For October, Bellabox officially turned 4 years old. In celebration of this, they're giving away a pamper pack worth over $1000. If you're interested in entering, all you do is upload a photo of you celebrating on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter, tag 4 of your friends that you'd share the pamper pack with, and hashtag #bbcelebrates. Good luck if you decide to enter!
Anyways, onto the October box...
Coastal Scents Eyeshadow Quad
This cute little eyeshadow quad was a nice surprise, as I've always heard about Coastal Scents shadows, so it was cool to see such a reputable brand. The eyeshadows are roughly the size of a 5c coin, and are all matte. The texture is very smooth, and the colours are very pigmented - there is a fair amount of fall out though. Hopefully we'll see more from this brand in the future, because I really liked these shadows.
Baimeni Hydrating Eye & Face Serum
3ml
Full size: $23.50 for 30ml
I honestly thought this was eye drops at first - lol! It's actually a eye and face serum in a cute little bottle. It's designed to hydrate your skin and help control excess oil for all skin types. The formulation is a very thick serum, which has very little scent to it. It smoothed into my skin very quickly, and left it incredibly soft. Being that I've never really found a serum that wasn't too heavy on my skin, this was a very nice surprise!
Aspar Hand Cream
10ml
Full size: $28.00 for 100ml
I'm not the biggest fan of hand creams, so I'm a little biased in my review of this, I must admit. The Aspar Sweet Orange and Shea hand cream has a really nice, fresh orange scent to it, which I really enjoyed. The consistency was pretty typical of a hand cream - not too thick, not too thin. It wasn't greasy either, but you could definitely feel it on your skin, which is why I personally don't like hand creams in general. Overall, this was lovely, but it's just not my cup of tea.
Sleek Makeup Dip It Duo
$10.00
I was so excited when I saw a Sleek product in this month's box! I love Sleek, and I'm sure most of you know that. It's super affordable, but amazing quality at the same time. This duo product is a black mascara on one end, and a gold liquid eye liner on the other. While the colour combo seemed a little unusual, I really like the idea of this product. The masacara was pretty average, and the brush was quite small, so it could be the perfect mascara for bottom lashes only. The eyeliner on the other hand really surprised me. Every other gold liner that I have tried has been watery and patchy in it's application. This one, however, is super opaque and easy to use. The applicator is a little foam tip, that's stiff enough to have control, but flimsy enough to still be comfortable and allow the liner to flow... does that even make sense? Lol. Anyways, it's a cool little product. I really enjoyed it!
Burt's Bees Intense Hydration Nourishing Facial Water
29.5ml
Full size: $24.95 for 118ml
It was almost as if Bellabox heard how much I loved the Garnier Cleansing Water in my previous box, and brought me this one to try, haha! Comparatively speaking, the Burt's Bees cleansing water definitely meets the mark that the Garnier one set for me. Side by side, the product in the bottles look the exact same, but they do have a slight variance in scent - this one is a little more 'natural' smelling. It took my makeup without any tugging or struggling at all, and I didn't feel any irritation at all. The only notable difference, however, is that this didn't leave my skin feeling as clean as the Garnier one - and that's just me being picky! If I had to choose between the two, I'd definitely buy the Garnier, but that's not to say that I won't finish this entire bottle. It's a thumbs up from me.
Macadamia Natural Oil Luxurious Oil Treatment
3ml
Full size: $43.95 for 125ml
This product was the bonus product of the month - and again, this was another brand that I was excited to see! I have tried a few of Macadamia's products in the past, so I kind of knew what to expect in terms of quality, scent, etc. This oil is super thin, so it's easy to spread throughout your hair, rather than having it clump in places (which have been my past issues with other oils). It does give my hair a really nice shine too, especially when I blow dry it directly after application. I've noticed these products popping up in Coles too, so I may just give this a try as a full size one day.
That was everything in my October box! I don't plan on filming a video for this, as my past two videos have been Bellabox related, so I don't want to bombard you guys with just one brand. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed seeing what I got in my box - what did you get in yours?
xx
Have you seen Bellabox being raved about on Facebook and YouTube, and are interested in trying it? Well now is the perfect time!
Bellabox is offering $5 off your first box until the 26th of October. Normally, it is $15 + $2.95 shipping. This is a great offer for those of you who have wanted to try it, or are looking to purchase a subscription as a gift for someone.
