August Glossybox!

I'm completely new to this Glossybox concept, only having signed up at the very beginning of this month. I think that Glossybox is a lovely idea, the whole 'six beauty surprises' just grabs me and makes me want to subscribe. I've always been on the verge of subscribing but never really built up the courage to bite the bullet and spend the monthly £10, but I decided that I should just go for it and here we are! My August Glossybox!

As you can see, there are six products within my glossybox, along with some fancy-looking black crinkled paper and a little card that tells you about all the different products. This months box is deemed the 'International Superstars' box. On the back of the card, it mentions that they've selected brands that are well known in the UK along with some others that have cult status in other countries that you might not have heard of before- definitely the case for me! I'd only heard of Lipcote before, the others were a complete mystery to me!

From left to right, Alessandro Pro White, Lipcote, Vera Valenti L'ombre a Paupiere Margarita, Glossybox Lipstick in Glossy Pink, DHC Deep Cleansing Oil and All For Eve Eve's Balm.

I'd never heard of Alessandro before, nor had I ever used a brightening nail polish. When I first saw this in the box, I was excited to see if this product actually works, because my nails can sometimes look a bit dull and dry. The card with the product information says that this product has an optically brightening effect on the nails- which sounded good to me! I used this product that same day on one of my nails to compare it to another and I must say, it did look considerably healthier and brighter than the one that wasn't coated in the stuff. Definitely recommended if you aren't someone that constantly wears nail varnish and wants pretty nails! This product is usually £7.85 for a 10ml bottle. The product is considerably smaller than the packaging it comes in- so it's a waste in materials and gives you the sense that you're getting more for your money, when really you're just getting a big bottle and a little bit of product. Misleading? Yes. Willing to put aside my differences for how good this product is? Double yes.

Can we all take a second to appreciate how gorgeous this product looks? Lipcote (according to Glossybox's leaflet) is 'the original lipstick sealer and the secret of long lasting, feather fade and water resistant lipstick'- thank you Glossybox, I couldn't have put it better myself. Basically, once you've puckered up and put your lipstick on, you slap this on top and you've sealed your lipstick on for the rest of the day. Easier said than done, I hasten to add. The product has an overpowering smell (which is the smell I was greeted by when I opened my box. It stank the place up!) and a nail-varnish like applicator brush. I was quite confused by this, because I'm meant to be putting this on my lips. Without a mirror, I attempted to swipe this across my lips to no avail. I then proceeded to do this in front of a mirror rather sloppily. The brush seems to pick up a little too much product for my liking, but once I'd blotted it off a little, I left it for the rest of the day. Thankfully, my lipstick stayed on all day with no smudging at all! I was very impressed with the product itself, but the application process was something I didn't appreciate too much! This normally costs £3.99, which is pretty cheap considering. Next time, make it easier to apply, Lipcote! I'll leave you to decide whether you pronounce it like lip-coat or lipcoté!

  
 Maybe not the most professional looking eyeshadow palette, but the colours look absolutely lovely, don't they? Especially those greens! It'd be hard to find colours like that normally! Well, those were exactly my thoughts when I studied this product. I thought that it definitely wasn't my favourite product in the box, but if the eyeshadows are as good as they look then perhaps it's a gem in disguise! Sadly, I was proved wrong. I swatched each colour individually and I wasn't impressed. The pigmentation of each eyeshadow wasn't as strong as I hoped they'd be and overall I'm not going to be repurchasing this anytime soon. This brand went over my head completely, having never heard of it before- and I hope I don't come across it again in a Glossybox! I suppose I'm being a little harsh, but I don't think I'm going to be getting much use out of this. The colours are lovely to look at, but that's about it. The palette is usually £3.85, so if you're really enthusiastic to buy this, there you go.

Glossy Pink is the colour I was treated to from Glossybox. According to the leaflet, it's a professional beauty lipstick for soft and glamorous lips with a luminous, long-lasting colour. I can definitely vouch for the long-lasting part. I swatched this lipstick when I was taking photos but didn't manage to be able to take a good enough photo to show the colour completely and the swatch has still not come off my hand! So, that says a lot. I wore this out a few days ago when I went shopping and it didn't budge from my lips the whole day- no Lipcote needed for this lipstick, ladies! I'm unsure of the colour range that was available, but I'm more than happy with the one I received- definitely something I would pick out of a range of colours! I love this lipstick.  It's completely unscented, so that's a bonus if you're someone that hates having a smell directly under your nose the entire day! This lipstick is usually £9.50, so this needs to be sold in shops somewhere. Please?

This is the product that I know absolutely nothing about and I'm far too scared to use it on my skin. I know, you're probably thinking- well Katie, Glossybox is all about trying new products out! Especially skin ones! This product is a deep cleansing oil. I have oily skin. I don't think that this product is going to do me any favours! For those of you without oily skin, all I've noted with this product is that it has no smell, is comes out yellow on the hand and rubbing it into the skin leaves it very oily. Definitely not going to attempt using this! The leaflet tells us 'this revolutionary water-soluble cleanser is better than any other make-up remover you've ever tried' which I can't agree or disagree with because I'm not going to be trying it. I will, however, be giving it to my friend so that she can give me some feedback on it. I received a 30ml sample, but the product is usually £18.50 for a 200ml bottle. Something to try if you have a dry skin type!

Finally, this product could have been one of three things. Some got the marvelous imPRESS nails, others got a perfume sample and I received a lip balm. Safe to say I wasn't ecstatic with this, but I digress. After using the product, I actually really enjoyed it. It was the same as any other balm I'd used previously and came with a nifty little mirror- but the difference is, is that this is for charity. This product is usually £4.95 which I would usually complain is too expensive for a balm when you can pick up vaseline for £1.00 in Boots, but this is for Charity and I'd be more than happy to pay it if I knew it was going to a good cause.

So, that was my August Glossybox. I hope that you've already received yours so you didn't ruin the surprise when you read this post! Thank you for reading. Please leave suggestions and comments down below!