December is an exciting month because I’ve got a lot of packages coming in the post for Christmas, and I was excited to receive my 2nd monthly Beauteque Beauty Bag (BB bag) this week.
What is a Beauteque Beauty Bag?
This is a monthly subscription service curated by a Korean beauty website Beauteque, based in the US. Each month, you will receive a BB bag of 6-8 full size items that are a variety of skincare, beauty and lifestyle products. They are usually centered around K-beauty but there are the occasional items from Japan, Taiwan or America. Each bag is usually valued about $60+ (£40+) but you only pay $24 (£16) per bag. Including shipping charges to the UK ($8.95) I pay $32.95/£21 in total.
For more information on the subscription service, check out their website here.
This month’s theme is Dazzling December – an array of delectable delights.
Bag contains an information card with all the products included: what it is, how to use and it’s retail value.
This month’s bag:
Bag provided for free which the products come in.
From my first BB bag, you know a big part of my excitement was receiving the different makeup bags each month. I prefer something practical that I can use rather than a box which most other beauty subscriptions use). This month it’s a cute golden champagne-coloured bag which is a thicker satin-like material but not as big as the polka-dot bag from last month. Still, I’ll get good use out of this for sure.
This bag was used to contain 4 of the 6 items provided below (the other 2 just in the Beauteque envelope as they’re too big to fit) and came well packaged. Both the nail polish and the hair essence came in bubble wrap.
6 full size products this month.
So let’s look at what we got:
- Beauteque Rainbow Volume Brush (Value $10.99)
This is Beauteque’s own product and is a small rainbow brush that creates volume, detangles and smooths hair to give an even and shiny hair style. Didn’t really need another brush but I’ll use this because not only does it look cute and colourful, its small and travel-friendly to dump in the bag for on the go and I like that it comes with a mirror on the back. It works like any other comb, and I haven’t particularly noticed its volumising function but that’s fine since I really do not need/want my hair more volumised.
2. Tony Moly Easy Touch Lip Liner (Value: $8.00)
Twist up lip liner on one end and brush on the other end for applying lipstick.
Shade 05 ‘Red’
Use: To define and make a fuller lip line while preventing lipstick from feathering and bleeding. Use the brush on the other end to fill in the lips with your own lipstick. (Colour varies)
Think I’ll give this to my mum. It’s a nice deep dark red shade and I think I actually have a Mac lipstick in this exact colour but I rarely wear bright or dark shades of red lipstick unless it’s a special occasion and I use lip liners even less. I don’t have feathering or bleeding problems with lipsticks I wear and I’m not usually bothered with the extra step of lining my lips when it doesn’t make too much of a difference. Though it is nice that it provides a brush on the other end to fill in the lips.
3. Urban Dollkiss Black Evil Nail Polish (Value: $6.00)
This is just ok. I got this in No.2 Plum. It doesn’t look like plum at all. It’s a red that leans very pink. Though actually, in all the pictures I tried to take of my nails it looks more like a true red which is what I actually prefer in my red nail polish. The colour payoff is good, and you only need one coat which applies evenly but the brush is too big and wide for my liking so it is a little difficult to get a nice clean application.
4. Scinic Pig Collagen Jelly Cream (Value: $17.90)
Use: Collagen rich cream that plumps and firms the skin and helps reduce the appearance of wrinkles. Doesn’t contain artificial colours, parabens, mineral oils, petroleum, BHA, TEA or talc.
Now isn’t this just adorable! The cutest cream I’ve ever seen. I really am a sucker for cute packaging. Was really excited to get my hands on this when I saw the spoiler email from Beauteque the other week. I’ve never tried anything from Scinic nor have I tried pig collagen cream before but that’s not putting me off because not only does it have a cute piggy face, the cream itself is such an interesting consistency. So intrigued.
They’re not wrong calling it a jelly cream; when I dipped the spatula into it I was just tempted to eat it because it looks and feels like a pudding with a bouncy consistency. I was initially worried about the smell (fearing something resembling the smell of pigs) but it’s quite pleasant and reminds me of the Etude House Moistfull Collagen Cream. It also has the strangest colour I’ve seen for a moisturiser. I will probably do a full review of this when I’ve had the chance to try it out more but my initial impression is that it spreads easily like a gel cream and feels moisturising.
5. Ladykin Elmaju Broccoli Super Brightening Cream (Value: $15)
Use: Cream containing broccoli extract and blueberry fruit extract to offer deep moisturisation benefits by drawing in and absorbing moisture from the air and very effecting at brightening the complexion.
Surprised they’d have two moisturisers in one bag. I guess since it’s winter in most parts of the world they figure people could do with more moisturising products. This one primarily focuses on ‘brightening’ and upon testing I can see the immediate effect. It initially looks like the white cast you get with some sunscreens. I’m already pale enough so I’m a bit cautious with how this cream will work on my face especially under makeup. Will probably update on how this cream works when I’ve tried it for awhile longer.
6. Somang Keratin Silk Protein Hair Essence (Value: $13.99)
Use: Contains silk protein and various flower extract to detangle, strengthen, smooth and protect hair, and lock in moisture. Apply to palms then gently apply to damp or dry hair.
Subscribers could either receive this or the A’pieu Smell Out Hair Mist in Fruity Girl and I am really glad I received the essence. I think hair mists are quite pointless because they don’t do anything except perfume the hair. Whereas this hair essence has a lot more benefits especially since I straighten my frizzy wavy hair quite regularly so it works as a good heat protector. My hair is also quite thick and coarse so I’m keen to see if this helps to smooth and soften it.
Overall:
I must admit after getting over the excitement of receiving my new BB bag, I was initially disappointed with the products this month, especially compared to last month. There were 2 less products (although the overall value was similar) and 2 of the 6 were both moisturisers. I do think it could have been curated slightly better. Despite that there’s only 2 products I don’t really like: the lip liner and the nail polish. One I don’t have much use for and the other isn’t a colour I’m too fond of. However, I am quite keen on the 4 other products, especially the pig collagen cream and the hair essence and I can’t wait to try them out more. I am glad that both the moisturisers were manufactured this year so they won’t expire until 2018, giving me time to actually work my way through them since I now have so many different creams. They do have completely different purposes too so I don’t mind they’ve included both. Overall, I do like the quality of the products included and with a total value of $71.88 (£48), (though closer to£40), it is a nice saving to try out a variety of Asian beauty products.
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