Birchbox July 2015 Unboxing

Overall, the box this month was pretty good for me. It was worth my ten dollars even if my overall opinion of this box was "okay".

We'll start with the actual box. I didn't love it, and I didn't hate it.

 The theme of this month was Go Bold which makes sense with the packaging and neon yellow-green tissue paper. I'd say the beachy wave spray and the brightly colored lipstick samples lived up to the theme, while the other products were seasonally appropriate.

Another okay.


Benefit has a deal in the Birchbox shop where if you purchase a Benefit product you can get a deluxe sample of the black They're Real mascara or the black Push-Up liner for free using the code REALLASHES or REALLINER. The inside of the card is an advertisement for Benefit's new colored version of these products, available in the Birchbox shop.




There was no pillow box this month. Which is fine by me, but an odd change since I'm used to getting one even though I never really saw it as a necessary or even logical thing. I'm expecting to get 5 samples. Putting some of the 5 samples into a pillow box doesn't make them a bonus gift.


Birchbox has a way of giving me lots of things that I need and am too lazy to buy. Take for example the winter and spring months where they loaded me up on hair masks, I was almost out of my current hair mask and didn't need to buy a new one for months because of Birchbox. Now, they've given me two different face sunscreen samples, as if they magically know that I am out of face sunscreen and have been using CC creams every day because they are the only face sunscreen I currently own.

 This product is Daisy Approved. ❁

   I'm going to be honest here and tell you that I was most excited about this box because they promised me a Stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick sample.  I'm working on a Liquid-to-Matte lipstick post similar to my Two Step Liquid Lipstick post and as such need to collect a wider variety of brands. Stila was one of the ones I didn't have. 

It is a super bright pin-up red color from a brand of lipstick I didn't have and was getting ready to shell out 20$ to buy, and as exciting as that is I find it even more exciting because I already own an exact dupe for this product in my collection (Sephora Cream Lipstain in Always Red) so I know that I don't need to buy more of these unless they have a shade I really want.


Daisy Approved ❁

 Birchbox has a love affair with Dr.Brandt that I just don't understand and can't approve of. Because of them I have tried a lot of Dr.Brandt products and I haven't liked a single one of them. Honestly, I don't need a new exfoliant and I'm just going to pass it on to someone who will actually use it.



Coola Setting Spray. This will be my third setting spray and I'm excited to test it out because I have yet to find one I really love. Even Skindinavia's setting spray hasn't stolen my heart.

Coola is known for being an organic all natural brand, and this product has SPF 30 in it. As a super pale child I am hopeful for this product because SPF is my life in the summer.



Daisy Approved ❁

Finally, this super adorably sized Oribe beachy wave spray. I've only tried out one of these before and I didn't really like it but this is a high end product, so it might work out. I'm going to try it.

Value and Personal Value

Value is determined using the price per ounce of the full sized product multiplied by the amount of product in the sample unless otherwise stated. 

MD Solar Sciences- 4.42$

Stila Lipstick- Going by the 20$ for the set of three on the Birchbox shop the value is 6.67$

Dr. Brandt Microdermabrasion- 9.75$

Coola Setting Spray- 7.20$

Oribe Beachy Wave Spray- 4.59$

Total Value= 32.63$ which works out to be more than three times the cost of the Birchbox itself. 

Personal Value is determined by how much I would be willing to pay for each of these samples. 

MD Solar Sciences-  2$

Stila Lipstick- 5$

Dr. Brandt Microdermabrasion- 0$

Coola Setting Spray- 5$

Oribe Beachy Wave Spray- 5$

Personal Value= 17$ which is still almost twice the cost of the box, so I'll take it. I ended up with two products I am excited about, one I'm going to try, and one that I needed and was lacking in. 

Birchbox April 2015 Unboxing

Well this was pretty disappointing. I've been seeing a lot of repeat products too, which could be great if you really enjoyed the product, but kind of defeats the whole purpose of a sampling program, since the idea is that you send people samples for cheap in hopes they will buy the product in the future.

I wasn't in love with this box design, but it wasn't bad.

 Blah blah blah spring (although it was actually less than 50 degrees with wind chill over here so the only spring thing for me right now is the high pollen counts)

They paired with Rifle Paper Co., which I would care about more if I loved paper and cards.

