Birchbox April 2017

Hi all,

First of all, I just wanted to say that I am so grateful for the number of followers my blog has been gaining. In the grand scheme of things, I have very few followers, but for someone who started blogging just for enjoyment without even thinking about cultivating a following, it means the world to feel appreciated, so thank you all.

Birchbox teamed up with the clothing brand Boden this month to bring a beautiful floral design to the box, which greatly contrasts the stripped back simplicity of last month’s box.

I am in love with the design, and very happy to see the drawer function return too, as I find these boxes so useful for make up storage.

 

 

The first item in my box is a body cream by Baja Paris. It smells amazing, however my skin is very sensitive to fragrance and when I tries this it made my legs sting. Not all is lost though, as I will continue to use it as a hand cream because of its scent and non-greasy feel. This is a sample size, containing 30ml, which sounds very small but is actually the perfect size to keep in your handbag so I’m not too disappointed.  If you were to buy this full size, it would cost £15.90 and would contain 75ml of product, making my sample worth £6.36.

 

 

 

The next product is a fast dry top coat from Seche Vite. This product is one of the two full size products Birchbox promised this month, and is valued in the leaflet at £9 however the Birchbox website claims it is £3…I was really excited at first to have received a good quality top coat, however when I gave it a try that evening it was peeling off my nails by the next morning. I’m thinking that maybe this product is worth £3, as opposed to £9, because, disappointingly, the quality just isn’t there 😦

 

On a more positive note, I have been blown away by the Polaar ‘Icepure gentle scrub’. I have used many exfoliators in the past, and liked them, however this one is second to none! The way it makes my skin feel- clean,refreshed and extremely soft- is so impressive, and the reason why I have absolutely fallen in love with this product. Not only that, but it smells amazing too. The exfoliating particles are very fine and really gentle on the skin. It’s a shame that this product is just a 25ml sample, and even more of a shame that the 75ml full size costs £23.50. Every Birchbox subscriber received this sample, which is worth £7.83. I will continue to try this scrub, and, if it doesn’t cause any skin issues, will consider spending some of my Birchbox points to purchase the full size.

 

Another thing every subscriber received a full sized product from Manna Kadar Cosmetics, with a choice between a highlighting/bronzing duo and a translucent setting powder. I didn’t choose the duo, as the photos online showed the bronzer as quite dark, which wouldn’t work for my fair skin tone. I chose the powder, however now it has arrived I am shocked that this is full size: the pot has a diameter of just 4.5 cm, and the actual pan of product itself measures 3.7cm in diameter. If this wasn’t odd enough, Birchbox claims that this is worth £27! None the less, it is a finely milled powder that I’ve found works really well to set undereye concealer. I am happy for it to be joining my collection.

Strangely, my last product this month is also full sized (Birchbox promised 2 full sized products, not 3, but I’m not complaining!) , costing £11. The product I’m talking about is the ModelCo ‘Eye Define Crayon Liner’. This eyeliner twists up (yay, I’m far too lazy to sharpen eyeliners hehe), and is somewhere between a very deep brown and black. I have tested it out, and it gives a lovely effect when applied to the tightline, however it doesn’t last long as it is not waterproof. When applied above the lashline, it lasts a very long time and is ‘unsmudgeable’ after the first few seconds after application. Overall, very pleased.

My Birchbox this month has been a good mix of products, from skincare to make up to nails, and I have really enjoyed this variety. Altogether (when counting the nail varnish as £3, as opposed to £9) my box is worth a grand total of £55.19! My favourite product is without a doubt the gentle facial exfoliator by Polaar, however I was very disappointed with the Seche Vite top coat (I will test it again, perhaps I had some kind of oiliness on my nails that prevented the polish from adhering to the surface).

Thanks for reading, and hope you enjoyed this month’s unboxing. Don’t forget to leave a comment, I would love to hear what you have to say about my blog, this post, or your opinions of any of the products mentioned. If you have any ideas for posts, I’d love to hear them too!