You can check out my YouTube channel to see the Bellabox unboxing videos that I have done in the past. I've been subscribed to Bellabox for over a year now, and I love the surprise each month. It's seriously like opening a birthday present every month! Anyways, you can check out my Bellabox playlist here:
This offer runs out in just a week, so make sure you grab this deal if you're interested! You can either click this link here: http://bit.ly/1PBnJAX , or click on the picture at the start of this post to access it. These are special links, so make sure you use these to save the $5 - their normal link will go to their normal price.
Bellabox is offering $5 off your first box until the 26th of October. Normally, it is $15 + $2.95 shipping. This is a great offer for those of you who have wanted to try it, or are looking to purchase a subscription as a gift for someone.
You can check out my YouTube channel to see the Bellabox unboxing videos that I have done in the past. I've been subscribed to Bellabox for over a year now, and I love the surprise each month. It's seriously like opening a birthday present every month! Anyways, you can check out my Bellabox playlist here:
This offer runs out in just a week, so make sure you grab this deal if you're interested! You can either click this link here: http://bit.ly/1PBnJAX , or click on the picture at the start of this post to access it. These are special links, so make sure you use these to save the $5 - their normal link will go to their normal price.
xx
Quay Australia (pronounced "key") sunglasses have certainly kicked off this year - especially due to their famed 'My Girl' style (see above). But are they really worth the hype?
The clincher: no refunds. Quay Australia offer no refunds when you directly purchase them from their website, based on change of mind. This proved to be a real pain-in-the-butt for me when I bought a pair of the 'Asha' sunglasses in gold (see below). These looked amazing on pretty much every person I saw with the #QuayAsha tag on Instagram, so I decided to buy them while they were in stock (this colour is popular). Upon opening them once they arrived, everything looked great - except for the sunglasses... on me. The round shape didn't suit my face at all, and I looked like a funky version of Willy Wonka. I digress, but the point of this is that I couldn't return them for my money. Instead, I sold them on eBay, and made all of my money back. I suppose this is a good experience to reflect on, but it could be a real problem for others.
Aside from this, I genuinely do love my Quay sunglasses, and I do think they are worth the hype and the $$$. I currently own a pair of My Girl, and Kosha (see below). Both pairs have been my favourites for the past few weeks, and I've had no issues with them at all. They're comfy, stylish and yet functional in this warmer season. They even came in their own little soft case, so that they can be stored properly.
If you want to see the current range of Quay sunglasses, you can see them in my shop. Click here: www.parsel.me/katrinamaree
xx
If you're wondering why you haven't seen a Bellabox unboxing on my YouTube channel for a while, it's because I made a little whoopsy. For the month of September, I waited anxiously for my box in the mail. I kept checking the Bellabox Instagram to check if they had started sending out the September boxes - they had. For a few weeks after that, I'd see people posting pictures of their boxes, so I religiously checked my letterbox. Nope. No box. Once October rolled around, I wondered if there was something wrong, and so I contacted Bellabox. It turns out my subscription had ended, and I needed to renew it. Ha! #embarassing. Bellabox were lovely enough to laugh with me at my mistake, and sent through a September box for me to share with you guys.
The September Bellabox was themed 'Beauty Reboot'. Being the first month of Spring, Bellabox celebrated the ideas of Spring goals - along with trying new beauty products! So, I'll get right into what was in this box...
125ml
Full size: 400ml for $8.99
I've actually been eyeing this product to buy, so it was divine intervention that this popped up in my box! The Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water is an all-in-one cleanser, which removes all of your makeup AND cleanses in one step. For me, I get super lazy at night when it's time to remove my makeup. My normal routine consists of a makeup wipe, and that's about it, so I think that this product is great for those of you who are lazy-bones like me. Best part is that it says you don't need to rinse - which is true! I was worried that I would be left with some sort of residue, but in using this, my skin feels fresh and clean. It has the slightest fruity scent, which I quite like, even though it says 'no perfume' on the bottle - wonder what it is? As for removing makeup, I'm astonished by this product. Normally, my makeup wipes require me to pull, tug and scrub at my eyes to remove all of my eyeliner and mascara (I wear quite a lot on a daily basis). This normally leaves me with red/irritated eyes. But this product, nope! I used a soaked cotton pad, sat it on my eye for three seconds, and then swiped. EVERYTHING WAS GONE! Everything! Not even a shred of mascara left. I am so, so shocked by this product. I love it, I love it, I love it! Definitely purchasing the full size - I have a feeling this could be a new favourite.
