Tag: Birchbox

After three months of receiving Birchbox, I was wondering if it was time for me to throw in the towel… but I decided to stick with it for a couple more months because a few of the products have really grown on me. In fact, some products that I was kind of ho-hum about are now my favorites so I was excited to check out this month’s box.

First off, LOOK at this box – it’s gorgeous! For April, Birchbox partnered with Rifle Paper Co and the box is my absolute favorite. I just need to decide what I’m going to do with it. You know, in addition to staring at it and drooling a little. It’s just so PRETTY! Maybe I can make it into a fascinator and wear it on my head…

Let’s check out inside the box:

Atelier Cologne Orange Sanguine Cologne Absolue (Full-size, $70 – $180)
This scent is described as “a versatile, bittersweet citrus blend that lasts and lasts and lasts.” And yup, it does last. I got a smidge on me while opening the packaging and had to wash my hands like Lady MacBeth to get that stink off. I wish I could make a note in my account about NEVER wanting to receive a perfume from them again, because I’ve hated every scent they’ve sent me.

Jouer Tint (Full-size, $22)
This tint was the item that I picked for this box and I was interested to try it because it can be used as a creamy blush or a lip color. The packaging is slick and the product is certainly quite creamy. However, the ‘petal’ color doesn’t really work for me. I tried it as both a blush and a lip color and it is so close to my normal skin color that it is impossible to tell I even have it on.

Number 4^th Super Comb Prep & Protect (Full-size, $32)
This little spray bottle holds a sulfite-free leave-in conditioner that is supposed to safeguard color, strengthen and nourish your hair. I tried it out a few times and didn’t really notice any difference to my hair, other than a light pretty scent. I can’t really tell if it’s doing anything, but I’m going to throw it in my beach bag to spray on my hair while I’m down at the beach to protect the color. I guess it’s a good thing that I don’t really notice it doing anything? Maybe it’s just stealthy.

Real Chemistry Luminous 3-Minute Peel (Full-size $48)
I’ve never used a peel before, so I was a little hesitant to try this one. Just in case it left me bright pink, I waited to use it until I had a work-from-home day. The product is described as “an acid-free peel that gently exfoliates for instantly softer, smoother, brighter skin.” According to the directions, you are supposed to spread it over damp skin and then rub in circular motions until solids form under your fingertips. The solids are your dead skin cells as they are combined with the gel. I followed the directions exactly as instructed, but didn’t really have a lot of ‘solids’ action. I had a little bit though, which makes me think that this product would be more impressive on someone who doesn’t already exfoliate on a regular basis. My skin was really bright and smooth afterwards though, so I’m happy with the results.

Whish Shave Crave Shaving Cream in Coconut (Full-size $20)
Wow, Birchbox really likes their Whish products. In my four months of getting a Birchbox, this is already my third Whish product. I typically go for shaving gels, but this cream smells amazing and gets the job done. It goes on more like a heavy conditioner than a shaving cream though. I’ll be putting this one aside to take on my next trip since it is a handy travel-size and smells like a beach.

For my fellow Birchbox subscribers, what did you get this month? Have you fallen in love with any products and decided to order the full-sized versions?

 

Disclaimer: This post is not sponsored by Birchbox, I paid for the $10 fee with my own hard-earned money. If you enjoyed my review and decide to try Birchbox for yourself, the biggest compliment you can give me is by using my referral link. Thank you to anyone who chooses to click through and support my shopping addiction!

So this is my third month of getting Birchbox and the newness is starting to wear off. For the first time, I felt kind of ho-hum about my box. Nothing was terrible in it – in fact the box itself is really super cute – I just wasn’t really impressed.

Let’s check it out together:

Amika Bombshell Blowout Spray {Full-size, $24}
When they sent out the subscriber email so we could choose one of our samples, I picked this blowout spray. I don’t actually blow my hair out…um, ever… but this was the best fit out of the three choices. Annnnd, it’s still sitting in the box unused.

Number 4^th Clarifying Shampoo & Reconstruction Masque {Full-size, $32 – $72}
Okay, let me just say that I was pretty darn excited to try a $72 hair masque and imagined when I washed it out I’d totally look like a supermodel. I was a bit disappointed at the lame sample size though:

But for $72 of awesomeness, they can’t just GIVE you a ton of it, right? Unfortunately, when they sent the little packet they forgot to include the awesome. I used both the clarifying shampoo and masque in the shower the other day and the only difference I noticed was the scent is really nice. That’s it. The $72 masque performed the same as my $7 bottle of Pantene (I highly recommend this one by the way: Pantene Keratin Repair Conditioner).

Smashbox Cosmetics Be Legendary Lip Gloss in Disco Rose {Full-size, $20}
I love trying new lip glosses, so I’m happy that I’ve gotten three different glosses in the past three boxes! They’ve done super-humanly great in picking out colors that work with my skin tone:

It’s a little bit shiny for my liking, but I’ll probably throw it in my purse so that I have it for those last minute oops-I-look-like-crap-and-see-someone-I-know moments. Oh, and if you ever see me post pictures like this just showing the bottom part of my face (to show you the gloss color) it’s a sure sign that I didn’t bother putting on any makeup that day. Or styling my hair. Or changing out of my pajamas…

Supergoop! Daily Correct CC Cream SPF 40 – Fair/Light {Full-size, $32}
I don’t know why Birchbox keeps sending me these CC creams when I don’t use them. I even double-checked my account profile and at no point did I check off that I like CC cream or foundation. Looks like I have another sample to add to my ‘free stuff’ pile.

