Love Me Beauty Box December 2013

Love Me Beauty Box* - £10 + £2.95 Delivery

For December Love Me Beauty brought out their special Christmas edition box. While there was still a choice of three boxes as usual the options didn't differ too much this month. I went for Menu 1 because it contained two face masks & those are always fun to try out. Apparently we were supposed to receive a surprise Christmas gift in our boxes but I only got the five items included on the menu. I'm definitely not complaining though because the contents of the box were really good, especially the face masks!




Lord & Berry Intensity Lipstick in Glazed Pink
I liked the Lord & Berry lipstick I received in last month's box but this colour just isn't for me. It's a frosty nude pink shade and I can't help but think that it makes me look a bit dead. It seems quite grey toned. The formula of these lipsticks is very creamy & pigmented but I think I'll have to pass on this particular lipstick to one of my friends.




Lord & Berry Kissproof Lip Liner in Romantica
Now this colour is a lot more me. If you prefer matte lips then it can sometimes be easier to just use a lip liner over some lip balm. This one was creamy & well pigmented so it was a lot easier to work with than a lot of other lip liners. It doesn't dry out your lips or make them feel tight either. I wouldn't say it lives up to it's claims of being 'kissproof' but it does leave a nice stain on your lips. I just wish they would've given us a lipstick that matches this bright pink lip liner.

Rodial 5 Minute Facial
This product has such a weird texture. Think Maybelline Dream Matte Mousse in the form of a face mask. It's an exfoliating mask with very fine grains. You leave it to dry for 5 minutes and then rub off most of the product with your fingertips. As you rub it has an exfoliating effect on your face. Then you wash off the excess with warm water. It did sting my skin a little bit when I first applied it but that soon went away. When I washed my face after using this I was left with amazingly baby soft skin. My pores were barely visible and my face looked smoother & brighter. It may be a bit of a strange product but the effects are incredible.

S5 Vitality Mask
I'd never heard of S5 Skincare before so I was really intrigued by this product. S5 make skincare products designed for stressed skin featuring highly effective organic bioactives. I love me some organic skincare so I had high hopes for this product. This is another face mask but it's very different to the Rodial one. The texture is more like a serum & it feels very cooling on your face as you apply it. You just apply a thick layer of this stuff & wash it off after 5 minutes. It makes my skin feel really fresh & smooth. The best thing about this is the wonderful glow it gives to your skin. It's a perfect remedy for dull & tired Winter skin. I'll definitely be looking into S5's other products in future because this mask was so lovely to use.



Headline Colors Nail Polish in Quicksand
I previously received a Headline Colours nail polish in another Love Me Beauty box (back when it was called BeautecoBox) and was very impressed with the lovely gold colour I chose. In this box there wasn't a choice of nail polish colour but I really do like Quicksand. It's a classy & chic taupe shade that is opaque in just one coat. The brush in these polishes is a good shape so I find them really easy to apply and the formula of the polish is very smooth & creamy. It has a nice glossy finish too. This shade is very chip resistant compared to the gold one I tried so this is a bit of a one coat wonder.

This was another great box with three fullsize products. I always think the ratio of samples to fullsize products is perfect in the Love Me Beauty boxes. I feel like some of these brands keep popping up though, especially Lord & Berry. Hopefully there'll be some completely new brands to try in next year's boxes. I kinda wish this box was a bit more festive though as nothing really set it apart from the regular boxes. You can subscribe to Love Me Beauty for £10 a month plus £2.95 delivery with no minimum subscription term. They currently have a special 20% off discount for beauty blog readers (first time orders only) – just enter LMBBB20 on the delivery section when signing up. The code is valid until 10th Jan. Visit the Love Me Beauty website to find out more.

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Love Me Beauty Box November 2013

Love Me Beauty Box* - £10 + £2.95 Delivery

Love Me Beauty is the beauty box with a choice and that is the main reason why I think it is the best one out there. Every month subscribers are given a choice between three boxes so you know exactly what to expect when you receive your parcel. The main difference between the November boxes were the colours of the lip gloss & nail polish. For my November box I went with option three and here is what I received:

Mitchell & Peach Shower Wash
Personally I find Mitchell & Peach products to be a bit boring. I swear I've received loads of their samples in other beauty boxes & they're never anything to get excited about. Sure it's a nice moisturising shower gel with a lovely lavender scent but I definitely wouldn't pay £20 for a full size one.



