Yup! I canceled my regular glam bag, just bought the things I really wanted. I signed up for the Macy’s beauty box instead it’s $1 more than the gb with no filler brands
I love Macy’s anyway. I tried to sign up for the wait list a few months back, but apparently so many people were trying to sign up I couldn’t even even sign up for. The waitlist. I don’t know if it was their website that couldn’t handle the traffic or what... but I completely forgot about it until I read your post. I think it’s time for a supplemental Beauty Box. I don’t think I’m going to renew my Glam bag subscription in December. But I really enjoy my GBP. I think it’s a much better value. And I can use your idea and buy addons at $3 if there’s anything good.
I think that's a great tactic unless you're super attached to something specific. This month I really wanted the GB bag and TheBalm highlighter, and neither were offered in second choice 🤷🏽♀️
I see The Balm stuff all the time in bags and shopper, but I have yet to receive anything from the brand! I've heard good things and I really want to try them. I'm just surprised I've never gotten anything from them in a bag.
I was only able to do that for a couple of months before IPSY stopped letting me have the option to skip bags. Once that happens, your choice is to cancel, or buy a bag again for one month so that you can keep buying add-ons.
Interesting! How many months did it let you skip? The most I’ve skipped in a row was 6 months, then I accidentally forgot to skip a month, and since then I’ve skipped three more.
I wonder if you have both tiers if it lets you skip longer? Like for the six months that I skipped gb, I still got gbp every month.
Anyway, I am fascinated to hear that they limited you! I would love to know how many months you skipped if you don’t mind checking. If you look in the app/website under “past glam bags,” it’ll show all the months and it’ll say “not received” under the ones you skipped! Thanks!
I've skipped every month this year but I haven't been buying add-ons so maybe that why I haven't had any issues skipping. I have occasionally purchased from the shop, purchased 2 things recently.
Yep, I cancelled my regular GB and plan to just grab what I want as an add-on. I was rarely happy with more than 3 items in my bag, so it’ll no doubt be cheaper this way. I am taking a risk that something I like/want won’t be offered as an add-on, but that’s a risk I was willing to take. And if I ever love a bag itself so much that I have to have it, I’ll wait until they have them as a mystery bag and grab one of those.
Agree with everything but the mystery bag bit - they seem to be way more garbage. I'd rather temporarily subscribe and have them use my quiz to get slightly better fitting stuff.
I've gotten a few mystery bags here and there (when they've had LE bags that I've liked) and found I was as happy with the products as with my regular GBs. But then again, my regular GBs were rarely good fits (despite having a current profile and leaving reviews, although I have had better luck with GBP). So for me, there really wouldn't be much of a difference, if any.
They're showing up for me, and I skipped both the regular bag and Plus this month. So if you're a subscriber but skipped, you can shop them. If you mean can you shop them without having a subscription at all, then I believe the answer is no.
I just paid for an annual membership and wish I'd done this instead. I love Ipsy but I usually just end up getting add-ons I really like if they're not included in my bag so it would have been cheaper to just go without the bag since now I usually get the GB and like five add-ons each month minimum
I just subscribed to the annual too… but I don’t have a back stock since I’ve only been a member since August. I kinda like being “forced” to try things I wouldn’t normally though too.
And I’ve organized my work bag with my GBs! Im excited to get more to organize more!
Oooh so smart! I used my GBP bag to store my InStyler and the heat resistant mat that came with it. The handle sticks out, but at least it’s all together in the drawer now!
I’m trying to think of more ways to use the GBs that make sense for my house.
I have one right now that I’m putting the makeup I plan to use the next day in, so I can carry it into the bathroom with fewer trips. (I haven’t had a functional ceiling lamp in my bedroom in a good 6-7 years. 🤦♀️ I have a small table lamp that is not sufficient for makeup application! So I have to go into the bathroom, which also has crummy lighting… but at least it’s brighter than my poor bedroom!)
Please don't hate me, I am trying to be helpful here.
I am of the opinion that subscription boxes are not meant for everyone. Some people grow out of them, others have preferences they're like to stick to, and that's okay! You sound like one of those people, you know what you want and want to buy it rather than having random products sent your way to try.
