TESTER BOX - June 2016.

TESTER BOX is a Croatian version of surprise monthly beauty boxes. This one for June is the first that I ordered although Tester Box is on the market for a few months now. If you follow me on more regular basis, you already know that I am quite a beauty box gal (here, here, here and here...), so it was natural for me to try one created in my own country.

Ordering this box is a bit different than usual. The number of Tester Boxes for each month is limited, so in order to get yours, you have to order it a month earlier. You can order your box from 15th to the end of the month for the next month, but only until stocks last. So, it is not unusual that you can't order your Tester Box on for instance 17th, and you do manage to order it, you will get your box on the 15th of the next month. I ordered my June Tester Box on 15th of May and it arrived today on 15th of June. If you would like to buy Tester box for July, today is the time to order it. 

You can pay for it with credit card or through your bank account in which case you have to send them proof of payment, in the three following days after your order. If you don't do that, you will not get your box. The Tester Box will cost you 100 kn (shipping included, about 13.27 Euros/10.50 GBP/15$), but if you really want to make sure that you will not miss any box, you can opt for subscriptions, 6 months subscription will cost you 500 kn (about 66.37 Euros/52.50 GBP/74.53$), and 12 months subscription will cost you 1000 kn (about 132.73 Euros/105 GBP/149$).  When buying your Tester Box you can either buy it as a guest or as a registered customer, which I would recommend. Then you will create your account and fill out forms which will make sure that products in the box are best suited for your skin type or skin tone. In one of the previous boxes people got foundation, so it is advisable to answer questions about yourself. Tester Box will come to you in a black parcel and the box itself is always designed differently.

This month's design was created by ELFS (Croatian designer brand). When you open the box, everything is wrapped in black tissue paper, sealed with Tester sticker and wrapped with a ribbon.

You will also get a note which will tell you more about the products inside, including prices for the full-size packaging.

Every Tester Box will assure you at least 5 exclusive beauty products and if you get travel sizes they often come in pair as one.

For instance, June's Tester Box houses two Nivea travel size products: The Nivea Volume Care hairspray and The Nivea Volume Care shampoo, each in a travel size 50 ml version. Since I love the look of voluminous hair, I am glad that I'll have a chance to try them out! If you decide to buy full-size versions, 250 ml hairspray will cost you 27.90 kn (about 3.72 Euros/3 GBP/4.17$), and a 250 ml shampoo will cost you 21.90 kn (about 3 Euros/2.31 GBP/3.28$).

We have another pair but in a full-size version, this time manufactured by Fa. I was more happy to see The Fa Coconut Milk & Coconut Water shower gel because it reminds me of summer and I like coconut inspired summer scents (250 ml bottle will cost you 15.90 kn: about 2 Euros/1.68 GBP/2.38$), than The Fa Dry Protect Cotton Mist & Linen Touch roll-on because I love my Nivea one, and because this isn't a scent that I would personally choose. But I will most definitely try it out and let you know what I think about it. This 50 ml roll-on costs 19.90 kn (about 2.65 Euros/2 GBP/3$).

Next product didn't really wowed me at first. I received The Himalaya Herbals Nourishing Face and Body cream which is supposed to be perfect for everything, even as a primer, but usually I don't really go for all purpose creams and will most likely use this as a body lotion. If you would like to try it yourself, this 150 ml pot will cost you 22.90 kn (about 3 Euros/2.42 GBP/3.43$).

The only really small-sized product in this box is a little bag of The Egyptian Magic all purpose skin cream. Again an all purpose product?! Not a fan but it is highly talked about in the beauty community so trying it out for myself without paying 289 kn (about 38 Euros/30 GBP/43$) for a 115 ml pot is fine by me.

I was quite content when I saw The Diva! Make up blender/sponge for foundation and contour. I am really interested to see how it will perform. If you are interested, too, you can buy one for 29.90 kn (about 4 Euros/3.15 GBP/4.47$).

And certainly my favourite product from this Tester Box is The L'Oreal Paris Miss Hippie Volume mascara. In my opinion this mascara saves the whole appearance of June's Tester Box as far value for money is concerned. I haven't noticed it yet but I am always in the mood for testing and finding new mascaras. This 8.4 ml tube retails for 69.90 kn (about 9 Euros/7 GBP/10$).

And lastly, my impressions... As I already said, this box will cost you 100 kn which doesn't seem much because the value of the full-size products inside of it is more than 150 kn. Would all of these products be your first choice? Probably no. But that is what makes these boxes interesting, if you are into them, and that is what makes them a big NO, if you only want to get your favourite choices. To each their own!