The pillow box this month is a little abused and boring. I mean it is definitely spring but we are now in the middle of April, it has been nearly a month since spring (officially, because we all know spring really starts in early March or mid May depending on if you determine reality by the weather or not) started. Plus this is more of a summer aqua than a spring mint green.











 I don't use traditional shampoo and conditioner, so this is a waste of time for me. I am so sick of getting shampoo and conditioner in my birchboxes.

I am pleased to have this, I LOVE Hello by Harvey Prince, I even wore it today.














 Cynthia Rowley Creamy Lipstain in Sugar (nude pink). It is a nice nude pink, I am working on testing out the actual staining power of it now but that is difficult when it is so close to my actual lip color. I have to say that it didn't do much for my hand though, and I was super concerned when I rubbed it off because I have a lot of events coming up. Cynthia Rowley isn't a bad brand or anything, but I've gotten more powerful lipstains for less than 2$ as of right now.




It is forgiving enough that I would feel comfortable reapplying it with the provided doe foot applicator though, so I will give it that. It is also vegan, cruelty-free, and paraben free so I would say that makes it worth the 20$ price tag.

POP shadows are decent enough, these colors are nice enough too, but they are way over priced. I mean, there are worse eyeshadows, but there are also better eyeshadows. I wouldn't have picked this up for myself either because these are the exact colors I have 8 of already.

My elf shadows are equal in quality, and the palettes are cheaper.

Personal Value and Final Thoughts

Overall, I liked three, two if we're being honest, of the 5 samples this month. The value is still there, but I would feel happier if we would stop getting shampoos and conditioners or at least make them count as one sample so that there is at least a remote possibility that I could like 4/5 of the samples

Shampoo- 3.49$
Conditioner- 3.05$
Eyeshadow sample value- 2.44$
Cynthia Rowley Lip Stain- 10$ (Probably more like 9$, but we got almost half of a full size which is really good)
Hello Body Cream- 1.25$

So my personal value would probably be 11.25$ for this box, which is still more than the cost of the box. Though to be fair it is most likely that the lip stain would cost way way less because you would typically buy a sample like that in a try-it kit of some sort and the body cream sample would probably be 5$ for only a slightly larger sized bottle, marketed as "travel size".

Birchbox March 2015 Unboxing

Last month I got my Birchbox, but I did not review it because the only thing I enjoyed was the sample I had personally selected. I am however interested in 3 different products in this month's box, and the box itself is absolutely adorable. There were a ton of possible box combinations (the tops and bottoms for each box were randomly selected, but I think I got the best possible one for me).



 I am a complete sucker for creativity themed things as well, I am a crafter and I love making things, so the box theme appealed to my soul, the products were functional, but didn't quite match the theme. I was expecting more cosmetics and more oddly colored cosmetics in a creativity themed box.





Again, I adore the packaging this month. Look how perfect and adorable the pillow box is! Bonus, it is polka dots and the sides are my favorite rose pink color.

This is what the box looked like when I opened it.




My hair oil leaked. It still leaks, unless kept upright. There is a minor oil stain on the bottom of the box, but luckily the tissue paper managed to absorb most of it. I will eventually get some use out of it, but I have a ton of other hair oil samples as well. People do rave about Beauty Protector though, so I am excited.

 Next, we have No. 4 clarifying shampoo and repairing hair mask. I will use the hair mask, but the clarifying shampoo will only get used if I go swimming.

 Jouer Moisture Tint Lumizing Sunscreen. It has a really good SPF and matches my skin tone nicely, I'm excited to use it for more dewy looks.

WEI Manuka Bee Venom Anti-Wrinkle Mask. This is where I begin to doubt the personalization of Birchboxes because there really should have been a question about age and skin concerns where wrinkles were not specified as one of them because I am not even old enough for my skin to have stopped producing more collagen.

Far left is the Jouer Luminizing sunscreen,  and on the right Mirenesse Cheeky Kiss

 Mirenesse Cheeky Kiss Mini Lip Crayon. I love my Mirenesse mascara, so I was excited to try this. It is a good product in a beautiful color, and this was the only thing that lent itself to any creativity at all because it gave instructions on different ways to use it.  The stick itself is adorable and tiny, they say you can use it on your cheeks, blot the color down to a matte shade, or leave it glossy. However, you can do this with a lot of lip crayons like the Neutrogena Moisture Smooth Lip Colors.