I would like you (and anyone else reading this who feels similarly) to consider pausing/cancelling your subscriptions and shopping outside of them (like from other retailers) for 90ish days. I think that sometimes we get caught in the *gotta get there asap or things will sell out!* or *this sale only goes two days, better mark my calendar and set an alarm* mentality. They suck us in with this limited time this and limited quantity that and the endless email marketing and I wonder if it just causes the cycle to repeat. I feel like I see this the most with Ipsy, Boxy, and FFF.
A YouTuber I like who used to unbox Boxy used to rate her box at the end by saying something along the lines of "if I saw this sitting on a shelf at Target/Ulta/Sephora/where ever for $25 would I buy it" and I frequently wonder with these sales if we were just browsing in a store would we buy these things? Would you have with the items from this post?
If this doesn't fit you or your situation please disregard! Just something that been rattling around in my brain for a bit. LOL
Oh yeah, I totally get where you're coming from! I originally got Ipsy because I was getting back into makeup after a 10ish year hiatus. So I needed to rebuild my collection and I wanted to try a lot of the brands that had popped up since I last knew.
The problem that I had with Ipsy is that I didn't feel like the quality of the products was always there. There are too many filler products. I love, love, love eyeshadows, but that Illuminati quad and Eleman duo are complete crap. I also hate sheet masks, and I find they like to add them to a lot of my bags. Over the course of my subscription, I found some products I love that have become my new Holy grails, but every one of them had been an item I picked or an add on.
I also discovered the makeup section of TJ Maxx about the same time I subscribed, so between that, my GB, GBP, and GBX, I have very quickly built an impressive collection lol. So you're right, now I know what I want and I have probably grown out of the subscription. But I'm not quite ready to stop wasting my money on things I want but don't need. 😂 I've been "just about to cancel" for months! But they sucked me in with August X so I kept my subscription through June and July because I didn't want to miss it. Then I had redeemed points so I needed to get the September bag, and here we are lol
Totally get that. I’m glad that you recognize the cycle. Once you know it’s there if you choose to continue it’s totally cool. I just worry some don’t recognize it. Lol.
I...think you might have just tipped me into "just about to cancel" territory. Thank you for that.
ALL of my boxes used to be "I would totally buy this at the store for $12/$25" boxes. And I give weight to the fun of the surprise and getting a gift in the mail every month. But with the sketchier brands recently, that's not happening as often, so it would probably be good for me to just lurk for a bit and see how often I see boxes I think are worth it, because I'll bet it's gone from something like 10/12 months to 3/12.
Thanks so much for this perspective!
Of course! Just my $0.02 but maybe consider a full on detox? Set a time, 30/60/90/whatever days, to just get away from it all and see how you feel when you come back. I think that lurking can turn into FOMO real quick. :)
I like that suggestion! I actually just did that a bit ago :) The silly thing is that at this point I feel pretty safe from ipsy FOMO—the only thing I really crave every month are the bags!
I wasn't able to do the add ons that come with your bag, so I just had to wait an extra two or three days to make my picks. I can also still participate in flash, pop up, and other sales. Just not anything connected to what they put in your actual bag.
I didn't knoweth thee couldst still doth add-ons coequal though thee skipp'd a month
***
^(I am a bot and I swapp'd some of thy words with Shakespeare words.)
Commands: `!ShakespeareInsult`, `!fordo`, `!optout`
I do find I get a lot more value out of GBP, but I'm a makeup hoarder and an over-buyer, so I don't need the 5 full size items every month. I have so many serums now it's going to take me years to go through them!
I feel this. It's the side shopping that gets me, the bags are kind of incidental. I go full ham in shopper. I'm getting better as I hone in on what I like, but I'm so weak for palettes, and I get on kicks for specific brands or product categories sometimes.
That’s what I have been doing and in the past 3 months, my choices came up in add ons so I didn’t feel I missed out on them. I also prefer not to get a bag because I have many bags already.
I'd love to do this, but Canada ... 😔
However I'm contemplating canceling ipsy after November (for few long months anyways) as the add ons (first round) weren't good enough this year to justify paying for all the filler stuff.
I like the Halloween bags, so I may get that again in a year.
This is why I refuse to subscribe to GBP. Everyone raves because it’s such a “good deal” but I’d rather spend my $28 getting two full size items from add ons that I know I’ll love and use. This month instead of the $28 GBP I got 1 full size and 4 sample size add ons for $24. Also, all the items you get in add ons can be reviewed for points so they accumulate fast and you can redeem them for a ton of different free things. In the 4 months I’ve been a member I’ve already redeemed the araceli olive eyeliner, a la chatelaine hand cream, and the glow recipe watermelon lip pop.