On the other hand, most of us who will buy these boxes are beauty lovers who know exactly when and where to buy what for better prices, so, odds are that we are not paying full prices for these items to begin with. Yes, travel sizes products also add value and these two Nivea hair care products are really nice in my opinion. What I wasn't thrilled about is the fact that on this little booklet that you get, there is one other product mentioned  Morrocanoil treatment Classic/Light which didn't come in my box. Maybe it is an optional product or only a certain number of people will get it but I was a bit disappointed that it didn't come in my box.

In the end, I liked this box, it could have been better, especially judging by other, previous Tester Boxes that I read about, but I ordered a new special summer edition one for July as well.

So, what do you think about Tester Box? Would you buy one?

Tell me...

Love, beautyandbrains007

For Croatian version of this post click here

I've been busy... My May 2016. Empties (and April, and March, and February...)

I am on a roll with posts which are on time this month on my blog. I actually feel like it is first Monday in January and I made a decision to develop my blogging experience. But, it is really June and I am just in the mood for some empties. So, I am continuing with that thought and presenting you my Empties today! I do have to say one more thing: "Beware of the post!" Later you will see why?! Enjoy!

We all said farewell to May 2016., so I am going to show you which products are going to history with it. As usual, they are dived into categories starting from the top, meaning hair care products. Seeing these two together, one could think that I was playing with conditioner a bit too much which resulted with greasy hair that then needed some help from dry shampoo?! But, in reality, I bought this conditioner last summer during a 50% off sale in DM, along with two other products from Pantene Pro-V Aqua Light line for greasy hair. I purchased shampoo, conditioner and hair mask and wasn't too crazy about any of them. The conditioner was better than the mask (which did absolutely nothing for my hair, didn't even make the combing out easier), the shampoo was OK, but I really wouldn't recommend any of these or buy them again. But the product I would recommend is definitely The Batiste Strength & Shine dry shampoo which has its review here, so I wil not be going into details. If you are into dry shampoos and need a good one, you really have to try this one! I love it!!!

It seems that there was a theme in the category of face care products and it goes by the word Caudalie... I love that brand and that is why you will often see their products in my posts, especially favourites. Here we have similar but very different products that provide moisture for your face. One is very well known Caudalie Beauty Elixir that I reviewed here and which I highly recommend. And the other one is a milder version, Caudalie Grape Water which I wasn't crazy about and in my opinion is a distant cousin of Beauty Elixir which will never experience his glory. It is not a bad product but for me it is nowhere near the quality of Beauty Elixir and that is why I will not buy it again.

There are two other products in face care category which aren't made by Caudalie but also have something in common. I received both of them in the Net a Porter beauty boxes. The Earth Tu Face face balm was a beautiful organic product with immortelle which helped my skin to stay looking healthier during cold winter months. But, now when the weather is completely different and warm, it would have a completely different and not as good effect on my oily skin, so I am glad we finished with each other just in time to remember all the good times we spent together. The other product - Verso 2. Step Day cream I wasn't crazy about, didn't see that it did anything for my skin and I wouldn't buy it again.

When our faces are taken care of, they are beautiful canvas for makeup. Here I have two finished products, Ben Nye Banana Luxury Powder which was not the best that I have ever tried, but it was nice. But, there was so much of this products that I got bored with it. The other one is a travel size EYEKO Black Magic mascara which I didn't like. The good thing about it is that it is long-lasting and doesn't smudge, but as far as volume and length is concerned, it is just bla. Bla. Bla. If I wanted my lashes to look completely natural, I wouldn't wear mascara, but since I like my lashes to be all glammed up, this one is a NO NO. You can already conclude by yourself that I wouldn't buy it again or recommend it.

One of my favourite care products are in the body care domain. After a long time without free time for long baths, I actually managed to steal a couple of bath time moments in May. I finished two bath products from Lush, one is a bath oil and the other one is a bubble bar. I mixed them together and enjoyed the ride. I also finished The Atrix Intensive Protective Cream hand cream which I used both for my hands and my feet. It was OK. I did find a new, great product that wowed me and that is The Oriflame Activelle Cotton Dry roll on. It had such a nice and soft scent, was were gentle to my armpits, smelled divine, lasted the whole day and I would definitely buy it again. Same goes for the The Balea Cream-öl body lotion - Marula with almond oil. It is great!!! Super inexpensive, light but nourishing, and if you are worrying about dry spots on your body, you really need to try this one!

