An investment in a beauty subscription is the best way for beauty enthusiasts and newbies to get try new products before fully committing to purchasing the full size version of a product. It's a great way to save money while keeping up with the latest beauty trends. One of the best subscription boxes out there is Play! by Sephora.
For those of you who have never heard of Play! by Sephora, it is beauty subscription service that includes five samples from high end brands that you know and love from Sephora as well as a bonus fragrance sample. So for $10 a month you get six samples plus some other perks from Sephora, like 50 bonus Beauty Insider Points and a free one-on-one tutorial with a Sephora Beauty Expert. Not a bad deal right?
Now that you know all about Sephora's Play! Box, let's get to the good stuff. The boxes themselves and the samples inside! let's go all the way back to December 2016, and see what we got!
The main emphasis of the December Play! Box was on the products you would absolutely need to look your best for a fancy night out and end the year right. In the December Play! Box were the following samples:
- Elizabeth and James Nirvana Bourbon Eau de Parfum
- Drybar Bay Breeze Hydrating Shot
- Make Up For Ever Step 1 Skin Equalizer Primer
- Bobbi Brown Smokey Eye Mascara
- Sephora Collection Cream Lip Stain in Always Red
- Urban Decay All Nighter Long-Lasting Makeup Setting Spray
When it comes to fragrances, I'm a sucker for scents that are either very sweet or floral. So when I saw the sample from the Olsen twins brand: Elizabeth and James, I was intrigued. I have heard a lot of good things about the Nirvana Bourbon Eau de Parfum, and I was impressed. It has a very sweet yet musky smell. The blend of vanilla bourbon and spice wood with a little pinch of a floral scent makes an interesting and edgy combination.
Drybar is known for their high end and luxurious products that gives any woman salon quality hair every time. Drybar has been on my Must Try list for years, so when I saw the Drybar Bay Breeze Hydrating Shot in my Play! Box, I was stoked. But sadly, my hopes were just way too high. The Bay Breeze Hydrating Shot is to be used after shampooing and it is suggested to use the entire bottle in one sitting. Which makes sense, because there is not enough spray in the bottle to use again. In fact, there's barely enough to use one time, especially if you have long and/or thick hair. The spray is also nothing like a spray, instead it is really creamy and it gets clogged in the applicator very easily. Plus, the creamy spray is really hard to spread throughout your hair, you literally need to spray it everywhere, if you can. Once you wash it out, your hair will feel rough for a bit bit it will get softer once it dries.
For any makeup enthusiast, primer is absolute must have product. But finding a primer that makes your makeup long lasting and soothe your face can be difficult to find. However, Make Up For Ever's Step 1 Skin Equalizer Primer can do both very well. The primer's formula does a great job of balancing the texture of the skin by making it really smooth. Sine the formula spreads so well, you do not need to use a lot at one time. Take a little bit of primer and massage it onto to your face and your skin and will feel very hydrated and super soft. After that, apply your favorite foundation or tinted moisturizer with no fear since the Make Up For Ever Step 1 Skin Equalizer Primer will support and strengthen it all day.
Finding an amazing mascara that can lengthen and thicken your lashes is similar to finding a needle in a haystack, extremely rare and can take a good amount of time to find. However, the Bobbi Brown Smokey Eye Mascara comes pretty close to perfection. Even though it doesn't add a lot of length to your lashes, it does a great job defining your lashes while providing a creamy coat that does not clump or smudge even after coating your lashes multiple times.
Right now liquid lipsticks are all the rage. Celebrities like Kylie Jenner and Jeffrey Star have their own liquid lipstick brands that cost a lot of money and are constantly sold out. However beauty lovers are still obsessed with their products which in all honesty are not the best quality. But luckily, other brands like Sephora have created great quality liquid lipsticks at an affordable price. The Sephora Collection Cream Lip Stain comes in every shade you could think or dream about. The consistency of the lip stain is very creamy and spreads very well, a little will go a long way. Plus it dries super fast so there are no worries about it smudging or fading away. The lip stain is hydrating and lasts all day. The shade Always Red is a classic bold and bright red, which every lady truly needs.
Whether you wear your make up for ten minutes or ten hours, setting spray is a must have! No one wants their makeup to smudge or fade right away, that's why setting spray was invented. A spray for your face that keeps your makeup in tact, that's genius. The Urban Decay All Nighter Long-Lasting Makeup Setting Spray is by far the best setting spray out there. Some setting sprays make you feel like you're spraying yourself with a water bottle, but Urban Decay's setting spray is a gentle mist that soothes your face and keeps your makeup in tact for a long period of time. The one and only problem with the setting spray is with the applicator. The button will occasionally get stuck, which makes it hard to spray. But other than that, this spray is absolutely magic.
