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.

[PinkEvergreen]

@Kim888  I love my Natasha Denona palettes but I never travel with them. I live for compact, sturdy palettes like this Ciaté one, and the TOO FACED - Just Peachy Velvet Matte Eyeshadow Palette – Peaches and Cream Collection. I like that Natasha is coming out with hard plastic palettes, but people are still reporting shadows falling out of them. It’s definitely an area she could improve on. 

[lmaster]

awesome gratis @PinkEvergreen

[Anonymous]

Lipstick/lipgloss junkie here saying those glosses look fun! Awesome gratis @PinkEvergreen!

[faeriegirl]

That gratis package looks awesome @PinkEvergreen! Thanks for the reviews😊

[WinglessOne]

How about a very non-recent check-in? 😂 In October last year, I attended the Glowing Up event at the Michigan Ave (Chicago) Sephora. Attendees got swag bags! I don’t remember if I ever posted about any of this, but here’s what we got: 

October 2018 Sephora Glowing Up swag bag

FRESH - Soy Face Cleanser - I honestly don’t recall what I didn’t like about this cleanser. I don’t remember hating it, but I must not have loved it or I’d have used the whole tube. Had it caused a bad reaction, I’d have tossed the tube—but I still have it, and I never forget when a product angers my skin, so... hmm. I’ll try it again soon. 

fresh Rose Face Mask 3.3 oz/ 100 mL - I patch-tested this on one side of my jawline. I was concerned about how fragrant this mask is, especially since it contains rose petals. My patch area felt great right after I used this mask! I went to bed and woke up to a constellation of little reaction bumps in that area. 😡 I never tried (and won’t try) this mask on the rest of my face. 

Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare Alpha Beta® Universal Daily Peel Pads 30 Treatments + 5 Bonus - I tried one of these after easing my skin into chemical exfoliation via FAB Facial Radiance Pads. I didn’t see immediate results with the DDG peels, but I kept using them and saw results over time. I used these (and occasionally the extra strength version) until a month or 2 ago: I was getting too much alcohol burn from them. I’ve switched to a different AHA peel that my skin loves, but I still think the DDG peels are effective. 

LANEIGE Lip Sleeping Mask – Intense Hydration Lip Treatment with Vitamin C Berry - This is one of 2 free jars I’ve received. Do I really need to say anything about this magic potion? 🙂 It saved my lips last winter as an overnight treatment. I plan to use it often this summer, once temps are consistently above 85ºF (even in humidity, high temps dry my lips out). Since a little goes a long way, it’ll probably take me another year to finish my current jar. 

SEPHORA COLLECTION - Cleansing Wipes - Coconut Water - My favorite makeup wipes, and I might not have tried them had they not been in this swag bag. I love to travel with these. They’re great at removing things I wear most often: brow pencil, lipstick, blush, and concealer. They struggle a bit with mascara and waterproof eyeliner, but I rely on a different makeup remover for that anyway. At home, I use these to remove makeup swatches and clean my fingertips during application—especially when I’m applying eyeshadow with my fingers or blending lipsticks. 

Sol de Janeiro Brazilian Bum Bum Visibly Firming Refillable Body Cream with Caffeine-Rich Guaranà 8 oz/240 mL - I know everyone else loves this stuff. So would I, if it wasn’t so strongly scented. It’s great as a body cream—very moisturizing—but the fragrance gives me sneezing fits and headaches, so I can’t use it. 😞 

SEPHORA COLLECTION - PRO Diffuser Brush #64 - When I don’t wanna get my hands dirty while applying skin tint, I reach for this brush to get sheer coverage. This brush replaced my similarly shaped yet denser IT Cosmetics buffing brush. I like the Sephora 64 better because I can stipple and lightly buff with it and get an even, natural finish. Since this brush doesn’t retain much product, it’s pretty easy to clean and I waste less product. 

BEAUTYBLENDER - the original beautyblender® - Since I don’t use sponges, I gifted this one to a good home. For me, brushes or my fingers are far more efficient than beauty sponges at applying makeup, and they’re much easier to clean. 

FOUR SIGMATIC - Mushroom Hot Cacao Mix with Reishi - I just realized I haven’t used this yet! Will do that soon. 

FOUR SIGMATIC - Mushroom Matcha Latte Mix with Maitake - Also need to try this soon. I just pulled both these Four Sigmatic pouches out of my pantry and put them on the counter beside my electric kettle, so I’ll remember to use them. 

[JRez]

I also attended that event, it was so fun!!! Here are my thoughts: 

Fresh soy face cleanser: Meh. This is fine, I don't love it or hate it so I leave it at my boyfriend's place and use it around once a week. 

Fresh Rose Face Mask: Unfortunately for my bank account I fell in love with this mask! I found it super moisturizing and have since purchased the full size. Sorry it didn't work out well for you! 
Laneige lip sleeping mask: I actually really didn't like this product! I had heard amazing things so was excited to try it. I found that it made my lips really flaky even if they felt moisturized. 

Sephora Collection Coconut Cleansing Wipes: These really irritated my skin 😞 

Sol de Janiero Bum Bum Cream: I love this stuff and am using it super sparingly because i don't want to spend on the full size

Sephora brush SEPHORA COLLECTION - PRO Diffuser Brush 64: I love this brush! I use it every day to do my makeup, I've found it works best with my stick foundations and can leave liquids a little streaky

Beauty Blender: I totally understand the hype around this product now! It is so amazing and blends like a dream!

[quspork]

This is a great goodie bag, @WinglessOne! I can't wait to hear what you think of the Four Sigmatic mixes. 

[WinglessOne]

Thanks @quspork ! I’ll definitely post an update when I try them. 

[lmaster]

@WinglessOne some scents are just too strong, sorry the fresh rose mask didn't work out

[WinglessOne]

Thanks @lmaster! Since I used a spatula to scoop out the mask for my patch test, a friend happily took the rest of the jar off my hands. So at least it went to a good home. 🙂

[lmaster]

@WinglessOne oh nice!!

[curlychiquita]

This is a great gratis, @WinglessOne!  I want o try the Four Sigmatic products some day! (I own a lot of supplements - it will be a while.)

[WinglessOne]

Thanks @curlychiquita ! I really wanted to try the hot cacao last winter but, for some reason, I forgot about it. I don’t usually drink hot cocoa/cacao/chocolate when it’s warm outside (yet I’ll still drink hot mochas) but this will be an exception. 

[l8totheparty]

Awesome swag bag! @WinglessOne 

[WinglessOne]

Thanks @l8totheparty !

[CookieGirl1]

Dang, @WinglessOne, that's an AWESOME swag bag.

[WinglessOne]

Thanks @CookieGirl1!

[trishavt]

@WinglessOne This is such an awesome gratis. I’m all about that bum bum cream. The scent is perfect for summer!

[WinglessOne]

@trishavt  @PinkEvergreen  If the scent was muted by about 50%, it’d be great for me. 🙂 One night I tried using just a small amount after a pre-bed bath soak, but it was still too strong—and it made my sheets smell overwhelmingly of Bum Bum Cream, so I had to wash them the next day. My sinuses couldn’t handle it. I love that other folks like it, though. 

[PinkEvergreen]

@trishavt  ...and Fall, Winter, and Spring. I slather it on all year round 😂

[ShortErica]

I will gladly read your non-recent review @WinglessOne. Good, bad, and ugly, I want to hear it. Thanks for remembering all you did and sharing it!