Sunday, August 24, 2014

- - Memebox | Special #23: Girls' Night Out Review - -

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.


Happy Sunday!

I have been hearing and reading reviews about Memebox (pronounced as "mi-mi-box" / "me-me-box") for a while now, so when I was invited to join their affiliate program I decided that perhaps it was time to buy a box for myself to see what it was all about.

For those of you who aren't familiar with it, Memebox is an online Korean beauty retailer that sells several types of beauty boxes for a variety of prices. These boxes include: the original Memeboxes (global editions), themed boxes, Luckyboxes, Superboxes, and Collaboration boxes. I have yet to purchase a Global Edition Memebox, but those are kind of like a subscription that you have to purchase on an individual or pre-paid basis. They sell out pretty quickly and you usually have to purchase them months in advance (the latest Global Edition Memebox is #17 and it ships in November!).

In any case, I did purchase a couple of themed Memeboxes early on in the month. They were the Special #23: Girls' Night Out box and the Special #26: Hand & Nail Care box. I'm still waiting on the latter, but I do have the former to review for you today! There are also discount codes at the end of this post, so check those out if you get a chance.


I think that the biggest appeal for me - just as with most subscription/mystery boxes - is that the contents of the themed Memeboxes are largely unknown. The Girls' Night Out box has been out for a little bit now, so the reviews, which are overwhelmingly positive, have already begun to be posted. However, prior to opening up this box yesterday I had no idea what was inside.


Okay, that's a lie - there was one spoiler for this box and that was the Kepa Club Maxi Lip Tint Glow. However, other than The Face Shop I have not had any kind of encounter with Korean cosmetics before (which could be either really good - because I get to discover awesome products - or really bad - mainly for allergy reasons), so to be honest I didn't really know whether the Lip Tint was a good product to get or not until I saw it in person.


First look inside!





* Please note that all of the prices are in US dollars.* 

1 | Bulgarian Rose Pheromone Perfume in Pink Angel (Kskin)
      (FULL SIZE: $12.00 for 10 mL)
 

Infused with rosa centifolia flower water, rosa damascene flower oil, and white musk fragrance, this roll-on type perfume can be applied easily and quickly just before heading out for a romantic date or a party with your girls.



The first product in the Girls' Night Out box was perfume and it came wrapped in bubble wrap. As I must have mentioned sometime ago - I love getting fragrance samples in beauty boxes because I wear perfume on a regular basis and discovering new scents is always pretty exciting for me.

I would describe the scent as soapy. Seriously - just like the next product - this perfume smells like soap, but the scent is light and quite pleasant once it settles in. I can definitely see me using this on a regular basis.


The perfume has a rollerball applicator, which is pretty convenient since you can control how much you put on. What you're supposed to do is roll the perfume over your pressure points such as your wrists, neck, and behind your ears. What's also really convenient is that the perfume itself is such a good size that it can easily be stored inside your makeup bag. 

2 | Water Essence Hair Perfume Soft Soap Fragrance (Forest Story)
      (FULL SIZE: $3.00 for 100 mL)

A quick spritz of this Water Essence Hair Perfume will deliver moisture and nutrition to your dry hair and add a nice, soapy fragrance that'll rid away any food or cigaretty smell all at the same time!


Hair perfume - what a neat concept! I'm really glad I got this for two reasons. One - I'm not sure if anyone else does this, but sometimes I spray on hair products not for their effect, but just to have my hair retain their scent. Hair is often pretty good at picking up scents - not all of which you might want - so it's pretty neat that this is a product that is made specifically to get your hair to smell nice.


The second reason for why I really like this product is specifically because of its soapy fragrance. Think of the most straight up basic soap and that is what this hair spray smells like. It might be overpowering and weird for some, but for me I get a sense of nostalgia since the scent reminds me of my grandmother's soap in Latvia. If I ever run out this product, I can definitely see me repurchasing it since it retails for only $3.00!


3 | N.S.M. Soft Moose Waterproof Liquid Line in 550: Elegance Purple (A.m.oK Cosmetics)
      (FULL SIZE: $18.00 for 3 g)

A liquid-type eye shadow in four of the most popular shades, N.S.M. Soft Moose Waterproof Liquid Line is much easier to apply than the average powdery shadows which simply do not last long enough in the state of your exact liking. This liquid shadow offers beautifully pearly, glittery, and glossier finish that fixes your eye makeup perfectly in place all day and all night.


I was a little bit confused - is this an eyeliner or an eyeshadow? I guess its both since the directions advise to blend this product over your eyelids like with a regular eyeshadow and then line the waterline like you would with an eyeliner.


I can't attest to its power as an eyeshadow because I decided to disregard the instructions and just use it as an eyeliner on top of my eyelids. It worked out pretty weird as an eyeliner since it didn't have very good staying power and I guess it sort of looked caked on. After about an hour and a half instead of a neat wing near the outer corner of my eye there was a blurry mess. I'm guessing that this would work way better as a blended eyeshadow. The metallic colour - which, based on the call number of 550, is in the shade "Elegance Purple" even though it doesn't look very purple - is kind of strange to use on its own as opposed to a highlighter (maybe even for the inner corner of your eyes).


The consistency is also kind of strange. It's not gloopy, but it's not exactly liquidy either - rather, it's something in between. I guess I'll just have to figure out what to do with this product.