5g
Full size: 50g for $24.99
I wasn't too sure what this was at first, I'll be honest! The Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel is a super light-weight moisturiser, which apparently hydrates the skin for 24 hours. Being that I have only used it once, I can't fully support the claim of '24 hours', but it definitely rehydrated my skin at the end of the day. I applied this directly after the Micellar Water that was also in this month's box, and my skin was so smooth - I was honestly shocked. I really loved the gel formula, because it smoothed into my skin so quickly, and I wasn't left with that horrible greasy feeling that you get with other moisturisers. The scent was really fresh - it reminded me of those 'ocean scented' candles actually! Definitely enjoyed my first use of this, so I'll keep using it in my new night routine. Would I pay the $24.99? Probably not, to be honest - but I can just wait for Priceline to have an awesome sale, of course! (I'm a tight-ass)
10g
Full size: 10g for $22.
Again, I wasn't too sure what this product was! The Red Earth Lip Nectar is a lip treatment in a tube, which has a tint of colour. Mine is in the shade 'pomegranate' which is a sheer pink. When I first put this on, I honestly thought it was a lip gloss. It has the same thick, goopy, sticky texture of a lipgloss, and I found it quite hard to spread over the lips. The colour looked really nice, and there appeared to be a gloss for a little while, but it absorbs into the lips after about 5 minutes. While it's awesome that this is a full size product, I honestly don't like it that much. The application was just too sticky, and I don't think it did anything extraordinary to my lips. At $22 a tube, I definitely expected more.
Paula's Choice Clinical KP Treatment Cloths
10 Cloths
Full size: Pk of 60 for $45.
I'm going to up-front with this product right away - I hated this. These are treatment cloths to improve the appearance of keratosis pilaris. Keratosis pilaris are those little bumps that you may feel on the back of your thighs. The packaging says that this is safe for body and face, but I absolutely hated this on my face. I have minor bumps on my forehead, so I used the cloths there, and on the backs of my thighs, where the bumps are more severe. As soon as the wipe went on my face, I noticed the horrible smell. It has a very acidy, vomit-like scent, so it's really unpleasant in that sense. It also really irritated my eyes, and left a film-feeling on the skin. I haven't noticed too much of a change in my little bumps, but I don't even want to keep trying these - on my face at least. The smell is enough to put me off, and I definitely won't be purchasing the full size of these.
Jurlique Purely Age-Defying Firming Treatment Mask
1 mask
Full size: 5 masks for $69.
I haven't used this yet, as you can tell, but I love trying new masks. This mask from Jurlique is geared towards anti-ageing, and it's a little different to the other ones that I have tried. The actual size of this mask is huge, as it has the typical face mask, along with a part for your neck as well. I think this is an awesome idea, as a lot of the time people forget about their necks - and this definitely a spot that ageing affects. Given that I haven't tried it yet, I can't say too much, but it's definitely a luxury item for this month's box, being that the price is $69 for the full size product! Whoa!
5ml
Full size: 250ml for $7.39.
Again, this product hasn't been opened - but that's because I already own it! The Palmer's Cocoa Butter was my bonus product this month, and I think the majority of you would have tried it, so I doubt I need to explain it too much. Essentially, it's a skin butter, which is great for moisturising your skin. It has a distinct cocoa scent (hence the name) and is great during the summer when our skin gets dry in the sun. Like I said, this is pretty much a staple for every house hold - it's definitely worth a try if you haven't ever tried it.
So that was everything in the September Bellabox. I plan on having a proper unboxing uploaded soon, so keep your eyes open!
xx
Despite the fact that I am on Easter holidays from University, I am super busy and haven't had time to do any filming or editing. I received my Bellabox towards the end of March, and haven't had a chance to share it with you yet, so I decided a blog post was better than nothing.
If you'd like to join Bellabox, which is $15 a month + $2.95 shipping, then click here!
This month's Bellabox was surrounded by the concept of highlighters, and featured a Stabilo highlighter. There was a competition for subscribers to enter, by saying what the 'highlight' and why. (i.e. I highlight my smile because it makes me happy".
Personally I wasn't too phased by this collaboration - I'd rather it be a beauty product though.
Inside the box was the a range of mostly sample size products - and also mainly skincare. Again, I would've preferred more beauty products, but cest la vie.
