Play! by Sephora April 2018 Review

Hello!

Sorry this post is late today. I’ve been trying so hard to find time to work on my blog and I just can’t because one thing or another comes up.. Today I was out of my house for 6 hours and I just wanted to be home..

I feel like this week started off BAD and I’ve just been feeling very frustrated lately.. I don’t know.. Today was supposed to be a happy day and now…I’m just not feeling it.. Ugh.. Rant over.

Anyway, I still want to keep on schedule, and today’s post is my Sephora box review. I still don’t know what I will be posting tomorrow because I wasn’t able to finish a project over the weekend, so I’ll have to improvise, lol.

Bag Contents:

• Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Perfector in Shade #6 (will not be reviewed)
• Philosophy Purity Made Simple Moisturizer
• Dr. Dennis Gross Ferulic + Retinol Wrinkle Recovery Peel
• Buxom Full-On Lip Polish in Celeste
• Kiehl’s Powerful-Strength Line-Reducing Concentrate 12.5% Vitamin C
• Burberry My Burberry Blush Perfume Sample (will not be reviewed)

I’ve gotten the Burberry Perfume sample a few months back, so I will not review it. I liked it, but now that I have it again, I don’t like it as much.

I will also not review the Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Perfector because it was a little dark for my skin tone and it looked a little orange. I’ll keep it and try it when I get more tan later in the summer.

---

Buxom
Full-On Lip Polish in Celeste

Quick Description & Claims:

This high-shine gloss tingles to coax a gorgeous lip look while pampering and moisturizing lips with vitamins A and E. Lips stay lusciously soft and seriously sexy. Layer on the love and take your look to the next level with new holographic top coats, which feature a unique silicone applicator.

Formulated WITHOUT:

• Parabens
• Sulfates
• Phthalates

Mini Product Review:

I wasn’t expecting much from this product, but I was surprised at how plump my lips looked. I couldn’t put a name on the scent, but it’s  sweet and subtle.

Anyway, it did make my lips feel tingly, but it wasn’t painful. In fact, it felt more like a cooling sensation, the same way one of my peppermint Burt’s Bees lip balm feels on the lips. My

I think it looks really nice on bare lips and it would also look good as a lip toppper on any lipstick, I didn’t try it because I wanted to see how it felt on bare lips first. But the shade I receive was really pretty, it just looks like a regular lip gloss and not sticky at all.

Cruelty Free? Yes!

---

Philosophy
Purity Made Simple Moisturizer

Quick Description & Claims:

A daily ultra-light moisturizer packed with good-for-you ingredients that deliver 24 hour hydration and in just three days, see a radiant, dewy complexion with less-visible pores.

Formulated with sustainable meadowfoam seed oil, cold-pressed chia seed oil, green tea antioxidant complex, a blend of vitamins C and E and moisture-magnet ingredients glycerin and sodium hyaluronate. After just one use of this moisturizer, your skin feels refreshed and bouncy to the touch, like a reset for your skin. It preps your skin for smooth makeup application and in just three days, see makeup optional skin that looks radiant, dewy, and smooth with less-visble pores, leaving it looking pure and restored to its ideal state. Skin feels ultra-moisturized all day without feeling greasy and like a daily vitamin, leaves it looking healthy and strong. Experience the power of pure moisture for all skin types, including sensitive skin.

Mini Product Review:

This moisturizer is SUPER LIGHT! They mean it when they call it “ultra-light”. This product also has a nice subtle scent, and it can also be used on any skin type.

I didn’t feel like it moisturized my skin as well when it was still pretty cold here, so I probably would only use during the summer. However, my face felt refreshed after using it for three days, it did look a little radiant but I don’t think I can give it full credit for making my face feel smooth, as I use other face masks that do that to my skin.

Cruelty Free? No. 

---

Dr. Dennis Gross
Ferulic + Retinol Wrinkle Recovery Peel

Quick Description & Claims:

A doctor’s dose of potent retinol that exfoliates and achieves a smoother, retextured appearance for healthy-looking skin.

This pro-strength ferulic and retinol peel rapidly retextures the appearance of skin and supports natural repair for your best complexion ever, while a replenishing moisture complex keeps skin in perfect balance. Multitasking while you sleep, this advanced treatment supports collagen production, reduces the look of wrinkles, and restores the feel of firmness so you can wake up to a remarkably smoother, firmer, and radiant complexion.

Mini Product Review:

I’ve used a retinol serum in the past and I absolutely loved it! It made my dark spots disappear after continued use and it prevented acne breakouts. As someone who was used retinol in the past and have gotten great results from it, I don’t doubt the claims of this product if used regularly. I can’t however, vouch for the “wrinkle recovery” part of it as I don’t have wrinkles (yet), and also, anti-aging products take weeks if not months to work and to notice a difference. So if you use this, don’t expect overnight results, though the retinol’s benefits work within 3 to 5 days.

Cruelty Free? Yes, and vegan!

---

Kiehl’s
Powerful-Strength Line-Reducing Concentrate 12.5% Vitamin C

Quick Description & Claims:

A potent vitamin C serum formulated with 12.5 percent vitamin C and hyaluronic acid to visibly reduce fine lines and wrinkles and boost radiance.

This fan-favorite solution is clinically demonstrated to improve overall skin texture, tone, and radiance while reducing the appearance of lines and wrinkles. It provides antioxidant protection and exfoliates to reveal healthier-looking skin.

Mini Product Review:

I was excited to use this product because I had never tried Kiehl’s products. I was however, a bit disappointed with this product. I thought it was just me, but it left my face feeling greasy. And I know they say to “pat” it into the skin, but that didn’t work out as well for me. So when I tried to smooth it into my skin, I felt that the formula itself had some texture.

I don’t know how to explain it, but what I initially thought to be residue from one of my masks (I thought I hadn’t washed it off completely) ended up being the concentrate itself. It almost felt like finely-milled sand. It felt rough when I tried to smooth it into my skin, and THAT made me hate it even more!

I really wanted to like it, I tried using it on different days, mornings and nights, on days when I didn’t use other masks or exfoliate to make sure I didn’t have any residue left, but nope. It was this product. It just didn’t work out for me.

Cruelty Free? No!

---

PRODUCT SWATCHES

---

What did you guys get in your boxes last month?

Find me on social media:

Instagram | Twitter | YouTube | Pinterest

Subscribe to Play! by Sephora to get a bag with 5 beauty samples for only $10/month!

Disclosure: this review is a personal opinion and is honest. I do not receive compensation for my reviews. Product(s) was/were purchased by me, unless noted otherwise.