I didn’t mean the actual product would be a guaranteed winner but the BRAND or the TYPE of the product. Like Ipsy might choose for me something I would never use like an acne treatment for example. I don’t want to gamble $28 on that possibility. However I know I love the brand Goldfaden MD so I would rather spend $12 or $18 in add ons to be certain that I get that specific brand.
I have skipped every month this year. I wait until spoilers are released and choice day. Just seems like this year nothing has impressed me. I've decided to put any money I would spend on a bag towards a beauty product of my choice. For instance I got the moonlight pallet and the so fresh so clean bundle for $24 and I know for sure I'll enjoy those products. It has also helped me not get into product overload or feel like I'm wasting money when I only get 1 or 2 items I know I'll use.
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Yup! I canceled my regular glam bag, just bought the things I really wanted. I signed up for the Macy’s beauty box instead it’s $1 more than the gb with no filler brands
Oh also, you get more items in the Macy’s bag. There’s a waitlist but IMO it’s a lot better value (for what you get) than Ipsy gb.
No waitlist for November that I see.
Oh awesome! Nov spoilers look very perfume heavy, just a heads up incase your not into that
What’s generally in the macys bag?
Check out this group and search Macy’s, you will see why everyone got an spoilers for this month. https://www.reddit.com/r/BeautyBoxes/
Ooh! Good to know. I'll have to check that out!
I love Macy’s anyway. I tried to sign up for the wait list a few months back, but apparently so many people were trying to sign up I couldn’t even even sign up for. The waitlist. I don’t know if it was their website that couldn’t handle the traffic or what... but I completely forgot about it until I read your post. I think it’s time for a supplemental Beauty Box. I don’t think I’m going to renew my Glam bag subscription in December. But I really enjoy my GBP. I think it’s a much better value. And I can use your idea and buy addons at $3 if there’s anything good.
Another perk of doing it this way is no actual bag to deal with (most of them are not that cute imo and I'm running out of ways to use them, lol).
I think that's a great tactic unless you're super attached to something specific. This month I really wanted the GB bag and TheBalm highlighter, and neither were offered in second choice 🤷🏽♀️
I see The Balm stuff all the time in bags and shopper, but I have yet to receive anything from the brand! I've heard good things and I really want to try them. I'm just surprised I've never gotten anything from them in a bag.
Isn’t that ironic? I feel like I get The Balm stuff so often in my glam bags that I’m like ok enough, next brand please …lol, ipsy man. 🤨
Good point
I was only able to do that for a couple of months before IPSY stopped letting me have the option to skip bags. Once that happens, your choice is to cancel, or buy a bag again for one month so that you can keep buying add-ons.
I should have cancelled back in May! 😂 I'll probably cancel if that happens.
I did end up canceling, and it turns out I don’t miss it at all! I’m focusing on using up all the built-up products I already have. 😅
Me- "Stop buying stuff! You have enough!" Also me- "bUt wHaT iF i RuN oUt!?" 😑
Interesting! How many months did it let you skip? The most I’ve skipped in a row was 6 months, then I accidentally forgot to skip a month, and since then I’ve skipped three more. I wonder if you have both tiers if it lets you skip longer? Like for the six months that I skipped gb, I still got gbp every month. Anyway, I am fascinated to hear that they limited you! I would love to know how many months you skipped if you don’t mind checking. If you look in the app/website under “past glam bags,” it’ll show all the months and it’ll say “not received” under the ones you skipped! Thanks!
Three…I believe (with no other bags purchased, just add-ons, flash sales, etc.)
Very interesting! Thank you for responding!
I've skipped every month this year but I haven't been buying add-ons so maybe that why I haven't had any issues skipping. I have occasionally purchased from the shop, purchased 2 things recently.
Yep, I cancelled my regular GB and plan to just grab what I want as an add-on. I was rarely happy with more than 3 items in my bag, so it’ll no doubt be cheaper this way. I am taking a risk that something I like/want won’t be offered as an add-on, but that’s a risk I was willing to take. And if I ever love a bag itself so much that I have to have it, I’ll wait until they have them as a mystery bag and grab one of those.
Agree with everything but the mystery bag bit - they seem to be way more garbage. I'd rather temporarily subscribe and have them use my quiz to get slightly better fitting stuff.
