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IPSY Glam Bag Plus November 2021 Review

Megan K.
ByMegan K.Dec 20, 2021 | 2 comments

Ipsy Glam Bag Plus
4.3 overall rating
242 Ratings | 28 Reviews

IPSY Glam Bag Plus is a $28 per month subscription box from IPSY. Every month you’ll receive five full-sized beauty products. The box will have a retail value of at least $120. (This box was voted as one of the best makeup subscription boxes and best beauty subscription boxes by MSA readers!)

My Subscription Addiction paid for this box. (Check out our editorial guidelines to learn more about how we review boxes).

First Impressions

As always, my goodies arrived in the pink IPSY bubble mailer and a drawstring back. The November design is navy with gold icons.

 

Also included was an info card, though individual items inside this month were not featured.

Now, on to the items!

VIOLET VOSS Essentials 2 Eye Shadow Palette - Retail Value $36

 

Violet Voss always seems to have the most colorful palettes with super unique shade selections. This essential set is no exception. It is a wild mix of totally subdued naturals with electric purples, a super bold blue, and a great green. With six shimmers and four mattes, there is plenty to choose from in here and you could get almost any sort of look imaginable. Well, minus a red look. Although the copper comes close! These powders are bold and smooth, which is pretty typical from my experience with this brand. I was mostly curious about that bright blue shade because I feel like it is a formula that is hard to get right. Often, neon blues are patchy or just sad! But this one delivers! I mean just look at the swatches:

Top to bottom: Beige, Clay, Rose Gold, Chocolate, Brown, Bronze.

Top to bottom: Wild Orchid, Blue Violet, Aqua, Blue Sky, Copper.

IL MAKIAGE Dirty Talk Matte Lip Color in 'Bella', 3.5 g - Retail Value $26

 

Does anything feel quite as holiday-appropriate as a bold red lip? It's a holiday party must! And this vampy crimson shade is a great choice. It is a matte finish, but one of those really, really comfortable sort of mattes. The ones that don't truly dry down but stay velvety and soft. And, sure, it isn't transfer-proof, but leave a kiss on that champagne glass! It still stays put for hours!

THRIVE CAUSEMETICS Liquid Lash Extensions Mascara in 'Brynn', 10.7 g - Retail Value $24

 

This was totally a mom-pick for me. This is her favorite mascara! So anytime it ends up in my hands, Lisa gets a new mascara. I will say, that if you are a fan of tubing formulas, this one really is hard to beat. It adds dramatic length and volume to lashes and stays in place all day, even under my problematic left eye! It is also gentle and doesn't even seem to irritate or flake onto contact lenses. Mom is going to be really happy!

BEST FACE FORWARD Balancing Serum, 30 mL - Retail Value $29

 

This is a brand that is new to me, and I did a little digging to scope out what they were about. Their formulas are aimed at helping blemish-prone skin while being safe and effective. This company also donates $1 per purchase to a charity of the buyer's choice, which is really cool. The packaging is pretty and although I think a dropper might not be the best way to house this stuff (it is a little thick to get into the glass dropper each time), I love the blue and holographic look of it all. And, the ingredient list.... well.. wow. I always run ingredients through a site like INCIdecoder just to get a view of everything inside and make sure I am not missing anything. Never stop learning, right? Well, this particular ingredient list is insanely wonderful. The good stuff inside would make for its own very long review, so I will leave you with my favorites and encourage you to take a deeper dive if ingredients are kind of your thing too. MY favorites: niacinamide, glycolic acid, malic acid, salicylic acid, hyaluronic acid, and licorice root extract. This unassuming clear gel is designed to balance skin while leaving it soft, exfoliated, and decongested. Not acne-prone? I get it. I wouldn't particularly consider myself acneic either. But these ingredients will still benefit practically anyone who wants to treat their skin.

ABLE SKINCARE Ultra+ Collagen Eye Rescue Therapy, 10 mL - Retail Value $116

 

Heads Up: The packaging is different here than on the brand retail site.

Phew. That last serum would be hard to follow up, but this eye cream is still pretty nice. Is it $116 nice? I mean, I wouldn't pay that much for probably any eye product. But that really comes down to your own budget and boring stuff like that. What I will say is that this cream is no slouch. So, the eye area is extra thin and extra sensitive compared to the rest of our faces, right? It is also prone to earlier signs of aging which is a real bummer and honestly one of the many things wrong with the universe, IMO. Inside this tube are a mix of super moisturizers (hyaluronic acid, mannitol, propanediol) and anti-aging ingredients like hydrolyzed collagen, loads of antioxidants, and exfoliating glycolic acid. It feels really great around the eye area (don't forget your lids!) and I noticed no irritation with my sensitive eyes. Is it the most exciting thing this month? Nah. But it's a solid addition with good ingredients.

Verdict

This month's IPSY Glam Bag Plus bag had a total value of $231 which is exceptional for a $28 bag. A lot of that value was just in the eye cream, so I am kind of glad it wasn't trash. The eyeshadow palette, lippie, and mascara brought the makeup drama, and the eye cream and serum brought some skincare to the mix. This was one of those bags that I wasn't actually that excited about when it arrived, but diving into the ingredients and formulas won me over. 

Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist!

To Wrap Up:

Can you still get this box if you sign up today? You'll likely start with December as your first month. As of publication, there was no IPSY waitlist!

Cost Breakdown: This box costs $28, meaning you are paying approximately the following per item:

  • Violet Voss Palette $4.36
  • ILL MAKIAGE Lipstick $3.15
  • Thrive Causemetics Mascara $2.91
  • BFF Serum $3.52
  • Able Cosmetics Eye Cream $14.06

Alternatively, each of the 5 items has an average cost of $5.60. 

What do you think of the November IPSY Glam Bag Plus? Which items did you get?

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Megan K.
Megan K.
I love natural/vegan beauty products, Korean skincare, unique jewelry, and weird candies from far away places. When I am not waiting for my next exciting box you can find me painting or taking photographs of interesting people. I never leave home without pug hair somewhere on my shirt and a bold lipstick on my smile.

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2 comments

Rache

Thanks, Megan for your review. I received that BFF serum as well, and was about to give it away (because I have dry, aging skin that is not acne prone) but decided to look into this product more and stumbled across your review. Based off your ingredient list and review of benefits, I decided to try this and have been loving it so far. It also has a great price point. Thanks, again!

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Snow

This might be a weird thing to say, but I think eyes look a little better with some character (aka lines) to them. This is not to say I’m ditching the eye cream, but check out Kevin Costner. He still looks just as handsome in his 60s as when he was younger, but just a bit more weathered. The cowboy gear he wears in Yellowstone doesn’t hurt either. 😁🤠

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