Wantable August 2014 Review

Wantable August 2014

After canceling my Glossybox subscription, I decided to replace it with a Wantable subscription. I’ve had my eye on this one for a while, but I’ve read very mixed reviews, so I was unsure about it. Given that the monthly cost is $36, my expectations are significantly higher. This box comes with 4-5 full-sized makeup products chosen for the subscriber based on a very comprehensive beauty profile that covers likes and dislikes right down to colors and textures. My August box arrived just one week after creating my profile and clicking the subscribe button, so off the bat, my impression is that these guys mean business. My final August Glossybox is still not here, and tomorrow is September.

Geri G. Lip Gloss Creme, $18.00 value

Okay, so I don’t really wear lip gloss, but SOMETIMES I do. I figured if I just marked lip gloss on my profile as something I only kind of liked, I might get it occasionally. Getting it in my first box doesn’t necessarily mean I’ll always get it, but if the Geri G. Lip Gloss Creme is a sign of what else is to come, I might have to take lip gloss off of my profile altogether. Actually, I just did.

Geri G. Lip Gloss Creme Swatch

The gloss is a neutral coral-pink that goes on very patchy and settles into the creases and dry spots on my lips. It also feels gross and clumpy. While the color isn’t bad, I really dislike the formula. Since I’m already pretty picky about lip glosses to begin with, something that has this many issues doesn’t appeal to me at all. $18.00 value.

Vincent Longo Vibrant Eye Waterproof Liner, $18.50 value

A massive wave of fear rolled over me as soon as I spotted this in my box. Liquid eyeliner, my eyes hate you. Despite completely failing at this a thousand times, I still keep trying because I like to torture myself.

Vincent Longo Vibrant Eye Waterproof Liner Swatch

The Vincent Longo Vibrant Eye Waterproof Liner is a matte black liquid liner with a skinny little brush. The formula is the perfect consistency for me-smooth and not too thick or too watery. It also allows you to press a little eye shadow into it to smooth out the lines if necessary without crumbling off like some liners do. It doesn’t budge all day, which is great for people like me who have oily skin. Applying this actually wasn’t too difficult for me, which says a lot. I think with more practice, I might actually be able to mend my relationship with liquid liner. In fact, after trying it a few times over the past week, I’m starting to feel pretty confident with it. As a result, today I went and blew a bunch of Ulta points on liquid liners that were similar. I’m on a mission, guys. Overall, I’m pretty happy with this one and it has left me a little more open-minded when it comes to liquid liners. $18.50 value.

Chella Ivory Lace Highlighter Pencil, $18.00 value

Chella is one of those brands I see floating around Ipsy and Birchbox pretty frequently, but I’ve yet to snag anything by them until now. The Chella Ivory Lace Highlighter Pencil is a multi-use pencil for highlighting, concealing, and brightening. Or whatever else you find it useful for. Basically, you can smear it all over your face if you want to.

Chella Ivory Lace Highlighter Pencil Swatch

The pencil is a light tone for fair skin and not too yellow or too pink. It blends perfectly to match my skin and seems to stay put without ever looking cakey. I’ve used it on my brow bone and it gives a definite lift and brightens the area. It also works great as a concealer. I’ll have to experiment with other uses, but so far, I love it. $18.00 value

Tarina Tarantino Dollskin Cheek Blush Palette, $45.00 value

My heart got all fluttery when I saw this in my box. The Tarina Tarantino Dollskin Cheek Blush Palette comes in an adorable little plastic case that I originally thought was metal until I really examined it.

Tarina Tarantino Dollskin Cheek Blush Palette, $45.00 value

The palette contains four seemingly gorgeous peaches and pinks and has a giant mirror. In short, this thing is REALLY nice to look at, and that’s about it.

Tarina Tarantino Dollskin Cheek Blush Palette Swatches

Feather is a frosty peach.

Parasol is a frosty coral pink.

Carved Rose is a matte rosy pink.

Candy Cameo is a sparkly, frosty pink.

Tarina Tarantino Dollskin Cheek Blush Palette, $45.00 value

These blushes are super dry and stiff. I can actually hear my blush brush scraping up against them as I’m digging into the palette. Applying them is a nightmare. They don’t blend well at all, so by the time you’ve layered enough to get a relatively even tone on your cheeks, you’ve gone too far. Given the frosted finish of three of the blushes, I expected them to make my cheeks glow, but the color was dull, flat, and very unnatural. I think it’s safe to say these are easily the worst blushes I’ve ever used and I can’t believe the palette is valued at $45.00. This is like cheap stuff they make for kids.

Here’s how the August products look (blush in Parasol):

Wantable August 2014 on Face

Total box value is $99.50. I would say I’m really happy with about 50% of this box. I’ve tweaked my beauty profile to exclude lipgloss, so maybe that will help improve future boxes. Liking half of the box is not enough for me to want to hang onto a subscription for this price, but I’ll give it a little time before I decide if I want to stick with it or try something else. Wantable allows you to return your whole box or some of the items you don’t like for a full or partial refund, but along with the lipgloss and the blush, I would have also had to return either the eyeliner or the highlighter to get $18 back, so it’s not really worth it to me this time around.

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