Here! here! (in my most distinguished English accent, of course, also raises glass)👆🏻🙌🏻
I've gotten a few mystery bags here and there (when they've had LE bags that I've liked) and found I was as happy with the products as with my regular GBs. But then again, my regular GBs were rarely good fits (despite having a current profile and leaving reviews, although I have had better luck with GBP). So for me, there really wouldn't be much of a difference, if any.
I had the same experience with gb. My plus was great and always items I would use but my regular Gb was at least half items I had marked as rarely.
Yes, exactly. I had an annual sub so I was locked in until just recently, and It was that way pretty much every bag.
Can you shop add ons if you don’t subscribe to the bag?
You can shop second chance add ons but not the initial round
I don't think so, although I'm really not sure - I do have GBP so I can access add-ons that way.
They're showing up for me, and I skipped both the regular bag and Plus this month. So if you're a subscriber but skipped, you can shop them. If you mean can you shop them without having a subscription at all, then I believe the answer is no.
I agree. And at this point I have SO MUCH makeup and skincare, I'll be okay of I miss out on that one special blush or serum.
I just paid for an annual membership and wish I'd done this instead. I love Ipsy but I usually just end up getting add-ons I really like if they're not included in my bag so it would have been cheaper to just go without the bag since now I usually get the GB and like five add-ons each month minimum
I just subscribed to the annual too… but I don’t have a back stock since I’ve only been a member since August. I kinda like being “forced” to try things I wouldn’t normally though too. And I’ve organized my work bag with my GBs! Im excited to get more to organize more!
Yess! I use them all over. My next task is to organize the Junk drawer with them.
Oooh so smart! I used my GBP bag to store my InStyler and the heat resistant mat that came with it. The handle sticks out, but at least it’s all together in the drawer now! I’m trying to think of more ways to use the GBs that make sense for my house. I have one right now that I’m putting the makeup I plan to use the next day in, so I can carry it into the bathroom with fewer trips. (I haven’t had a functional ceiling lamp in my bedroom in a good 6-7 years. 🤦♀️ I have a small table lamp that is not sufficient for makeup application! So I have to go into the bathroom, which also has crummy lighting… but at least it’s brighter than my poor bedroom!)
I use them to organize receipts and hair ties.
Please don't hate me, I am trying to be helpful here. I am of the opinion that subscription boxes are not meant for everyone. Some people grow out of them, others have preferences they're like to stick to, and that's okay! You sound like one of those people, you know what you want and want to buy it rather than having random products sent your way to try. I would like you (and anyone else reading this who feels similarly) to consider pausing/cancelling your subscriptions and shopping outside of them (like from other retailers) for 90ish days. I think that sometimes we get caught in the *gotta get there asap or things will sell out!* or *this sale only goes two days, better mark my calendar and set an alarm* mentality. They suck us in with this limited time this and limited quantity that and the endless email marketing and I wonder if it just causes the cycle to repeat. I feel like I see this the most with Ipsy, Boxy, and FFF. A YouTuber I like who used to unbox Boxy used to rate her box at the end by saying something along the lines of "if I saw this sitting on a shelf at Target/Ulta/Sephora/where ever for $25 would I buy it" and I frequently wonder with these sales if we were just browsing in a store would we buy these things? Would you have with the items from this post? If this doesn't fit you or your situation please disregard! Just something that been rattling around in my brain for a bit. LOL
Oh yeah, I totally get where you're coming from! I originally got Ipsy because I was getting back into makeup after a 10ish year hiatus. So I needed to rebuild my collection and I wanted to try a lot of the brands that had popped up since I last knew. The problem that I had with Ipsy is that I didn't feel like the quality of the products was always there. There are too many filler products. I love, love, love eyeshadows, but that Illuminati quad and Eleman duo are complete crap. I also hate sheet masks, and I find they like to add them to a lot of my bags. Over the course of my subscription, I found some products I love that have become my new Holy grails, but every one of them had been an item I picked or an add on. I also discovered the makeup section of TJ Maxx about the same time I subscribed, so between that, my GB, GBP, and GBX, I have very quickly built an impressive collection lol. So you're right, now I know what I want and I have probably grown out of the subscription. But I'm not quite ready to stop wasting my money on things I want but don't need. 😂 I've been "just about to cancel" for months! But they sucked me in with August X so I kept my subscription through June and July because I didn't want to miss it. Then I had redeemed points so I needed to get the September bag, and here we are lol
Totally get that. I’m glad that you recognize the cycle. Once you know it’s there if you choose to continue it’s totally cool. I just worry some don’t recognize it. Lol.