Beth x

 

 

 

 

What’s in my Birchbox March 2017

Hi all,

I’m a little late this month with my Birchbox, due to a change in my subscription plan. As you will know if you have seen my other unboxings, I gave Birchbox a 3 month trial using a gift subscription. I have really enjoyed receiving a surprise gift to myself every month, and so have decided to continue it on into 2017 with a rolling monthly subscription!

 

This month, Birchbox have stripped it back to the basics with packaging that is reminiscent of the design of their very first boxes shipped out to their customers when the business first launched over 6 years ago.

I’m loving this little draw-string pouch, I think its so cute and I hope Birchbox does this again in the future.

In my first dip inside the bag, I pulled out a 5ml sample of the balanceme Instant Lift primer, which claims to be a “complexion perfecting skin smoother to instantly lift and refine skin so it looks youthful and virtually poreless. I don’t know how much this product is going to benefit me as I am both of those things, being 15. However, I will definitely give it a go, especially seeing as it is supposedly 99% natural.

From testing this product on the back of my hand, the first thing I noticed was that is has a a pungent medicinal yet herbal scent. I’m not sure I’m a fan of the fragrance, although it did smooth the skin on my hand very nicely so fingers crossed it’ll be a good’un. Every Birchbox subscriber received this sample, the full size of which would have been £22 for 15ml, and so this sample is worth around £7.33.

The next product I pulled out was one I had seen from various unboxing videos and posts and was hoping that I would receive too.

I’m thrilled that I received this Bobby Brown multimask kit , and cannot wait to try them all out. I will have to make sure I use them sparingly though, because each sample only contains a stingy 3ml. These masks retail for £33 each in full size, and contain 75ml, making each of these samples worth £2.20, or £6.60 altogether.

Not gonna lie, this next product was probably the main reason I decided to continue my subscription into this month. At the end of January, all subscribers were sent an email which asked us to choose between two shades of the new Benefit ‘They’re real! Double the lip’ lipstick – Lusty Rose or Pink Thrills. Because my subscription was just a gift subscription, I wasn’t able to submit a choice and so the colour was selected for me. The concept of these lipsticks is that there is a darker colour on the teardrop shaped tip, that acts as a lip liner to carve out the shape of the lips and give them a fuller, contoured look.

I was hoping for Pink Thrills, as I usually go for quite bright colours however I am actually really pleased to have gotten Lusty Rose, as my collection is lacking the staples such as this beautiful, wearable dusty rose. I have tested this lipstick out a couple of times, and am over the moon with it! The formula is so creamy, it lasted all day- even through meals- and perhaps best of all it smells fruity like cherry Coke or fizzy Vimto. I wouldn’t necessarily say I noticed a significant difference to the appearance of my lips, because I have been blessed with quite full lips anyway, but I could see how the technology would work someone with thinner lips. Although this is only a sample size, there looks to be a good amount of product when you wind it up, and that will definitely last a while. Having said that, the packaging says that there is only 0.75 g worth. The full size contains double the amount of product, and costs £16.50, so the value of my sample is £8,25.

 

The next sample- amika’s ‘The Sheild’ style extending spray-comes in on the expensive side when purchased in full size- at £20 per 150ml bottle. I have not tried this in my hair yet, but am looking forward to giving it a go. Perhaps not one of the most exciting products to get with Birchbox, for me anyway, but it will be good to have around as a good hairspray always comes in handy.

My sample contains 31.5ml, and so it worth roughly £4.20.

 

 

The final product in my box this month was, again, slightly less exciting, although still very useful. My Korres ‘Santorini Vine shower gel’ is supposed to have the “fresh fruity scent of blossoming Greek vineyards”. Although the description is perhaps a little pretentious, the smell is very sweet and comforting, especially when carried in the steam from the shower. 250ml of this will set you back just £8, meaning my little 40ml sample comes in at just £1.28.

