Firstly, I want to note that I recently discovered Ipsy offers a 12-month subscription for the cost of 11 months (so US$110 for a year, rather than $120 if you pay month-to-month). Well, I’ve been paying month-to-month this whole time! So I sent an email to Ipsy support and they gladly switched me over to the discounted year-long sub. Woohoo! So, if you’re a diehard Ipsy subscriber who never considers cancelling, hit ’em up for your 1-month discount!

Onto the loot! My December Ipsy Glam Bag finally contains a makeup brush! I had actually gotten a bit annoyed with the flimsy brushes I was getting, so I downrated most of them—then for a good stretch, Ipsy failed to send me any brushes at all. Lisa Frank, SLMissGlam, and Luxie brushes came and went and never found their way into my Glam Bag.

Finally, this month, I got another Luxie brush. It’s a pretty usable eyeshadow brush, and at least now I have the opportunity to rate it better so that I’m hopefully back in the pool for brushes.

Once again, however, I didn’t get the one nail polish they had on offer (a blue shimmer from Lottie London). I wonder how many Ipsters got that polish and are bitching about receiving nail polish?!

What I Received

• Luxie Precision Shader Onyx Brush (239) (full size; ~US$24.26)
• MAC In Extreme Dimension 3D Black Lash (1 g sample; 13 mL for US$23)
• NIP+FAB Dragon’s Blood Fix Plumping Serum (20 mL sample; 50 mL for US$19.95)
• Pixi by Petra Mesmerizing Mineral Duo in Orchid Ornament (1.5 g 2-color duo; full size 5.76 g 6-color palette for US$12)
• TonyMoly The Chok Chok Green Tea Watery Cream (10 mL sample; 60 mL for US$25)
• Ipsy makeup bag

The Luxie brush obviously provides the bulk of my bag’s value this month. It seems to be a Luxie × Ipsy edition, so I can’t find an exact MSRP, but the Onyx brushes seem to run approximately 35% more expensive than the Rose Gold line.

Ipsy Coupon Codes

None of the brands I received have a code with Ipsy at the moment, so here are a few other good ones:

• SLMissGlam: 30% off any purchase with code SLBLUEIPSY (through 12/31/2017, US & CA only)
• Seraphine Botanicals: 25% off any purchase with code IPSY25 (through 01/31/2018, US & CA only)
• trèStiQue: 30% off any $30+ purchase with code IPSYWINTER17 (through 12/31/2017, US & CA only)

Here are some more detailed product shots:

Luxie × Ipsy — Precision Shader Onyx Brush (239)

full size; ~US$24.26

This brush had a stray bristle that was too long; I tried to pluck it out but only succeeded in curling it like a gift ribbon. Still, looks like a pretty nice brush! [Made in ?]

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MAC — In Extreme Dimension 3D Black Lash

1 g sample; 13 mL for US$23

I was supposed to get the In Extreme Dimension mascara, but got the In Dimension 3D. Don’t really care, either way. I already got this as a sample with a MAC order, and I generally only use waterproof mascara, so this is a bit of a meh for me. [Made in Canada.]

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NIP+FAB — Dragon’s Blood Fix Plumping Serum

20 mL sample; 50 mL for US$19.95

I’ve tried a NIP+FAB cleanser, which was pretty good, so I’m also excited to try this serum. It’s nice to get a generous trial size, since I always see this brand in the drugstore but never know whether I should go all in on a full-sized product. This contains a plant resin known as dragon’s blood, which has been used both medicinally and as a pigment as long ago as ancient Rome. [Made in China.]

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Pixi by Petra — Mesmerizing Mineral Duo in Orchid Ornament

1.5 g 2-color duo; full size 5.76 g 6-color palette for US$12

Pixi’s makeup products have been a little hit or miss for me (didn’t care for a blush but loved the eyeliner). This duo contains two very pretty, colors, though! [Made in China.]

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TonyMoly — The Chok Chok Green Tea Watery Cream

10 mL sample; 60 mL for US$25

While I’m happy to be receiving K-beauty from Ipsy, it’d be nice to get other brands than TonyMoly. Still, I haven’t tried this product before, and who doesn’t need a little “chok chok” in their skincare routine? [Made in South Korea.]

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The bag itself is kind of pretty! It’s a metallic silver with darker metallic trim and turquoise zip detailing. I thought the “Snow Globe” theme would have lent itself to another clear bag, though!

Glam Bag Verdict

Overall, this hasn’t been my favorite Ipsy bag, but I can use most of the items. Hopefully, I’ll get more nail polish in the future.

Other items I was interested in this month (here’s the full item list):

• DefineMe Fragrance Oil in Sofia Isabel
• Glamour Dolls × Lisa Frank Eyeshadow in Stargazing or Heartthrob
• Lottie London Lacquer in Riot!
• Seraphine Botanicals Lip Polish in Orange + Cream
• SLSMissGlam L36 Tapered Highlight Brush
• Smashbox Always On Gel Liner in Fishnet
• Smashbox Be Legendary Lipstick in Legendary
• Son & Park Beauty Water
• Wander Beauty Frame Your Face Micro Brow Pencil

Augh, there was a lot of stuff I would have liked! Ah, well.

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Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, everybody!

‘Cause you made it all the way down here, I’ll leave you with a tune.

Here’s the oddly ominously-titled “Santa’s Coming for Us” by Sia (2017). The video stars Kristen Bell, Dax Shepard, and Caleb McClaughlin (Stranger Things):