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.

[Titian06]

Great points @eshoe !

[eshoe]

Thank you, @Titian06 - I hope it helps someone who is going back and forth between the two. Sometimes I just want to skincare and go, sometimes I want to draw the whole process out. There’s a little bit for everyone here, I think!

[ather]

@eshoe  I agree. When I use tatcha products I feel so fancy!!

[eshoe]

Yep, @ather - I appreciate the whole aesthetic from the rice paper inserts to the cool violet hues and little gold spatulas. Her products aren’t everyday ones for me, so when I use them, I really enjoy them and pay attention to how they make me feel💜

[ather]

@eshoe  If you ever use the water cream look at it closely you can see gold flecks!! I also love the lip balm it makes me feel extra fancy!! 

[eshoe]

Ooh I’ve never noticed that, @ather! Thank you for the heads up;)

[lmaster]

@Titian06 imo the GR is not as siliconey feeling and absorbs much faster. It doesn't make me look super shiny like tatcha does. Some might like that, but I lean on the oilier side during the summer, so I don't need any extra glow

[GeorginaBT]

@lmaster Yay, glad you've been enjoying your goodies! 🙂 I'm not gonna lie - I wasn't sure how I felt about Virtue Strengthening Split End Hair Repair Serum Treatment 1.7 oz/ 50 mL when I first started using it. But after a few weeks of continuous use, I'm convinced that it's been making a difference on my ends. I'm a serial flat-iron user, and lots of split ends are natural for me, but this has definitely helped reduce the severity.

[lmaster]

@GeorginaBTthefirst time I used it on wet hair, and I couldn't see any changes, the second time, I used it on dry hair and the next day,,I was shocked how much healthier it looked

[naturalooks15]

Now that I am on desktop version, sound this thread. will be posting my updates here and link this thread in my other post.  Thank you again so much @TeamBIC   Lilah b, Amika, Bumble and Bumble and HudaBeauty-Wishfull @GlowRecipe 

First Impressions:

GLOW RECIPE - Watermelon Glow Lip Pop  - Ever so slight pink tint. shiney/ frost type finish, watermelon scent (kept making me want to eat watermelon 😐 ), looks good on my lips. My teenager might be able to get this from me with her puppy face. She already tried once 😄

Good for daytime use. Much lighter than bite or Laneige but slightly thicker than the lancome below

Lancome L'absolu Mademoiselle  Balm : Light brown tint, looks good for my medium skin tone and d=naturally dark lips. Has mint oil or menthol, gives that tigling feeling though not sure how much actual plumping is happening.

Very light feeling. Good for daytime quick swipe with a bit of color.

For severe dry chapped lips like my need to be supplemented with heavier balms in the morning and night. 

Wishful Yo Glow AHA & BHA Facial Enzyme Scrub 3.38 oz/ 100 mL  I have to be careful with exfoliants so I haven't opened  this one yet. Need to read-up some more or gather notes from others here. 

AMIKA - Flash Instant Shine Hair Mask 
I tried it today. It didn't feel like any other I have tried in the sense, didn't feel a lot of slip when applying it or rinsing off (that is a plus for me, I liked it). I plopped my hair and fell asleep but I didn't wake up to frizzy hair (which happens if I sleep liek that). Hair were shiny also though not out of the world shiney but more shiney than my usual products. 

I like the cone opening of this bottle. 

Texture/ Feel: Completely clear lightweight oil/ gel tyype consistency, not thick at all. 

Bumble and bumble Pret-a-Powder Post Workout Dry Shampoo Mist 4 oz/ 120 mL I am excited for this as I have been working out quite regularly and this could be handy.

Texture/ Feel: I noticed that it has solid powder settled in the bottom of the bottle. Assuming that is normal and to be expected. Will report back when I try it. 

LILAH B. - Aglow™ Priming Oil - I heard about this brand but have not tried anything. Excited to try this since I have been eyeing Charlotte Tillbury Hollywood flawless filter plus my skin is dry and gets flaky when I use foundation so hoping this will solve this plus work similar to hollywood filter. 

Texture/ Feel - Milky look, glowy oil after rubbing on skin

[2manyperfumes]

Congratulations @naturalooks15 👏 these are pretty awesome.

[PrettyPaint]

@naturalooks15  Congrats! We'll have to swap notes on the Wishful exfoliant, as I have pretty sensitive skin too. 

[naturalooks15]

definitely @PrettyPaint  !! Congratulation on getting this Gratis too. 

[PrettyPaint]

Thank you so much @naturalooks15 

[Titian06]

Congratulations, @naturalooks15 !  💖💖💖

[GeorginaBT]

Glad you're enjoying your gratis, @naturalooks15!  

My eyes are set on the Glow Recipe lip pop! Good call on it being suitable for daytime use. I'm loving AMIKA - Flash Instant Shine Hair Mask; my hair feels much softer after using it! Also, I'm really obsessed with the way it smells. 😄 

[lmaster]

Congratulations again!! @naturalooks15 

[KatieBT]

I have tested out the AMIKA - Flash Instant Shine Hair Masktwice now and I really feel like it makes my hair soft and shiny. This makes it great for frizz!

Thinking of doing a “half head” where I part my hair down the middle and only use this on one side to see the difference. I would probably blow dry my hair straight to truly allow for optimum shiny hair potential. Any other gratis recipients want to try this with me?? 

[naturalooks15]

@KatieBT  I was thinking about it because I used the mask today and then took pic but couldn't show anything in pic that would show the difference. I'm game. I'll probably do it on Tue.

[CookieGirl1]

That's a great idea, @KatieBT!

[ather]

@KatieBT  That’s such a great idea. I can’t wait to see the pictures of you do it!!