Overall, I would say the personal value of this would be 10$, at least for me. I LOVE lip crayons, and Mirenesse. I have been in search of good hair oils forever, so a hair oil sample from a well loved brand is fine by me. I only go swimming a few times a year anyway so the clarifying shampoo is the perfect size, and I am always looking for great hair masks. The sample sizes are usually large enough for me to get a few uses out of each product, and then that combined with the points system is what really makes the box worth it for me.

If you review every product (review meaning answer a few quick questions, you don't need to have tried the product, and you don't need to review publicly) two boxes will get 10$ off in the Birchbox shop. They don't have EVERYTHING but they do have a very wide selection of higher end brands. I like to splurge on my base (foundation, concealer, skin care) and Birchbox points are a good way to find base products you like and get good discounts on them.

January Birchbox Unboxing

 Well, according to the Birchbox sneak peak video, every month will now have pretty boxes which the subscribers are supposed to save. I am very pleased with the announcement of having all pretty boxes, and I will definitely try and get my life a little more organized.

The theme for this month is Let's Do This, because it is of course New Year's Resolution time, you know, those things everyone quits by February.

 The initial opening of the box, this is what it looked like.

 Disappointingly enough, the first thing I got was a face cleanser. I don't use a lot of cleansers on my face, and I don't like trying a bunch of different ones because I worry about allergies. When it comes to cosmetics I don't generally have issues, however, my skin is very sensitive to cleansers for some reason.







Next is a BB cream sample. I've gotten a few things from Dr.Jart and I can tell you I haven't liked a single one of them. The color matched my skin tone nicely and everything, but I don't use BB creams.










I was super excited about the brand and the product (I am a lotion addict), but I'm kind of meh about the scent of lavender. I will be passing this on to a friend of mine who is in love with the scent.

 Harvey Prince was the company that gave me faith in perfume, and it does smell good, but it comes across as a very elegant perfume, which is just not something I'm that interested in.

Savor the delicate notes of South African Freesia, Japanese Orange flower, and Moroccan rose – it’s like sipping a sweet, Alsatian wine in the light of the sun! 

I will also be passing this on to a friend who will use it more than I will. 

 Finally, colored eyeliner. It sets up nicely, smudges very little and is a beautiful antiqued gold color.  The swatch doesn't do it justice, but I tried.  I love getting colored eyeliner in sub boxes because I can never bring myself to actually buy them, and it is a great way to try out different eyeliner brands. If I like the quality in lime green, there is a 99% chance I'm going to like it in black too.




Overall, not sure this box actually has much personal value to me. It was a well intentioned box, I was very excited about almost all of the brands, but nothing really worked out for me. The full sized eyeliner runs for 11$, and it isn't the full size. I would pay 5$ for it I guess?

Birchbox December 2014 Unboxing

 This month's box is another pretty box, though I accidentally drew on it try trying to open up the outer packaging. I did already peak, and I chose a sample this month, so I know what I am going to get, just not what they look/feel/smell like in person.

Here is what it looks like once you get beyond the paper. The first visible things are the Rusk Texturizing Spray, and a Rosemary Shower Gel.

I actually forgot how much I liked the smell of Rosemary until I opened this up. It is a very well done genuine smelling fragrance, they stay true to the base scent but have other notes that make it smell like something one would expect from a high quality brand.



Typically, rosemary is hard to make perfumey, but people do tend to make it smell like the kitchen spice cabinet. While I love my spice cabinet, I don't really want to smell like it-- not the kind of edible I'm going for. I don't use shower gel too often, so I imagine I won't be repurchasing it unless it is some miracle product, in which case you will hear about it.

I have no idea why I got a texturizing spray, as on my profile I mentioned I had very thick hair that I almost always let air dry. There is no styling involved in my day to day hair. Some days I can't even be bothered to brush it, since I know it will just look like I rolled out of bed two minutes later. So, I won't be using this product.

 Next, the Mirenesse iCurl Secret Weapon 24hr Mascara. It isn't a waterproof mascara, so I'm not sure how they expect it to stay on all day, and I know that water based mascaras are often not good at holding curl, but we'll see.