You've seen this ESI Aloe Vera juice bottle many times. It is not very tasty, you drink it with water, but it offers lots of benefits to your body. I love it and recommend it!

My empty 100 ml bottle of Noa Cacharel perfume will be the last one to say goodbye to May... I love this perfume, can't say enough about it and am happy to say that a new bottle is already in action.

That was it for May Empties... But we still haven't reached the end.

Although I didn't post my previous Empties from April, March and February, that doesn't mean that I didn't mean to do so. I have pictures of them which I will also share with you, maybe with a word or two as well.

April 2016.

all together

hair care products

face care

mini sizes that I decided to finish

Makeup.... Too Faced shadow insurance is my favourite, and MAC Bronzing Powder was OK

Body care... Did I mention how much I love Body Shop body butters?

 

March 2016.

March Empties all in one place

hair care... dry shampoos anyone?

face care

makeup items... almost all about the eyes

body care... minis have to go!

February 2016.

February Gang! So many wonderful products...

up close

all three of these were great for me...

makeup empties?!

lip balms

one finished and one crap!

These were also <3 <3 <3

Now we are done.

If you managed to stay with me until the end, thank you. If you thought that this post was awful, look on that from the bright side. You will not be reading Empties post until next month. ;) :)

Thank you for reading...

Questions? You know where you can find me ;).

Love, beautyandbrains007


For Croatian version of this post click here

What I loved in May (My Favourites..)

It is a special feeling for someone like me to write about last month's Favourites on time. ;) :D So, Ladies, enjoy this feeling with me and keep reading if you are interested!

Well, you all know by now that I am unpredictable with my blog. I am either blogging, taking photos and making big plans or pretending that I don't have a blog?! Not really. But you know what I wanted to say... Hopefully. In all that mess, there are always a few products that are tough enough to appear in my Favourites and today I'll start with a really good one - Balea Cream-oil body lotion Marula with almond oil. 

This lotion is meant  for dry/fussy skin, which mine this spring really is. So, I grabbed the 200 ml tube in DM just to try it out, especially since its price is so budget friendly (about 15 kunas-1.58 GBP/2 Euros/2.27 $). 

It has a bit sweet scent which is not my favourite, but it is OK and doesn't bother me. Since last month I mentioned Body Shop body butters in my Favourites, and those aren't easily available for us in Croatia, I wanted to mention this gem from DM which is available in all DM stores, performs heavenly and is so unexpensive. Fantastic product!

Its ingredients are also quite good, the lotion itself is light but extremely nourishing (even for tough areas like dry elbows) and you should really try it! Because of the fact that this post is about my Favourites and not about this lotion I will stop here.

My next two Favourites are makeup items. First one is also a drugstore find, my Essence Lash Princess Mascara which I tried for the first time. I am bipolar with beauty products, so, I either splurge like a Swedish princess (does she really?) or act like a school girl on a strict budget (which I am clearly not). In that kind of mood, I wasn't feeling spendy so I decided to try a 28 kunas (about 2.94 GBP/3.80 Euros/4.24$) mascara. I know that some girls write that these cheap Essence mascaras make their lashes fall out more but, thankfully, I didn't experience that. To me it is great! It has a rich black colour that provides both length and volume. It is a bit wet when new but with time it becomes better and stays that way until the end, three months period that I use a mascara. I received so many compliments when wearing it and it seemed that people were both surprised and disappointed when I told them which brand it is and how cheap it was?! No prejudices, please.

My other makeup Favourite is from Illamasqua. It is a Powder Blusher bronzer in the shade Spite, which I am not sure if it is still available?! I use it to warm up my face and contour and it works great! 

Although I bought it aproximetely three years ago, it was forgotten in my drawer until now. I discovered much later just how good it is for my lighter skin tone. It blends nicely, doesn't look orange or cakey, and has a matte finish with a sheen, meaning that it looks very natural. It is also very long lasting, even on oily skin like mine during summer months.

The last Favourite was already mentioned in this category, because it is my all time favourite perfume - Noa Cacharel. Its scent hugs my skin perfectly and is equally beautiful in all seasons! It made me learn that I like scents which contain ylang ylang, never gave me a headache, and it really is THE ONE for me. I use it all the time and this month it will have special appearances both in my Favourites and in my Empties. A 100 ml bottle is finished but no worries, I already have a new one opened. ;)

Which were your May Favourites? Did we love the same things?

Tell me...

