Birchbox - June 2014

Another month, another great box from Birchbox! Never have I been so glad to be resubscribed to a beauty box. Birchbox have been absolutely nailing it recently and even though I was apprehensive about a 'football' theme, they've carried it off with aplomb!

Having recently discovered OPI through my duty free bargains, I was pretty excited to see a mini bottle in the box! This is from the OPI Brazil collection and even though this isn't a shade I would have picked for myself, I actually really like it. It has a sort of carnival feel to it that fits with the theme really well.

Yves Rocher is a brand I've tried before, but I haven't tried out their make up. Initially, I thought this peachy lipstick was really not my kind of shade but once I swatched it, I immediately changed my mind. It doesn't add a full on peach colour, but it is pretty unforgiving on dry lips. It does say that it contains cherry oil to moisturise though so leaving it on for a while might do me some good!

This hair mask from Silk + Honey is pretty intriguing. It's a really decent sized sample so I should be able to get a couple of uses out of it, and it smells really nice too. I've not tried hair masks before so this is definitely something I'll be giving a go soon!

I also received a diddy sample of the Embryolisse Lait-Creme Concentre, which is an ultra soothing moisturiser, and can also be used as a make up remover and all over body moisturiser. I might give this a try on some of my dry patches to see how it handles them, French products are always pretty spot on though.

Finally, I received the Naobay body lotion. This smells really nice and I was pretty happy to see soemthing like this in my box as I 'm actually starting to run pretty low on body lotion! It's got a lovely lemony scent and contains shea butter, olive and avocado oils. 

For this months lifestyle extra we received this cute little flip flop keyring! I've already put this on my 

work keys, I think its a really nice little addition to the box.

Overall, such a good box! I feel like the samples are mainly really well sized, and everything fits the theme really well. I think this must be the third box in a row now that Birchbox have done really well in my opinion, I can't wait to see what they come up with next!

Do you subscribe to Birchbox? What did you think to this month's box?

Birchbox-January 2014

It's finally here! After two emails and almost a month of waiting, my January Birchbox has finally arrived. Unfortunately, this has probably been my worst experience with a beauty box to date.

 

I had already decided that I was going to subscribe to Birchbox in January, but seeing that they were going to be including a Benefit product really spurred me on! I waited a couple of weeks and began seeing other people receive their boxes, but mine still hadn't arrived. I complained to Birchbox and they said they would send a replacement, which arrived over a week later.

The items in the box do not correspond to the surveys I have been given to fill out. I was meant to receive: Philip Kingsley Elasticizer, Laura Mercier body butter, Delarom Aquaconfort Mask, Benefit's Porefessional (which I did actually receive) and Premae Instant Renewal Body Oil. I'm not too bothered about this (apart from I will obviously be filling out surveys for things I haven't received) as the only thing I would have been really interested to try would be the Laura Mercier body butter. I'm just kind of irritated that I've obviously been sent a reserve box because Birchbox didn't plan ahead and think about how many extra subscribers they would have, after advertising that January would feature a Benefit product. Extremely poor planning on their part. I did eventually receive compensation for all the hanging around in the form of some extra points for my account, which I'm very grateful for!

Anyway, onto the contents of the box! The box comes with a super cute drawstring bag inside, and an adorable little booklet with ideas for tiny tweaks for the new year. Obviously this is kind of redundant, as it's now February. But still a nice touch.  
 

First up, Benefit's Porefessional. I already knew I'd be happy to get this in the box, as I've got a sample in my 'How to Look the Best at Everything' set. It is a small sample at 7.5ml, but if I like using this enough as an every day product, I can see myself purchasing the full size.

I also received yet another hand cream. This is the Lavera Basis Senstive cream, which features shea butter and almond oil. It smells and feels quite similar to sun cream, and it doesn't seem to absorb into my skin very well, leaving quite a greasy feeling. I'm not really a fan.

I did receive a Philip Kingsley product, in the form of this moisture balancing conditioner. I'm quite interested to try this out, certain conditioners can make my hair quite greasy though, so I'm hoping this will be a good one!

One of my favourite items from this box is this cute Beekind body lotion. A portion of the proceeds from this product goes toward supporting Honey Bee and sustainable pollination research which is super important. This smells fantastic, very lemony! Just testing it on the back of my hand, it sinks in very quickly and leaves behind that gorgeous scent. Very nice.

I also received a sample of Blanc Cachemire's Crème de Jour Protectrice. This came with a little card explaining in English how to use it and the ingredients as the packaging is entirely in French. This is a moisturiser, and I can't seem to spot any explanations as to why it's so popular, but apparently it's really big over in Paris at the moment!

Finally as a little extra, we received a little sachet of miso soup.This isn't really my sort of thing, so I gave it to a friend to try and she really enjoyed it. I like the idea of receiving mini food samples in boxes, I think it adds something a bit different and more lifestyle oriented, but hopefully next time it'll be something that I'll like!