Now I'll focus on the individual products... (sorry the above picture is tiny - click on it for larger text).
>> Colour Theory Eye Pencil in Slate
I've seen this brand at chemists, but I'd never tried it before. The formulation is quite hard and dry, so it isn't very pleasant to use. The colour is nice though.
>> Nivea Daily Face Veil
This interests me, and it's a full size product! I'm yet to try it, as I've been working a lot so I haven't had much time outside. This alone is $10 though, so this is awesome value.
>> Stabilo Highlighter
Eh. It's a highlighter. I guess it's a plus that it's a good brand, but it's nothing special. You also cannot purchase these individually, or in Australia, so it was hard to find a value for it.
>> Bioderma Sebuium Pore Refiner
This actually came at a good time, because the pores around my nose are looking a little crater-ish. This brand is expensive too, in my opinion, so I was happy to see a decent sized sample. The formulation is quite light and gel-ish, and smells lovely. I think this will be a winner!
>> Palmers Skin Perfecting Cream
In contrast to the Bioderma product, this cream is quite thick. I'm not a big fan of thick moisturisers, so I'm a little adamant to try this. It has the typical Palmers smell to it, and soaked into the skin on my hand quite quickly.
>> Kerastase Reconstructing Shampoo
I haven't tried this yet, and I think I'll only get one use out of it. Again, it's nice to see an expensive brand here, but I don't know how it will go with my thick, coloured hair.
>> Revlon PhotoReady Foundation
Hallelujah, it's in the right colour, lol. That was pure luck. I have sampled this before, and I found it a little too shimmery for my taste, but hey, I'll give it another go I guess. I think this will be a single use sachet as well.
Overall, March turned out to be a pretty good box. Nothing extraordinary, but nothing off-putting. I guess I'm just comparing it too much to my previous, amazing ones (like the February one).
Let me know what you thought of your Bellabox, and again, if you'd like to join Bellabox, then click here!
If you'd like to join Bellabox, which is $15 a month + $2.95 shipping, then click here!
This month's Bellabox was surrounded by the concept of highlighters, and featured a Stabilo highlighter. There was a competition for subscribers to enter, by saying what the 'highlight' and why. (i.e. I highlight my smile because it makes me happy".
Personally I wasn't too phased by this collaboration - I'd rather it be a beauty product though.
Inside the box was the a range of mostly sample size products - and also mainly skincare. Again, I would've preferred more beauty products, but cest la vie.
Now I'll focus on the individual products... (sorry the above picture is tiny - click on it for larger text).
>> Colour Theory Eye Pencil in Slate
I've seen this brand at chemists, but I'd never tried it before. The formulation is quite hard and dry, so it isn't very pleasant to use. The colour is nice though.
>> Nivea Daily Face Veil
This interests me, and it's a full size product! I'm yet to try it, as I've been working a lot so I haven't had much time outside. This alone is $10 though, so this is awesome value.
>> Stabilo Highlighter
Eh. It's a highlighter. I guess it's a plus that it's a good brand, but it's nothing special. You also cannot purchase these individually, or in Australia, so it was hard to find a value for it.
>> Bioderma Sebuium Pore Refiner
This actually came at a good time, because the pores around my nose are looking a little crater-ish. This brand is expensive too, in my opinion, so I was happy to see a decent sized sample. The formulation is quite light and gel-ish, and smells lovely. I think this will be a winner!
>> Palmers Skin Perfecting Cream
In contrast to the Bioderma product, this cream is quite thick. I'm not a big fan of thick moisturisers, so I'm a little adamant to try this. It has the typical Palmers smell to it, and soaked into the skin on my hand quite quickly.
>> Kerastase Reconstructing Shampoo
I haven't tried this yet, and I think I'll only get one use out of it. Again, it's nice to see an expensive brand here, but I don't know how it will go with my thick, coloured hair.
>> Revlon PhotoReady Foundation
Hallelujah, it's in the right colour, lol. That was pure luck. I have sampled this before, and I found it a little too shimmery for my taste, but hey, I'll give it another go I guess. I think this will be a single use sachet as well.
Overall, March turned out to be a pretty good box. Nothing extraordinary, but nothing off-putting. I guess I'm just comparing it too much to my previous, amazing ones (like the February one).
Let me know what you thought of your Bellabox, and again, if you'd like to join Bellabox, then click here!