The December Play! Box was full of amazing must have products for not only a night out on the town but for daily life. Whether it was for an office holiday party, a New Year soiree, or ringing in the New Year on the couch, these products had you covered. I'd give this box 4/5 stars. The real gems of the box were the Sephora Collection Cream Lip Stain in Always Red and Urban Decay All Nighter Long-Lasting Makeup Setting Spray, while the biggest disappointment was the Drybar Bay Breeze Hydrating Shot. Now, let's see what January had to offer!
The January Play! Box really started the New Year off right. It contained products that were essential to giving your look a fresh feeling and brand new start. It really took the idea of new year, new you to a whole new level. In the January Play! Box were the following samples:
- Tory Burch Love Relentlessly Eau de Parfum
- Ouai Treatment Masque
- Drunk Elephant Lala Retro™ Whipped Cream
- Clinique Almost Lipstick in Black Honey
- Tarte FRXXXTION Stick Exfoliating Cleanser
- IT Cosmetics Your Skin But Better™ CC+™ Cream with SPF 50+
Romantic scents and fragrances are different for everyone, what could be romantic and sultry to one person could have the opposite effect on another. But when it comes to the Tory Burch Love Relentlessly Eau de Parfum it truly is the definition of romance, but not for the reason you're thinking. This scent is actually based off of the love story of Tory Burch's parents. Burch's father would write love notes to her mother and have them published in their local paper. The notes were signed Love, Relentless, and it was a secret for the two of them to share. Just the story alone is romantic. But when you smell the sweetness of the floral perfume, it honestly does smell like love. When you smell Love Relentlessly it feels like you're falling in love.
Whenever your hair needs a little pick me up, a good deep conditioner or hair mask always does the trick. I'm a big fan of hair masks so I was excited to try the Ouai Treatment Masque! The mask itself smells really good, and that nice fresh smell transfers right to you hair while making it silky and smooth. If you have damaged hair, this mask will be your best friend because it really does revitalize and strengthen your hair. The only problem with the hair mask is that you do not get enough, especially in the sample size. My half ounce bottle was not enough and I really wanted and needed more!
If you want to try out an award winning moisturizer, then you need to check out the Drunk Elephant Lala Retro™ Whipped Cream. In 2016, it won the Allure Best of Beauty award and it is easy to see why! The cream is extremely hydrating and moisturizing, it's perfect for dry and fine skin. Plus it smells really good! What's also so great about the brand, Drunk Elephant is that they are a cruelty free brand that supports the International Elephant Foundation. A great quality product from a great quality brand, can you ask for anything better?
If you're looking for a lipstick that gives no color or tint to your lips then Clinique's "Almost Lipstick" is what you're looking for. In all honesty, "almost lipstick" is just a clever name to give to a sheer lipstick. But really, who would honestly buy a sheer lipstick? Isn't the point of lipstick to add some color to your lips? The only thing the Clinique Almost Lipstick in Black Honey has going for it is that it is hydrating and moisturizing. This product is basically an overpriced "tinted" balm.
Most face washes or cleansers are not necessarily very travel friendly or convenient to use. They can be bulky or even leak through the top lid. I can't tell you how many times I have had some of my beauty products leak all over my toiletry bag while traveling. It is an annoying circumstance to say the least. So when I find products that are perfect for traveling, I get excited. My latest discovery came from this Play! Box, the Tarte FRXXXTION Stick Exfoliating Cleanser! The cleanser comes in a little stick, which is very similar to a glue stick. It's very easy to apply, all you have to do is apply it directly on your skin in circular motions. This cleanser is gel that is also good for all face types and it can even be used as mask too. The cleansing stick is only one ounce, so you can take it anywhere! From traveling on an airplane or to the gym for your post workout shower, this little cleanser is the perfect when you're on the go.
On the days when you don't feel like wearing a lot of makeup, a CC cream or tinted moisturizer can be your life saver! It gives your face the coverage it needs with little to no work. One of the best CC creams out there is the IT Cosmetics Your Skin But Better™ CC+™ Cream with SPF 50+. CC cream stands for color correcting and this cream provides a full and flawless coverage while protecting your skin with SPF 50. It is also very soothing on your face. There are five different shades for this CC cream, and each shade is adaptable and true to its tone.
Overall, the January Play! Box was a smashing hit, filled with a variety of great quality products to start the New Year off right. I'd give it 4/5 stars, the major hits of the Play! Box were the Tarte FRXXXTION Stick Exfoliating Cleanser, IT Cosmetics Your Skin But Better™ CC+™ Cream with SPF 50+, and the Drunk Elephant Lala Retro™ Whipped Cream. The only miss was the Clinique Almost Lipstick in Black Honey, which was a major thumbs down. This Play! Box would have scorn higher but that "lipstick" really brought down the overall value of the box.
But on the bright side, I know whenever I get my Play! Box from Sephora, there will be some amazing products to test out! In fact, February and March's boxes are already looking promising, be on the lookout for that upcoming review!
Until next time.
