I remember, she was the only one that liked these.  I thought they were too spicy for my delicate baby mouth.  I've since aged a couple decades, and discovered that these are indeed delicious.  They are also small, which is good.  And not chocolate, which is better. 

I don't like chocolate.  It's ok if that makes you not read my blog anymore.  

Sugarwish is a mail-order candygram company.  You send a gift card to someone and they pick out the candy they want, and Sugarwish sends it to them.  The smallest size you can gift is 4 1/4lb bags for $25 including shipping.  They have the kinds of candy you normally see in the bulk-candy mall stores.

The candy hearts we were sent are 1/4lb, giving them a value of $6.25.  I definitely wouldn't pay that much for cinnamon hearts, but they did come in a cute box with a bow.  Packaging is everything!  There was also a 20% coupon. (I also think it's kinda cute that Popsugar included another company with sugar in the name!)

k. hall designs Peony Travel Candle

This is such a cute candle!  I love the tin, I love the scent (I wouldn't normally like a floral), and I will definitely burn this.  Very appropriate for a pampering/Valentine's themed box.  Would a jar candle have been better?  Yes.  But I'll make do.

$11 on k hall designs' site.

ModelCo Lip Pops Duo Lip Gloss and Lipstick

This is a dual-ended lipgloss and lipstick combination product.  Both ends smell like strawberry to me.  The gloss is clear with a little shimmer, even though it is tinted pink in the bottle.  The lipstick is a brown-leaning medium mauve color which will be flattering on most people.  I managed to leave the lipstick twisted-up after this picture and smushed it into the cap.  That is what I get for taking pictures of my stuff while on too much cold medicine.

I could not find this product individually on ModelCo's website.  It looks like this is the nude lipstick/ striptease gloss combination included in this set.  The set is $49 and includes three of these combos and a mascara.  

I'll estimate $12.25 for this by itself.

ncLA Polish in Rodeo Drive Royalty

What could be more massacre-themed than blood-red nail polish?  Not much, and I'm happy to have another ncLA polish to try out.  We got one over the summer in another PSMH box, and I really liked it.  However, that one was a creme formula, and this one is more of a jelly.  I prefer the creme!  This went on unevenly and was tricky for even me to apply.  My bottle does have a wonky brush, though.

Rodeo Drive Royalty in bright light, 2 coats

This picture is a little lighter than the polish looks in real life.  It is closer to the bottle color.  I'd say it is the color of blood before it has a chance to oxidize- like when you are getting blood drawn into a small tube.  That color.

This is $16 on the ncLA site.  They also call it a creme and that it is cran-apple colored.  They may be less-morbid people than me.

Gorjana Brooks Jewelry Roll

This is this month's "big ticket" item: a faux leather jewelry roll from Gorjana + Griffin.  It is a poppy-red color, close to the zipper pulls in the next picture.  There are three zippered compartments inside and it is held together by wrapping some ties around the thing and kinda tying it the best you can.  The edges of that tie are not stitched onto the back of the pouch well, at all.  I also have random glue splotches around the zippers on the inside.  

Gorjana Brooks Jewelry Roll, inside

I don't feel like this would make traveling with jewelry any easier for me.  I don't often bring much with me, and what I do bring, I wear.  I have a small container I put it in while I go through security, and then it goes back on.  I will probably use this as a clutch, instead.  My iPhone fits in a pocket, and I can put my cards and cash in the others.  Voila.

This is $45 on the Gorjana website and this exact color doesn't seem to be listed.  PSMH also included a $25 off-your-next-full-priced-order coupon code.  I have two of these now, and will never use them because shipping is too expensive and I can't combine the codes with each other or with sale items.  If you think this is something you would be interested in, please let me know in the comments! I will email you one of my codes! I have two! Two people can get $25 off codes!  Yay!

PSMH February 2014

All together, this box had a total (approximated) value of $117.49.  More importantly, I'll actually use and enjoy everything included.  I still probably won't renew my subscription.  I'd rather try out other boxes!

Popsugar Must Have is $40 per month, with slight discounts if you prepay for a certain number of months ahead of time.  You get 6 (sometimes with +1 bonus) full-sized items from various categories.  It is a very diverse subscription and you never know what will be included.  It consistently has a value of over $100.

If you want to try PSMH for yourself, please use my referral link here.  I'll get a free month for every so many people who join using that link.

This post contains items purchased by me.  No special consideration or compensation was received and all thoughts and opinions are my own.  This post contains referral links to PSMH and FFF. 

PopSugar Must Have Review October 2013

I can never seem to avoid spoilers for my boxes!  Try as I might, I always cave and click those spoiler links...

However, having the actual box in my hands is very different from seeing pictures online.

October 2013 Popsugar Must Have

This month, PopSugar did a Halloween/Breast Cancer Awareness theme.

First item is The Can't Cook Book: Recipes for the Aboslutely Terrified! by Jessica Seinfeld.  This is because, "the holidays are coming and you should cook for people,"... according to PS.

