Play! by Sephora July 2016 Box Review

The Play! by Sephora July 2016 Box comes with 6 warm weather essentials and sunny standouts in a cute drawstring bag featuring an ice pop.

Play! by Sephora July 2016 Box

beautyblender blotterazzi ($20). Made from the same material as the iconic beautyblender, this blotting sponge claims to remove shine and absorb oil without disturbing makeup so that skin stays looking radiant. The sponge had a tear shape like the beautyblender, except it was much flatter at just 0.62 inches thick. You can use the fine pointed half against small curves and corners of the face like the temples and under the eyes, and the prominent bottom half on larger areas like the forehead and cheeks. While I liked that the sponge was reusable and that it came in a compact, you do have to wash it quite frequently which can be a hassle, especially if you are traveling. I will be sticking to my TATCHA Aburatorigami Blotting Paper for now.

Too Faced Soleil Matte Bronzer ($30). Combining the natural, therapeutic effects of real cocoa powder with bronzing pigments, this matte bronzer neutralizes red while evening out and enhancing all skintones. Chocolate was a nice medium color that added the perfect warmth to my NC20 skintone with making it look dirty. Plus the powder was buildable, blendable, super velvety and smelled like chocolate!

Smashbox Photo Finish Oil Free Foundation Primer Pore Minimizing ($39). A non-drying primer that claims to instantly blur imperfections, reduce the appearance of pores for up to eight hours and absorb oil all day. It came in a light nude color that disappeared into the skin completely. I find it too drying for my dehydrated combo skin and prefer Maybelline Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser instead.

First Aid Beauty Skin Rescue Deep Cleanser With Red Clay ($24). Formulated with red clay, rosemary leaf oil and botanical antioxidants, this foaming red gel cleanser promises to detox, cleanse and unclog pores for all skin types. The smallest amount managed to remove my mascara and BB cream and left my skin feeling super clean and soft without drying it out.

Ouai Wave Spray ($26). Infused with rice protein to add hold and memory, a few spritzes of this weightless spray gave my lob the perfect amount of texture and waves without feeling sticky or crunchy. The Ouai No. 2 Fragrance scent, which contains notes of Italian lemon, amber and white musk, also smells GREAT! Definitely my favorite product in the box!

NEST Citrine ($68). Inspired by the works of 18th Century British artist Mrs. Mary Delany, this perfume combines the dewy softness of lotus flower and freesia with sparkling citrus notes and hints of precious woods. The result was a sweet, fruity scent that was not overpowering.

Overall, the Play! by Sephora July 2016 Box had some good pieces that I loved. Can’t wait to see the August box, which will focus on products for the eye!

Clockwise from top left: NEST Citrine, Ouai Wave Spray, beautyblender blotterazzi, Too Faced Soleil Matte Bronzer, Smashbox Photo Finish Oil Free Foundation Primer Pore Minimizing and First Aid Beauty Skin Rescue Deep Cleanser With Red Clay

Play! by Sephora is a beauty subscription service that brings you 5 deluxe samples and a fragrance bonus at $10 per month. To sign up, visit www.sephora.com/play for more details.

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