Beautylish Lucky Bags Review – January 2019

Beautylish is an online retailer for prestige skincare and beauty brands. Once a year, they offer a "lucky bag" for sale, which will contain a mystery assortment of products they currently sell. This year they offered the original lucky bag ( $75 for $150+ worth of products), the lucky bag XL ($150 for $350+ worth of products), a buy one give one bag ($150, you get an original lucky bag and two are donated to a Children's hospital), and the Jeffrey Star lucky bag ($75 for $150+ worth of Jeffrey Star products).

This is a review of the original lucky bag, which is no longer available for sale.

These lucky bags were inspired by the Japanese tradition of Fukubukuro!

My Subscription Addiction pays for this subscription. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes).

About Beautylish:

The Box: Original Lucky Bag

The Cost: $75 +$10 shipping

The Products: A mystery assortment worth at least $150

Beautylish Lucky Bag January 2019 Review

Anastasia Beverly Hills Subculture Palette – Retail Value $42

I will be honest- when I first pulled out this palette I was a bit disappointed. I was really hoping for a Viseart or Natasha Denona palette, and Subculture was incredibly controversial when it came out due to a manufacturing defect. In fact, most major retailers like Sephora and Ulta aren’t even carrying Subculture anymore, though you can still purchase it from both Beautylish and ABH directly. That being said, however, this palette surprised me. The pigment is absolutely beautiful, and these pans do not have the pressing issue that caused such a stir. This palette has two duochrome shades, one metallic shade, and eleven mattes. I can genuinely say I don’t have many of the colors that are in this palette, and the colors were buttery to apply and felt like velvet. When I was applying the shadows, I noticed that a lot of powder was wasted if I swirled my brush- it kicked up more powder than I could use. I solved this by pressing my brush against the palette rather than swirling, and I could build up the intensity of the shadows depending on how much I blended them out.

Here are the swatches. All of the shades are single finger swipes.

Stila Glitter and Glow Liquid Eyeshadow Set in Iridescent – Retail Value $25

I was nervous when I was watching the unboxings of other lucky bags and saw a lot of Stila sets- not because I don’t like them, but because I LOVE these glitter and glow eyeshadows, and have about eight already. Luckily, this set includes three shades that are brand new to me! Stylish is a warm platinum with duochrome gold pearl, Dollish is a sparkling pink with duochrome gold pearl, and Embellish is a lilac bronze with a duochrome multicolor pearl finish. These shadows are really versatile if you don’t mind a hint of sparkle- you can use them on their own, you can layer them on top of other eyeshadow, or you can grab an eyeliner brush and use them as an eyeliner.

Wayne Goss Precision Blending Eyeshadow Brush #19 – Retail Value $23

I was really hoping to get a Wayne Goss brush- I have heard great things about them, and I wanted to try them out for myself! To be honest, though, this brush didn't impress me. Yes, it performed well- but not any better than most of the eyeshadow brushes I have from various subscription boxes. Maybe I just need to use it more to discover its magic- any recommendations?

Beautyblender Pro on The Go – Retail Value $40 ($65 value)

This was the first item I pulled out of the box and I was incredibly happy with it. I love my beautyblenders, hate paying $20 for one, and use them for a lot longer than I probably should as a result. This set comes with a beautyblender original, a beautyblender pro, a beautyblender micro mini pro, a bloterazzi pro, and a black mini beautyblender cleanser. The bloterazzi is a sponge designed to help you blot oil throughout the day without messing up makeup, and while I have tried a sample before I am excited to see how the full-size version performs. I have never been one for the beauty blender micro minis, but then I tried a new brow product that gave me brows thicker than tree trunks. Rather than having to wipe it all off and start over, my micro mini came in clutch with applying concealer on my brows without messing up my eye makeup. The cleanser is infused with charcoal to help purify your sponges and brushes, and in theory, the proline is great for long-wear makeup. I plan on using the pros the same way I use my original beautyblender, but I am so happy to be stocked up on sponges.

Jouer Powder Highlighter Trio Set – Retail Value $39

After trying out the Jouer Cosmetics mystery box I learned that Jouer makes some incredible highlighters- they are buttery soft and blend incredibly well. This set came with three mini highlighters in the shades Ice (an icy holographic pearl), Skinny Dip (a shimmering golden peach), and Rose Gold (a shimmering rose gold). I like that these can be lightly applied for a more natural look, or built up to really pack the shine.

Here are the highlighters swatched (one swipe) above the Stila shadows. From top to bottom we have ice, rose gold, skinny dip, stylish, dollish, and embellish.

Good Molecules Super Peptide Serum

This is a bonus item that was included from a yet-to-be-released brand, Good Molecules. Everyone who got a lucky bag got a product from them, and mine is the super peptide serum. I haven't used this yet, as I am going to wait to learn more about the product and company when it officially is released for sale.

Here is the look I did! I did my regular base using my beautyblender to apply my Nars tinted moisturizer. For my eyes, I started with a base of Dawn, an ultra-matte sand. Next, I took Axis, an ultra-matte blue-green, and blended a small amount into my outer corners, making sure a bit of it carried over to my undereye. I then used Untamed, an ultra-matte tarnished green, to blend into Axis and carrying the softer green out onto my lid. I then took Adorn, a stunning metallic bronze, and patted it onto the inner corners and center of my lid, as well as lining the rest of my lower lash. To finish, I took Electric, a duochrome lime-gold, and blended it into my crease with broad windshield wiper motions. I wasn't feeling a traditional black eyeliner, so I actually grabbed my eyeliner brush and used Stila in Stylish as an eyeliner. For highlighting, I chose Jouer Skinny Dip, and I applied it to my nose (perhaps with a heavy hand on my nose, looking at the pictures), my cupids bow, the highest points of my cheeks, and my temples. I also used the pointy end of my damp beauty blender to set my under-eyes with setting powder to prevent flaking and creasing., I finished with brow gel, mascara, and my Estee Lauder lipstick in Strapless from my December Ipsy Glam Bag Plus.

The Verdict: Overall, I think my first lucky bag was a success! I think one of the traps with this is if you’re watching what everyone else is getting, you may not be happy with yours- even if it objectively is a great box. I am happy that all of the products are new items that I don’t already own, and I think everything came in super pretty, wearable colors. And I am really stoked about being stocked up on beauty blenders! This box cost $85 ($75 + $10 shipping), and I calculated a value of $169 for everything except the serum. I definitely will take my chances and order a lucky bag next year!

The Wrap Up:

Can you get this box if you sign up today? No, this is only offered once a year on December 26.

Value Breakdown: This box cost $85, which means that you paid $14.16 per item. Take the Good Molecules serum out of the equation, and you have a definite $169 value. That means you would pay the following:

• Subculture: $21.12
• Stila Iridescent Set: $12.57
• Wayne Goss: $11.57
• Beautyblender Set: $20.11
• Jouer Highlighter Trio: $19.61

Are you going to get a lucky bag next year? If you got one this time around, share your box contents below!