The Can't Cook Book

I love to cook.  I usually just wing it, but some of the things in this book look tasty.  I'm not sure if I'll keep this or not.  Nothing really compares to my kitchen bible: The New Best Recipe from America's Test Kitchen.  Now that is a cookbook.

This is my cookbook metric.
Photo from Amazon

The Can't Cook Book sells for about $17 on Amazon, but has a cover price of $27.99.


Next up, NYX Cosmetics Liquid Liner and Shadow Palette.. to look sexy this season.  Damn it, I try to look sexy every season.  Thanks, PS.

NYX Liquid Brown Eyeliner

The liner is from their "Collection Chocolaté" and is a non-sparkly medium brown liner.  The included brush isn't bad; if you are careful you can get a very, very thin line.  Liquid liners aren't my thing, though.  I'll see if I know anyone who wants this.

NYX Smokey Palette

Also from NYX is their Smokey Shadow Palette, with 6 eyeshadows and a useless sponge applicator.

NYX Swatches, 1

I was impressed by these shadows, they have decent pigmentation even without a primer (for the most part).  I did a quick eye look with my crappy brushes (my good ones are in the car so I can do my makeup in the parking lot at work...) and it didn't turn out that bad.  I think I will definitely need to use a primer if I want it to look good and stay longer than 2 minutes.

NYX Swatches 2: Note the very sparkly shadow on the extreme left

2 minute smokey eye on my face

Liner, $6.
Palette, $7.

NYX seems to be all over my subscription boxes lately!


Gorjana Charity Bali Bead Bracelet.

TIny Gorjana Bali Bracelet

The little insert PS sends says that this color is special, for PopSugar's signature pink color, and that all proceeds from their retail site will go to a charity called Breast Cancer Connections.

Bali Bracelet next to my Alex & Ani

This is cute and dainty.  I like it, but not enough to want to pay $45 for it... even IF all of that cost will go to charity.

Bracelet, $45.


Next up is a familiar item, that was to give you a festive season-appropriate mani:
Julep 4-Free Nail Color in Coco and Freedom Polymer Top Coat.

Julep Freedom Polymer Top Coat and Julep Coco

I lucked out because I do not have this color, I like the color they sent, and I wanted to try the polymer top coat but did not want to pay what Julep charges.

Coco is an oxblood creme and goes on very smoothly in two coats.  This is an amazing fall color.  It's vampy, yet wearable, and doesn't wash me out like dark colors sometimes do.  The deep red does a great job of warming up my dead-looking hands.

Julep Coco with Freedom Polymer Top Coat over it.
I'm too lazy to clean up my nails right now.  Sorry not sorry, my couch is comfy.

The Freedom Polymer Top Coat is supposed to give a gel-like finish in 5 minutes without a UV lamp.

Coco, $14
Freedom Top Coat, $18.

If you want to sign up to be a Julep Maven ($19.99 per month, first box for free using code FREEBOX), you can do so by using my link here.  I'll get some points for referring you, and you will get Maven pricing (20% off site-wide), access to mystery boxes, and some quality polish.  You can skip a box or cancel at any time, as well as change style profiles to get whatever box you want that month.


Continuing the beauty trend (Halloween updos?), and the trend of sub boxes sending me bobby pins:

Jane Tran Thin Metallic Bobby Pins

Jane Tran Thin Metallic Bobby Pin Set.  2 sparkly green, 2 sparkly blue, and 2 sparkly gray pins (set D on their website).  These are cute, but I'm afraid they would be like all the other novelty bobby pins I've gotten recently and just rip out my hair.  These are going in the giveaway pile so one of my fine-haired friends can enjoy them.


Bobby Pins, $12.



To tie into the breast cancer awareness theme, PS sent "The Wet Brush" in a hot pink color. The company will donate 25% of its sales to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.  This brush is supposed to allow you to break the cardinal rule of hair and brush it while it is wet.  The bristles do feel very thin and flexible to me.  I'll test it out after I shower tonight.

The Wet Brush

The Wet Brush, $14.  Also: Not only does this company make "the wet brush", they also sell little brushes they have deemed, "the squirts".  Yeah....

The Halloween theme continues with a more obvious item:

The Crispery Halloween Crispycake.

Giant hunk of marshmallow and crispy rice cereal.
SO GOOD.

This is a HUGE rice krispy treat with orange and black sprinkles on top. YUM.  Thanks!  I'll devour this once my nails dry.  I will share it though, because that much marshmallow would make me sick.  Also, their website tells you to share it because these things are big.  Seriously.  Diabetic comas await those who attempt to eat an entire crispycake in one sitting.

Crispycake, $3.95


Finally, PS included a $20 gift card (essentially, a waived styling fee) to Stitch Fix.

Blurry Stitch Fix Gift Card

Stitch Fix is a styling service that has you fill out a very detailed profile and sends you "fixes" of clothing and accessories that they think will fit you and that you will love.  You can let your stylist know what you liked and didn't, and what you would like to see more of.  There is a $20 styling fee per fix, that will get deducted from the price of an item if you buy something from them.  You get three days to evaluate everything before sending it back in a pre-paid bag.  If you buy everything they sent in that fix, you get 20% off of everything.