Love, beautyandbrains007

For Croatian version of this post click here

The Cult Beauty Box by Anna & Lily

Cult beauty is an online beauty store which, I am sure, most of you are already familiar with. It offers loads of beauty stuff, and I am currently on the watch for the new LE Jaclyn Hill Champagne collection. But today I will talk about a beauty box which Cult Beauty created with two very well known British bloggers and youtubers Anna and Lily. Girls are great but one of the products inside of this box made me buy it, since the Box is a "bit" pricey (85 GBP). But at the same time, it also isn't, since it is packed with great, high-end stuff.

I guess most of you will know which product made me buy it? ;)

But let me start from the beginning. The Box itself is almost typical for British bloggers. It seems that white and black/gray marble is everywhere (I am not complaining), so the box looks like it is marble, too. It houses 7 beauty products (just one makeup item), 5 of which are full-sized.

I'll start with my favourite thing from the box - Sunday Riley Luna Sleeping night oil. I've read and heard great things about it, so it is a mistery how I managed to resist an urge to buy it by now? Then again, since a full-size bottle of 30 ml will cost you 85 GBP, it really isn't such a mistery... In this box you get 15 ml, which is more than enough to see if this product is as good as everyone says?! I can't wait to start using it! It is retinol-rich and should be a great help for improving the overall appearance of your skin. It will "lessen visibility of lines and wrinkles, while correcting signs of damage caused by sun, time and everyday exposure to pollutants".

The other miniature is The BECCA Backlight Priming Filter in a small 6 ml/0.20 fl.oz. bottle. By Becca's claims, it is great for "dulled skin showing signs of fatigue. Ultra-subtle, ‘soft focus’ pigments blur the visibility of imperfections – refracting and diffusing light to lend skin a flawless, lit-from-within look – like somebody inside your head just switched a lamp on". A full-size 30 ml bottle costs 32 GBP.

And now full-size products!

I'll start with the strangest one, at least for me - Yu Ling Jade Facial Roller (medium). "This facial roller is made of pure Jade, a cleansing stone used in Chinese medicine for centuries to aid the body's filtration organs and lymph system to expel toxins. The original, medium sized roller is designed to use around the face and neck area to aid lymph drainage and blood flow, eliminating puffiness, toning facial muscles and plumping out wrinkles. You will also find that regular use minimises spots around the chin and jawline caused by toxin build-up." Jade is also a birthstone of Virgos and Libras. When using this roller, always work away from the nose area, roll across the forehead, cheeks, throat and décolletage area. This one alone will cost you 28 GBP.

I was personally also drawn to this box because of The Wet Brush as well. I tried a mini version that came in a Lookfantastic box (do you see a pattern? ;) ), and I liked it but it is too small for everyday use for my long, dense hair. This brush is supposed to be equally efficient on wet and dry hair. "Classic Wet Brush effortlessly detangles wet, or dry hair without stretching or breaking your delicate strands". This one costs around 12 GBP.

For me, Pixi is a new brand. Sure, I've heard and read about it before but haven't tried any of their products myself. So, the fact that I received a full size 80 ml/2.70 fl.oz. bottle of Pixi by Petra Hydrating Milky Mist really was exciting! "A featherweight, skin-nourishing spritz, Pixi’s Hydrating Milky Mist is brimming with hyaluronic acid, to attract water and maintain moisture levels. The perfect way to boost dewiness without suffocating your complexion, just mist over clean skin pre-serum or day cream, to ‘plump’ up parched cells and diminish fine lines for a luminous, youthful appearance. Refreshing and revitalising, a blend of black oat, provitamin A and linoleic acid then works to reduce redness and sooth irritation, for skin that feels calm and contented." This bottle costs 18 GBP.

The only makeup item in the box is STILA Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid eye liner in the shade Intense Black. You get a full-size liner 0.016 fl.oz./0.5 ml which costs 13 GBP. It should be very nice, black and longlasting. I will let you know how it performed for me.

Lastly, but not less important, you also get The OSKIA RENAISSANCE Cleansing gel with Vitamins A, C and E, Omega 6, Pumpkin Enzymes, Chamomile & Rose. There is a lot of  hype about it at the moment and since a 100 ml/3.38 fl.oz. (which you get in this box) costs 29.50 GBP, I am very happy that I received it and have a chance to try it out.

So, my Dears...that is it for this box. Since it was a Limited edition, it is sold out, but if you are interested in something similar there is a Caroline Hirons version available now for 175 GBP, which I will skip. Can you guess why?

How do you like this box? Have you tried any of these? What is your favourite thing from the box?

Tell me...

Love, beautyandbrains007

For Croatian version of this post click here