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.

[MsMAP]

So grateful to get this bundle of goodies. But I'm wondering if there is somewhere to change my skin tone setting for next time? Almost all of these products are way way too dark for me.

Edit: for some reason I can add pics to post since the last app update 

[SusanM85]

@MsMAP Congratulations!

[haleyvvvv]

Congrats, @MsMAP!!

[Titian06]

Congratulations, @MsMAP !  Enjoy your goodies!  💖💖💖

[SportyGirly125]

@MsMAP @Congrats on this gratis. You can change your skin tone on your profile online. Usually with gratis they don’t cater to a specific skin tone. We almost all get the same product color to test out. 

[SportyGirly125]

Cross posting 

@TeamBIC Thank you so much for this surprise assortment of clean products.  I can’t wait to try everything and review them.  There were 2 items not in the shades mentioned on the sheet. I got SEPHORA COLLECTION Clean Bouncy Eyeshadow Palette Monarch  and MERIT Flush Balm Cream Blush Mood  so I will be reviewing those in replacement of the ones on the sheet. 

[SusanM85]

@SportyGirly125 Congratulations, they look like great products!

[SportyGirly125]

@SusanM85 @Thank you 

[haleyvvvv]

Congratulations on receiving this great gratis, @SportyGirly125!! I hope you like all of the products, can't wait to see your reviews!!

[SportyGirly125]

@haleyvvvv Thank you!

[Titian06]

Congratulations,  @SportyGirly125 !  These products look really nice!  Enjoy!  💖💖💖

[SportyGirly125]

@Titian06 Thank you!

[lmaster]

Ohhhhhh how exciting!! Congratulations!!! @SportyGirly125 

[SportyGirly125]

@lmaster Thank you!

[quspork]

This is a follow up to a gratis that @TeamBIC (Thank you again!) sent some of us a while back with a selection of hydrating and redness-reducing serums and masks. I wanted to post a few thoughts about a couple of them now that I've finished or almost finished a few of them. 

Background: My skin is oily and dehydrated. I'm 40 so aging is an issue but still get occasional (usually hormone related) breakouts. I'm pretty prone to redness in my cheeks and hyperpigmentation. My skin isn't overly sensitive to too many ingredients, but can react adversely to certain things (ferments, retinol, a few others). 

All that said, I wanted to get this up since my favorite of the bunch is included in this weekend's sale so I picked up a new tube and wanted to share in case others might be interested. 

The first up is one that just didn't work for my skin- the LANEIGE Hypoallergenic Cica Sleeping Mask. I love the original Laneige water sleeping mask and have it in both the original version and the lavender version. The original version is incredibly light weight, sinks in easily, and hydrates my skin well overnight. Unfortunately, the Cica version is just too heavy for my skin. This version would be much more appropriate for those with drier skin than mine.  I didn't notice too much of a reduction in redness with this one, but I believe that's at least in part because it didn't agree with my skin overall. I've tried re-purposing it on other areas of the body that see more dryness (hands, arms, etc) but it ends up not being quite moisturizing enough for those areas. If anyone is interested in any of the sleeping masks, Laneige (direct site) is offering full-size versions as a GWP with $65 purchases today and tomorrow. 

The second is the Drunk Elephant F-Balm™ Electrolyte Waterfacial Mask 1.69 oz/ 50 mL. This sleeping mask that is supposed to plump, quench, and restore overnight is just "OK" for me. It is a light, airy cream that sinks in well and does add some hydration, but in the end, there's just not enough OOMPH to justify purchasing this for me. 

That leads me to the third product, Algenist GENIUS Collagen Calming Relief 1.35 oz/ 40 mL. This I love. It's a light cream treatment that layers easily into my routine, sinks in well, and works! It hydrates, soothes, and calms my redness. The Calendula included in the ingredients is an added bonus as my skin loves that particular ingredient for plumping and soothing. I love layering this under my moisturizer at night. It's made a noticeable difference in the redness on my cheeks, and I can feel a difference in my skin when I'm using it vs when I'm not. At first, I balked a bit at the price tag, but in the end, I do feel like this one is worth it for me. And for the Sephora Presidents' Day Sale, it's marked down from $58 to $41 (US) which made it an easy order for me this morning. 

Thanks again TeamBIC for letting me try out these products and I hope this helps someone else out there! 

[GG84]

@quspork 

I received this also. I’ve since repurchased both Drunk Elephant F-Balm™ Electrolyte Waterfacial Mask 1.69 oz/ 50 mL  and Algenist GENIUS Collagen Calming Relief 1.35 oz/ 40 mL . Like you, the LANEIGE Hypoallergenic Cica Sleeping Mask 

did not agree with my skin however I had a reaction to it so I gave it to a family member to use. 

[haleyvvvv]

Thank you for the update, @quspork!! The Algenist calming cream sounds lovely, I'll have to check if I have a deluxe mini somewhere, I could use some redness relief.  I really like their products, even if they're a bit pricier.

[quspork]

@haleyvvvv Do you have a favorite of Algenist? I've tried a few foils from them but that's usually not enough to really get a good feel. I've been debating their hand cream for a while. 

[haleyvvvv]

@quspork, I love the Algenist POWER Recharging Night Pressed Serum 2 oz/ 60 mL and although the Algenist GENIUS Liquid Collagen isn't my favorite firming serum and the Algenist Complete Eye Renewal Balm Kit (or at least the balm part) isn't my favorite eye balm, they are both really nice.

[Titian06]

@quspork - Thanks for the update!  Your skin sounds very similar to mine.  The LANEIGE Hypoallergenic Cica Sleeping Mask does not work for me either.  The original still works best.  I'm not really into the Drunk Elephant line so I haven't tried the F Balm.  I have the Algenist GENIUS Collagen Calming Relief 1.35 oz/ 40 mL on my Loves list.  I think you just bumped it up a few places!  😄