The Gratis Thread 🛍🎉

[cianni]

A place to say thank you, provide reviews and first impressions, or follow up on gratis received after more use!

Many of us have been very lucky to receive gratis (thanks Sephora!), and I’ve been finding that while it’s easy to initially post about receiving it and initial reviews, it’s not as easy to follow up! 

I thought maybe we could have a dedicated thread to follow-ups and reviews with products we’ve received after we’ve been using them for a while, especially because it’s sometimes hard to find the original thank you and first impressions threads.

[RNGesusPls]

Thanks @tsavorite ! It's the weekend and Dobby is freee

[PrettyPaint]

@RNGesusPls  I am loving those socks so very much! 🙂 Congrats!

[RNGesusPls]

Thanks @PrettyPaint !

[eshoe]

@RNGesusPls seriously this is the cutest BIC gear. So lucky, are you 😉

[RNGesusPls]

Thanks @eshoe ! I wonder if this is why they created the BIC gear ideas thread that one time!

[fatimamummy]

Congratulations @RNGesusPls what a great surprise to get. These socks are just adorable. Happy anniversary @TeamBIC  

[RNGesusPls]

Thanks @fatimamummy !

[faeriegirl]

Congratulations @RNGesusPls! Those socks are so cute!❤️

[RNGesusPls]

Thanks @faeriegirl ! They really are, and the note on it is as well!

[PinkEvergreen]

I’ve already posted on the specific Peter Thomas Roth mask thread, but I really like this central gratis spot that you started, @cianni, so I’m cross-posting here 👍

Many thanks for the gratis, @SephoraBIC and @peterthomasroth! It was a lovely surprise on my doorstep 😊 Can’t wait to dive in. 

 

[lmaster]

PETER THOMAS ROTH - Mask Mashup

Was the awesome gratis!! Thank you so much @peterthomasroth @@TeamBIC  

I used the Peter Thomas Roth Cucumber Gel Mask Extreme Detoxifying Hydrator 5 oz

Spoiler

[WinglessOne]

A few more updates: 

FRESH - Soy Face Cleanser - ❌ I’ve used it nightly for a week, and now I remember why I didn’t like it in October. It makes my whole face feel weirdly greasy... eh, “greasy” isn’t quite the right word... it leaves my skin coated in something I wanna wash off. For folks with very dry skin all over their face—no oily zone—this stuff might be great! But my combo skin’s not sure what to make of it. My oily zone feels even more oily (greasy!) right after I use this cleanser, and my dry zones feel somewhere between moisturized and oily. By the time I added FAB AHA or The Ordinary Buffet and my YTTP Superfood moisturizer, my dry zones felt clammy and my oily zone was ridiculous. I thought maybe Soy Face Cleanser wasn’t cutting through my sunscreen, hence the residue, so I followed up with micellar water. Any Coola tinted matte sunscreen residue should’ve appeared on my bamboo round. But nothing showed up, and my face still felt yucky. A few nights later, I noticed a few new tiny bumps on my jaw, right under both ears. Not a terrible reaction, but why keep using something that causes any reaction at all? So nope, I won’t use the rest of the tube. 

Kaja Heart Melter Lip Gloss Stick 01 Too Hot - 💚 I still love it. Took it on my April cruise and my lips were happy to have it in the Caribbean heat. It’s glossy and just pigmented enough to work for casual days and fancy dress up events, and it’s a good companion for bold eye looks. It wears down quickly during coffee/water drinks, but I expect that from any balm-like product, plus it’s very comfy. I keep it in my purse/bag. Even when I leave home wearing a different lipstick, sometimes I apply this Heart Melter instead of reapplying the other lipstick. 

Marc Jacobs Fragrances Daisy Love Eau So Sweet 1.6 oz/ 50 mL - ❌ Definitely too sweet for me. Cotton candy in a big bowl of confectioners sugar sweet. Not that there’s anything wrong with that for folks who love sweet fragrances. I’m just not one of them. 🙂 I wore this on one arm for about 4 hours before I finally had to wash it off; my nose and sinuses couldn’t take it any longer. On a positive note, it seems to be long lasting! 

Kate Somerville Liquid ExfoliKate® Triple Acid Resurfacing Treatment 4 oz/ 120 mL - ❌ Despite successfully patch testing this for weeks before using it on my whole face earlier this year, it dried my skin out thanks to its honey content. I didn’t like how it left my face feeling gummy and tight. And I learned from a dermatologist that this stuff has the wrong pH (“it’s close, but not quite there,” he said) for good AHA exfoliation. The 10% AHA exfoliation serum I currently use is much better for my skin. One positive thing I’ll say: at least Liquid ExfoliKate didn’t cause a super bad reaction, unlike regular ExfoliKate. 