I think this is a great concept.  It's like Golden Tote, except you don't have to buy things before deciding if you like them or not!  I asked them to keep my prices low, and to send preppy casual items.  I'll be sure to put a review up when I get my items!


You can sign up using my link here, and I will get some credit to spend on their fixes.


Total Value (not counting stitch fix, and with a low book price): $136.95


Not bad.  I'll actually use some of this stuff this month!

PopSugar costs are increasing on the 4th of November to $39.95 per month. If you sign up before then, you can lock in the current pricing for 3,6, or 12 month subscriptions (about $32 per month) here.  If you use my referral link, I will earn free boxes for every so many people who join.

HOWEVER: even though they are increasing their prices, I still think that PS is a great deal.  You get full-sized (or very deluxe-sized) items each month.  The quality is almost always excellent, and the value always exceeds the amount paid for the box.  Even if you don't like something, they make great gifts.

No special consideration or compensation was received for this post and all thoughts and opinions are my own. All items mentioned within were paid for by me. This post contains referral links to Julep, Stitchfix, and Popsugar.  See above for details. 

OotD September 5

Ootd September 5

Scarf: Gorjana, from June Popsugar Must Have

Tee: Black long-sleeved V-neck from Old Navy

Jeans: Lucky Brand Zoe Straight

Bag: BCBGeneration from Little Black Bag

Shoes: 9 West from DSW

I loved my two little pops of neon orange: the soles of my shoes and the edge of my scarf. Nice and comfy for a hectic work day. 

No special consideration or compensation was received for this post and all thoughts and opinions are my own. All items mentioned within were paid for by me.

August 2013 Popsugar Must Have Review

I didn't even get a shipping notice, but my Must Have box showed up today!

Were the spoilers right?

Yes!

Bentgo in Purple
$14.99

I was going to buy one of these not so long ago, and I'm so glad I held off!  Everyone in the my department is already jealous of my lunches and now they will also be jealous of my lunch container ;)

Nature Box Granny Smith Apples
$3.99

There is only one single ingredient in these: apples.  I'm not really crazy about them, but I'm going to bring them to work so I have something healthy to much on when I need a snack (or a break).  Naturebox sends you 5 bags of this size of healthy snacks for $19.95 a month.

Weekly planner, front

Weekly Agenda Notebook by May Designs
$15

This is super cute and very useful.  Maybe I'll use it for longer than one week!  I like that the pages inside aren't dated.  That is handy- I can start using it next Monday. (This coming Monday is actually a holiday in RI but nowhere else.)

Lulah Bodywash in Magnolia Fig
$11.25

I really like that Popsugar sent this in a zip bag!  The bottle was sealed under the cap, but I still appreciate the preparedness!  I don't, however, love the scent, so it will go in my gift pile for an upcoming birthday or holiday or housewarming or something.

Dermalogica Samples of Precleanse and Special Cleansing Gel (30 and 50 mL, respectively).
$7.40 and $7.00 values, respectively

These samples were great sizes! They are both a fifth of the full sized products! I used them as suggested and while the special cleansing gel doesn't stand out to me, the precleanser is a winner! It is an oil that you use on dry skin to help clean out OTHER oils (the bad kinds like sunscreen, makeup, and sebum) before you wash your face.  I love it and I'm glad they sent such a generous sample! A little seems to go a long way and this should last me over a month.

Gorjana Open Circle Necklace
$65

The necklace on a person.  It is small and dainty and so pretty.

Great necklace! I don't usually like to wear gold, but I will certainly make the exception for this.  Just maybe not with the $5 t-shirt shown above!

Lunares Apple Bowl
Part of a 7-piece set ($149), Approximate value $21

This is an adorable bowl! The bottom is silver , which wasn't apparent to me in the online pictures of the spoilers.  I love it, and I'm not sure what to do with it! Should I use it for jewelery? Bring it to work for something? Put it on display somewhere in my house? Give it as a gift and let someone else have this conundrum?  I DON'T KNOW BUT I LIKE IT ANYWAY.

Overall, I love this box! I'm so glad the spoilers were right!  The total (approximate) retail value (at full price) is $145.63.  Popsugar Must Have costs $35 for one month, but if you buy 3, 6, or 12 months at a time the price is discounted.  I bought 3 months for $95.  This one box is worth more than what I paid for three months!  Great job, PSMH.  You've made me a believer.  I'm totally renewing my subscription.

Here is my referral link if you are interested.  If two people sign up with my link, I get a free month.  Use code REFER5 to get $5 off! 

This post contains products I purchased with my own money, and all opinions are my own.

This post also contains a referral link.  Nothing special happens for you if you choose to use it, but I am one person closer to a free month!

Spoilers July Glossybox and August Popsugar

Here are some current spoilers:

August Popsugar Must Have: Gorjana and Griffin Open Circle Necklace

July Glossybox: Brazilian Blowout Acai Deep Conditioning Masque

July Glossybox: Figs and Rouge Lip Balm

Use code BABOR when you sign up for Glossybox through July 19 and you will receive a Babor Eye Liner with your first box!