After thinking about whether or not to check out a new subscription based service, I decided to try out the IPSY glam bag for several reasons:
First, I adore Michelle Phan (IPSY's founder). She is the first online beauty guru that I followed religiously from Xanga to YouTube. She seems genuine in her recommendations so - even though there are similar companies out there - I trusted that any company of hers would be something that I could get on board with.
Second, it is a relatively low risk way to treat yourself every month and get your beauty self-care on. Compared to other subscription based type sites, like Stitch Fix (see my Stitch Fix review here), $10 per month is not a huge commitment.
Third and lastly, I've been binge watching YouTube makeup tutorials lately and wanted to try out some new looks without spending a fortune....mmmmkay? Some people like to slay on a budget.
Let's get on with the review...
The IPSY subscription process
I signed up for the IPSY service in July 2017.
When you first sign up, IPSY makes you take a quiz to determine the types of products you are looking for and your general style. Much like Stitch Fix, they try to tailor your particular beauty style, skin type and coloring to the samples they send you each month. Easy peasy. The hardest part about signing up with IPSY was trying to get off the waitlist! And while two months - in retrospect- isn't a terribly long wait, it is eerily similar to waiting for Christmas as a child and watching other people open their gifts, except, you don't get a gift and you don't know when Christmas is going to be for YOU.
Another dreadful part of this process was that IPSY offers an opportunity to get off the waitlist, BUT ONLY IF you share that you signed up for IPSY on your social media accounts. It seemed a little too much like the contrived and spammy MLM blasts in my social feeds. You know the ones that I am talking about. I don't like spamming my friends, especially not for a service that I have not actually tried, so I decided to wait it out.
My very first IPSY glam bag!
My first IPSY bag was September 2017.It came in a cute pink envelope mailer. I received a total of six products: A highlight/blusher from Pixi by Petra, Photofinish primer "Radiance" by Smashbox, Pop goes the shadow eye shadow in Toasted, an angled eye shadow shading brush by Luxie, and two Korean face masks from Manefit - which was provided in partnership with a company called Soko Glam (an online Korean skincare retailer). The glam bag itself was cute and edgy and came with a pamphlet on the month's theme "LIKE A BOSS". I can dig it. The bag was small but made of a good quality.
Final thoughts on the IPSY service.
Based on the first bag alone, I think signing up for the IPSY service was worth the wait. The products sent definitely matched the types of products that I was hoping to receive. I am still testing out the individual products and will give a full review in a separate post. Overall, the value of what I received from IPSY seems worth the $10 monthly subscription fee. All of the samples were of a decent size and from recognized brands. I definitely have been having fun experimenting with my look over the last few days. Having an IPSY subscription is a great way to encourage monthly self-care for a reasonable price.What about you? Have you tried IPSY recently? If so, what are your thoughts on the service? Has it met your expectations? What was your favorite product so far? I can't wait to hear your thoughts. Let me know in the comments below!
Cheers!
Emilia