 

 

Hope you enjoyed seeing what was inside my Birchbox this month. Feel free to comment any post ideas you have, or if you would like to see a more detailed review of any of these products. If you are interested in signing up to Birchbox, you can do so by clicking the link below to find out more. This is, of course, unsponsored, and subscribing through my site will give you £5 to spend in the Birchbox shop:  https://www.birchbox.co.uk/invite/3vwt6

Beth x

 

What’s in my Birchbox?: February 2017

Hi guys, 

This month marks my third and final Birchbox of my 3 month subscription. Let’s hope it’s a good’un!

A couple of weeks after the arrival of last week’s box, I received an email asking for me to choose between two box designs for this month. One of the options was a white box with green tropical-looking foliage and a teal green pull out drawer. I chose the second option, and is as pictured below:

 

The first item I saw as I opened my Birchbox was this beautiful Spectrum crease blending brush (C06). I have had my eye on Spectrum brushes for a while because thy are just so so attractive. I am very happy to have received one, as I can now see for myself whether the brush quality is there or if it is just quality design.

I have given this brush a quick go (I mean, who could resist?) and I can safely say that this is the softest eyeshadow brush I have ever owned, and does a darned good job at blending too. Every customer was given one of these brushes, which retail for £5.99.

 

The next item in my box was another that everyone received. Pairing perfectly with the brush, this POP Beauty eyeshadow trio in ‘ mocha champagne’ was very exciting.

My terrible swatches really don’t do justice to the pigmentation of these shadows

The first of the three shimmery shades is a pale champagne colour which I have found is perfect in the inner corner of the eye to brighten. The second shade is a pale pink, which surprisingly (and  fortunately) doesn’t look like an eye infection when applied to the lid. This is one of the few pale pinks I think I’d actually wear. The last shade is a brown with weird chunky multicoloured glitter. Luckily, this seems to be clumped in the middle, so when I dust my brush around the outside, I am able to use a lovely rich brown. They are very pigmented, but easy to blend too (especially with my new brush ;). This is actually a sample size, with the full palette of 10 shades priced at £15.50. This makes this trio worth £4.65.

 

 

 

This next item was a personalised one, as opposed to the previous items which everybody received. In my Birchbox profile, I described my skin a dry and so this month I was sent the VASANTI ‘BrightenUp! enzymatic face rejuvenator’. Basically, this is a fancy schmanzy exfoliator.

 

It contains ‘powerful papaya enzymes’ which are supposed to give radiance while the aloe vera (a natural anitbacterial) detoxes the pores, the coconut soothes and the microcrystals do their thang removing dead skin cells…lovely.I have not tried this product yet, but am excited to see if it lives up to its claims. This sample size contains 20 ml (0.7 oz) whereas the full size, costing £31.50 contains 120ml. Therefore, the amount of product in my box is worth around £5.25.

 

 

I am slightly disappointed with my next product, because although I know it is practical I would have much preferred one of the other items up for grabs this month. (I’m sure there are countless cliche phrases and old wives tales about that kind of attitude but right now I can’t call any to mind.) The item in question is the Beaver Professional ‘daily moisture conditioning spray’ for hair.

 

 

The concept of this is that you spray it onto damp hair before styling. I don’t really style my hair very often, but it is quite long so a good conditioning product is certainly a good thing for me. I’ll  give this product a try next time I wash my hair and see if I notice any difference. This product at full size is £11.50 for 150ml, so, at 50ml, this sample is worth approx. £3.83. Not the most generous, but if it works then I’m happy.

 

 

 

The 5th and final item is a Korean skincare product. Birchbox claims that K-Beauty is 7 years ahead of the rest of the world in skincare innovation, and have hopped on the bandwagon this month. Every subscriber will receive one of a range of these products. I was given, due to my dry skin, the KEEOME ‘hydration therapy’ sheet mask.