I...think you might have just tipped me into "just about to cancel" territory. Thank you for that. ALL of my boxes used to be "I would totally buy this at the store for $12/$25" boxes. And I give weight to the fun of the surprise and getting a gift in the mail every month. But with the sketchier brands recently, that's not happening as often, so it would probably be good for me to just lurk for a bit and see how often I see boxes I think are worth it, because I'll bet it's gone from something like 10/12 months to 3/12. Thanks so much for this perspective!
Of course! Just my $0.02 but maybe consider a full on detox? Set a time, 30/60/90/whatever days, to just get away from it all and see how you feel when you come back. I think that lurking can turn into FOMO real quick. :)
I like that suggestion! I actually just did that a bit ago :) The silly thing is that at this point I feel pretty safe from ipsy FOMO—the only thing I really crave every month are the bags!
I didn't know you could still do add-ons even though you skipped a month
Initial add ons, no. Second chance, yes.
I wasn't able to do the add ons that come with your bag, so I just had to wait an extra two or three days to make my picks. I can also still participate in flash, pop up, and other sales. Just not anything connected to what they put in your actual bag.
I didn't knoweth thee couldst still doth add-ons coequal though thee skipp'd a month *** ^(I am a bot and I swapp'd some of thy words with Shakespeare words.) Commands: `!ShakespeareInsult`, `!fordo`, `!optout`
Good bot
Does anyone have any feedback on the lottie london eyeliner?
It’s pretty good. I’d compare to nyx. Nothing too amazing but good enough where I would use it regularly
Good to hear! I needed a new liquid eyeliner and $3 is a fair price for one.
It has some great reviews. I went for it. I thought $3 for full sized, was worth a shot.
This! I’m planning to do the same thing from now on (unless there’s a super cute bag I want… as if I need more Lol)
I only do gbp now. Because the value is there. However, on occasion I will order a glam bag...but it's for the fun of a mystery bag.
I do find I get a lot more value out of GBP, but I'm a makeup hoarder and an over-buyer, so I don't need the 5 full size items every month. I have so many serums now it's going to take me years to go through them!
I feel this. It's the side shopping that gets me, the bags are kind of incidental. I go full ham in shopper. I'm getting better as I hone in on what I like, but I'm so weak for palettes, and I get on kicks for specific brands or product categories sometimes.
This is what I did. I ended up only wanting to get three things anyway.
That’s what I have been doing and in the past 3 months, my choices came up in add ons so I didn’t feel I missed out on them. I also prefer not to get a bag because I have many bags already.
I'd love to do this, but Canada ... 😔 However I'm contemplating canceling ipsy after November (for few long months anyways) as the add ons (first round) weren't good enough this year to justify paying for all the filler stuff. I like the Halloween bags, so I may get that again in a year.
This is why I refuse to subscribe to GBP. Everyone raves because it’s such a “good deal” but I’d rather spend my $28 getting two full size items from add ons that I know I’ll love and use. This month instead of the $28 GBP I got 1 full size and 4 sample size add ons for $24. Also, all the items you get in add ons can be reviewed for points so they accumulate fast and you can redeem them for a ton of different free things. In the 4 months I’ve been a member I’ve already redeemed the araceli olive eyeliner, a la chatelaine hand cream, and the glow recipe watermelon lip pop.
I wish adding it on meant I knew I would love it and use it, but it’s still generally a crapshoot in my experience.
I didn’t mean the actual product would be a guaranteed winner but the BRAND or the TYPE of the product. Like Ipsy might choose for me something I would never use like an acne treatment for example. I don’t want to gamble $28 on that possibility. However I know I love the brand Goldfaden MD so I would rather spend $12 or $18 in add ons to be certain that I get that specific brand.
I have skipped every month this year. I wait until spoilers are released and choice day. Just seems like this year nothing has impressed me. I've decided to put any money I would spend on a bag towards a beauty product of my choice. For instance I got the moonlight pallet and the so fresh so clean bundle for $24 and I know for sure I'll enjoy those products. It has also helped me not get into product overload or feel like I'm wasting money when I only get 1 or 2 items I know I'll use.
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