I came home the other day, after a stressful errand filled afternoon, to what appeared to be a box of goodies at my door from Influenster. Low and behold, there waiting by my doorstep, was my Mary Kay Cosmetics Vox Box #MKglam ready to be opened and enjoyed! What beauty blogger doesn’t love getting her cute little mitts on make up to play with and I have to admit, I haven’t experienced anything from the brand since I was in high school (that was over way too many years to mention out loud, but still a long time ago). I was excited to see how far they have come, what trends they are focusing on and to see what the quality of their makeup was like. This package came to me from Influenster and was absolutely free of charge to me – I was not paid to write a review and all of my opinions are my own. I will share an unbiased and fair assessment of their makeup and the items I received below.
So what was included in my Vox Box?
→Mary Kay® Bronzing Powder
→Mary Kay® Translucent Loose Powder
→Mary Kay® Mineral Cheek Color
→Mary Kay® Cream Eye Color in Apricot Twist
→Mary Kay® Cream Eye Color/Concealer Brush
→Mary Kay® Lash Love® Mascara
→Mary Kay® Gel Eyeliner with Expandable Brush Applicator in Jet Black
→Mary Kay® NouriShine Plus® Lip Gloss in Mango Tango
Before I begin my review let me clear the air: I no longer purchase makeup or cosmetics that test on animals. I feel that my beauty should not hurt anyone or anything in the process therefore even though I love this generous product package, Mary Kay does test on animals and unfortunately even if these items were really fun and pretty to use – I just can’t say I would make a purchase unless they changed their stance on animal testing. Mary Kay for many years was against animal testing, then they were made and sold in China (where animal testing is required by law), so sadly ladies I can’t tell you that I would buy any of these things or tell YOU to buy them either. I have to be true to my beliefs and be honest. (sorry, but I’m not sorry).
I wish I would have been asked this question by Influenster before they sent me the product so they didn’t waste it on me. Perhaps that is a bit of feedback they can use from my post – include “will you be open to testing a product that is known to be tested on animals”.
But in fairness I will review the below items:
When it came to the box it was extremely full and very beautifully packaged. It had lots of full size items and even included the brushes and applicators you needed to use the products. I received a face powder brush, a cream eye shadow brush and a gel eyeliner brush. Personally I felt that the blush was too shimmery for my skin type. I have oily to combination skin so I avoid anything with too much shimmer or shine since it just enhances my oily skin mid-day or mid-evening. The color was very pretty, a nice peach/salmon tone that would be great if it was matte finish. The same went with the bronzer – I use a matte bronzer to highlight and contour my face so this one for me just wouldn’t work with my skin tone. It came off very metallic-ey and shiny on my skin especially on camera.
The cream eye color came in a cute little paint pot and the brush helped to glide it on very smooth. It felt soft to the touch and could also be easily applied with a finger tip. It was pretty much goof-proof and added a nice gold shimmer tone to the lid. This was perfect when paired with the black gel liner we also received. This product was a nice color, subtle but perfect when I have a tan and want a bit of drama in the evening.
As you can see it is a shimmer more than a glitter color and is a nice apricot color. For olive and tan skin tones this looks best, but when I am pale I tend to avoid anything too metallic since it can make me look washed out.
The mascara was a full size and had a great wand applicator. It seemed to separate and extend the lashes with the first coat, and it allowed for buildable layers on top for length and volume. I believe this color was black and it was very dramatic. Overall this was a really nice mascara and came off very easily when I washed it off. It did not clump or feel really hard after it dried.
As far the other items in the vox box: the translucent face powder reminded me a bit of the HD powder by Make Up Forever. It was light weight and white but went on clear. It did make my skin matte but it did not prevent shine or oil later in the evening. I did require a blotting paper in order to keep the oil at bay. For me the powder was also very messy so I did not like the packaging that much. The packaging for the bronzer and blush seemed to be a bit cheap and hard to open. The plastic container may have just been used for free trial purposes, but with the cheek color the pan holding the color moved around and even fell out when I opened. it.
The gel eye liner was really good, probably my favorite item in the box. It was almost identical to the packaging of my Tarte gel eyeliner but it was very smooth. The only down fall to this eye liner is it takes longer to dry, so when I was blinking my eye it left a black mark on my top lid. It was very smooth to apply, but it didn’t dry quickly enough to not ruin my eye area. The lip gloss was a red color so for me this personally was not my style. If I wear red on my lips I like to keep it matte finish and make my face mostly matte also, this box seemed to have a lot of shimmery things going on.
Overall I think the products were good, but if you factor in the fact that the company still tests on animals and that many of the items are tried were not good for people with oily/combination skin – I wouldn’t purchase these or future items.
Mary Kay – please reconsider your stance with animal testing. There is no reason to be selling in China or out of China when you can do it in so many other places that do NOT require testing on animals.
No animal should suffer for our vanity.
Watch my Vine video of my unboxing of my #MKglam Vox Box from Influenster
Disclaimer: “I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.”
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