Whish Shave Savour Hair Inhibiting Gel {Full-size, $26}
Now this is one case where I just do not understand why they would send a sample. As far as I can tell, a hair inhibitor gel is supposed to be used often to keep the hair from growing back on your legs so quickly. So, WHY are they sending out a little .75 FL OZ bottle? There is no way you can even tell if it works before it’s gone. After trying it out for a couple days I do know that I won’t be buying a full-sized bottle – the gel made me feel kind of sticky and I hated the pomegranate smell.

So yeah, other than the pretty box and the one tiny tube of lip gloss, I’m not really loving this month’s box. I still feel like the subscription is a really good one though and love their sneak peeks, bonuses and random promotions. I actually just got a total steal in the Birchbox store:

I have been loving the Pixi Shea Butter Lip Balm I received in my first box, so I went ahead and ordered two more colors to try. I also just used the last of the Vasanti BrightenUp! Enzymatic Face Rejuvenator sample from my second box and feel like it is such an amazing product that I wanted to order the full-sized version. Well, Birchbox is currently running a promotion where you get a free mystery sample pack when you spend $35… so now seemed like a good time to place my order. I also found a 20% off promo code (Mobile20) AND had 200 Birchbox points from writing product reviews for my last two boxes… so I got everything for $20!

For my fellow Birchbox subscribers, what did you get this month? Have you fallen in love with any products and decided to order the full-sized versions?

 

Disclaimer: This post is not sponsored by Birchbox, I paid for the $10 fee with my own hard-earned money. If you enjoyed my review and decide to try Birchbox for yourself, the biggest compliment you can give me is by using my referral link. Thank you to anyone who chooses to click through and support my shopping addiction! Pocketful of Joules is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

As I mentioned in my January Birchbox review, I decided to stick with the subscription for a few months to see if I find any new beauty favorites. I figured, I enjoyed last month’s box, so why not try it again for just $10 more!

Once again, I checked out their Sneak Peek video and got super excited:

As soon as I saw the video, I knew I wanted to try that mystery brand moisturizing sea salt spray. I love letting my hair air dry in the spring/summer/fall/whenever it’s not butt cold out. I’ve used a couple different sea salt sprays, but unless I mix them with other products they tend to make my hair a little crunchy. Well, Birchbox emailed their subscribers before shipping the boxes out and I clicked through in two shakes of a lambs tail to make sure I was able to get that magical spray!

Let’s see what I got in my February box:

PARLOR by Jeff Chastain Moisturizing Sea Salt Spray {Full-size, $24}
This is that special Birchbox exclusive sea salt spray the ladies were talking about in the video and I was super excited to try it out! According to the directions you can either spray this on damp hair, or mist your dry hair. It took me a few times to get the hang of it, but if I spray it on my damp hair and let it dry without touching it AT ALL, I end up with some pretty waves. It also smells great, so I like it!

Paula’s Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant {Full-size, $26}
I’ve never tried a liquid skin exfoliant before, so this was an interesting addition to my box. I’m pretty satisfied with my skin care routine though, especially with the addition of last month’s exfoliant. I think I’ll be giving this one to one of my friends to enjoy.

Gilchrist & Soames London Collection Shower Gel {Full-size, $16}
I love that Birchbox included a shower gel in my box. When I travel, I enjoy taking pretty smelling shower gels with me so that I don’t have to worry about packing perfume. This one is a great size AND a great scent, so it’s a winner!

theBalm cosmetics Read My Lips Lip Gloss – BAM! {Full-size, $15}
The color of this lip gloss is pretty and can be worn on its own or layered over lipstick. I’m wearing the gloss in this picture over the Pixi lip balm I received in last month’s Birchbox:

The problem is that the lip gloss feels kind of sticky on my lips. I’m more of a chapstick girl, so having a sticky lip gloss is just not going to do it for me. The color IS pretty though, so it’s such a shame. Glad I tried it though.

Juicy Couture Hollywood Royal Perfume {Full-size $72}
When I think of Juicy Couture I think of pink velour track suits with “juicy” emblazoned across someone’s butt. Pretty much the opposite of my personal style. I sniffed this sample with an open mind though and… BLEGH. Nope.

Once again, I went online into my Birchbox account and left feedback for each item. After just two Birchbox deliveries, I’ve already accumulated 100 points, which is good for $10 in their shop towards full-sized merchandise. I have my eye on a liquid eye liner that I’ve been wanting to try, so I’ll be placing an order pretty soon.

For my fellow Birchbox subscribers, what did you get this month?

Disclaimer: This post is not sponsored by Birchbox, I paid for the $10 fee with my own hard-earned money. If you enjoyed my review and decide to try Birchbox for yourself, the biggest compliment you can give me is by using my referral link. Thank you to anyone who chooses to click through and support my shopping addiction!