October 2013 Ipsy vs. Birchbox

I'll run through both subscriptions first, then compare them.

I'll start with Birchbox, because it arrived first. I got box number 49 https://www.birchbox.com/shop/birchbox-1/october-2013/october-2013-bb49 and was really impressed with the contents this month. Everything in there was something I wanted to try! I got one foil packet, but it's pretty large for a foil packet (1 oz.), so I was even impressed with that! The diversity of this bag wasn't great (I got two skin care products and two lip products) but skin care and lipglosses/chap sticks are both things I can't have too much of because they're the only things that I really use every day, so even that worked out well.









The first item in my box was a sample of Miss Jessie's Pillow Soft Curls. I've been wanting to try this since I first saw it on Birchbox, it gets really good reviews and I've been searching for products that can tame my unruly curls for YEARS. It's a foil packet, but it's a full ounce (which is unusual for foil packets) so it's still a decent sample size. This is something I can't wait to try!

The second item in my bag was the Pop Beauty Aqua Laquer in Sheer Hot Pink. I was really excited to see this item in my box, especially in this color. I've tried other Pop Beauty products and generally liked them, but they have a lot of colors that look terrible on me, so I was glad to get it in this color!






The next item in my box was this month's "find". It's not something that I'm excited to try, but at the same time you can never have too much ChapStick.















The fourth item in my bag was the Serious Skincare Glycolic Gommage. It's an exfoliating skin mask. I tried it last night and really liked it! It's a weird gray color and smells a little strange, but my skin felt fantastic last night when I used it and still felt great this morning when I woke up.














The final item in my bag was another skincare item, the Evologie Stay Clear cream. I'm always excited to try skincare products, so we'll see how this works!
















Next comes my Ipsy bag:

I wasn't a huge fan of the bag itself this month, it's a nice phrase but putting a bunch of makeup into a white bag doesn't seem like the best plan to me. Overall I was pretty happy with the contents of my bag.

The first thing in my bag was a package of La Fresh cleansing wipes. I'm pretty excited to try these! I'm going to try it now (so I can review it and make sure I don't have an allergic reaction to them) and then save the package for next month when I go to New York. I love face wipes when I travel, and 10 wipes is a perfect size package!

The second thing in my bag was an eye shadow palette from Wet n Wild. I swatched it on my arm and was impressed with the quality. I didn't have high hopes since Wet n Wild is the brand I used to buy when I was in middle school and I didn't remember the quality being particularly good, but they seem to have stepped it up quality-wise. They were very pigmented and the colors were really pretty. It's a perfect fall palette. 

The third thing in my bag was the Zoya nail-color in Neve. It's a deep purple/blue (it looks totally different in different lighting situations). I'm not really a nail polish person, but this color is gorgeous so I'll either use it on my toes sometime, or give it as a gift.

 The fourth thing in my bag is the SexyHair Spray Clay. This isn't something I'm particularly excited to try. I've got naturally thick, curly hair and a texturizing spray sounds like the last thing I need. This will almost definitely be passed on.

 The last thing in my bag was a medium shadow brush from Coastal Scents. This is something I'll definitely use. The brush was very soft and applied shadow very evenly when I tested it. I'm pretty excited to have gotten this in my bag.








Okay, so time to compare. It's always a little hard to choose which items to compare, especially since I got two skin care products and two lip products in my birchbox this month but I'll do the best I can.

Hair Products:
Miss Jessie's Pillow Soft Curls vs. Sexy Hair Texturizing Clay Spray

One's a texturizing spray (which I won't use) and one's a product specifically designed for curly hair. It's no contest on this one, Birchbox wins.

Color:
Pop Aqua Beauty Laquer vs. Zoya Nailpolish

This one's a hard one; both are great colors, both are full-size and both are great quality products. I'm going to have to give it to the lip gloss, just because it's something I know I'll use. Honestly though, this could've gone either way. Another for Birchbox.

Skincare:
Serious Skincare Glycolic Gommage Extreme Renewal vs. La Fresh Wipes
This is another hard one because I'm really happy with both products. That said, I'm a little more excited to use the mask than I am about the face wipes. Birchbox again.

Everyday use items:
Chapstick Hydration Lock vs. Coastal Scents Medium Shadow Brush
Chapstick and the shadow brush are both things I'll use every day, and I probably use chapstick more. That said, I've got plenty of chapstick and it's what I always buy when I want to get cash back somewhere, so I'm more excited about the brush. One for Ipsy.

Misc Face stuff:
Evologie Stay Clear Cream vs. Wet n Wild Palette
I'm not sure how the Evologie Cream will work for me, but I'm still more excited about it. I really like the wet n wild palette, but it's a drug store brand so I can try it at pretty much any time. Birchbox again.

The score at the end is Birchbox 4, Ipsy 1. This month's Birchbox was my best Birchbox yet! It's only my third month and I loved EVERYTHING in my box. I'm still happy with my ipsy this month, especially since you can now earn points for reviewing items, similar to how Birchbox does it. Ipsy's setup isn't quite as nice as Birchbox's though, because at Birchbox every 100 points is $10 in the store whereas on Ipsy you need 1000 points to be able to get anything. Still, being able to review items for points is something I'm excited about.