The January Birchbox isn't a terrible box. These are all samples I can use or give away, but I have just been left with a bit of a bad taste in my mouth over having to complain and how long my box took to arrive. I think I'll stick around to see what February's box has in store, but if there's no improvement I may very well end up just subscribing to Love Me Beauty!

Glossybox January 2014

I have to say, my review of this months Glossybox is probably going to be a minority opinion! I've seen a lot of bad or slightly disappointed blog posts floating around, but I actually quite like the box we've received this month. Here's what I got in my box.

First up, Yu-Be moisturising skin cream. We received two small tubes of this. Having just rubbed some onto my hand, it's got quite a strong scent, which I'm not sure many people will like, and the texture is almost waxy. Apparently this can be used as a lip balm, a remedy for dry skin, and a moisturiser. The product is Japanese, and I'm quite intrigued to see what it would be like as a lip balm. Judging by the smell it might taste a bit odd. As I was taking these photos, I realised that one of the tubes had split open, so that's had to be thrown away.

We also received a Balance Me body wash. This is apparently 'super-toning' and contains Juniper, Bergamot, Geranium and Lavender. It smells quite nice, slightly too floral for me, but for a sample sized bottle I can live with it. I've been pretty impressed by Balance Me products before, so hopefully this one will live up to my expectations.

I was pretty happy to see the tweezers from the Vintage Cosmetic Company in this months box. A pair of tweezers always comes in handy, but I know quite a few people out there have been unimpressed by products from this company before. I'm going to see how I get on with them before I pass judgement!



Next up, we have Puffy the Eye Bag Slayer Under Eye Patches from Anatomicals. I'm really interested in these, I'm definitely going to be doing a follow up post to let you know whether they're any good! Having had a look at the packaging to find out how to use them, they're not a quick fix. You've got to wear these bad boys for 30 minutes! Definitely an interesting product to try out though, and perfect for recovering from too much partying in December.

Finally, the other product that's caused some controversy this month. This is is the Vaseline Essential Moisture Lotion, and at £4.99 for a full size bottle weighing in at 400ml, we've been sent a small 50ml bottle which some people have seen as a bit of a swizz. I'm not massively bothered about this as I've got loads of body lotion to use up already from Christmas, but it's a bit of a poor showing from Glossybox when you look at the full-size products I received from Love Me Beauty this month. There's not really a lot more I can say about this product, other than it smells really nice!

Overall, I think Glossybox have done really well to stick to their theme of 'Back to Basics' for January. I think all of these items tie in really well, and while they may not blow you away due to the sizes of the samples, they're still handy things to have. I'll probably keep the shower gel and body lotion aside for my holiday in May.

I am pleased that I got this months box with Glossydots, and I have cancelled my subscription. I've had a few too many boxes that just didn't impress me, and since signing up to Love Me Beauty, it's been a bit of an eye-opener to see how well other boxes are doing in comparison.
I will still be keeping my eye on Glossybox's future efforts, in case they start to improve, but for now I think I'm going to see how I get on with Birchbox and Love Me Beauty.



Glossybox October 2013

The theme for October's Glossybox is Dark Romance. I've been looking forward to this box, hoping for something slightly halloweeny, so here are my thoughts upon first receiving the box!

Vita Liberata Latte Illuminating Skin Finish

This is supposed to be a slightly bronzing body balm. They have provided two sachets, but I'm not entirely sure that this will be enough. Also I'm always naturally a bit wary about bronzing products. I like being pale!

Harmony Moisturising Smoothie Serum

This is a moisturiser that can also be used as a primer. I've just rubbed some onto my hand and it seems to sink into the skin quite nicely, and it's left it really soft. It's got quite a nice scent too, so I can definitely see myself using this.

Monu Illuminating Primer

Another primer! This has a thicker consistency than the Harmony one, and I'm not sure I like the smell as much. It hasn't absorbed as nicely either. I might need to experiment with this one a bit more!

Unica Kiss it Better Cream

This is a cream for sensitive or dry skin. I think I would get some use out of this if I suffered from dry skin, but I don't. Also, it's got quite an unusual smell. Sort of fruity, but with something else added that makes it kind of funky (not in a good way).

MeMeMe Cherub's Blush

The one item in this box that fits with the theme. This sort of product only needs a tiny amount applying, so no doubt this will last for ages, and I've not tried a liquid tint before so I'm quite intrigued by this.

Overall, I'm a bit disappointed. I rely on Glossybox for new make up products that I can review throughout the month, and the October box has sadly fallen short! I will try and use the primers to see what I think, but they're not as fun to review, and I'm also disappointed that the box didn't really live up to the theme. I can see what they've tried to do, providing products to save your skin during the autumn, but make that the theme! Don't try and make it sort of halloweeny and romantic, everyone knows dry skin is anything but. Hopefully November's box will be a bit more fun!