This product claims that it ‘revitalises and cleanses’ the skin after being applied and left to work its magic for 25 minutes. I am looking forward to giving this a go, although as this is only a single use mask imma save it for a special occasion or when I feel like treating myself. The Birchbox price for a pack of 6 masks is £29, so mine, all by its lonesome, comes in at £4.83.

 

I am very happy with my Birchbox this month, as I have been introduced to some new brands, with products that I am itching to try out. Overall, the contents are worth £24.55, which is not bad, especially considering I paid just £10 for them! I have really enjoyed this Birchbox subscription, as every box is new and exciting as well as it feeling like a treat for myself every month. My box contained a big spoiler for March’s box and,as if I wasn’t thinking about it already, now I plan to start a monthly subscription!

 

I hope you enjoyed reading this post as much as I enjoyed writing it! If you would like a full review of any of the products mentioned just leave a comment and I can do that for you.

Thank you,

Beth x

 

 

January 2017 Birchbox

My second ever Birchbox arrived today! For those of you who don’t know, Birchbox is a subscription box service that will deliver a mixture of full sized and sample sized beauty and skincare products, tailored to your preferences, to your door every month for £10 plus p&p. Every month has a theme, and this month’s theme is ‘sprinkle happiness’.

The box itself is yellow and has a geometric pattern on it. At this point I should confess that the design you see on top of the box isn’t actually the real design. When opening the box, my mum used a pen which marked the pretty design. She felt really bad and after trying to rub it off (and unfortunately making it worse) she offered to cut off the front cover of the info leaflet inside (which has the same design but with the theme typed onto it), and stick it over the mess to cover it up. I think the box was doomed the second it arrived, as since then I have spilled tea on it and put fingerprints of  red lipstick  on it…

Anyway, back to the box. It has a pull out drawer on the side which is really handy for storage, especially since it comes with a sheet of foam to protect the bottom. I have recently reorganised my desk so I found that this was perfect to store my lipsticks in.

As you can see, I like reds and corals      …a lot

 

The first product I received is a full sized Lord & Berry ‘conceal-it stick’ in Ivory. I have tested out this product briefly and it seems smooth and really easy to blend. I haven’t tried a stick concealer before but I’ve heard they can be quite drying, so I hope this one is a good one-it sure does feel creamy. This costs £12 so the entire cost of my box has been made up by this one product!

I also got a sample of the NUXE multipurpose dry oil. I have an oil by Caudilie that I got free with a Vogue subscription last year, and I don’t really find myself using it all that often. I’ve tested this on the back of my hand and it doesn’t feel too greasy so I will try and get round to giving this a proper go.The full size of this costs £29 for 100ml, so my 10 ml sample is worth  £2.90. I’m not blown away by this product but I am happy to have it.

Continuing along the lines of multipurpose oils, I got a sample sized pot of Vita Coco coconut oil. I’ve heard to much about coconut oil, as I’m sure you have too, but I’ve never really felt compelled to spend the £10 to try it out for myself. It is solid at room temperature, but turns to oil when in contact with body heat. You can use this for just about anything: conditioning hair, removing make up, moisturising the skin, whitening teeth, adding protein to smoothies and a million other things. I probably won’t be eating this as it is such a small pot and the idea of eating spoons full of oil doesn’t really appeal if I’m honest, but I’ll definitely play around with the other uses. For the full 500ml it costs £9.99, making my 50ml pot around £1.

The focus really does seem to be skincare for Birchbox this month, as I was also given a full sized Merci hand cream in the scent ‘new wave’. Really, it just smells like vanilla. Its a nice handcream but nothing extraordinary. It costs £4.90 and it’s quite a nice product that I’m sure I’ll use.