This was the sample I chose, because I've been on a mascara hoarding kick as of late. I don't like to put on waterproof mascara everyday, but my lashes hate to curl just as much as my regular hair does. The full size of this is like 30$, which is insane, but I thought I might give it a shot.

Finally, inside of the pillow box was the Amika Hair Mask, and the Embroylisse moisturizer. I will try out both of these, though I have heard mixed reviews on Embroylisse. However, I am completely stocked up on both of these types of products (3 hair mask samples, 1 full size hair mask, and 4 moisturizer samples) so it may take me a while to get to these.

Birchbox Unboxing- November 2014

 This month, the outer packaging came in a cool red box, because this month Birchbox partnered with an aids awareness group called RED.  The box underneath is still the same though, as you can see here.

I know that a lot of people haven't seemed to like Birchbox, but this is my third month now and I'm really liking it. Some months, I even like it more than my Ipsy.

 When you open up the box they use red tissue paper, and the front of their card has an explanation about how November is a month for giving (a notion I really like because that is a very sweet take on the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday), and that's why they partnered up with RED. The back has all the items on it, but I try to avoid looking at those because I like to be surprised.

 Initial view when I opened up the box, and the first thing I noticed was that there was a snack in my beauty box.

 I'm still pretty weirded out that there is a snack in my beauty box, but I already know I like these. It wasn't a flavor I had tried before, but I ate it last night and it was just as delicious as all of Justin's other packets.

I take these for afternoon snacks, and I bring them backpacking with me. I recommend giving them a shot if you like nut butters. They have chocolate peanut butter, chocolate hazelnut butter, and chocolate almond butter, as well as honey peanut butter, and honey almond butter, and then also just peanut butter and almond butter packets.

So, I wouldn't say I was disappointed, but it wasn't what I was expecting, and I don't think I want it to be a continuing trend.

- This was technically a bonus item, so in that regard it's pretty cool. This is a full size packet, however you get like 10 in a pack for 12.99$

 So I peeked on the website about this item, because Birchbox said I was going to be getting a body butter and, while I do too like body butters, I am on the hunt for the most nourishing winter skin body butter for my friend and I wanted to see if this was a good candidate.

It's a pretty good body butter, it doesn't smell medicinal like other super nourishing body butter samples I've gotten, but it also doesn't work as well as the medicinal body butters. Also, the reviews raved about how good it smelled, and it has an okay scent, it's unoffensive, but I wouldn't say it's super great in my personal opinion.

Full Size- 34.46$
 I wouldn't pay that much for it, but it should be noted that you get a ridiculously large amount of body butter for your money. The full size is 13.5 oz

 This is another deep conditioner/hair mask style product. I did have to look this one up on the card, because initially I wasn't sure what it was. I haven't tried it yet, but I certainly will.

Full Size- 25$

 This is a pretty good sample size, it isn't like the teeny tiny tubes you sometimes end up with that feel poorly packaged (since, let's face it, packaging is very important when you are trying to assign a high value to scented liquid).

This perfume is exceedingly floral, it does smell high quality, it doesn't have an alcoholy or signature perfume smell (do you know what I mean?), but it is straight up floral, and not for me.

Full Size- 68$

 The first thing I thought about htis particular product, is that it is very small. I know this is a really nice brand, and that it is just a face product, so this will last me a long time, but that is all I think about.

It's actually a pretty cool looking product though, I haven't fully tested it out, but I swatched it and it matches my skin tone (and has magic self-adjusting stuff which I adore more than I should), it's got good pigmentation and some impressive coverage, it also has SPF 40.

Full Size- 32$

This is a full size eyeshadow/eyeliner stick, I haven't tried it out, because today was a snow day, and so I put on frost princess makeup instead, but I did swatch it. It is a very blendable, silvery shimmery brown color. I think it will make for a gorgeous winter brown.

I'm pretty excited about it, but I haven't actually worn it yet, so we'll see how it goes. I have issues getting a lot of eye crayons to stay on my lids, so we'll see. Technically it says this could be a l,iner, but I don't think it has anywhere near enough of a point for that.

Full Size- 15$

Overall, I'm pretty happy with this box, I'll be using most of the things in here, and I might even purchase a couple of these in full size. Physical value wise, it is worth way more than 10$, and even to me personally (what I would pay for the samples I end up using), this is well worth it.  What do you think about Birchbox?