Unboxing ~ October and November Look Fantastic Beauty Boxes

I didn't receive my October edition of the Look Fantastic beauty box so they sent me a replacement, which just so happened to turn up on the same day as the current November beauty box - so that was obviously a fab post day for me!

 

 

I'm really loving the Look Fantastic Beauty Box. It's just £15.00 per month with free shipping. So far, I don't feel like I've received any 'fillers' and the brands are always good and varied and as yet, there don't seem to be the 'usual suspects' of brands who seem to appear in every single beauty box.

 

 

So, let's take a look at the October box

 

 

A lovely salmon pink box with rose gold edging and lettering. This is the 'Indulge Me' edit. I love these simple box designs - I'm already thinking 'ooh! What can I store in this?' as I open it.

 

 



It also comes with the latest issue of Elle magazine - but to be honest, I don't really think too much of that publication - it's virtually all adverts with very little content, so I'm not too bothered with that.

So what do you do when you see the little booklet that comes in your beauty box? Go for that first or head straight for the goodies?

I head straight for the goodies...

 

 

So is it an 'Ooooh!' of excitement or an 'Ohhh!' of slight disappointment?

Definitely an 'Ooooh!' of excitement!

The box included:
* Bean Body - Coffee Bean & Coconut Body Scrub
* ModelCo - Instant radiance concealer
* Monu Skin - Firming Fiji Facial Oil
* Skimono - Hand Mask
* Lancer - The Method:Polish
* Ciate - Wonderwand Mascara

 

 Oh - so this is a hand mask! I thought it was a sheet mask at first glance, but I've never tried a hand mask before so I will look forward to trying that out. The coffee bean scrub I'm not so excited about. I've had a few of these now in beauty boxes and they're okay - but a real pain in the arse to clean up afterwards!

I tried the ModelCo concealer this morning. It's one of those twist and click type sticks where you twist the end till the product comes through onto the brush. It didn't seem like anything was coming out so I was twisting and clicking quite vigorously until all of a sudden, quite a lot of product appeared. So I put too much onto my eye. It's quite a rich and thick concealer too so I will definitely be aware next time I use it not to overdo it. The colour is great though and it did a pretty good job of concealing - I'll just need to use less next time. This is apparently an exclusive item only found in this box and a full size product.
I tried the Ciate wonderwand mascara briefly - while it's fantastic at lengthening, it doesn't have the same depth and oomph as some of my current mascaras. I'll be using this for a while to see how it goes.

I've heard of Lancer but haven't tried anything from the brand before. This physical exfoliator contains pure minerals, pumpkin and pomegranate enzymes to remove dead skin cells. I used this morning - the smell is absolutely gorgeous but it was a very fine-grainy exfoliator, the type I have been avoiding of late, preferring instead peels and acid exfoliators. I'm not sure I'd reach for this too often as it really was quite an intensive scrub and although it left me feeling very exfoliated, I was quite red and splotchy afterwards and there are more gentle ways to exfoliate in my opinion.
I haven't been too impressed by any Monu Skin products I've used before but I'm a bit more hopeful as this is a facial oil and with Bois de Rose and patchouli it does smell pretty heavenly.

Overall, I'm very happy with this box and usually I would say that I was looking forward to next months - but as I received them both at the same time, I didn't have to wait for my next exciting instalment.

The November Look Fantastic Beauty Box

What a gorgeous box - it looks just like a November sky before the fireworks light it up!

 

This is the Ready Set Glam edit. Again, it also comes with the latest edition of Elle magazine. I had managed to avoid seeing any sneak peaks so the contents are a complete surprise to me.

 

 

First look excitement quota is really high with this edit. I can spot one of my favourite brands Pixi by Petra !

The box included:
* Pixi by Petra - Glow Booster in White Pearl
* Bellapierre - Kiss Proof Lip Crème
* Murad - Essential-C Day Moisturiser SPF30
* Filorga - Time-Filler Eye Cream
* Teeez - Spectrum of Stars eyeshadow
* This Works - Deep Sleep Pillow Spray

I was over the moon to see this Filorga Time-Filler eye cream in the box. It seems like I've been searching forever for a good eye cream that actually works. I've heard a lot about Filorga, and in particular, this eye cream, but with quite a hefty price tag I wanted to sample it before I committed to buy a full size. I've heard some reviewers mention that this can slightly sting when applied, and although I could definitely feel it, it wasn't an uncomfortable sensation. I wasn't aware that this can also be applied to the eye lashes - I've not ever tried that with any of my other eye creams.
I think my first impressions may have been a bit skewed as I applied this and then watched one of the 'Stand up to Cancer' stories, which of course left me in floods of tears. So for the rest of the evening my eyes felt a bit uncomfortable and tight - not sure if that's the product or the fact that I had been crying. Will keep on using this and see how it goes... 

This Pixi by Petra Glow Booster was the real star of the box for me. It was a generous 12ml tube.  I received the shade 'White Pearl' which is a gorgeous pearly white highlighter with a faint pink sheen. Very pretty.

I'd heard of the brand Teeez, but really didn't know too much about the brand so I did a bit of googling. Teeez Cosmetics is an American cruelty free make up brand. One quick look at the products they offer and I can see that they're aiming for a young and funky audience - lots of very bright colours and bold lips. This Spectrum of Stars eyeshadow was a real pain to photograph because of its a spherical reflective gold casing! It's a real show-stopper of a case, but, for me it's slightly impractical as an everyday go-to product due to the size and shape. This is a full size product and retails on the site for USD $23.00 (approx £17.50) so it's not a particularly cheap brand.

I got the shade 'Sepia Shine' which is a shade I would have chosen for myself. It's a really nice duo-chromatic deep brown with green-gold shimmer. Very pigmented with a nice buttery texture so is easy to apply and actually does the job if you only feel like wearing one colour on your lids for ease.

 

I'm a bit of a grump when it comes to the brand This Works - usually muttering under my breath "no, it doesn't!" in a very uncharitable way. I've tried out a few of This Works products before and have veered between downright disappointed to generally 'meh' about their products. I'm also sceptical of the 'clinically proven' claims that this brand bandy about. Clinically proven to increase sleep quality - mmm, what are the variables? Still, it smells nice enough - lavender, camomile and vetivert scented. I will spraying some on our pillows and will promise to keep an open mind about the quality of sleep after using this.

 

 

I was delighted to see the inclusion of a broad spectrum spf product in a winter box as this supports the notion of sunscreen being an all-year-round essential skincare product. This Murad Essential-C Day Moisture SPF30 cream looks like it will be a great winter product. I usually wear 50 spf daily but 30 SPF will suffice in the UK winter. Plus it has the inclusion of Vitamin C which is one of my favourite super-hero ingredients.

 

 

And finally another full-size product. This time Bellapierre Cosmetics Kiss Proof Lip Crème. The claims are that it will not budge through eating, drinking or kissing. I got a lovely rosy nude shade which again, is a colour I would have picked for myself. Unfortunately, this lip crème is horrible! Yes, it certainly does wear for a long time. This doesn't budge after eating or drinking. I didn't try out the kiss proof claim though as this is so horribly sticky on your lips that I wouldn't want to inflict a kiss on my husband wearing this - the skin on our lips would tear off whilst un-coupling! It's so sticky (and remains so) that if you press your lips together for just an instant, you really do feel them peel apart. It's really not a nice sensation. So sadly, despite the lovely colour and it's longevity, I won't be wearing this as the stickiness is just too much to tolerate.

But overall, another brilliant box with the majority of items being ones that I will use (and possibly repurchase).