The last product I got was the SOIGNE nail polish in ‘Mousse aux framboises’.I’m a bit confused, as this box was meant to include a small Nails Inc polish-my booklet even includes it as one of my products- but I seem to have received a different one. It’s possible that Birchbox didn’t have enough stock of the Nails Inc polish, so compesated with a full sized polish from another brand. The colour is a very sheer pink so would need layering to get a stronger colour intensity from it. This polish costs £11,  whereas the other one (full sized was £15 so it would have been nice to try a more expensive brand. Then again, I got a larger size of polish so I’m not too disappointed other than that I’m not too keen on the colour.

The products in my box this month came to a total of £31.80. I’m happy with the products themselves but I am little disappointed because there were so many other lovely products available. This month’s products are more on the practical side but they are the kind of things that are always useful to have.

Thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed this post

Beth x

Birchbox December 2016

Hey,

I recently purchased a 3 month subscription to Birchbox beauty box subscription service, so every month from December through February I will recieve a box in the post containing a few samples and full size products ranging from make up to skincare to tools. I was very excited to receive my first box on Tuesday, and am even more excited to share what I got with you.

The first item I recieved was one that every suubsriber was given in their box a FULL SIZED Ciate fierce flicks liquid pen eyeliner in black ( there is usually some variation between boxes as your preferences stated in your profile are taken into consideration). I have never used liquid eyeliner before so I am very excited to give this a try. I have tested it on the back of my hand, and the tip feels firm yet flexible which should make for a smooth application. As you can see in the picture below, you can use it to create a thick or thin line. This retails for £15 so Birchbox have spared no expense with delivering their subscribers a great christmas edition!

I was also given a sample size of Benefit ‘Puff Off’. Every subscriber got a sample of size of an item from the Benefit Cosmetics line, and I am very happy to recieve ‘Puff off’ This product comes in a tube, and is a cream that is supposed to smooth undereye puffiness. In my sample size I recieved 2.5 ml or 0.08 US fl.oz. which is a decent amount to test the product, I think. Very excited to give this a try as Benefit Cosmetics is a company that is often raved about, but their products are fairly expensive and I have never been brave enough to take the splurge. This product in particular is priced at £22.50 for full size, which is 10ml. According to my calculations,this means that this sample is worth around £5.63, which is roughly half the price of my whole box!

The next item I recieved was a product by anatomicals and it is their ‘smoother butts love coconuts’ coconut and mango bidy lotion. As the name suggests, this brand is one that likes to have fun with the marketing of their products (What it says on the back is even funnier but it’s too much to type out).This product smells divine and I am very excited to try it out. This was another sample size at 50ml or 1.6 fl.oz. which is around hand-cream sized, and in my opinion quite generous. The full sized product contains 200ml and is just £3.99, making it affordable for me to buy if I enjoy this sample. However, this brings the cost of this sample to just £0.99, which is quite stingy, but the way I see it is that I have been introduced to a new brand that, if I enjoy, is cheap to repurchase so I’m not too upset about this.

My fourth item was the ELEMIS ‘hyrdra-boost day cream’. This product will be great to try as recently I have had dry skin from the cold weather. The directions say to apply this onto cleansed skin every morning, so I am looking forward to seeing how much of a difference this product will make. The full sized is worth £39 and contains 50ml of product, so my sample size which contains 15ml, so at approximately a third of the size, this sample contains £11.70’s worth of product. Nice.

The final item in my box was the Bobbi Brown ‘Smokey eye’ mascara in black. This sample size has 3ml of product, whereas the full size, which retails for £23, has 5ml of product in it, so unless my maths is an abomination, I have £13.86’s worth of product! So so so excited to give this a try as I’ve never heard of a smokey effect mascara.

Overall, I am very happy with my Birchbox! The total value of this box, I think and please correct me if I’m wrong, is £47.18 which is amazing as the cost of this box is just £10 a month plus £2.95 postage. Very impressed so far with Birchbox and can’t wait for next month’s box. Hope you enjoyed this post and leave a comment if you would like to see a review of any of the products.

Beth x