Service Review: Ipsy Box

My October ipsy box. Face wash, cleansing cloths, eyeshadow, lipstick, and body butter.

Disclaimer: I subscribed to the ipsy box on my own, and we don’t have any affiliate links in the review. The only thing I’ll get if you subscribe from here is “ipsy points” which is a program to earn free product that’s open for anyone who subscribes.

It’s time for another subscription box review! It seems like we all love getting surprises in the mail, and more and more of these boxes keep popping up (speaking of which, if you missed our press release about Geek Fuel check it out). The ipsy box is one of the first subscription boxes I heard of, but one I’ve only tried recently.

For $10 a month ipsy sends makeup samples. But instead of just sending out generic makeup samples to everyone, you take a beauty quiz when you register. The quiz covers several aspects of your beauty habits including style, brands, experience with makeup, and products. You can also retake the quiz at any time to update your preferences. Overall, this quiz is pretty effective at finding the right products for you. Almost everything I’ve gotten has been something I’d have an interest in. Usually one out of the five items is kind of out in left field for me, but that’s likely because I checked “I’m willing to try new styles.” (I have since removed that option, since it turns out I’m not.) In addition to the beauty quiz, when you review items ipsy takes these ratings into account as well.

Ipsy also tries to make the monthly subscription box a social event. The site is full of videos and looks users can post using things they’ve gotten in their ipsy box. Not something I’m interested in, so I haven’t explored it. But I do see how this would be a benefit for some users. They also really want to post on your Facebook. You can get sneak peeks by sharing that you’re a subscriber (I do this one. I like to know what I’m looking at for each product price wise before I get attached). You can share your reviews. Or just share a “I like this product.” Each one gets you ipsy points to go towards a full size product.

Overall, I like the ipsy box. It’s letting me try new products I would not have otherwise explored, as well as things I knew about but haven’t gotten to yet. And since it’s only $10 a month (that includes shipping) it’s not a big deal if there are things I won’t use.  Plus, a few of my friends have ipsy too so it’s fun to trade.