Jelly Pong Pong 2-In-1 Bronze Shadow/Liner
I've heard so much about Jelly Pong Pong for years but I've never actually tried any of their products before. This pencil is an eye shadow & eyeliner in one product. I've been using this quite a lot lately because it's just so foolproof. It feels really creamy & applies easily without any dragging. It also has brilliant staying power. Here I've applied it all over my lids & under my waterline before blending it out with a MAC 217 & 219 brush. I've not experienced any creasing with this product even without wearing a primer. It really stays put! It can take a while to blend it all out so you do need to work quickly. I really like the bronze colour & I think it's a great everyday eye product. You could easily build this up for a night out too. I'm rather tempted to buy some more of these pencils in other colours.

Artdeco Hydra Lip Booster in Translucent Rose
I absolutely loved the Artdeco Eyeshadow Base I got in a previous Love Me Beauty box - it has fast become my favourite eye primer ever. So I was looking forward to trying another product from their range. This super shiny lip gloss has a light pink tint to it & feels very nice on the lips. It's quite moisturising & long-lasting for a lip gloss. The gloss features hyaluronic filling spheres to plump up your lips. It's not sticky either which is very important to me. I'm wearing it in the above photo & I think it looks really pretty.

Absolution Le Soin Purifiant
I was really impressed with this purifying face mask. It features birch sap & white clay to absorb impurities & tighten pores. Even though it is a clay mask it doesn't really dry on your face so it won't dehydrate your skin at all. It made my skin feel very tingly & minty fresh as it set on my face. After washing it off it left my skin looking clearer, brighter & more radiant. It also soothes the skin & reduces irritation. It really clears out my pores & gives me fresh, soft skin. Unfortunately I can't seem to find this brand in the UK but if they ever come across the pond I would be very interested in trying some more of their skincare products.



Model's Own Red Alert
If you saw my post about my nail polish collection you might have noticed that I have hardly any red polishes. Despite the mass of Model's Own ones I already own, I didn't have Red Alert so this classic bright red is a very welcome new addition. If Love Me Beauty didn't give us a choice of products I might've ended up with a colour I already owned so you can see why I like these boxes so much. You can't beat this colour if you're looking for a good old festive red.




Lord & Berry Intensity Lipstick in Brick Lip
There were a couple of issues with the Lord & Berry products in the October Love Me Beauty box so to make up for it they included an extra lipstick in the November box. It was incredibly nice of them to do that & I was surprised by how much I like this colour. If I was swatching this at a counter I would never have bought it myself but I actually think it suits me pretty well. It's a deep reddy brown shade & is ideal for a vampy A/W look. The formula is smooth, non-drying & long-lasting. It has great pigmentation too & was opaque in one swipe. A very high quality lipstick indeed & it more than makes up for the Lord & Berry products in the last box.

Apart from the shower gel I really liked every product in this box. I think everyone likes to receive makeup in sample boxes - especially when there's four full size items! I'll be using all of them for a long time. If the face mask was readily available in the UK I would probably end up buying a full size one of those too. You can subscribe to Love Me Beauty for £10 a month plus £2.95 delivery with no minimum subscription term. They currently have a special 20% off discount for beauty blog readers (first time orders only) – just enter LMBBB20 on the delivery section when signing up. The code is valid from 5th Dec until 10th Jan. Visit the Love Me Beauty website to find out more.

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Love Me Beauty Box October 2013

Love Me Beauty Box* - £10 + £2.95 Delivery

Last month's Love Me Beauty box (previously BeautecoBox) was definitely an exciting one with four full sized products and just one sample. Love Me Beauty provide you with three different boxes to choose from which sets them apart from any other beauty box on the market. I was really looking forward to trying out some Lord & Berry products for the first time and the inclusion of a full sized bottle of eye makeup remover meant that I decided to opt for menu 3.