[PinkEvergreen]

@WinglessOne  The Fresh Soy Face Cleanser is a pass for me, too. I’ve tried several samples and my skin just doesn’t feel clean or balanced afterward. I thought I would like it because I prefer to use gentle cleansers, but this doesn’t work for me. 

Thanks for your thoughts on the other products! 😊

[AJLClough]

I was so excited when I was chosen to try this product before it was released. I have now had it for over a week and have used it daily. I. LOVE. IT. It claims 24 hour wear and at first I was actually quite skeptical because I’ve never had good luck when I’ve had the misfortune of falling asleep with my mascara on. So the idea of actually leaving it on overnight ON PURPOSE was a little intimidating. But it’s actually been fine! I woke up with nary a flake and no itchy eyes! I wear contacts and have very sensitive eyes but this doesn’t bother them at all. It delivers volume and lift without weight or clumps. I’m shocked. I truly love it. It even gets all of my tiny little bottom lashes. I will be purchasing it in the future!

[Kim888]

@AJLClough this looks great on you!

[trishavt]

@AJLClough Your lashes look so long and beautiful! Happy that you were able to test this out and share your great review with us! 

[tsavorite]

@AJLClough ,

I'm glad to hear how much you loved the D*mn Girl! Mascara!

[lmaster]

congrats!! @AJLClough

[PinkEvergreen]

@AJLClough  Thanks for your review! Looking forward to trying this 😊

[faeriegirl]

Congratulations on your gratis @AJLClough! It looks great on you!

[PinkEvergreen]

@cianni  This thread was such a great idea. I’ve been enjoying reading about everyone’s gratis experiences in one location. Thank you! 😊

Back in November 2018 I was tickled pink (and blue, orange, and purple) to receive my very first gratis package from Sephora:

   

It contained:

-Bumble & Bumble Thickening Go Big Volumizing Treatment

-Ciaté London Glitter Storm Eye Shadow Palette

-Gucci Bloom Nettare di Fiori eau de parfum

-Indie Lee I-Waken Eye Serum

-Sephora Collection Neon Lip Gloss in pink, orange, blue, and purple

Bumble & Bumble Thickening Go Big Volumizing Treatment: I have long, fine hair so I was happy to get this. I run 2-3 sprays of this through my hair after my shower, but no more than that, as it can weigh down fine hair if used too generously. After that, I blow dry my hair and it definitely has a bit more volume. No, it doesn’t look like the model on the Sephora product page, but it does look a bit fuller. My hair is so fine, though, that blow-drying technique is always the defining factor in any final look, more than product. That being said, I would still repurchase this.

Ciaté London Glitter Storm Eye Shadow Palette: First off, the packaging of this palette is totally beautiful and neat. I’m a grown adult but I will freely admit to playing with the moving sparkles for quite a while 😂 The contents in the lid move freely which is so fun. 

        

This was my first Ciaté eyeshadow ever, so I was happy to get this as well. I found the formula very nice to work with and it definitely put Ciaté on my radar for future eyeshadow purchases. Every shadow was very pigmented and applied and blended out very easily, with very little kick-up or fall-out. As I write this, the palette is still on sale. I’d definitely recommend it to anyone wanting to add these shades to their collection, or as a fun gift to someone starting their quality makeup collection.

 

Gucci Bloom Nettare di Fiori eau de parfum: I’m not a fan of most floral perfumes. Although I passed this to my mother who favours floral perfumes, I did try it on myself. The initial rose notes were very nice. I fully expected the finish to be the dull, watery rose I expect from most floral perfumes of this type, but that wasn’t the case. The rose notes stayed pure and clear which I really liked. If I liked rose perfumes more, I would have definitely kept and loved this perfume.

Indie Lee I-Waken Eye Serum: I had never heard of Indie Lee prior to receiving their eye serum in this package, so I went into this trial as a blank slate. As with most eye products, a little goes a long way with this serum. It sinks into my undereye area quickly, and I do notice some de-puffing for sure. To be perfectly honest, though, I don’t have much discolouration under my eyes, so I can’t speak to its effect on that. My bigger concern is the fine lines under my eyes and it didn’t do much for those. (Nothing seems to, except nightly collagen eye patches.) It was still a nice product overall, though.

Sephora Collection Neon Lip Gloss in pink, orange, blue, and purple: These were a fun surprise. I’m sad that I can’t seem to find them on the Sephora website anymore. I really like the formula of these. It glides on nicely and is quite comfortable. The pink and purple are quite bright, yet I would still wear them to go out for errands. (I guess I’ve become bolder in the last year!) The blue and orange... ehhhh, not so much 😉 I still had fun playing with them, though. I mean, how can you not smile when you see these pretty colours?