L - artificial lighting | R - natural lighting

Also, I find myself looking at the name quite often - Soft Moose. In all of the reviews I have read no one has brought this up, but I do wonder whether there might have been a translation error? Maybe they meant "mousse" instead of "moose"? After all, there is quite a difference between this soft moose, this soft mousse, and even this soft mousse. 

4 | S-Style in 04: Angel Eye (Secret Stargirl)
      (FULL SIZE: $5.85 for 2 pairs of eyelashes)
      (Link to product) 

Add more definition and volume to your eyes with Secret-Stargirl's popular girl-group lashes that come in five different styles to match your mood and day!


It makes sense to get fake eyelashes in a beauty box that's centred on going out and partying with your friends. Sadly, I don't typically wear fake eyelashes on the rare occasions when do I go out. At the same time, I actually don't mind getting these because I know for sure I'll be using them in a couple of months when Halloween rolls around.

In terms of the price, the $11.00 stated by Memebox seems a little high for a pair of fake eyelashes, so I am going to use the price I found elsewhere instead. 

5 | Dual Concealer in 02 (Croquis)
      (FULL SIZE: $27.00 for 8.1 g)
      (Link to product)

 Containing an anti-wrinkle concealer and a spot concealer in both ends, this Dual Concealer is definitely a must-have for when you're heading out for a good night out, because Dual Concealer will take care of any extra coverage needed or even possible emergency redness of skin or smudges around your eyes.


It's always tricky to get concealers / foundation / any other kind of facial product that comes in a shade in beauty boxes because the diversity of skintones is often not taken into account. 


Although I can't read Korean and therefore don't know which side is meant to be the anti-wrinkle concealer and which side is the spot concealer, I am happy that at least one of the shades works with my skintone. The side with the lightest shade and the thinnest brush matches my skintone to a wonderful exactness. I use that side as a spot concealer, although it doesn't always provide the best coverage so I end up using my Rimmel foundation as well.

Thinner brush = lighter shade | Doe foot applicator = darker shade

As you'll see below, the darker shade doesn't work with my skintone at all while the lighter shade matches it perfectly.

L - artificial lighting | R - natural lighting



By the way, this concealer has amazing staying power! I can only speak for the darker shade since it's the only shade I could differentiate from my skintone, but it was pretty tough to wash off.

L - artificial lighting | R - natural lighting



Also, considering the amount of product that you get for the price that is listed, this concealer is quite pricey. For its value, I am using the price listed on the product page over at Memebox instead. 

6 | N.S.M. Special Nail Lacquer in 0R245 (red) and 0R241 (orange) (A.m.oK Cosmetics)
      (FULL SIZE: $10.00 per 15 mL polish = $20 for both)

These are high-quality nail laquers which come in a variety of trendy, radiant, and glittery colors to be worn for any occasion from a party night, a graduation dinner, to even the a beach day out! They'll be a fun, colorful addition to your hands!

I was pretty happy to see that I got nail polish in this box, and of course what better way to complete an outfit when you go out than with some pretty nail polish?

Artificial lighting

I usually don't gravitate towards red and orange polishes, but these are fairly basic colours that I'll possibly find a use for eventually.

Natural lighting

To achieve the coverage that you see in the photos, I used 2 coats of the orange polish (although 1 coat was fine as well) and 3 coats of the red polish. 

7 | Maxi Lip Tint Glow in (Kepaclub)
      (FULL SIZE: $23.00 for 3.5 g)
 


Maxi Lip Tint Glow goes beyond simple lip olouring. It moisturizes, removes dead skin, and plumps up your otherwise dry, chapped lips! With a long-lasting, silky finish, it glides onto your lips smoothly and stains it naturally like a tint.



This product was the only one revealed for the Girls' Night Out box. Lip products are always welcome, so I didn't mind getting this.


The colour is an interesting shade of pink. I find that this colour looks nice only when applied with one coat because if I put lots of layers on then my lips look too bright and off-coloured. 


In terms of the price, I'm pretty surprised that it costs so much - especially since this same lip colour comes in a set that's currently on sale for $10.00.

L - artificial lighting | R - natural lighting (one swipe for both)

Also, this lipstick has pretty good staying power as well, so it's definitely a stain. The colour does fade over time, but it takes a few good hours for it to do so.

-------------------------------------------------

|| Total Value: $108.85 US ||

Overall, I'm pretty happy that my first experience with Memebox turned out like this. I liked everything I got and I have already begun to use most of the products. From here on out I'll be anxiously waiting for my Hand & Nail Care box and I think I will go ahead and purchase a Global Edition Memebox after all.

Most reviews about the Girls' Night Out box have been centred on whether or not people have been able to use the products inside. If you've seen products that you like and you're interested in picking up the Girls' Night Out box, you can still get it here for $23.00. Here are some discount codes to help you out with your purchase:

Discount Codes
  • Get free standard shipping on 1 of your boxes when you buy 2 or more boxes: SHIP4CHEAP3 (Expires: August 24, 2014)
  • Get $5 off any order: T875 (Expires: August 30, 2014) - one time use
  • Get 10% off orders above $100: 10%OFF$1004U
  • Get $5 off on orders when you buy 3 or more Memeboxes: MEMEBUNDLE3
  • Get $8 off on orders when you buy 4 or more Memeboxes: MEMEBUNDLE4

Thank you for reading! -A.~

No comments:

Post a Comment