Balm Balm Indulge Bath & Shower Oil
I've made a conscious effort to have more baths than showers recently because there's just so many lovely bath salts, oils, bombs etc. out there. I love the NEOM bath oils so I had high hopes for this one & it smells gorgeous. It contains essential oils of ylang ylang, patchouli, & clary sage so the scent is quite a deep & musky floral one. It is incredibly relaxing and this little bottle lasted for 3 baths. A very indulgent organic bathtime treat. You can also pop some on a flannel for use in the shower or dab a drop on your pulse points for some instant relaxation.

Weleda Millet Nourishing Shampoo
This millet shampoo contains macadamia nut oil, extracts of organic millet husks and sage to gently cleanse and nourish your hair. Weleda are known for their natural eco-friendly products. This shampoo is SLS free and features extract of grapefruit & peppermint. The smell is kinda like minty porridge, which I have to admit I like haha. This was the sample of the box so the tube was a little bit small for my hair. I used it on Chloe instead and it made her hair really shiny. She has really frizzy curly hair so it didn't do much for the condition of it but it works as a gentle shampoo suitable for the whole family. However the full size bottle costs £9 so I can't see myself repurchasing it.

Amie Bright Eyes
I've tried a few Amie products now & they're a great choice if you want good skincare on a budget. I recently ran out of Bioderma so this product is one of the main reasons I chose this particular box. This eye makeup remover is very gentle and doesn't make my eyes sting at all. It features meadow cornflower, chamomile, grape water & cucumber to cleanse whilst soothing & refreshing the eye area at the same time. It is oil-free so there's no horrible greasiness afterwards. It manages to remove my normal eye makeup really well but it completely failed when I tried to get off the Lord & Berry waterproof products. For that reason I think I prefer micellar waters because the oil content in those helps to remove waterproof mascara without leaving any greasiness either. This works perfectly well on everyday makeup. I do seem to be getting through the bottle rather quickly though!

Lord & Berry Scuba Mascara
I go swimming every week so I've been looking for a good waterproof mascara. This came very close but it was let down by one thing - it is incredibly dry. If you ignore that dryness though, this makes your lashes look stunning. Never has anything made my lashes look so long or hold a curl like this before. They were almost touching my eyebrows! I had to run the tube under a hot tap first to get anything out though, which really isn't acceptable for a new product. The dryness also made my lashes quite flaky & I had some black bits drop down underneath my eyes. It is definitely waterproof though and it took a bit of effort with some cleansing oil & a muslin cloth to remove it properly. It's just frustrating that this was so dry because it had so much potential!

Lord & Berry Smudgeproof Eyeliner in Smoke
This waterproof eyeliner is actually grey in colour. It looks really nice & is a softer alternative to black eyeliner. This stuff does not move! It doesn't run, smudge or transfer at all & only comes off with an oil-based makeup remover. However again there were a couple of problems with this Lord & Berry product. The edges of the pencil were raised above the nib so I had to sharpen it a bit first before I could use it. It also wouldn't show up at all on my waterline. Instead I'd recommend using it all over the lid & then blending it out quickly with a MAC 217 brush. It does set quickly so you do have to work fast. I do like this product & the colour is pretty unique so I can see myself using this a lot. Grey smokey eye looks are my fave.

This is the first time I've felt a little bit disappointed with my Love Me Beauty box. I think it was mainly let down by the Lord & Berry products because they had the potential to be amazing but fell at the last hurdle. Apparently some other people have experienced problems with those products too. Product quality and customer satisfaction is of the utmost importance to Love Me Beauty, so they have released this statement:

"It has come to our attention that some products dispatched in our October box from our long term partner Lord & Berry, have not met the high standards set by Lord & Berry and ourselves. As our customers are the heart of our business, this has been brought to the attention of Lord & Berry's head office. Lord & Berry has set a team to investigate as to why the products fell below the high standards that they set themselves and are making additional quality checks to all of their products that they send internationally. As a gesture of goodwill and apology to our members, Lord & Berry will be providing in next month’s box a full sized lipstick which retails at £12 to all members. We apologise for any inconvenience caused."

I think it's brilliant that they're putting things right and are giving everyone a free lipstick next month. It shows that they do care about the feedback they get from customers and don't just fob people off with a statement (take note, Bleach London). You can subscribe to Love Me Beauty for £10 a month plus £2.95 delivery with no minimum subscription term. Visit the Love Me Beauty website to find out more.

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