Sephora Play! is a $10 monthly subscription box. It comes with 5 makeup, skincare, or haircare items, as well as one perfume sample per month. It also comes with a card that gives you an extra 50 points with purchase at a Sephora store.
This month the bag was something new – it is a waterproof bag with netting on one side – I believe it’s meant to take with you to the gym.
In the bag:
- Amore Pacific color control cushion compact sample. The top one isn’t labeled, but the other two shades are 104 Tan Blush, and 106 Almond Blush.
- Farmacy Honey Potion renewing antioxidant hydration mask. I keep bees, but have never tried honey on my face, so I’m curious to try this!
- Tarte Frxxxtion Stick exfoliating cleanser
- Clinique Almost Lipstick in the shade Black Honey
- Oui Treatment Mask (for hair)
- Tory Burch Love Relentlessly perfume sample
Cost breakdown:
- Amore Pacific Cushion Compact – full size retails $60 for 1.05 oz – sample is .1 oz worth $5.71. I am disappointed, however, because I will not be able to get full use out of this product because not all 3 shades are going to work for me, and they aren’t resealable, so look to be one time use (even if you don’t use all the product inside).
- Honey Potion – full size retails for $56 for 4.1 oz – sample is .32 oz worth $4.37
- Tarte Frxxxtion Stick – full size retails for $22 for 1 oz – sample is .22 oz worth $4.84
- Clinique Black Honey – full size retails for $17 for .07 oz – sample is 0.04 oz worth $9.71 – pretty generous sample, at more than half of the full size.
- Ouai Treatment Mask – full size retails for $32 for 2.4 oz – sample is .5 oz worth $6.67
- Tory Burch Love Relentlessly – full size retails for $86 for 1.7 oz – sample is 0.05 oz worth $2.53
Total value of the box: $33.83 more than triple what I paid, plus it comes with the bag and 50 bonus points.
Overall, I am always happy with my Sephora Play! box, as I generally love the variety and enjoy getting to try out high end brands, that I wouldn’t normally purchase in full size. The only thing I was unhappy with this month is the foundation – I wish they had made a greater effort to customize to the customer, but they only send out 6 box variations, so I would rather get something else if it can’t be customized.
Ipsy vs. Sephora Play!
This month, the value of Ipsy won over Sephora Play, with a $51 value of items. This month Ipsy gave me 2 full size items, which you will never get in a Sephora box. They also gave me a few items that I expect to last a long time before running out, such as a blush and bronzer. This months skin and haircare samples will be used up fairly quickly, but Sephora did give the Clinique lipstick which I was happy with.
I am going to continue to subscribe to both boxes, and keep doing a price breakdown to see if I find any trends between the two. In the long run, I have liked Sephora better for the brands and types of samples I receive, and for the fact that I always use everything I get, whereas I ended up getting rid of many items from Ipsy. For January, Ipsy was the winner for me, but I did like both boxes.
